January's Paranormal Anniversaries

As part of my research into paranormal activity, I have taken to making a note of any anniversaries where phenomenon is said to occur annually, or at least on more than one occasion, and of any historical events that have become shrouded in folklore.

Glancing through my diary for the month of January, I find that the 9th has been highlighted, as back in 1646 that was when the Battle of Bovey Heath, a heathland just outside of Bovey Tracey, took place being a minor skirmish towards the end of the English Civil War.

Legend has it that, if you venture out on to the heath itself, nowadays it is surrounded by houses and a trading estate, on the night of January 9, around the time when the fighting took place, you may witness a re-enactment of the event. 

History tells us that the Parliamentarian forces, under the command of Fairfax, were besieging the Royalists, who were trying to keep hold of the City of Exeter. 

Meanwhile, further south, near Bovey Tracey, other Royalist troops and cavalry were preparing to come to the aid of their comrades. 

Hearing of this plan, Fairfax sent Oliver Cromwell himself to deal with the threat of reinforcements and they came upon their encampment on Bovey Heath undercover of darkness. 

(Oliver Cromwell pictured here)

The guards around the camp were pretty slack, when Cromwell’s men came amongst them, they were taken totally by surprise. They just fled into the night, or surrendered without much of a fight. One story tells of how a group of Royalist officers were playing cards in a house in Bovey Tracey and when the poorly paid Roundheads came to capture them they just threw the money they were gambling with, out into the street, at the feet of their enemy, who started fighting amongst themselves over the unexpected windfall. This distraction allowed the officers to escape out the backdoor, and into the surrounding countryside. 

Not many soldiers lost their lives, or got injured, that night, but I’m sure the sound of frightened horses and fleeing Royalists would cause enough of a re-enactment, for someone in the right place at the right time to experience. To date, I’ve not visited the site on the anniversary, or at night, for that matter, but I have been there during daylight, along with my friend, Mark, who used to live in Bovey Tracey and it does feel like a little oasis of nature, amongst the surrounding houses and industry. 

Sadly, nothing unusual happened whilst we were there, but I have previously told the story of what a visitor to one of my brother’s neighbours saw whilst sunbathing in the garden of one of the new builds on the nearby Heathfield housing estate.

They were relaxing, minding their own business, when suddenly a Civil War Cavalier, complete with plumed hat and drawn sword, came running out of the trees, behind the house, and promptly disappeared back into the wood, never to be seen again at least not to the best of my knowledge.

Whilst I was doing research for this article, I came across another entry for January 9, in one of my ghostly almanacs for it was on this date, in 1975, that John Slater, he of Brixham Theatre fame, sadly passed away after a long illness.

John Slater was an actor, probably best known for his role as Detective Sergeant Stone, in the popular BBC TV series Z Cars, which was on our screens throughout the 60s and 70s. His career spanned film and theatre as well as TV. 

When he moved to the house he had bought with his wife, Betty, in Brixham, he became very involved with the theatre there saving it from closure almost single-handedly, by putting on Summer Seasons in 1973 and 1974, before his untimely death at the age of 58.

It is only fitting then that his ghost has chosen to return to one of the last places he ever performed, one that was so close to his heart. 

Over the years, his spirit has been seen around the theatre, both on and off the stage, as well as the BOADS rehearsal rooms on Cavern Hill, still wearing the last costume he ever wore. Whenever anything goes wrong with any of the performances at the theatre, John is often blamed for it, possibly still casting a critical eye over the proceedings on his beloved stage.

I have actually helped to put on several charity events at the Brixham Theatre in more recent years involving demonstrations of mediumship, private readings, and paranormal investigations. During the course of one such investigation, my partner Sarah was sitting in the main auditorium with several other sensitives in the dark when she saw a figure come on to the stage. She said they were wearing a striped blazer, with a straw boater hat, displaying Jazz Hands. Their face blacked up like a Black and White minstrel. Not something you would see nowadays, so surely a playback of a past performance?

As we were preparing to leave in the early hours of the morning now with all the lights back on full, Sarah and I were making one final sweep of the building, making sure we hadn’t left anything behind, when she noticed a framed photograph hanging on the wall of the staircase that she hadn’t spotted before. “That’s the guy I saw on stage!”, she exclaimed. Sure enough, it was a picture of John Slater, without his minstrel makeup...

It’s good to know that he still makes an appearance from time to time. Maybe he will have shown himself on the anniversary of his death, nearly 50 years on. That, along with any manifestations on the battlefield at Bovey Heath, I await to have confirmation of.