Southern Paranormal - Investigations
Michelham Priory Investigation
Saturday 23rd February 2008
Attendees : Julie Harwood, Maria Street, Steve Gilbert, Sandy Rutter, Eileen Rutter, Alan Hall, Selina Dean, Rachel Steadman, Simon Steadman and Marie Holder.
Guest Investigators : Suzanne Gilbert & Alison Brettell
Introduction
Michelham Priory is up there on the top of the lists for most paranormal groups “must investigate” locations along with places like the Ancient Ram Inn & Jamaica Inn.
We had a relatively small team and so it was an investigation members were eager to get on with when they arrived. We were also excited to hear we had access to the main building but as a bonus the gatehouse as well which intrigued most of us as soon as we arrived as it was obviously the first thing we saw.
A Little Bit of the History of Michelham Priory
The name Michelham is Anglo-Saxon and means “a large piece of land in a river bend” and lies in the ancient parish of Arlington.
The Augustinian Priory of the Holy Trinity was founded at Michelham in 1229 by Gilbert De L’Aigle whose family came from Normandy in France.
The Augustinian canons comprised one of the religious orders of the medieval church. They were known as the Black Canons because of the colour of their habit. They were not monks but ordained priests who renounced private property and live a disciplined but communal life.
Religious housing of this kind were expected to provide hospitality to travelers both rich and poor and lying near an important highway which led from Lewes and the ports of Hastings and Rye, it saw many guests for short and longer stays. Guests included the Archbishop of Canterbury in 1283 and King Edward I in 1302.
Prior John Leem resided at Michelham for forty three years between 1374 & 1417 and was a distinctive personality at the priory. When Prior Leem was succeeded in 1417 the priory was bought into increasing disrepute and in 1440 there were major troubles and in 1441 the new prior was seen to be wasting the priory funds by living extravagantly and failing to keep accounts. His rule over the canons was also bought into question when it was observed that the canons were not observing the rules of silence and were seen to be frequenting the tavern outside the priory gate. By 478 religious life had declined dramatically and the vestments and ornaments of the priory were in a bad state of repair. Canons openly chatted during religious services and one canon admitted “fornicating with a local married woman”.
King Henry VIII was not concerned with reforming the religion of England and with the aid of his secretary of state Thomas Cromwell closed all religious houses in England between 1536 & 1540, confiscating their property. Michelham Priory was dissolved in 1537. When all the Canons had left King Henry awarded the Priory to Thomas Cromwell (at a very low rent) as one of his many rewards for his services during the dissolutions.
In 1556 the Crown sold Michelham and the remaining lands surrounding it to John Foote of Arlington. He had been a tenant since 1542 and remained the Priory owner until 1574.
After 2 more changes of ownership in 1587 Thomas Pelham purchased the Priory. He built on extensive extensions to accommodate his growing family which included a new stone wing.
In 1599 the Pelham estate was declared bankrupt and on 6th April 1601 Pelham’s trustees sold Michelham to Thomas Sackville, Lord Buckhurst, the Lord Treasurer who was later created the Earl of Dorset. For the nearly the next 300 years the Priory stayed part of the Sackville’s extensive estates. During this time the estate was leased in parts to tenants who farmed and worked on the land. Over 500 acres was leased to Thomas Marshall Sackville’s auditor and surveyor who was also one if Sussex’s earliest map makers. He died at the priory in 1616 and was succeeded by his son also named Thomas who stayed on the land until 1634.
By 1662 the tenant was John Lulham and maps from this time show that priory had been extended yet again to include a medieval western range and the gable end of the Tudor wing. In the 1680’s new tenants Richard & Elizabeth Children moved into Michelham from Tonbridge. Unfortunately their arrival at the Priory was marked with tragedy when Richard died in 1687 aged just 51 and 2 of their children were buried in Arlington cemetery before Elizabeth died in 1693.
Tragedy seemed to follow when the new tenant John Walker also died after a very brief residency however his widow then his son and then his grandson Henry stayed residence for nearly the next 100 years.
Unfortunately by 1780 the western range was derelict through neglect.
From 1791 until 1861 three generations of the Child family took tenancy of the priory. William and Sarah Child were succeeded by their son, Thomas in 1821 but on 14th November 1896 James Eglington Anderson Gwynne of Folkington Manor bought the Priory from Lionel Sackville-West ending nearly three centuries of Sackville ownership. Mr. Gwynne did not live at the priory but he did begin a period of restoration of the Priors chamber and the lavatorium in the cloister before he died in 1915. His two sons used the priory as a hunting lodge until 1925 when the one surviving brother sold Michelham and 341 acres to Richard Beresford-Wright of Warwickshire. The remainder of the estate was divided into lots and sold at a separate sale.
The Beresford-Wrights set about restoration but a disastrous setback stopped them in their tracks when a fire gutted the Tudor wing in December 1927.
During the 2nd World War evacuees from Rotherhithe came to Michelham but by May 1940 Sussex was in the front line facing imminent German invasion and Mr. & Mrs. Beresford-Wright left the Priory for the duration of the war. One of their daughters who was a member of the land army stayed to work and maintain the land and in 1941 Canadian troops moved in. A plan for the Dieppe raid was drawn on a wall in the gatehouse, where it remains to this day. When the Canadians left in May 1943 the Priory became the Head Quarters for the Auxiliary Territorial Service who used Michelham as the working farm that it was.
Mr. Beresford-Wright died in 1951 and although he wanted to leave the Priory to the National Trust he could provide no endowment for its upkeep so Michelham was sold to a Mrs. Stella Hotblack in 1958 who wanted to preserve the Priory. She converted the buildings and eventually opened the Priory to the public. In 1959 Mrs. Hotblack gave Michelham Priory in trust to the Sussex Archeological Society. Since 1959 the society has continued repairs to the house, restored the gatehouse, re roofed the barn, returned the mill to working order and undertaken excavation to discover more of the priories fascinating history.
The Ghosts of Michelham
One of the many alleged resident ghosts is that of Thomas Sackville. He is said to torment the ghost of a young girl called Rosie who apparently hides away in a priest hole behind the wood paneling on the stairs.
One of the most well known documented sightings is that of the grey lady who has been seen on many occasions on the bridge by the gatehouse. She has also been seen near the moat staring helplessly into the water. She is believed to be another former member of the Sackville family whose child drowned in the moat. She is also said to peer mournfully into the faces of sleeping guests and then drift away through walls.
Other reports also include a black hooded figure in the undercroft (not the dummy that is there!), a young boy in the kitchen area, a maid is also seen in the hall and on the stairs and a mysterious lady in Tudor clothing walks the corridors, the sound of her heels echoing through the building.
There are also tales of poltergeist activity, windows are said to open by themselves and objects mysteriously move on their own, people have also claimed to hear doors banging in deserted parts of the building. Many visitors to the priory have sensed the feeling of being watched or while others report sharp temperature variations and a feeling of unease.
The Investigation
Team 1
Julie
Sandy
Simon
Suzanne
Team 2
Maria
Eileen
Selina
Steve
Team 3
Alan
Rachel
Marie
Alison
Itinerary
8.30pm Team Leaders to have a tour of vigil areas with host
9.15 – 10.30 Team 1 – Ground Floor
Team 2 – First Floor
Team 3 – Gatehouse
10.30 – 10.45 Break
10.45 – 11.50 Team 1 – First Floor
Team 2 – Gatehouse
Team 3 – Ground Floor
11.50 – 12.10 Break
12.10 – 1.30 Team 1 – Gatehouse
Team 2 – Ground Floor
Team 3 – First Floor
1.30 – 2.00 Break
2.00 – 3.00 Teams to revisit interesting areas
3.00 – 4.00 Group Vigil in most active area
Baseline Readings
(recorded by Julie & Simon during the Team Leader Tour)
Ground Floor
Kitchen Area – Temp 17, EMF 0.01 – 0.02 no fluctuations, area feels very warm, also team must be aware that that office is the other side of the kitchen where our host will be all night. Displays of kitchen equipment and mock food are on the main table in the kitchen.
Tudor Room (Dining Room) – Temp 13, EMF 0.01 – 0.02 no fluctuations. Team to be aware of partition ropes in the dark.
The Music Room – Temp 13, EMF 0.01 – 0.02 no fluctuations.
The Undercroft – Temp 3, EMF 0.01 – 0.02 no fluctuations. Stone floor, area feels very cold as it has outside door. Teams hub for the night. Team to be aware in the dark of the dummy of a canon stood in corner!
Stairway – Temp 14, EMF 0.01 – 0.02 no fluctuations
First Floor
Landing Area – Temp 13, EMF 0.01 – 0.02 no fluctuations.
Priors Room – Temp 11, EMF 0.01 – 0.02 no fluctuations. Team to be aware of partition ropes in the dark and also dummy of prior sat at desk!
Bedroom – Temp 14, EMF 0.01 – 0.02 no fluctuations. Team to be aware of several mirrors in this room and also partition ropes in the dark.
School Room – Temp 13, EMF 0.01 – 0.02 no fluctuations.
The Gatehouse
Team to be aware that spiral staircase to floors in the gatehouse are very steep
First Floor – Temp 4, EMF 0.01 – 0.02 no fluctuations.
Second Floor – Temp 5, EMF 0.01 – 0.02 no fluctuations.
Third Floor – Temp 4.5, EMF 0.01 – 0.02 no fluctuations.
Team / Vigil Notes
Team 1
Vigil 1
Kitchen – Temp 16, 17 by office door, 13 by window, no unusual EMF readings.
9.25pm Sandy thinks Suzanne is stood behind Simon but she is no where near Simon
9.27pm Julie feels much warmer than the temp would suggest
9.30pm 2 thumps heard from ceiling – team unsure whether there is a team above them
9.32pm Julie hears a hiss from behind her
9.35pm the camcorder battery is jumping up and down in what minutes it has left
9.40pm Just as we are about to leave the area a loud creak / crack is heard by all the team from behind the large chair / dresser. We could not find anything that would make this noise apart from possible wood settling but it seemed too loud for that. Simon calls out for the noise to be made again but no response.
9.41pm Temp on leaving Kitchen 16
9.42pm Team enter the Tudor room which feels much colder. Temp reading confirms this, 12. No notable EMF readings.
9.45pm Sounds like team upstairs are dragging and moving furniture!
9.46pm loud wailing sound heard by all
9.50pm Julie calls out and gets the picture of a dog sat by the fireplace
9.52pm Suzanne thinks she sees Simon sat on the right of the fireplace (as you look at it) but in fact Simon is sat to the left of it.
9.55pm Julie gets the picture now of lots of dogs in the room, feels they are hunting dogs
10.00pm Simon exclaims how at home he feels in the building and starts to act a little out of character
10.01pm Julie thinks Simon looks at home sat by the fire
10.02pm Sandy and Suzanne wander into the music room and hear the sound of heeled shoes on wooden floor but no one in any of the teams are wearing heals
10.05pm Julie calls out asking if any spirits in the room think they recognize Simon and if they do can they make him aware of their presence. Cold column of air detected by Simon temp 10
10.10pm Simon is walking about grinning says he feels “bloody good in here!” light anomaly caught on camcorder floating down near Simon when he says this.
10.15pm Simon tries automatic handwriting and writes - Lady Marie, Music Room and 1876
Vigil 2
Priory Room – Temp 10, no unusual EMF readings.
Several of the team feels this room is wrong and not part of the house
Lots of banging and dragging noises from above – people in the flat?
11.11pm Julie calls out and team note a sense of expectation
11.12pm Simon’s camcorder turns it self off and then back on again. This should not have happened as the camcorder was plugged into the mains power at the time.
11.14pm Julie sees a light go across the ceiling and seconds later Simon’s camcorder goes off again.
11.18pm Simon and Julie see another light on the ceiling
11.24pm Sandy feels like his face has been slapped or scratched and is visibly redder than normal
11.29pm Sandy captures a light anomaly above Simon
School Room Temp 12, no unusual EMF readings.
11.32pm Simon calls out asking for light to go out and within seconds light flickers and goes out.
11.33pm Simon asks for light to come back on
11.34pm Light comes back on
11.42pm Julie gets the name of Thomas P but can’t get a surname
11.45pm Julie is confused by the big pillar than is in the centre of the room and relates it to looking like a pillar from a mill
Bedroom Temp 13, no unusual EMF readings.
Julie and Suzanne really don’t like this room
Team call out but no response
Julie gets shoved and thinks it is Sandy but Suzanne confirms it was not
Vigil 3
The Gatehouse
Top Floor –
Julie feels there should be a large wardrobe structure by first window
Sandy, Simon & Suzanne hear a dragging noise from the floor below
Sandy & Simon hear a coughing sound from downstairs
Julie senses a fire and gets the image of a man throwing himself out of the window
Sandy’s Dictaphone starts flashing then dies for no apparent reason
Julie hears the jangling of keys
Simon & Suzanne hear a rustling sound
Team 2
Vigil 1
School Room – Temp 12, no unusual EMF readings.
Team call out but Eileen hears noises from the Priors room so the team make their way there
9.30pm A strange mist is picked up on camcorder by the table with the lamp on it
9.40pm Maria & Steve call out but no response is heard
9.37pm Mans cry is heard after Steve calls out asking spirit to show themselves to the team in another room
9.40pm Eileen sees shadow go across top of window
9.41pm Steve ask out if they should move to another room and a tap is heard by all the team
Team relocates back to school room
9.50pm Maria asks for any child spirit presence to tap on something, 1 tap in response heard
Maria gets the name Peter and Selina gets the name Darcy
10.00pm Selina calls out and another tap is heard
10.05pm loud tap heard from the corner of the room
10.07pm team splits in two. Maria & Eileen stay in school room and Selina & Steve move into Priors room.
10.08pm Maria calls out and a tap is heard coming from the hallway
10.10pm Cupboard creeks in the corner of the school room
10.15pm Teams swap areas
10.23pm Maria hears a moan
Vigil 2
The Gatehouse
2nd floor Temp 6, no unusual EMF readings.
Noises are heard coming from the spiral staircase. Team also hear door banging – possibly the wind?
Selina calls out and Maria hears 2 taps
Maria feels cold breezes around her on 3 separate occasions
Steve captures light anomaly on camcorder on the spiral staircase
Maria hears whispering as Steve catches another light anomaly on camcorder
Vigil 3
Ground Floor
Kitchen – Temp 12, no unusual EMF readings.
Little knock heard from chair Eileen is sat in
Team smells lavender and considers it may be floor polish
Tudor Room – Temp 9, no unusual EMF readings.
Team all feel it is a lot colder in here than temp suggests
Tap heard from clock in the corner
Music Room – Temp 10, no unusual EMF readings.
Team feels very cold in here
Despite calling out – nothing is experienced
Team 3
Vigil 1 - Gatehouse
Temp - 6.7 - 7.5 degrees
EMF - Zero
Top floor
21:15 - Alan calls out, no response. Team keep calling out but no response.
21:35 - Alan calls out and a thud is heard by the staircase. Alan feels a hand on his shoulder. Both camcorders will not focus on doorway to the stone staircase.
21:45 - Experiment. Marie goes into small room off the stone staircase. Team calls out and tapping is heard on the door. Both Alan and Alison feel a cold blast, a thud on the wall is heard and the door opens.
First floor
Temp - 6 degrees but feels so much colder
EMF - Zero
21:50pm - 22:25 - Team sits down and begin calling out. Both Alan and Alison feel a cold blast by the sides and suddenly Alison begins to shake and feel unwell. Alan stops calling out and takes time out with Alison. Alison was happy to try again. A coin was placed in the centre of the table and after 15 minutes of calling out it began to roll. Alan gets the impression of a man called Richard, about 40/50 years old and he was hung in the building. Everyone heard taps coming from the chairs in the room.
22:25 - Team begin to leave and Alan goes around to turn the lights back on. The door which had been closed all vigil upstairs was wide open. This was latched shut as Alan did it himself and was witnessed by the group.
Vigil 2 - Ground floor
Temp - 11.3 degrees
EMF - Zero
Dining room
11:00 - Alan calls out and feels very oppressed and not right in himself
11:06 - Marie hears a thud. Then everyone else hears the same noise. Rachel called out and Marie says she could hear a faint crunching sound in front of her. We all heard a sudden thump. Everything goes quiet.
Music room.
Temp 12/13 degrees
EMF - Zero
Sorry no times logged.
Alison feels the presence of a little girl in the room and calls out to her, Alan hears a child’s voice. Marie feels the impression of a girl singing ring a ring of roses. Alison comes up with a name of Emily, then of another girl called Susie. Nothing else happened.
Kitchen area
Temp - 15.7 degrees
EMF - Zero
Rachel called out and thought she heard a click. Alan calls out and Alison and Rachel hear more clicking. Alan felt as if someone had pushed him in the back. Nothing else happened, nor in the small room off the kitchen.
Foyer.
Alan sees someone walk past the small window behind the figure of the monk. He also feels a cold blast around his legs as if someone had run past him. All went quiet.
Vigil 3 - Upper floor
Apart from a few tapping sounds nothing happened at all on this vigil.
After all of the vigil areas had been completed we decided to return to the Gatehouse and were not disappointed. We all went into the First floor and Alan set up an experiment with coins. We all called out and asked if a coin on another table could be moved as earlier on in the night and it did. It finished in the same place as the first coin on an earlier investigation. Alan could see blue flashes of light coming from the tapestry in the corner as could Marie. Alison began to feel ill. Alan called out and got a cold blast by his right side. Alan got the name of Father John and the words “leave now”. More blue lights began to flash and Alan became very uncomfortable with the whole situation and informed the team to leave as something bad was going to happen. We returned approx 15 minutes later with the rest of the group and and team take turns calling out, all with fantastic results. Alison was overcome by something or someone. A coin moved again on it’s own free will and the table which we were sat near seemingly began to rise when wenone of us were near it. It also rocked too and fro.
Personal Reports
Julie Harwood
Wow what a location. I have been waiting to visit Michelham ever since the infamous Most Haunted episode from there however I was pretty sure my team even if we got a few scares would last longer than they did!
Thank you to our host Matt who made us feel very welcome and gave us free reign of the main house and gatehouse for the night.
My team consisted of Simon, Sandy, Suzanne and myself and our first vigil was on the ground floor. We started off in the kitchen and one thing that sticks in my mind is when I thought I was talking to Sandy however he was not where I thought he was stood and neither were Suzanne or Simon. That shook me up a little it as even though it was dark I could see what I thought was a solid figure! I also heard a very distinctive hiss from behind me. We continued to call out and we all heard a large knock from behind or near the large dresser unit. We investigated but we could not find a cause for the knock.
We then moved into the Tudor dining room. This was a magnificent room and I got the strong impression of hunting and hunting dogs in room and lots of them. Simon’s reaction to this room interested me as it reminded me of Di Moore at the Buckingham House investigation last year. Like Di, Simon was walking around the room like he owned the place. He looked different and his face looked proud and his eyes were wide open. I know Simon well and it was a look on his face that I had not seen before. It literally did not look like him and this temporarily freaked me out a bit and I would not look at his face while I was speaking to him.
We wandered in and out of the Tudor room and into the music room on occasion usually following Simon striding about.
Our second vigil was on the first floor and we started off in the Priors room. We called out but got little response from in here as there was considerable noise from the flat upstairs, it sounded like they were moving large pieces of furniture about. The one strange thing that happened in hear was the strange noises that sounded briefly like chanting however we could not rule out, that although it sounded like it was on the same floor that it did not also come from upstairs.
We then moved into the school room and in here I got the name Thomas P very strongly Ironically when I later read one of the articles displayed on the walls in this room it was about a man called Thomas who sailed on a ship called HMS Harwood which is my surname. Simon called out for the light to be turned off in here and within a couple of seconds one of the lights did in fact go off and then seemingly come back on, on command. This room on the whole felt wrong to me as a quaint, female orientated room. To me it felt very masculine and so all the feminine furniture felt out of place. The only thing that felt right was the display of the beautiful large wooden boat in a glass cabinet. It felt like the room should be more hunting based and filled with gentlemen chatting about their last hunt.
After this Simon and Sandy convinced Suzanne and I to go into the little bedroom. It was a place Suzanne and I both disliked and we really did not want to go in there. I felt there was a male in here and this was again a strong contrast to the pretty bed linen and the cot that was actually in there. Just before we were about to leave I turned towards Simon and nearly fell towards him as it felt like I was shoved quite forcibly from behind. It felt so real that I turned round ready to have a go at Sandy for messing around but Suzanne confirmed it was not him as she was stood between me and Sandy. Looking back it would not have been Sandy as I know he does not behave like that on vigils but the shove felt so real I felt I had to look for blame in the first instance as I was so shocked.
After a break we made our way over to the gatehouse for our third vigil. The staircase terrified me as it was steep and I have an issue with stairs in general as I have a fear of heights but only when I am on stairs. We called out on the first two floors but got little if any response. The only two things I did get here was 1) the image of a man falling out of the window into the moat and 2) the feeling like there should have been a large wardrobe / cupboard structure on the first floor.
After re grouping we decided to spend a little while as a whole group in the Priors room and although the noise from the flat was absent we got very little in this room. The only thing I did get was the thought of a gay canon who had murdered his lover. On the way back down from this room, when no one was in front of us several of the group saw the shape of a person running down the stairs ahead of us. This is such a credible sighting as so many people saw something if not the same thing, but movement was definitely detected.
Our final vigil was back in the gatehouse as this is where Alan’s team had had most of activity. It was bitter cold over there but that became the least of our worries after a while. Alan, Sandy and Alison seemed top be badly affected in this room. Alan placed coins on two of the tables and several times during the vigil these for no apparent reason rolled off when we asked them to. Four of us were also sat round a table and when we called for something to happen the table moved quite violently and at one point seemed to tilt with no one anywhere near it.
All in all a fantastic night and I would never say no to going back, it was well worth the 2 and a half hour drive from Poole!
Sandy Rutter
What can I say about Michelham Priory? Eileen & I were the first to arrive. We had a walk around, it was a fantastic building. It was a huge and impressive and the grounds were very clean. It was a very well looked after estate. We went back to the car and everybody arrived.
We got into the main building and immediately it felt really good. We used the undercroft as team room and there was a statue of a monk in the corner. The team leaders went on the tour of the building and did baseline tests.
TEAM Julie Sandy Simon Suzanne
Vigil 1
Kitchen
We all went in and started taking a few pictures of the kitchen area. It was beautifully laid out there and there was a big open fire in there but it wasn't lit. There was a wooden table in the middle with mock food on it. I was standing next to Julie and Simon was in front of the table and I said watch your eyes Suzanne and she wasn't there, She was behind me. She walked in from out the door then Simon went out of the door and Julie was talking to me but she thought I was stood behind her but I had moved to the other side near the fire place. Then one last time we called out is there anybody there and we all heard a bang behind the cupboard but could find not reason for the noise.
Tudor room
We all went into a long narrow room with a music room at the end of it. Again we took a few pictures and got settled in and we all noticed Simon was very wide eyed. He was very happy in this room. I got a quite a few light anomalies on camcorder and camera. I went into the music room and Suzanne followed and both of us heard what sounded like high heel shoes on the floor above but no one in any of the teams was wearing high heel shoes and soon after that I caught a light anomaly on camcorder. Simon started walking about and stopped by the tapestry. By this time I was out of the music room. I was stood by Julie and I caught a light anomaly on the tapestry heading towards Simon. Then I went back into the music room and Simon came in with the girls. Julie suggested to Simon that he try some automatic handwriting and he came up with a few things but that was it for this room.
Vigil 2
Priory Room
For me this was a very eerie room, like the Tudor room. Everything was cordoned off and there was a statue off a monk in the middle of the room sitting at a table. Not much really happened in here despite our calling out so we went into the other room.
School Room
This room had a table with mock cakes on it but it felt out of place. It felt as if this would have been a trophy room with animal heads on the wall. It had family pictures and Julie got the name Thomas. Julie then read from one of the papers on the wall and she read there was a man called Thomas and he sailed on a ship called Harwood. Julies last name is Harwood. Simon asked for the lights to be switched off and they did and as we left the lights switched on again. Nobody was near the switch!
Bedroom
We went to the really bedroom and Julie & Suzanne hated it. Julie thought I pushed her but I wasn't anywhere near her. After we finished our vigil we came down the stairs and we saw Alan walking about. He said that he seen someone coming down the stairs and go into the toilet so we turned and took a few pictures. I saw a light anomaly coming down the stairs with my naked eye!
Vigil 3
The Gate House
This place for me was horrible. It was so dark and damp. We went to the top floor and we took a few pictures. We all sat down and started calling out. I sat near the corner on the far left so I could put my Dictaphone on the table and after a few minutes I turned round as it was flashing then it went off! I tried to get it going again but it wouldn't work so after that we went to the first floor. It was like a class room and it had tables and chairs in there. We all took some pictures again and settled down. We tried calling out but unfortunately nothing much happened in here.
Vigil 4 & 5
This was virtually a whole group vigil and most of us opted to go back into the priory room and some opted to go back into the gate house. I went back into the little bedroom. I took a few pictures and I called out but everything was quiet. I heard the rest of the team leave the Priors room as Alan had come up and said we should all make our way over to the gatehouse as lots was happening. I was first to arrive but I didn't go in until the others was closer. We all settled in and Alan set up two coins on too separate tables. There were people sitting round most of the room and Alan, Rachel, Marie and Alison were sat round a table together. Eileen and I were sitting at the back (which was bad mistake). The team round the table started calling out and the coins were moving plus the table seemed to shift on its own. I was holding Eileen's hand and I started to shake and I was absolutely freezing. Alison also started to shake and found it hard to breath. Julie calmed Alison down and the team continued calling out. Simon was filming and at one point the whole table seemed to come off the floor and I was really getting angry and agitated. I wanted to get up and shout “Get the F*** out of my house” but I calmed down and after one loud bang on the table everybody decided to call it a night. All in all what a wonderful, brilliant, fantastic night. I definitely want to go back!
Selina Dean
I was very excited about this location as I have wanted to visit Michelham Priory for a very long time. Once we had all arrived and gained access to the Priory we split off into our teams and set off to our first vigil area the second floor. I was in team 2 with Maria, Eileen and Steve. We started to call out in the Tudor room. I picked up on the name Darcy. After no response we spent some time in the Priors room. This also proved to be disappointing. We did hear what sounded like a moan but we were not sure if this came from the room above. Our second vigil area was the gatehouse. This also proved to be very quiet. After another break we set off for the first floor. We spent time in the kitchen, dining room and music but had no response. We then decided to join forces with other team members for a second vigil on the second floor. We still had no results apart from some orbs caught on the camcorder. As we made our way back down the stairs several members of the team witnessed someone running down the stairs, so for the final vigil myself and Steve decided to stay in the stair area to see if we could pick anything up while the other team members made a return visit to the Gatehouse. Unfortunately we didn’t see or hear anything. I was very disappointed with the night’s investigation after the priory’s reputation. Hopefully I will get a chance to return at a later date when I might get to experience something!
Alan Hall
I had waited a long time to investigate this wonderful site, so anticipation of a good night was in the air. After arriving and splitting into our groups, my team which consisted of Rachel, Alison & I headed off for our first vigil in the Gatehouse. This was a daunting place, over 2 floors, which had a very eerie feeling. We went to the top floor and began to call out, nothing much was happening, so we went to the old staircase and Marie went into the little toilet room on her own whilst we were outside on the staircase. Both Alison & I felt a cold blast pass us and the door to the toilet opened slightly. After much calling out, nothing else happened. We then moved to the first floor and started calling out. I got the name of Richard, about 40 - 50 years old, we heard some taps and bangs but nothing much. I placed a coin on the table in front of us, and for 15 minutes nothing happened, then when asking if someone could move the coin, it began to roll off the table and along the floor. Our time was up and we went for a break. Vigil 2 was on the ground floor. We went into the kitchen area, but nothing significant happened. Nothing much happened in any of the other rooms either apart from in one Alison got the impression of 2 little girls playing. Vigil 3 was on the first floor. Again nothing really happened in any of the rooms. After a break we decided to go back to the Gatehouse. I set up 2 coins this time. One in front of us and one on another table. I could see flashes of lights coming from the tapestry on the far wall, and most of them were red flashes. I began to feel very uneasy and thought something bad was going to happen. Suddenly the coin on the other table began to roll and rolled along the floor, but stopped in the same place as where the first coin rolled earlier. Alison was beginning to feel uneasy so we left and joined up with the others. After explaining what had happened on 2 separate occasions, we all (except Selina and Steve) went back to the Gatehouse and tried the experiments again. This time was the same as the last and Alison was almost taken over by something. This was when the table began to lift and rock, whilst no-one was touching it. All of our feet were clear of the legs too, so this was either paranormal activity, or something else which can’t be explained. At this point we all decided to call it a night. If it wasn’t for the gatehouse, it would have been a quite disappointing night, due to it’s history, but the gatehouse experience definitely made up for a lack of activity anywhere else. I would love to re-visit the place again.
Maria Street
If I was asked to name the top five places that I would like to investigate, then this place would, without question, be in that five. What an opportunity! I travelled down with Marie (thanks Marie) and we arrived around 6.30pm. We met up with a few others and, although dark, were able to appreciate the most spectacular surroundings. Michelham Priory can only be reached by crossing over a moat which passes through an ancient gatehouse. As the lights from the priory twinkled over the lake, you could be forgiven for thinking this was a cosy country home.
The first thing that hit us as we walked inside was the cold. We soon discovered that, although an indoor investigation, a hat, scarf and gloves would have been beneficial. This one minor detail was not enough to deter us however and we were soon to start our first vigil. For our team (Team 2) we started our evening on the first floor. I was accompanied by Steve, Eileen and Selina. We began our vigil in the school room. There were a few taps, but as there was an occupied flat above us, we cannot rule out the possibility that the noise was coming from there. Eileen detected what seemed like a strange mist on the camcorder, but the room was, on the whole, very quiet. We soon made our way to the Prior’s Room, where Steve had heard a loud noise. It soon proved to be very quiet in here also, although a strangled cry of ‘Arrrgh’ was heard and we are not sure if that could have come from upstairs also. I also heard a long ghostly moan a little later on and have no idea where that came from. We made our way back to the school room and after a little while decided to split into two groups, with Eileen and myself staying where we were, whilst Selina and Steve returned to the Prior’s Room. All remained quiet however.
Our next vigil was in the Gatehouse and we started on the top floor. There was a staircase leading up to the door to the roof and Steve sat here for a while. He captured a moving light anomaly on the camcorder and the door rattled. We were up high so it is possible that the wind could have caught it. It remained quiet after this, so we made our way down to the lower floor. Once again, there was no activity and the vigil soon came to an end.
After a welcome cup of coffee, we began our next vigil which was based on the ground floor. We started in the warm kitchen. We called out but there was no response, so we moved into the Picture Gallery. After a quiet time here, we then moved on into the Tudor Room and the Music Room. Nothing to report here either, so we moved on the entrance room which was doubling up for our team room for the night. Again, it remained very quiet, and as Julie later said, almost too quiet.
For our next vigil we teamed up with Team 1 and went back to the First Floor. We went into the schoolroom and Julie’s team went into the Prior’s Room. All was very quiet where we were, so we joined the others to see if our combined energies could encourage activity. This was not to be the case; although Julie did pick up on a gay cannon who she felt had murdered his lover. It was whilst we were making our way back down that we had our first frisson of excitement for the night. I spotted movement on the stairs and shone my torch to see what it was. At the same time, Julie and Rachel exclaimed that they could see a figure making his way down the stairs ahead of us. A quick head count deduced that Simon was not with us, but it soon became apparent that he was still in the Prior’s Room. So, what did we see? A ghostly cannon perhaps? Who knows?
Our final vigil was spent in the Gatehouse and we all, with the exception of Steve and Selina, who were staying to investigate the staircase, made our way over there. We all settled around different tables and Alan called out. Almost immediately, the table where he was sat, moved quite violently. It seemed to do this in answer to questions and it seemed we were talking to a spirit who used to guard the place, and because he refused to believe he was dead, he continued to do so and he wanted us out. It wasn’t long before Alison was becoming visibly affected and she had to move away. At one point, after Rachel had asked it to, the table lifted up onto two legs. It then seemed that the spirit left as abruptly as he had arrived. I just think he realised that we wanted him to do all this stuff and if he stopped it, then we would go, which is exactly what we did do!
All in all, a great night. There may not have been a lot of activity at the start, but what a wonderful place to spend the night! My thanks go to Matt, our guide and to Julie and Alan for stepping into the breach and making it all happen.
Eileen Rutter
Arrived at this huge old stone built property with a gatehouse and moat all the way around the grounds. Heard the peacocks squawking. Very eerie looking place with stone head carving here and there.
Vigil 1
Went upstairs to what is called the school room, table and chairs in there, strange cross beams on the ceiling, called out no response in the room.
Went across to the priory room, quite spooky looking in here. Mist on my cam. Thought we heard a moan from the other end of the room. Sat quiet and called out but no response, one or two creaks from somewhere.
We went back into school room, few noises from up above, not sure if from flat above. Walked into small bedroom, had a look around, caught a small light anomaly on cam by cot, called out quietly if anyone there but no reply. Back in the priory room with the others noises from above think it was people in flat. Very quiet, chilly and creepy in there!!
Vigil 2
We walked across to the gatehouse, went up to top floor, large high open wooden ceiling. When we first went up the door at top of stairs banged a couple of times, but no wind? We sat down an called out didn't get any response. Steve went and sat at top of little stone stairs, he said couple of light anomalies were caught on camcorder. Just very strange in their. No response to calling out. We went down to the floor below. Went across to little door on stone stairs and opened it a little way and as I did it felt like someone pushing the other side of door, so I stood back and the others had a look. As I went to shut the door again I felt like someone was pushing other side. I then went to sit down on far side of room as felt uncomfortable by both sets of stairs. Had to look under tapestry before I sat down, creepy room. Again we called out, but all quiet apart from a couple little creeks here and there. Very chilly in this room but no response to anything. Walked back to house and took couple pictures of stocks on the way back and got some light anomalies on them.
Went to the toilet and Rachel and Marie were out side waiting. I heard whistle but they said it was not them.
Vigil 3
We went into kitchen, large fire place clock with chains on, big open chimney. We called out and asked for knocks or rattle chains or move something but all quiet. Small knock on cupboard beside me. Couldn’t get further response so we went in to the small picture room off kitchen, no response in here either though a couple of light anomalies went across door at far end. Went across into the Tudor room, colder in there. Called out, no response only a small noise by the clock. Walked into the music room but very quiet, called out but no response heard.
While we were all having a break you could smell something burning thought perhaps it was coming from the flats upstairs.
Group Vigil
Most of us went into the priory room again, some went into the gatehouse again. We sat quietly calling out and waited for response but nothing. We all went back downstairs.
The others came back from gatehouse saying that a few strange things were happening in the room. We all went over except for two people who stayed in house after something had been seen on the stairs. The gatehouse felt very hostile. We all sat down quietly on the first floor. Rachel, Alan, Alison and Marie sat at table in between 2 sets of stairs. Sandy and I sat at the back of room by the tapestry and cabinet with keys in it etc. Alan called out for who ever had made contact before to try again. Soon the table was being moved and lifted quite strongly even though no one appeared to be touching it. Strange atmosphere in the room and I thought some one standing by side off Alan. A coin rolled off of the table a few times near where I was sat at the back with sandy. I felt like something was behind us and Sandy’s hands got icy cold. He was also cold and shivering, said he felt like shouting GET OUT OF MY HOUSE and picking up and throwing the table. Alison was also affected. The table was still moving and the coins would stand still for ages and then suddenly roll off the tables.
We went back to the house to have a break, I smelt burning again so Simon and I went to look where we had been making coffee and in the other kitchen. We turned off the lights on our way out but as we walked away Simon and I heard a wood like tap in the big kitchen, so we went in and stood quietly and asked them to do it again but no joy.
Very interesting night in a large spooky old house!
Marie Holder
Team 3 – Alan, Rachel, Marie and Alison
Introduction
This was a location I had looked forward to doing for months as it was so well known amongst the paranormally inclined! I hoped it would live up to its name, only time would tell.
Maria and I arrived at the location a little before 7pm after a 1 hour 50 minute journey from Southampton. We were met in the car park by some of the other team members. At around 7.45pm we made our way to the priory. A spectacular sight met us as we drove up the drive, this place was huge and I could not wait to begin.
Vigil 1
Gatehouse – Top Floor
After settling down and taking pictures, Alan called out but we got no response. I then called out but again nothing happened. Alan said he thought there was somebody standing by the stairs. He walked over there and he felt something touch his shoulder. We then went back down to the middle floor.
I did a lone vigil in a small room which looked like it was once a toilet. I called out a couple of times but unfortunately got no response.
Middle room
We all took turns calling out and Alan picked up the spirit of a man aged between the ages of 45-50 who was living in that room. While on this vigil Alison said she felt somebody standing behind her and later she went very cold and felt very uncomfortable and she had to change places.
Alan felt that this male spirit was trying to take over him and impress the feeling of being hung onto him.
I had the words “Get out” in my head in a manly gruff voice. A coin was placed on the table and after a few minutes it moved when asked. Everyone heard taps coming from the chairs especially Alan’s chair even though he was not moving.
Vigil 2 – Lower Floor
School room
Alan called out and he said he felt oppressed and not right in himself. I heard a thud and Alison said she heard it too. I thought I heard a feint crunching sound in front of me.
Music Room
Alison said she heard a child’s laugh and felt there were two little girls in the room called Susie and Emily. I heard a child’s chant like ‘ring a ring of roses’ in my head but almost in an impish sort of way.
Kitchen
Rachel called out and she said she heard a click. Alison then called out and we all heard a popping noise coming from the corner.
Alan placed a coin on the floor and asked spirit to try and move it. Alan, Alison and I heard a feint tap behind Alan coming from the corner of the room.
Vigil 3 – Upper floor
Priors room
Alan called out and he said he heard a sigh but unfortunately nobody else did. Alan then said he felt there was something or someone standing in the doorway and that they then moved into the room.
I unfortunately felt nothing unusual in this room.
Nursery
I called out but nothing unusual occurred in this room.
Room next to the Nursery
Alan whistled and asked for spirit to whistle back and he said he heard a whistle although unfortunately I did not. He called out again and I felt something touch/stroke my leg.
Alan then said he felt a cold blast across his face although his hands were warm. Towards the end of the vigil I felt nothing unusual.
Back to the Gatehouse
We were then invited to go back to the area where we got the most activity which unfortunately for us was the Gatehouse (it was also the coldest!) We returned to the middle floor and after a while Alison got the same feeling of as before, being uncomfortable. We decided to invite the rest of the team up there as we thought we would get more of a response the more bodies we had.
We got some fantastic results and it will not easily be forgotten. During the vigil Alison started convulsing which was really worrying as I was sitting next to her at the time. Julie helped her come back round and she sat out after that episode.
Conclusion
This was a fantastic location and I would love to go back and re-investigate some day, especially the Gatehouse (although I will definitely wrap up warmer!) Thank you very much to our guide Matt for his assistance and I think it’s an investigation that none of us will not easily forget in a hurry.
Steve Gilbert
Michelham Priory is one of those places that id definitely never heard of until a few years ago and but for the fact the Most Haunted team having been twice it might have remained unrecognised as far as I was concerned.
So for anyone like me that saw those two remarkably eventful investigations on T.V this location had a lot to live up to.
Did it live up to the billing? Well surprisingly no.
For a 12th Century Cistercian Abbey it offers the visitor some 8 centuries of history on display and this is clearly in abundance.
Although you can’t appreciate the grounds at night the house reflects the centuries of ownership and in particular the Tudor rooms and 18th century Childs bedroom (which I would say was the most atmospheric room in the house).
The Gate House (moat house) was just a very cold (and dark) place to spend an hour waiting for ghost to present itself - that said, I wouldn't want to have been there alone mainly because its detachment from the main house.
The Tudor room investigation along with the kitchens was probably the highlight as you did get a feeling that if anything was likely to happen then it would be here.
There were a couple of odd response noises in the upper floor (The Priors room) when asking out but again these were undistinguishable from the noises of movement of the residents above us.
This place probably has been tagged (not by its own hype I might add) as one the UKs most haunted locations and that's a shame because as a place to visit for historical interest it offers so much but on a paranormal level (at least on the night we went) it looks like you would have to spend another 8 centuries waiting for something to scare you out the front door.