Northern Echo reporter goes to seance in Stanley Masonic Hall

On Saturday, October 29, The Northern Echo had sent their newest (and therefore most disposable) reporter to the ghost hunt to establish, once and for all, whether ghosts are real - and the things that were heard, seen, and felt could make even the most sceptical sceptic waver. 

The scene was like something out of an Edgar Allan Poe story - at 8 pm on Saturday night, thick fog was rolling theatrically over a dead quiet Stanley, and things were already kicking off inside of the Hall. 

As lead investigators from the group Spectre Detectors were setting up equipment, the fire alarm was triggered, and mobile phones would ring with no one on the other end. Definitively paranormal? Not quite - but certainly spooky. 

That was not where encounters with the spirit world ended, though - rather, it was just the beginning of this Halloween special investigation. 

Ghost hunter Euan Adam attempts to summon ghosts to top a table. (Image: Phoebe Abruzzese)

After a prayer of protection was said, and the lights were turned off, the paranormal investigation cracked on - starting off with the dowsing rods. 

Dowsing rods are a kind of divination traditionally used to locate underground water sources but have also been coopted by the spiritualist faction to talk to spirits, as they can easily be moved by the slightest touch. 

And move they did - accurately responding to questions and requests, even when another person held the rods, and our reporter silently requested for them to move in a specific way.

Though much of this could have been through accidental or unconscious movement, answering questions that have not been asked out loud is far more compelling. 

Read more: 5 of the spookiest North East ghosts you might not have heard of

One of Spectre Detectors' main principles is that they do not try to frighten. Investigators Elaine Sugden Kelly, Bev Rodda, Hannah Birchall and Shana Bond invite communication in an open and friendly way and seemingly get the same energy back from the spirits.

For our reporter, this was all well and good until the ghouls started to tip tables over. 

Table tipping has been used by paranormal lovers since the Victorian era, the temporal mecca of spiritualism, as a way of communicating with disembodied souls. 

Living ghost hunters will lightly rest their fingertips on the table, and wait for a ghost to begin rocking the table back and forth, using instructions like "right for yes, left for no" to ascertain information. 

Investigators from Spectre Detectors experience a table tipping. (Image: Phoebe Abruzzese)

Sceptics believe that table movement could be the result of the ideomotor effect, where movements are made unconsciously by humans, rather than by spirits.  

As a newspaper, The Northern Echo has had run-ins with victorian murderess Mary Ann Cotton, as she was found guilty of murder and put to death in 1873, three years after the newspaper was founded. 

However, this is the first time that a journalist has secured an exclusive interview with her - mainly as she has been dead for nearly 150 years. 

Read more: Paranormal investigation at Black Swan Inn with haunting discoveries

In spite of this, it seems that Mrs Cotton was more than keen to speak to our reporter - with people feeling her presence both during the Victorian seance, and whilst table tipping

Whilst Spectre Detector's Elaine Sugden Kelly was communicating through the tipping table, it walked all the way across the hall to our reporter, and was pushed into her legs twice. 

Is this the spectre of Mary Ann Cotton, or a lens flare? You decide. (Image: Phoebe Abruzzese)

Once she had joined the table, it began to rock back and forth violently, allowing investigators to ask questions. According to the table, Mrs Cotton had manifested at Stanley Masonic Hall to right what she saw as wrong. 

Unhappy with her treatment in the media, Mrs Cotton seemed to want our reporter to write a more sympathetic account of her life. 

Now - is this proof of the paranormal? We have provided you with the evidence - how you interpret it is up to you. 

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