Historic – BackBone Of Night

Some interesting, unusual and maybe a little strange, stories that have caught my eye.

From doorbell ringing slugs to a 19th century Astronomer with a pyramid grave, the UK certainly has some interesting and sometimes bizarre stories to tell.

Enjoy.

Slug Rings Doorbell.

An amusing story of a slug ringing someones doorbell.

A spider decided to make it’s home in front of mine. It looked like a giant spider was attacking the flats opposite.

Mystery creeper ringing woman’s doorbell late at night turns out to be a slug

Unexplained Portsmouth.

*Portchester Castle. Picture: ADRIAN DENNIS/AFP via Getty Images*

From the disappearance of Lionel ‘Buster’ Crabb to UFOs and unsolved murders, Portsmouth has it’s fair share of mysteries.

https://www.portsmouth.co.uk/news/people/6-of-portsmouths-most-shocking-unsolved-mysteries-3394320

Lightning Folklore.

Some folklore and stories concerning lightning.

I was camping during a violent storm in Ashdown Forest and a tree next to the campsite got struck by lightning. I have never been so frightened.

Jason Goodwin: ‘No one ever quite knew if he was telling the truth and the story was too terrible either to investigate or disbelieve’

Mystery Vehicle in Devon.

*A side view of the mysterious vehicle spotted in Exmouth (Image: Tracey Pearce)*

Local people have been speculating on the origins of this unusual vehicle. I think the suggestion it’s aliens is someone having a bit of fun.

https://www.devonlive.com/news/devon-news/mystery-alien-vehicle-zips-through-6031869

John Dee’s Mirror.

John Dee’s Obsidian mirror may have Aztec origins.
A very interesting article about mirrors and they’re mystical and occult history.
I would recommend going to see this and other items that belonged to John Dee in the British Museum.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/the-aztec-origins-of-a-mysterious-elizabethan-mirror

British Big Cats.

A Countryfile podcast on mystery big cats in the Cotswolds.
I grew up not far from the haunt of the Beast of Bluebell Hill although I never saw anything myself.
However I do know a few people who have seen big cats at Bluebell Hill and in other parts of the country.

https://www.countryfile.com/podcast/mystery-big-cats-cotswolds/

Another Welsh Dinosaur.

A dinosaur fossil, found in the 1950’s in Wales, has been discovered to be a new species and has been named Pendraig milnerae.

The Natural History Museum, Wales in Cardiff, is a great place to visit. It has a Dinosaur gallery plus a model and fossil remains of Dracoraptor hanigani, which was found in 2014 not far from Cardiff, as well as other fossils found in Wales.

Tiny “Dragon” – Mysterious New Species Is Oldest Meat-Eating Dinosaur Found in UK

Ladybird Invasion.

*There has been an explosion in the number of ladybirds across Yorkshire (Image: Alexandra Butler)*

Basically the weather is on the turn, Winter is coming and ladybirds are looking for a nice place to hibernate, which just so happens to be human dwellings.

https://www.examinerlive.co.uk/news/local-news/uk-ladybird-infestation-2021-hits-21811595

Washed up Sea Creatures.

*By-the-wind-sailor creatures have been spotted washed up at Horton Beach in Gower, Swansea (Image: Barry Gill)*

By-the-wind-sailors a colonial hydroid, have been washing up on Welsh beaches. The Autumn and Winter storms often wash them ashore around the British coast.

https://www.walesonline.co.uk/news/wales-news/strange-looking-by-wind-sailor-21805537

Letters Blaming Satan for Covid, Posted Through Residents Doors.

Residents in Birmingham are receiving letters claiming Satan is responsible for the Covid Pandemic.

‘Strange’ letters blaming Satan for Covid posted through people’s letterboxes

Mystery Wooden Head in Norfolk.

*Mr Howard with the carved head of the god Atho, left to him by an old Romany woman. – Credit: Archant Library/Local Recall*

Mystery surrounds the whereabouts of a carved wooden head said to be associated with Witchcraft, that was stolen in 1967.

https://www.edp24.co.uk/news/weird-norfolk-witchcraft-mystery-field-dalling-8392226

Gold Necklace Discovered During Fireplace Renovation in Wales.

*The gold necklace and the foreplace where it was discovered buried in plasterwork (Image: Anna Reynolds)*

The necklace could have been deliberately placed by the fireplace to protect the cottage from bad luck.

https://www.dailypost.co.uk/news/north-wales-news/buried-gold-necklace-protected-north-21780475

The Irish Cave Where Halloween Was Born.

The unassuming entrance to Oweynagat cave, in Rathcroghan, Ireland, belies its central role in Celtic pagan history. It‘s known as a gateway to the demon-filled underworld and the birthplace of the Samhain festival, the ancient roots of Halloween. Now Ireland is pushing for UNESCO World Heritage status for the archaeological site.

PHOTOGRAPH BY PHOTOGRAPH RONAN O’CONNELL

Supposedly Halloween has it’s roots in Iron Age Ireland. I’m sceptical, Iron Age tribes weren’t restricted to Ireland and what sparse evidence we have suggests similar festivals over a wide area of Europe.

https://www.nationalgeographic.co.uk/history-and-civilisation/2021/10/inside-the-irish-hell-caves-where-halloween-was-born

The 19th Century Grave of Charles Piazzi Smyth, Astronmer Royal For Scotland.

Charles Piazzi Smyth had some interesting ideas about the Egyptian Pyramids, hence his Pyramid tomb in St John’s Sharow Churchyard, Ripon.