[Suebh]

Most Haunted is a programme that is a bane to most upstanding, honest and educated mediums. Have a read of this article and perhaps you will understand why we promote honest factual information and therefore cannot have Most Haunted on our list of things to watch/believe.

28 October 2005/The Mirror
SPOOKY TRUTH: TV'S MOST HAUNTED CON EXPOSED TV
By Matt Roper
THE TV show that has spooked millions with its footage of hauntings and poltergeists is today exposed as a fake - by one its own stars.

Resident parapsychologist Dr Ciaran O'Keeffe has sensationally lifted the lid on the ghosthunting series, Most Haunted ... and claims that the public are being deceived by "showmanship and dramatics."

He accuses the show's medium Derek Acorah of hoodwinking viewers by pretending to communicate with spirits and obtaining information about locations prior to filming.


The Mirror has also obtained unedited footage which appears to show presenter Yvette Fielding and her husband faking 'paranormal' occurrences such as ghostly bumps and knocks.


Most Haunted has quickly achieved cult status since it was launched in 2002 and is LivingTV's most successful programme.


Millions of viewers tune in regularly to watch Ex-Blue Peter girl Yvette and her team of ghost hunters spend the night in some of Britain's most haunted locations.


It has made Acorah - who claims to be guided by an Ethiopian spirit guide called Sam - into one of the country's best-known psychics.


Tonight the show will start its biggest ever live vigil, a four-night Halloween special from East London following the murderous trail of Jack the Ripper.


Yvette Fielding has said of the show - which is made by her husband Karl Beattie's production company Antix Productions: "There is no acting in this programme, none whatsoever. Everything you see and you hear is real. It's not made up, it's not acted."


But our investigation reveals how the programme uses careful editing to mislead viewers and, on at least one occasion, has even lied about the location of filming.


Ciaran, a lecturer in the paranormal at Liverpool's Hope University, knows speaking out will probably put an end to his media career... but he believes viewers should know the truth.


He says: "I think it's time to open the dialogue about what I've experienced on Most Haunted. There have been many incidents with the medium that have been brushed under the carpet.


"I was put in the show to give a professional slant to it, to give it an element of credibility, but the sceptical argument is just swept away.


"In my opinion, we're not dealing with genuine mediumship."


He says he isn't the only member of the crew who feels viewers are being cheated.


"Other crew members have been irked by Derek and what's going on, because it turns what should be a serious investigation into a laughing matter."


And our exclusive footage shows other members of the team occasionally forget they are on camera.


One of our clips, later edited out, shows Karl push an unwitting sound man in the dark and pretend it was a poltergeist attack.


In the remaining footage he says (after surreptitiously hitting the soundman): "S**t, did you feel that?"


Yvette: Are you all right? What's happened?


Karl: I felt something touch me on my shoulder.


Soundman: I felt something hit me.


And in another edited clip with medium Ian Lawman, Yvette is seen on camera making a deep sigh. In the scene that eventually went to air, Ian (after Yvette sighs) says: "What's that noise?


Yvette: What noise? Like a moan?


Ian: Breathing or something.


Yvette: I heard like an 'arrggh'.


Ciaran, who joined Most Haunted in April 2004 became suspicious of Acorah's antics on a shoot at Castle Leslie, Co Monaghan in Ireland where a 17th Century four-poster bed has been claimed to levitate.


Ciaran recalls: "As we walked into the bedroom, Derek touched the bed and came out with extremely accurate information.


"He insisted he got all the information just from touching the bed. But it was the wrong bed."


Antix Productions claims the mediums have no idea where they will be filming or know any details about the history of the locations.


But Ciaran says: "Derek must have had prior knowledge of the locations."


He devised a plan to see if Derek was deliberately deceiving the public.


While on a shoot at Bodmin gaol he invented a long-dead South African jailer called Kreed Kafer - an anagram of Derek Faker.


"I wrote the name down and asked another member of the crew to mention it to Derek before filming.


"I honestly didn't think Derek would take the bait. But during the filming he actually got possessed by my fictional character!"


On the next shoot at Prideaux Place, Cornwall, Ciaran made up another fictional character, highwayman Rik Eedles - an anagram of Derek Lies. Sure enough, Derek made contact with the dead outlaw.


Ciaran says: "In my professional opinion we're not dealing with a genuine medium.


"When Derek is possessed he is doing it consciously - all we are seeing is showmanship and dramatics."


Ciaran went a step further at Craigievar Castle, near Aberdeen.


"I made up stories about Richard the Lionheart, a witch, and Richard's apparition appearing to walk through a wardrobe - the lion, the witch and the wardrobe!" True to form, Derek mentioned all Ciaran's stories - even though Richard I reigned 500 years BEFORE Craigievar Castle was built.


The final straw came last month when Most Haunted presented a three-night special from Manchester.


On the second evening, the show claimed to be broadcasting live from the site of Cheadle's Victorian asylum, a place where - according to presenter David Bull - thousands died in torment. In fact they were in the derelict remains of Barnes Convalescence Home - where nobody died in torment.


Ciaran remembers: "Derek was communicating with spirits that sounded as if they'd been in an asylum, but it was never an asylum."


Yesterday the Mirror confronted Derek Acorah with Ciaran's allegations. He told us: "I've worked with Ciaran for many shows and he's got every right to say what he says.


"However, it does shock and surprise me. Not only do I believe that I am a genuine medium - I live my work 24 hours a day. If I thought that I wasn't a true medium, I wouldn't work as one."


A spokesman for LivingTV said: "Ciaran O'Keeffe has worked as the programme's official sceptic for 18 months and during this time has not brought any of his concerns to our attention.


"LivingTV has not seen any of your filmed evidence, but will fully investigate your claims."





Sue

[eyeofhorus]

Interesting to see the article raised again.

Its all spot on , despite appearing in one of the "tabloids" ! ............. and as I have access to over 300 hours of raw unedited video material from the live shows , its only the tip of a rather large iceberg.

In the eyes of some , Most Haunted Live is probably the biggest fake in TV history....but of course its purely , entertainment......or is it ?
Unfortunately , there are a great number of people who believe every second of it and are sucked in by the continual purile antics of the crew , celebrity mediums and now thir own tame parapsychologist , Mr O'keefe.

I wonder if Mr O will soon be appearing in the Ovaltine ad......you know the one that goes ..... "How does he sleep at night ? " :shock:

The Eye.

[myself]

HHhhmmmm, now how do i say this?
even though I think the show is purely 'for entertainment purposes only' don't you think something good has come out of it?
I mean yes the way they try and scare people is bad, and also brings round totally frustrating mis beliefs in what spirit and the spirit world is like, but through the mass following this show has it has brought many people to look at spirit and spirit communication, which they may not have otherwise done.
Ok ok i know it takes honest and knowledgable people a lot of time and effort to try and help these new found believers to see sense at times because after watching it for a few weeks they believe all sorts of errmm shall we say 'untruths' that have been put forward by the show. But if it wasn't for this show would the people have been searching for answers in the first place?
I have a tendency to belive that spirit have their own way of getting information out there, to the people they want to reach. And following this logic, I feel that spirit don't mind this sort of thing (and may even go along with it) because they know there are so many people who now understand the mechanics of spirit and spirit communication to assist the new believer in seeing true and so putting right the 'false start' that they had.
Some may say that the new believers would have come to believing in spirit in their own way in their own time, but if mass media can help the project then why not? As the word 'mass media' says it is another form of 'medium' or middle ground to get the message out.

Over to you

Love Joy xxxxxxxxxx

[eyeofhorus]

HHhhmmmm, now how do i say this?

Why beat about the bush ? ............there's a fundamental flaw in your reasoning in that you acknowledge the existance of real mediums.
Such a beast does not exist.

"Spirit" is a figment of the imagination of those who cannot come to terms with the fact that we came from dust....and will return to dust....end of story.
Believers "need" something to believe in , so they create "spirit"

I have no problem with that , everyone is entitled to their "comfort blanket" ...... but mediums are simply deluding themselves , and others , thinking that they can communicate with spirit.
This delusion manifests itself in various levels.....from the single individual , who gets comfort from the fact that he/she has "special abilities" , which of course we all have its just that some know how to use them , some do not , ............... to the cynical individuals who see mediumship as a way to make a few bob by deceiving their flock.

So ...back to Most Haunted. A great entertainment programme....but thats as far as it goes.
The worrying part is that those responsible for making the programme insist time after time that everything you see is real.....there's nothing made up or acted.

The question now is , who is living the lie.....who has lost touch with the real world ?


The Eye

[chp]

If it were not for the fact that I know mediumship to be true because of the clear evidence that has been presented to me by other mediums and also the feedback I get from my own work then I'd be standing side by side with eyeofhorus.

Shows like Most Haunted do huge damage to all mediums credibility and play right into the hands of the sceptics. It is immature and clearly a pack of lies. Spiritualism has spent a vast amount of energy endeavouring to give empirical proof of life after death. One fake can destroy all this good work.

I think the final proof has to come through your own personal experience. The sceptic's current argument is that we unconsciously make things fit and the recipient of messages will use convoluting ways to make the mediums evidence fit their own expectations. In some cases this may be true. However when you do get some rock solid proof from a medium and you know for certain is not you making things fit the way you want, then the truth of mediumship become self-evident.

But back to Most Haunted: It may have popularised the subject but at the same time it has destroyed the integrity of mediums. I would extend this same complaint to a great many of the programmes on LivingTV. Just because a medium is on TV does not mean they are necessarily the best (and that includes me too)

What I'd like to see is our own Spiritualist Channel with the church mediums talking and demonstrating. It would not be as entertaining as some programmes but it certaily could present the truth in a down to earth and sensible way.

[Suebh]

Yes Joy I would agree on that, spirit are getting their 'name' out there lol and people are questioning but I have buts :roll: Some people do not take their understanding or knowledge further, but I dont need to explain that to you xx

eyeofhorus your comment...."Why beat about the bush ? ............there's a fundamental flaw in your reasoning in that you acknowledge the existance of real mediums.
Such a beast does not exist"....I do not agree with comment and acknowledge that you were making a personal statement., But I have a question for you, what has brought you to this conclusion? My experiences have brought me to the opposite conclusion.

Sue

I agree with myself, not myself S+myself :lol:

I have Most Haunted to thank for getting me interested in the possible concept of spirit communication in the first place.

I am now learning that in reality its nothing like the shows we see on telly, full of evil energies comin through the television to get us with just a douvet cover for protection :lol: :lol:

And as far as sueb point goes, I also agree and why I have come to site, to " take their understanding or knowledge further, but I dont need to explain that to you xx "

It does put the interest out there, if it gets people interested enough to take up a course of action then at least it is doin something right !

Mind you it is entertaining often for the wrong reason and often comical in the shinanigans they get up to :lol: :lol:

[Sibyl]

Horus

What evidence do you have that we come from dust and return to dust. The physical body does but you are making an assumption that that is all we are.

I think before making such sweeping statements you should do some serious investigation of mediumship and Spiritualism then you can point the finger at people like:

? Sir William Crookes, British physicist who discovered thalium and also paved the way for the discovery of the electron and x-rays

? Sir Oliver Lodge, - British physicist who developed a system of wireless communication in 1894 - his work was influential in the development of radio receivers

? Alfred Russel Wallace - British naturalist whose paper on the theory of evolution was read on the same day as Darwin's. and was awarded the order of merit in 1910

? Lord Rayleigh, British physicist who was the co-founder of the gas argon and who was also awarded the order of merit

? Sir William Barrett, a professor of psychics

? Prof Wm James, a psychologist and philosopher

? Prof Hyslop, also a psychologist and philosopher

? Dr Richard Hodgson, a psychologist - and

? Prof de Morgan the gentleman who investigated Mrs Hayden?s mediumship. This lady being acknowledged as the medium who brought Spiritualism to England.

While you are entitled to your opinion, you should not be dismissing the work of such eminent scholars, who put their reputations on the line to investigate mediumship and pronounced it genuine! And.......... the list continues; mediumship is still being investigated by scientists who have managed to remain open minded.

[eyeofhorus]

I think before making such sweeping statements you should do some serious investigation of mediumship and Spiritualism then you can point the finger at people like:

That's simple.....they were all deluded / misguided.

They may well have been very clever in their own field , but that does not qualify them to make the quantum leap to communicating with the dead. :roll:

The Eye

[enna]

there is a saying - for those that do not believe no proof enough
for those that do no proof is necessary
but i have a question for you horus - why, if you are such a sceptic, are you a member of a forum that specifies psychic phenomina and the afterlife as it's main aim ?

if you do not believe why come here ?

of course the simple answer may be that you want to believe ..............
pam x