I knew it was an adaptation of the book ‘The
Ghost Hunters’ by Neil Spring (an account of the Borley Rectory investigation)
but hadn’t considered it would be a total work of fiction. We learnt nothing
about Harry Price or the Society for Psychical Research (SPR).
However, it was a good ghost story.
Atmospheric and nicely shot. I particularly liked the scene where the woman of
the house threw a sheet across the bedroom and it landed on the ‘ghost’ forming
a human shape.
Maybe this was the best account we could
expect of the (in)famous psychical researcher. Price almost defies our need to
categorise him as a ‘believer’ or ‘sceptic’. His behaviour was confusing - both
(allegedly) faking and debunking paranormal phenomena.
As explored by the programme the loss
experienced by families during and after the war fuelled the rise of
Spiritualism. The expectation of contacting loved ones, and the desire from
others to provide comfort, must have been overwhelming. As Price explained
“Give the people what they want!”
Post-war Women’s rights were also explored in
the programme. The feminist perspective on Spiritualism itself is interesting,
i.e. the role of ‘medium’ provided a position of power not afforded to women
elsewhere in society. The lingering look from the female character during the
final scenes to Harry’s request to join him suggests there may be a follow-up.
My main thought after watching was one of
disappointment. Not that it wasn’t a documentary but that people who do
psychical research are not more prominent or well regarded as they were back
then.
Whilst I am a sceptic and don’t think there
is anything to find I don’t want to stop people looking. If they don’t find
something they’ve only wasted their own time but if they do we all
benefit!
I remember
watching programmes from 1970's and 1980’s when there seemed to be a real
momentum to their research. Maybe it's my own nostalgia or that we’ve all
become too cynical after Uri Geller, Psychic Sally and Most Haunted etc.
Ultimately, I
think it was a missed opportunity to learn more about this fascinating period.
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