It was with some trepidation that I joined 23 other Circlers from around the country at Tutbury Castle late in November. It was a dark and stormy night – no really, it was! – as though someone had spoken to Mother Nature and ordered the perfect meteorological backdrop for our meeting with “the other side”. For this was no ordinary Circle meeting. This was a Spooky Sleepover in what is reputed to be one of the most haunted castles in the country. Clearly not for the faint-hearted!
Sustenance came in the form of a pre sleepover meal – spookily “last supper-like” at a local hostelry and then it was off to the Castle and into the unknown.
The first surprise for some of those who had never had the pleasure of meeting Lesley Smith was seeing what they believed was a wax figure sitting on a throne.
“Oh, doesn’t it look lifelike!” was quickly followed by a scream as Lesley opened her eyes and stared straight at the speaker.
We were superbly entertained by Lesley in full Mary Queen of Scots costume and character and then we were taken into the Kings bedroom. Several women felt the presence of a spirit but the more sceptical of us were yet to be convinced – there was time yet!
Lesley departed and left us in the capable hands of two staff members who were to look after us for the rest of the night – they were only a scream away! Vigils were held in the Kings bedroom and some braved the weather and returned to the torture chamber in search of the spirits.
I can’t say for certain that I experienced a ghostly presence but there was something unexplainable going on. We all heard a “pop” noise and even I know that buildings don’t pop – creak, squeak or groan, yes, but pop??
The smell of sulphur was experienced by one who, before the evening, admitted to being a complete sceptic. There were other reports of shadows, a sudden and distinct drop in temperature in the bedroom, a red light but no fully fledged figures of anyone.
Very little sleep was had by your intrepid reporter but I have to admit that this was mostly down to the amount of women who snored! All went quite just as it was time to get up and have breakfast – typical!
All of this in the name of charity! ChildLine are the lucky recipients of our brush with another world. We were each sponsored to take part and will have hopefully raised over £1500 towards this year’s national charity.
Well done to Felicity for organising this unforgettable experience and congratulations to everyone who took part and managed to stay the whole night! |