My Ghost Hunting Experiences

My Ghost Hunting Experiences at The Warren Estate

by Kerry M.

I have worked at the Warren now for over 35 years and have had a few paranormal experiences during that time. As the buildings date back to 1744 this isn't that surprising. A few years ago a paranormal team approached us to see if we would let them do an investigation during the night. I soon become involved and we have enjoyed some really good evenings since.

Of course the biggest story was about Freddie Durham who was seen many years ago. Here we go...

On locking up the clubhouse a member of staff was closing upstairs in our attic area. He saw a little boy running around, so he shouted to him that he was locking up and that he needed to leave, with that the little boy just vanished before his eyes. The man apparently shot down the stairs, visibly shaken. Some years later the gentleman’s daughter came to work at The Warren and ended up telling Mr Durham the previous owner, her father’s experience, subsequently the father was asked to come and see Mr Durham to tell him what he had seen. Mr Durham got down the family photo album and staring back at him was the little boy in old fashioned knickerbockers and tunic, it was Mr Durham’s father as a little boy...

A few years later at one of our staff Christmas parties I stood on the top stairs leading into our main room and took a photo of a game everyone was playing. When I had the film developed, a ghostly apparition appeared. It was of a man dressed like Sir Walter Raleigh, you could even make out his hat with a feather in it and his goatee beard, and the ruffle around his neck. At first I thought it was a processing fault, but wasn't sure what exactly had been captured. It was sent it to Kodak who confirmed that the picture wasn't double exposed, it hadn't been tampered with in any way. We then sent it to a psychic medium who said that I was the catalyst that enabled it to appear and that I if I wanted to further explore to contact them. However having seen the film Ghost I wasn't keen on having Whoopie Goldberg’s experience, where the ghost jumps into her body, so I just left it alone.

So when Spectrum Souls contacted us to investigate as they had heard of some of the stories, I was really interested in what they would find. The day before they were due. Steve from the team popped into the club to find out where he was allowed access to, so I showed him around as practically all of the clubhouse has had something happen, internal phones ringing, gas hobs flaring, and voices and apparitions being seen, which I explained to him as we went around the building, I even took him out onto the course where there is a Roman Burial ground! He was very interested with all the things that had been seen, heard or experienced. I had myself seen little Freddie twice in the bar area before it was re-developed. I have heard with another member of staff men talking, and girls laughing. It's never been sinister or scary although the initial moment when you realise it wasn't a human sends the pulse racing a little.

Steve was easy to talk to, and was very interested so much so that he asked me to join them the following evening, although at first I wasn't sure I accepted the invitation.

The day ( middle of January ) started freezing so we lit the wood burner in the bar area, first thing in the morning the day then got brighter so we didn't put any more logs on and by lunch time the fire had gone out. As each hour approached I was getting more excited but very nervous as well. 6 o'clock arrived and with it the team they were all were very friendly as I was introduced to each member. There was a father and son who are both sensitive, and some technical people.

They started unpacking they're equipment, static IV lights, full spectrum cameras, trigger toy’s (ping pong balls) and go pro cameras. They also had hand held equipment as well, the EMF K2 readers which pick up energy levels, and hand held recorders. Temperature probes And Sb7 ghost boxes which scan radio waves which pick up voices? They set their command centre up in the lower lobby area where a TV monitor had the 4 cameras feeding into it, and they video recorded everything that the cameras pick up.

By this time I was getting really excited, it was all very professional, and I just hoped that with all this effort something would get captured. I wasn't disappointed....

The team were now ready, and Steve sprung on me that I would be the tour guide explaining to everyone each room and any previous experiences which had occurred in them. At this point all the lights were on in the building but as we left each room we turned the lights off which was how it stayed for the rest of the night. We went round the whole of the clubhouse.

Once we had been everywhere we chose the Banquet suite as our first room to investigate Steve was monitoring the televisions as the cameras pick up things which the human eye cannot. The team encouraged us to speak up if we felt anything, obviously see anything, but whatever is said has to be loud as the recorders are trying to pick up other voices!! As I said we weren't disappointed. The cameras picked up a lot of orbs travelling around us. The K2s picked up energy anomalies and the recorder picked up voices, James, Richard and George where names that were being said. We experienced changes in the temperature, from normal to very cold. Also the door to the little shed outside started swinging backwards and forwards. The whole time we were in the room Steve who was monitoring the screens saw a lot of orbs flying around us. Kieran our chef at the time was with us and after a while he became very emotional in fact he had to be escorted out of the room. The voice recorded a voice repeating the word ENERGY. The K2 which is like a TV remote but has lights across the top of it. To go red is equivalent to holding it next to a running microwave was often going red when the team asked questions, it's the way the spirits can communicate. If you ask the wrong question the lights don't change. They picked up on a young child's energy, so we spent some time kneeling on the floor to get to their level. My man from the picture was also there.

It appeared after a while that whenever I spoke the K2 reacted going from the normal green light up to red, the reason being that as I have worked here so long whatever spirits are here are used to me and so feel more comfortable with me but at this point I left it to the team to do most of the talking.

Later we had a short break to boost our energy. As we left the banquet suite and headed to the lobby area, where, the monitors were set up, there was suddenly excitement from the team as they watched the door to the banquet suite open and close none of us had gone back down, the camera in the banquet suite had picked it up

After all this excitement we definitely need some hot drinks but we needed more milk to go with the coffee. I went to the fridge in Freddie's and was coming back to the lobby I saw a red/orange glow coming from the bar. I went to investigate, on entering the room I was amazed to see the log burner fully alight in fact burning fully. I called to the team, who lit the bar fire, everyone came running to see, however none of us had. Luckily for the team they had a go pro camera set up which captured the fire starting. First there was a little spark and then it started burning fiercely within seconds. Please remember that this fire had been alight some 10 hours earlier and had not been re-laid. To get that particular wood burner to light takes a lot of effort and never does this happens when we are actually lighting the fires normally. Everyone was really excited by this point.

We carried on round the clubhouse, spending time in various rooms. In our upstairs attic area we had one of the team did a lone visual , while we watched downstairs on the monitors. We saw orbs around him. We then went and joined him, now they gave me the K2 and it reacted as I talked to the spirits, we think the little boy was up there with us. The temperature was freezing up there.

While we were up there the monitor inside this room picked up an unexplained shadow walking every 45 seconds from the corner of the building to the door.

Much too quickly our night was coming to an end so the team go around the building again restoring it to normal by switching the lights back on. As we went through Freddie's again I spoke and the K2 went off. Del and Nicky stopped and we tried again to talk to the little boy as this is who they believed, was with us. Meanwhile the other part of the team had gone on to go upstairs Adam came running back to his dad and said a voice was heard on the ghost box saying 'Don’t Go Up’…… Del got us altogether. The feel in the area had become more sinister now, so they decided to do another prayer to protect ourselves. A woman's voice was heard saying Help me! For 10 minutes this interaction took place, literally stopping us from moving upstairs. The man was heard laughing at us. Kieran now feeling brave said can we go up and in response a man’s voice comes back saying NO it was none of us!! He gave the name Peter. The woman wasn't heard again, and when we finally did make it upstairs the ambience of the room was highly charged we did move on into the locker room and nothing sinister greeted us, I'm glad to say. It shook everyone up but with another prayer at the end of the night we all got home safe and sound.

I have now done many nights, and am a sort of honorary member of the team here. Each time activity occurs, but no more fires lighting by themselves. Names from the Durham’s the original family owners have been given on the other visits and a lot of orb activity always occurs. On one visit the man on my picture told one of the guests that he has been here for 3 centuries. There was also on that occasion more physical involvement I for one felt as if my shoulders where being pushed, not viciously but definite pressure was applied. We have even had the K2 respond out by the roman burial ground which is in the middle of the golf course

One night we had one of the monitor screen’s crack as they brought it into the building. The sign for the toilets fell off the wall while I was standing near it, it's not come down since. We had a lot of activity in one of the rooms with one of the sensitive ladies experiencing abdominal pain after I mentioned the Blacksmith that has been seen in here. We had a palm reader get red hot, then picked up emails and messages and started searching google although at the time it was actually screen locked. Someone walking downstairs has been seen twice and afterwards I heard footsteps upstairs when I was setting up the room for a function

At the end of one of the investigation we all sat in Freddie's the bar area. I had a K2 in my hand and I did a sweep of the room there was no light changes. The rest of the team and guests came in and I started talking to Freddie the lights went to amber, I told Freddie we wanted real proof so could he make them go red. As I said it the red light came on. For 45 minutes I sat on the floor having a question and answer session with him. Every question he answered correctly the team were amazed as was I.

It is always the quickest 8 hours I ever spend in the building, I never want the night to end although it does physically drain you. I can't wait till the next time we can do an event, but it's never scary it's in a way comforting that people are still watching over the place, where their family carried on without them, or they just loved being here so much they haven't been able to completely leave...