Woodchester Mansion Investigation Report - 17 Mar 2006 

18.30 – Arrive at pub and await rest of group

20.15 – Arrive at Mansion with full tummies and in good spirits despite getting lost!! First impressions from most seem to be WOW. A bit surprised how dark it is. Building is massive with lots of areas to explore, excellent building. Wendy gives us a tour. She is lovely. We requested that we are told no history of the building so we can verify sightings etc and we are then not biased by our findings (sometimes you see what you want to see when its so dark), but on retrospect it is such a beautiful building and very historical we think it would have been better to have been told the history and not the paranormal sightings and occurrences etc. (members and guests who attended will find enclosed a brief history and hauntings at the mansion).

21.00 After our tour we assemble and then everyone goes off for a wander and to unload their cars. We will meet up at 22.00 for a quick meeting.

21.10 Orbs are caught on camera whilst upstairs outside the caretakers flat. Tarnia can sense a man again; she could see him very clearly during the tour with Wendy. She senses him at end of corridor so we take photo and get a very clear orb in the doorway. She senses the name George. Tarnia is very good and we are impressed as it is her first investigation with us.

21.20 A brief séance down in the cellar (that was recorded on a dictaphone) later reveals a deep groaning in response to a question asked and this groaning is much louder and deeper than any of the people in the room at the time. In response to “Can you knock anything?” a clear 2 knocks can be heard.

21.30 – Emma-Jane and Sharon down in the cellar feel nauseous and can smell what smells like TCP (this smell can be smelt most of the evening).

21.40- Becky, Annie, Kyle, Emma, Sharon and Steph are all investigating the top floor corridor and someone is pricked on the back of the leg.

21.53 – On third set of batteries in digital camera.

22.00 CCTV is set up in chapel corridor as this is apparently very active.

Footsteps can be heard whilst set up is in progress, everyone’s position is accounted for.

22.30 – Tarnia can sense a woman and she is not impressed with us being there and she moves away from us.

22.32 – More batteries again. Tarnia says they are draining the energy. She feels the spirit of a man following us still and the spirit of a woman who has gone up another level. We follow the lady up the stairs and the man follows. We turn to take photos but nothing. We walk forward and I (Sarah) take a photo over my right shoulder without looking behind me and get a fantastic photo with a plethora of orbs. We all turn and take another photo, but nothing.

22.40 A gasp is heard in an upstairs corridor. Elsewhere Emma-Jane has feeling of being chased as she came up the spiral staircase. She feels terrified. She was the last of approximately 5 of us and at the top Tarnia confirmed we were followed.

23.00 I monitor some of the live feed from the CCTV. A few orbs that are definitely not dust. The CCTV goes off at one point for no reason.  A while later a hand can be seen on the screen. We contact everyone on walkie-talkies and no one is in that location. A séance is held in the cellar and after it is noticed that the trigger object, a book, has moved.

23.30 Chris and Becky heard 2 taps behind them whilst in the cellar. The knocks were on wood but there is only stone behind them. Discover Emma’s mum had moved the trigger object as she thought it looked like an interesting book and picked it up to have a read!

23.48 Tea and coffee anyone (you had to be there!!!)

00.00 Steph, Hayley, Ben and Chris go to the entrance hall and something is thrown at them, it makes a metal sound when it falls.

00.20 Hayley braves the dark and visits the toilet on her own.

00.30 - Lights seen in corridor near Steph at East End of floating corridor (everyone is accounted for).Whilst in the kitchen Tarnia began to sense the name Mary.

01.00 Shuffling steps can be heard on the first floor. Becky in the kitchen could see a light flickering, like a candle, but no candle there. Tarnia could clearly see a dog, a King Charles.

01.15 approx. At the stairwell on the first floor, something large was seen in between Becky and Tarnia so much so that Emma-Jane thought a member of our party had joined them. But no one was there. As they came back down the stairs a slow footstep was heard behind them, followed by a distant footstep.

02.00 Upstairs by the toilets, Emma sees something in the doorway (unclear what).

02.15 Séance in bathroom. Using a crystal, to try and make contact. A shadow is seen by the entire group out in the corridor, we thought  a member had come up to join us from downstairs so Becky called for them to come in but the shadow stopped where it was outside the door. Becky got up and looked out into the corridor but there was no one there. A few minutes later a tapping was heard on the window (we were a few floors up)

03.00 approx. We try to entice Becky to the kitchen area with tales of sightings to try and get her to make the coffee but Becky and a few others had gone outside to investigate round the grounds and down by the lake. Joke wasted.

Conclusion. This house was freezing. The cold seemed to dampen enthusiasm a bit. We quite often will try table tipping, set up numerous trigger objects and much, much more, but unfortunately it snowed that night and most of the building is exposed. There were many areas left unexplored and we hope to return this summer.

Other events on CCTV include something stood in the doorway, and so we investigate with torches but nothing is found.

Numerous orbs that were not dust from the wind. (movement too random)

Something at the foot of the scaffolding.

Someone passed the camera (everyone is present in kit room)

A light anomaly (different to regular orb)

Strange noise.

Heavy breathing.

Mouse!

Hayley gets deja vu whilst seeing an orb on the screen.

Annie sees 2 bright lights

Other incidences include Tarnia getting the name George and the year 1851. Dictaphones were left in different places all over the mansion and when listening to them back a distinct laugh can be heard and it is identical to the one on the internet on the Sussex paranormal groups’ site. Jen felt light headed and dizzy in the chapel. Emma-Jane and Sharon reported a general feeling of being watched and followed all night which I think we can all relate to. A reasonably good nights investigating, but not one of our best. We look forward to investigating in warmer circumstances.