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You're listening to the second and final

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part of Unexplained, season

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seven, episode twenty, The

0:17

Haunting of Hannath Hall. I

0:26

thought we might begin with a seance,

0:29

says Tony. The

0:31

group is gathered in the living room of

0:33

Hannath Hall around a small

0:36

dining table. The occupants

0:38

of the house, Audrey and Derek

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Page and Audrey's mother Rose,

0:44

Local journalist Anthony Wilmot

0:46

and his acquaintances mister

0:48

Perryman and mister Trumpus, and

0:51

three members of the Cambridge University

0:54

Society of Psychical Research

0:57

Investigation Teamwell

1:01

David Murray and Michael

1:03

Brotherton have all taken

1:05

a seat. The fourth member

1:07

of the team, Alan Gold, has

1:10

been tasked with keeping watch

1:12

upstairs. A

1:14

ripple of excitement circles

1:16

the room as Tony takes

1:19

a set of cards from his pocket, the

1:21

letters of the alphabet numbers

1:24

zero to nine and the

1:26

words yes and no, and

1:29

lays them out in a wide circle

1:31

on the table. Then he

1:33

takes a wineglass from a nearby cabinet

1:36

and places it upside down in

1:39

the middle of the cards. I

1:41

take it you're all familiar with the wijab

1:43

boards, he says. They

1:45

all nod enthusiastically and

1:48

draw closer together. Tony

1:51

takes a candle from the mantelpiece and

1:53

places it on the table. He

1:56

lights it with a single strike of

1:58

a match. Upstairs,

2:01

in a dimly lit corridor, Alan

2:04

closes the door to Bedroom A, the

2:07

haunted bedroom, and positions

2:09

a small table just outside

2:11

it with a thermometer placed

2:14

on top. Remarks the reading

2:16

as sixty degrees fahrenheit in

2:18

his note book, then heads back

2:20

downstairs. All

2:23

set, he says to Tony, poking

2:25

his head into the living room.

2:28

Great, says Tony, Let's

2:30

begin, Derek,

2:33

would you mind turning off the lights? Derek

2:36

Julie obliges, then returns

2:38

to his seat as Alan clicks

2:41

on his torch and heads back

2:43

upstairs. With

2:45

everyone now seated in darkness

2:48

save for the yellow, flickering light

2:50

of the candle and the dying embers

2:53

of a fire, Tony instructs

2:55

everyone to place their fingers

2:58

on top of the upturned glass.

3:02

Is there anybody there? Asks

3:04

Tony. There is no

3:06

response. A

3:08

scattering of nervous laughter breaks

3:11

out. Tony waits

3:13

for it to die down before asking

3:15

again, is there

3:17

anybody there? Look,

3:22

it's moving, says Rose.

3:25

Everyone fixes their attention to

3:27

the glass that is now clearly

3:30

moving over the table. Alan

3:40

stands in pitch black at the top of

3:42

the stairs. At

3:44

the far end of the hallway is

3:46

the door to Bedroom A, which

3:48

he can't quite make out in the darkness.

3:51

He tries to ignore the gasps coming

3:54

up from the kitchen. When he hears

3:57

a loud snap. It

4:01

sounded like it came from

4:03

the other end of the hallway. He

4:06

flicks on the torch and points it

4:08

into the darkness, surprised

4:10

to see that the door to Bedroom A is

4:13

now slightly ajar A

4:16

little unsettled, he holds

4:19

the light steady on the gap in the

4:21

doorway, but sees no sign

4:23

of movement. Slowly

4:26

he makes his way down the corridor.

4:29

He stops outside the children's bedroom

4:32

and takes a quick look in sight. Both

4:35

the children are fast asleep in their

4:37

beds. Continuing

4:40

on, he soon reaches Bedroom

4:42

A. He shines

4:44

the torchlight through the gap in the

4:47

door and cocks his head to

4:49

listen for any sound coming

4:51

from inside. Is

4:55

there anybody there, repeats

4:57

Tony back in the living room.

5:00

Wilmot lets out a gasp

5:02

as the glass begins to shift

5:05

across the surface of the table. It

5:09

stops just in front of the cart

5:12

labeled Yes. Now,

5:15

come on, who's doing that? He says

5:17

a little peeved. Well,

5:19

it could be any of us, says Tony.

5:22

Well it isn't me. I'm hardly touching

5:24

it, look says Derrick.

5:27

Sh We need to concentrate,

5:29

says Audrey. Thank

5:32

you, Audrey, you'd like to ask the

5:34

next question, says Tony. Audrey

5:37

looks at him nervously and pauses

5:40

for effect before finally

5:42

asking who are you

5:46

back up stairs? Having heard

5:49

no repeat of the snapping sound, Allan

5:51

returns to the middle of the hallway and

5:54

turns off the torch. He

5:56

feels the temperature drop suddenly.

6:00

Then from the direction of the stairs,

6:03

he hears the unmistakable sound

6:05

of footsteps climbing

6:07

up toward him.

6:16

T says Tony, as

6:18

the glass continues its way

6:20

around the alphabet, and

6:24

h Hannath? Was

6:26

that Hannath? The

6:29

others watching stun silence

6:31

as the glass moves back towards

6:33

the Yes cart back

6:37

upstairs, the sound of footsteps.

6:39

It's getting louder. Alan

6:42

keeps the torch pointed at the

6:44

top of the stairs as he makes

6:46

his way toward them.

6:49

Finally, there he shines

6:51

the light towards the bottom.

6:53

The stairwell is completely

6:56

empty.

7:04

The seance is brought to a close,

7:06

and the cu spr team

7:09

retire to the lounge to discuss their

7:11

findings. Alan fills

7:14

them in on the sounds he heard upstairs,

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but theorizes that they were a little more

7:19

than the creakings of an old house. In

7:22

return, the others discuss

7:24

the weija session. They speculate

7:27

that either Wilmot or his friends

7:29

Perryman and Trumpus were responsible

7:32

for moving the glass. After

7:35

a quick break for tea and sandwiches,

7:38

Tony and Alan head off to begin

7:40

observations in Bedroom A, while

7:43

David and Michael initiate

7:46

another seance with everyone else

7:48

so they can keep an eye on them. It's

7:51

just gone one thirty am

7:53

when, with the others back round

7:55

the table, Tony and Alan

7:58

switch on their torches and make

8:00

their way toward Bedroom A.

8:03

As they passed the children's room, Tony

8:06

checks inside and confirms

8:08

that both are still fast asleep

8:10

in their beds. When

8:13

they arrive at the door to Bedroom A,

8:15

Alan checks the thermometer he left

8:18

outside the room. He's surprised

8:21

to find that the mercury has dropped

8:23

a full ten degrees. As

8:26

the distant sound of voices bubble

8:29

up from the kitchen, The two men

8:31

push open the door to the bedroom and

8:34

head inside.

8:36

Back in the living room, Michael

8:38

lays out the Weija cards once more

8:41

and places the wineglass back

8:43

in the center. David

8:46

lights the candle and switches off

8:48

the lights before returning to the

8:50

table. Let's see

8:52

what we can get this time, says Michael,

8:55

placing his finger on top of the glass

8:58

as the others do the same. A

9:00

sudden hush descends and

9:03

all eyes fix on the

9:05

empty vessel. Is

9:07

there anybody there? Asks

9:10

David. Upstairs,

9:13

Alan and Tony point their torches

9:15

around. The room is exactly

9:18

as it was from their earlier inspection.

9:21

After making sure that there is nobody

9:23

else hiding in the room with them,

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Alan closes the door and

9:28

bolts it shut. They

9:30

each take a seat on one of the mattresses

9:33

on the floor, Then, facing

9:35

each other, they connect the soles

9:38

of their feet to make sure that neither

9:40

is trying to hoax the other. Alan

9:44

lays a blanket over them both as

9:46

a second precautionary measure. With

9:49

both settled into place, they

9:52

switch off their torches, plunging

9:54

themselves into complete and

9:57

utter darkness.

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Perhaps it's gone for the night, says

10:10

a despondent Derek. The

10:13

group take a collective breath and

10:15

take their fingers away from the glass,

10:18

which hasn't moved an inch since they

10:20

started. Michael

10:22

suggests that Rose try the next

10:24

question. Rose pauses

10:27

for a moment before asking, is

10:30

there anybody there? For

10:33

a moment, there is nothing, But

10:36

then, almost imperceptibly,

10:39

at first, the glass

10:42

starts to move. What

10:46

was that, says Tony, throwing

10:48

torchlight into the corner of the room.

10:51

Alan does the same. Forget

10:53

it, it was nothing. He nearly gave

10:55

me a heart attack, says Alan. No

10:59

wait over there, listen,

11:03

says Tony again, more

11:05

urgent now, Alleyan quickly

11:08

turns his torch back on and

11:10

sweeps it around the room. No,

11:13

keep it off, just listen. Can

11:18

you confirm that your name is Hannath?

11:21

Asks Rose. The

11:23

group watches and raped as

11:25

the glass slides across the table

11:28

to the yes cart before returning

11:31

to the center of the circle. Why

11:35

are you here? The

11:37

glass moves quicker now from one

11:39

letter to the other as it hastily

11:42

spells out the words looking

11:45

for someone. Rose

11:47

looks nervously to her daughter. Who

11:50

are you looking for? She asks,

11:54

but the glass doesn't move. Will

11:57

you give us a sign of your presence? After

12:01

a moment's pause, the glass

12:03

moves again to

12:05

the yes card. There.

12:10

Did you hear it? Just to your left,

12:13

says Tony excitedly. It

12:16

comes again, clear and unmistakable.

12:19

This time three

12:23

knocks on the floor just to

12:25

Allan's left. Good

12:28

God, Hello,

12:31

Can you knock again? Three times?

12:37

I don't believe it, says Allan,

12:39

before adding hurriedly, knock

12:41

once for yes and two

12:43

knocks for no. Do you

12:45

understand?

12:56

You don't really think it's going to be able

12:58

to make its presence known? Do you? Says

13:00

Audrey. Try

13:02

something else, insists Derrick.

13:06

Where are you now? Asks Rose

13:10

Again. The glass begins to move,

13:12

but slower, this time, much

13:15

more deliberate. It

13:17

stops beside the letter G, then

13:20

moves left to the letter E,

13:23

then back to H, and around

13:25

the circle until the word

13:28

gehenna is spelt out

13:30

and the glass returns to the

13:33

center of the circle. Ger

13:36

hennah Is that what it said?

13:39

That's not a word. It

13:42

must be a mistake. Try it again, says

13:44

Wilmot. Wait, nobody

13:47

knows that word, says David, looking

13:50

across at all the bemused faces,

13:53

He takes his finger suddenly from

13:55

the glass. What is

13:57

it? Asks Rose. I'm

14:00

not sure I should just tell

14:02

us, insists Wilmot. It's

14:06

a Hebrew word. It means

14:08

valley of Hinnham. It's a place

14:10

just south of Mount Zion in Jerusalem.

14:13

It's where the kings of Judah said

14:15

to have sacrificed their children. They

14:19

burned them alive. But

14:22

what, says Wilmot, It's

14:25

also another word for

14:28

hell? Are

14:32

you a male? Asks Tony.

14:34

Back upstairs, comes

14:39

the reply did

14:41

you die in the house? Did

14:45

you die? And natural death? Back

14:52

downstairs, the group, thoroughly

14:55

unsettled by David's revelation,

14:57

bring the seance to an abrupt end,

15:00

and Perryman and Trumpers

15:02

decide to call it a night, and

15:04

despite Wilmot's please for

15:06

them to stay a while longer, he

15:09

eventually agrees to join them in

15:11

heading home. Wilmot

15:14

is disappointed that he won't see

15:16

Tony and Alan before leaving,

15:19

but David promises to be in touch

15:21

as soon as they have their reports written

15:23

up. Soon after,

15:26

the three friends head off

15:29

back to Wisbeach with

15:38

the others gone, Michael and David

15:41

head upstairs to inform Alan and

15:43

Tony that Wilmot and his friends

15:45

have left. When they hear the sound

15:47

of knocking coming from

15:49

inside Bedroom A. It

15:53

seems to be responding to

15:55

Tony and Alan's questions.

15:58

Allan explains from behind the door

16:01

that they've just spent the last ten minutes

16:03

communicating with some kind

16:05

of female entity claiming

16:08

to have been murdered in the house in

16:10

nineteen oh six. Allan

16:13

suggests David and Michael head

16:15

to the washroom, the room below

16:18

them, to make sure no one is

16:20

making the noises from there. Before

16:23

they leave, The pair make a trap

16:25

outside the bedroom by tying

16:27

a length of string around two

16:30

music stands in case anyone

16:32

plans to sneak around in the corridor

16:34

while they're gone. Back

16:37

downstairs, the pages are

16:39

sitting in the living room as Michael

16:41

and David continue through into

16:44

the washroom beyond which they

16:46

find completely empty. Back

16:49

inside Bedroom A, the

16:51

knocks are growing louder and

16:53

more insistent as Tony

16:56

and Allan continue to quiz

16:58

the apparent entity. How

17:01

old were you when you die? Asks

17:03

Allan. There is a pause

17:05

before a loud bang, bang

17:08

bang. The bangs

17:10

ring out from opposite sides of the

17:12

room. Each bang gets

17:14

closer to Tony, until finally

17:16

a fourth wraps

17:19

against the brass bedstand beside

17:21

his head. Tony launches

17:23

himself from the mattress. Why

17:25

don't we check on the others downstairs? Equally

17:29

unnerved, Alan is only too happy

17:32

to take a break. He grabs

17:34

his torch from the bed and hurriedly

17:36

makes his way to the door. At

17:38

the sound of yet another loud knock,

17:41

Alan flings the door open and

17:44

charges straight into David and Michael's

17:47

trap, bringing the stands clattering

17:49

to the floor and sending him stumbling

17:52

back into the bedroom. With

17:54

Tony close behind. The pair are

17:57

forced back for a moment when they

17:59

hear a strange rumbling from inside.

18:02

Tony points to the torch just

18:05

in time to catch one of the

18:07

chairs seemingly being flung

18:09

through the air and onto the mattress

18:12

where he'd just been sitting. A

18:14

stunned Tony holds the now

18:17

stilled chair in a beam of

18:19

torchlight. He stares

18:21

at it for what seems like ours.

18:25

Satisfied it won't move again, he

18:27

picks it up and places it back

18:29

on the pile of boxes. A

18:32

moment later, it falls back

18:34

down onto the floor, making both

18:36

men jump again. Cursing

18:39

himself, Tony picks it up one

18:41

more time and places it firmly

18:43

back onto the boxes. Tony's

18:47

had a chair thrown at him, and we're getting

18:49

clear messages, says Alan, running

18:51

into the washroom, the adrenaline

18:54

coursing almost visibly through him.

18:58

Michael and David agreed to keep one the

19:00

family as Alan and Tony, having

19:03

gathered themselves, returned to Bedroom

19:05

A to finish their questioning.

19:18

Stepping back into the bedroom, Tony

19:21

gasps when he catches sight of

19:23

another chair that seems to have been

19:25

placed on the floor, blocking the path

19:27

from the door, while a cardboard

19:30

box is now sitting on one

19:32

of the mattresses under

19:34

turret. The men move the items

19:37

to the side and return to their

19:39

makeshift beds to begin their

19:41

questions anew. They

19:43

start by asking how old

19:46

the apparent entity was when

19:48

she died. Downstairs,

19:51

David and Michael hear a commotion in

19:54

the living room. David heads

19:56

through to find that Anthony Wilmot

19:58

and his two friends have returned

20:01

to the house. Wilmot

20:03

explains that their car broke down

20:05

half a mile away so they came

20:07

back, hoping to get a lift into

20:10

Wisbeach, with the family

20:12

having filled them in on the events of the

20:14

last few minutes. Wilmot

20:16

asks if they can be of any assistance,

20:19

but David declines the offer. Derek

20:23

suggests he drives the three men back to

20:25

their homes, and just after two

20:27

am they head off together.

20:30

Michael, suspicious of whether

20:32

Wilmot and his friends had ever

20:35

truly left the house at all, watches

20:37

them in the car as it drives off

20:39

the property and disappears into

20:42

the night. Back

20:44

upstairs, Tony and Allen

20:47

continued their questions. What

20:49

month did you die? Asks

20:51

Tony. Eleven

20:54

knocks come back in reply, and

20:57

what day was that? Again

21:01

the knocks come. They

21:03

seem to emerge from a space just

21:05

to the right of Tony, but as

21:07

the knocks continue, now

21:10

up to fourteen, they begin

21:12

slowly again to draw nearer

21:14

to him. In a panic,

21:16

he shines his torch at the spot,

21:19

bringing the knox to an abrupt stop,

21:22

much to Allan's frustration. They're

21:24

getting too close, says Tony.

21:27

He takes a moment to recompose himself

21:30

before switching the light off again and

21:32

repeating the question The

21:35

knocks return almost instantly

21:38

and stop at eighteen eighteenth

21:41

of November nineteen o six.

21:44

Is that correct?

21:47

Comes the reply? To make

21:49

sure that neither of fabricating

21:51

the exchanges, Tony suggests

21:53

to Allan that they hold hands for

21:55

the next question. Now,

21:58

with the soles of their feet ganteed

22:00

against each other's and their hands

22:02

clasped tightly together, Tony

22:05

asks again, are you

22:07

still there? Comes

22:11

the reply? With

22:19

only Rose and Audrey left downstairs,

22:22

Michael remains in the living room to

22:24

keep watch over Rose, while

22:26

David and Audrey, who's eager

22:29

to hear the noises for herself, move

22:31

into the washroom to listen from

22:34

underneath the bedroom a. For

22:36

the next twenty minutes, the pair

22:39

stand in the pitch black together, listening

22:42

silently as Tony and Alan

22:45

can be heard from above. Each

22:47

time they ask a question, the

22:50

knocks come back without fail.

22:54

At two forty five am, the

22:56

wraps finally begin to peter

22:58

out, with Tony and Alan concluding

23:01

that the apparent entities age at

23:04

death was either thirty eight

23:06

or eighty three. The men

23:09

from the cusbr take

23:11

a break. An hour

23:13

later, with Derek now having

23:15

returned, the men restart

23:18

their investigation with

23:21

David keen to experience

23:23

the haunted bedroom first hand. Michael

23:26

agrees to keep the Pages and Rows

23:28

company downstairs, while

23:30

the other three head back up to

23:33

Bedroom A, with

23:35

Alan leading the way. The men once

23:38

again pause outside the children's

23:40

bedroom. Inside, the

23:43

young boy and girl are still fast

23:45

asleep in their beds. Alan

23:48

shines his torch toward the end of

23:50

the corridor and gives a start. The

23:53

door to Bedroom A is

23:55

slightly a jar. What

23:58

is it? Asks Tony? I

24:01

close that when we came downstairs.

24:05

The men look to each other, then cautiously

24:08

head toward the room. Alan

24:11

leads the other two inside.

24:13

Tony has just shut the door behind them

24:16

when a strange metallic clattering

24:18

is heard. He swiftly

24:20

points his torch towards the internal

24:23

bolt lock, where a large brass

24:25

fork has been thoroughly jammed

24:28

in its place, locking them inside.

24:31

The men flash their torches about the room,

24:34

but find no one else there with

24:36

them, and all is still

24:38

and silent. Taking

24:41

a breath, Tony removes the fork

24:43

from the lock and places it to the

24:45

side. The men

24:47

take a seat on the mattress nearest

24:50

the middle of the room, arranging

24:52

themselves in a circle. They plant

24:54

their feet one against each other,

24:57

and once again switch off their

24:59

talk watches. In

25:01

the darkness, they reach out

25:04

and take hold of each other's hands.

25:07

Is anybody there, asks

25:10

Tony. For a moment,

25:12

there is nothing but silence. Then

25:16

something very gentle, like

25:18

a soft rustling, is heard. As

25:21

they listen further, the noise

25:23

intensifies until it sounds

25:26

like scratching an

25:28

animal, suggests Allen, but

25:31

Tony isn't so sure. He

25:34

listens more intently, now focusing

25:37

his mind on nothing but the sound

25:40

coming from somewhere out of the dark

25:42

to his right. As he

25:44

stares toward the back wall, it

25:47

feels as though that same dark

25:49

is collapsing into itself, and

25:52

then it is pulling him in from

25:54

somewhere far away. A

25:58

cold breeze drifts through the room.

26:02

Suddenly, David and Alan sent

26:04

something tugging at their hands. Tony's

26:07

body has gone limp. Go

26:10

away, go away, he shouts,

26:13

startling himself awake, before

26:16

leaning forward suddenly with

26:18

his head in his hands.

26:26

I must have fallen asleep. Alan

26:29

quickly feels for Tony's wrist and

26:32

finds his pulse racing at over

26:34

two beats a second. What

26:37

happened. Something was attacking

26:39

me a horse. I think all

26:42

I could see were the hoofs kicking

26:44

down onto my head. It

26:46

was just as Derek's mother had experienced

26:49

during her brief stay in the same

26:51

room. Alan and David

26:54

wait a moment for Tony to calm.

26:57

When he assures them he's okay to continue,

27:00

the three men begin again.

27:03

For more than an hour, they sit

27:05

holding hands in the dark, asking

27:08

questions into the air, but

27:11

there are no more replies. At

27:14

five a m Tony, Allan

27:16

and David decide to call

27:18

it a night. They gather

27:20

their things and make their way downstairs

27:24

for a final cup of tea and

27:26

another debrief. When

27:28

Tony shows the brass fork to

27:31

Audrey, Derrick and Rose, each

27:33

claims to have never seen it before.

27:37

A short time later, the men

27:39

of the Cambridge University Society

27:42

for Psychical Research thank

27:44

the Pages and Rose for their time

27:47

and make their way back to the car.

27:50

It is still dark outside. As

27:52

Tony pulls out to the end of the driveway.

27:56

He takes in the looming presence of

27:58

Hanneth Hall last time

28:01

before slowly easing out into

28:03

the road and heading off into

28:06

the distance. None

28:08

of the cu spr team will

28:11

ever be entirely sure quite

28:13

what it was they'd experienced that night.

28:17

As they make their way south, it isn't

28:19

long before the waterways, vast

28:22

open skies, and plowed

28:24

black earths of the fens are

28:27

replaced by more familiar and

28:29

solid surrounds. As

28:31

they cross the border into the city

28:34

of Cambridge, a pale winter

28:36

sun is just creeping up

28:38

over the horizon, while

28:40

in the sky above the stars

28:43

have all but dissolved into daylight.

28:47

Over the next two years, Tony

28:49

Cornell and Alan Goud return

28:52

to Hannith Hall on at least ten further

28:54

occasions, although

28:56

no audio or visual proof of

28:58

the apparent Poultic guysed activity

29:01

was ever recorded. Of the eight

29:03

hundred cases of supposed paranormal

29:06

activity that Tony would eventually

29:09

go on to investigate, he only

29:11

considered a handful to be as

29:13

genuine as you might ever hope to

29:15

find. Hannath Hall

29:18

was one of them.

29:27

This episode was written by Richard

29:29

McLain Smith unexplained

29:31

as an Avy Club Productions podcast

29:34

created by Richard McClain Smith. All

29:36

other elements of the podcast, including the

29:38

music, are also produced by me.

29:41

Richard McClain Smith. Unexplained

29:44

The book and audiobook, with stories

29:46

never before featured on the show, is

29:48

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29:50

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30:04

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30:06

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30:08

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