My Story

I’ve always had a creative side to everything I do. From a very young age I was involved in theatre, TV, and all sorts of creative projects.

Here you will find a few of my more recent projects, including some writing, design and producing projects. Many of these as you will see have a paranomal bent.

So how did I get into ghosts in the first place? I think it started with an Usborne book I had as a child: Mysteries of the Unknown: Ghosts, Monsters & UFOs. I must have read the monsters and UFOs sections several times, but it was the ghost section I kept returning to again and again—especially one photo in particular. It’s a now very famous image, and I remember being drawn to it, almost daring myself to turn the page and look at it.

Later in life, fictional shows like the infamous Ghostwatch, and then reality series such as Most Haunted, inspired me to revisit my love of the paranormal. I joined the Ghost Research Foundation (as it was at the time) and worked my way up from member, to senior investigator, and eventually President. Over the years I’ve investigated many genuinely chilling locations.

I’m always inspired by a truly chilling ghost story. My short story 39012  was inspired by one of my favourite authors, M. R. James. I love a good fireside read on a dark, spooky night.

In 2000 I also co-founded AtmosFEAR Scare Entertainment with my good friend Jason Karl. Unlike the Ghost Research Foundation, AtmosFEAR creates fictional events—scare attractions—where immersive environments, special effects, and live actors combine to deliver scary, thrilling experiences. We’ve built literally hundreds of these over the years, and they’ve been a fantastic creative outlet within the horror genre.

For the past five years we’ve also been producing a live promenade theatre experience at Christmas: A Ghost Story for Christmas, at the local 700-year-old manor house, Samlesbury Hall. These shows are extremely popular and sell out well in advance, which proves—at least to me—that the lure of the ghost story, particularly at Christmas, is as strong today as it was in the Victorian period.