Early in 1981, Dr Kurt Bachseitz started receiving abusive phone calls at his dental practice in the Bavarian town of Neutrabling, in what was then West Germany. The caller, who went by the name Chopper, would shout insults and obscenties in a “staccato, robot-like monotone.” But Chopper didn’t just phone the surgery – he was …
At about 9pm on Wednesday, 5 September 1956, Richard Lappin reluctantly left his comfy armchair to investigate why his dog was disturbing the peace. Lappin, who had served in the Anti-Aircraft Command during World War II, lived opposite the main entrance to Parliament Buildings, better known as Stormont, the current home of the Northern Ireland …
“Then his pale countenance is seen gazing into ground-floor windows, and his gaunt form is to be dimly discerned in the gloomiest corners.” – The Weekly Freeman, 8 Sep 1917 In early September 1917, a “spectral figure” was prowling the streets of Mullingar, in County Westmeath. Tall and thin and dressed in grey, it only …
ON THE AFTERNOON OF 16 April 1950, 72-year-old James McAnespie, of Fintona village, County Tyrone, left his home and didn’t come back. He was a creature of habit; so, when he hadn’t returned home by 8pm, his neighbours called the police. Search parties, consisting of police and locals, were hastily organised. And as they searched …
ON THE AFTERNOON of Friday, 5 August 1904, Abbott Parker was struck by lightning while sheltering under a maple tree on Mount Kemble Avenue in Morristown, New Jersey. Fortunately, there were a number of witnesses to the incident who immediately ran to help. They found Parker lying face down on the pavement; his clothing had …
AT ABOUT 3PM on Tuesday, 24 June 1947, American businessman Kenneth Arnold accidentally discovered flying saucers. He’d been flying near Mount Rainier, Washington, in his CallAir three-seater aircraft, looking for a missing military aircraft at the time, when nine shiny objects, flying in formation, attracted his attention. Though he calculated that the objects were about …
THE ISLE OF WÉIRED is a place where you’ll find strange tales from Ireland – and beyond. Tales that – as strange as they are – are supposedly true. That’s not to say that they are true – only that they were reported as true. It’s not my intention to convince you of the reality …