The Borley Rectory Companion: The Complete Guide to 'The Most Haunted House in England'

by Paul Adams, Peter Underwood, Eddie Brazil

Borley Rectory in Essex, built in 1862, should have been an ordinary Victorian clergyman’s house. However, just a year after its construction, unexplained footsteps were heard within the house, and from 1900 until it burned down in 1939 numerous paranormal phenomena, including phantom coaches and shattering windows, were observed. In 1929 the house was investigated by the Daily Mail and paranormal researcher Harry Price, and it was he who called it ‘the most haunted house in England.’ Price also took out a lease of the rectory from 1937 to 1938, recruiting forty-eight ‘official observers’ to monitor occurences. After his death in 1948, the water was muddied by claims that Price’s findings were not genuine paranormal activity, and ever since there has been a debate over what really went on at Borley Rectory.Paul Adams, Eddie Brazil and Peter Underwood here present a comprehensive guide to the history of the house and the ghostly (or not) goings-on there.

Genres: Nonfiction

384 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2008

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Reviews

[Kai H · Rating 3 out of 5]

The layout of the book is bad, its basically an alphabeticial chronology of everything related or vaguely related to the house. There is no narrative which makes it hard to read.
The authors bring nothing new no concrete evidence, reevaluation of the evidence just a rehash of the same info, whch most of it is obviously hoaxed chicanery especially where the Foysters were concerned. If the author's had attempted to evaluate and reexamine things instead of trying to defend Price and the alleged events all the time it might be worthy of getting somewhere. All it is is a constant pro defence of Price even when he was caught hands up rehanded faking and messing around ,stones in pocket the levitating brick nonsence thrown by the workman out of shot etc the authors still wont acknowledge the guy was an attention seeking crook at the best of time.I have no doubt the rectory was haunted and the site still is based on the evidence of many witnesses long before Price unfortunately became involved and sullied the waters. More time should have been spent examining the actual evidence instead of the authors trying to defend their hero Price, who was mostly an unprofessional attention seeking conman it seems to me.

[K. Morral · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is an interesting read, though not always the easiest. It's not to narrative I had anticipated, nor does it read quite like an academic text, although it is a distinctly formal book. It is highly repetitive, though in part that is due to the way they book is divided. The first part is the chronological narrative; then an encyclopedia of key terms events and people (with frequent and occasionally frustrating repetitions between passages), then finally a date specific timeline.

[Peter Barrass · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always Bean interested in the borley Rectory haunting. This book is a good and fair look into the goings on at the most haunted house in Britain before it burned down.

[Chloe Brant · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved the story (don't necessarily believe in ghosts!) and I love the house. My perfect place to live!Wish it was still standing. Because it is a guide book you can dip in and out of it as you wish.