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Collector's Library of the Unknown
The Most Haunted House in England: Ten Years Investigation of Borley Rectory
Harry Price's The Most Haunted House in England is about a classic haunted house, Borley Rectory, which is a staple of many of the ghost and supernatural books and documentaries. It is well-written in that competent British school boy fashion, with impeccable grammar, restrained wit, and conservative style.
204 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1940
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About the author
Harry Price
73 books19 followersHarry Price was a British psychic researcher and author, who gained public prominence for his investigations into psychical phenomena and his exposing fraudulent spiritualist mediums. He is best known for his well-publicized investigation of the purportedly haunted Borley Rectory in Essex, England.
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
June 30, 2016
A very enlightening book of what was considered to be England's "most haunted house". This was based on the actual experiences and experiments conducted by Harry Price, himself. While I found much of it to be very interesting, it was extremely repetitious. Almost all of the "evidence" was the same, and nothing was ever really proven.
Also, there was one part of the book (view spoiler) that was left--bafflingly--open-ended. The only reason I could come up with for this was that the information "given" on it was purposely false in order to drum up interest, and therefore there was NO REASON to pursue it further....
I'm still interested in this historic story, and will follow up with some other sources on the subject in the near future.
Also, there was one part of the book (view spoiler) that was left--bafflingly--open-ended. The only reason I could come up with for this was that the information "given" on it was purposely false in order to drum up interest, and therefore there was NO REASON to pursue it further....
I'm still interested in this historic story, and will follow up with some other sources on the subject in the near future.
July 13, 2016
A very enlightening book of what was considered to be England's "most haunted house". This was based on the actual experiences and experiments conducted by Harry Price, himself. While I found much of it to be very interesting, it was extremely repetitious. Almost all of the "evidence" was the same, and nothing was ever really proven.
Also, there was one part of the book that was left--bafflingly--open-ended. The only reason I could come up with for this was that the information "given" on it was purposely false in order to drum up interest, and therefore there was NO REASON to pursue it further....
I'm still interested in this historic story, and will follow up with some other sources on the subject in the near future.
Also, there was one part of the book that was left--bafflingly--open-ended. The only reason I could come up with for this was that the information "given" on it was purposely false in order to drum up interest, and therefore there was NO REASON to pursue it further....
I'm still interested in this historic story, and will follow up with some other sources on the subject in the near future.
July 30, 2019
THE MOST HAUNTED HOUSE IN ENGLAND is a tour-de-force true-life haunted house book, the one which renowned ghost hunter Harry Price was most famous for. Borley Rectory was the most haunted house in England, and this comprehensive description of the haunting is filled with mysterious events and - crucially - plenty of atmosphere. I'm a big fan of ghost-hunting, but in the past couple of decades we've seen it popularised to near-destruction in the likes of MOST HAUNTED, turned into a mockery by the attentions of thrill-seekers and laymen, those who care about popularity and viewing figures and little else.
Back in Price's day, things were different. People were more reserved, more level-headed, perhaps less credulous, thus this book has a matter-of-fact, documentary feel to it. Events are described in detail - and there are a lot of them - with possible suggestions dotted throughout the text. It's as much a painting of a long-forgotten interwar era as it is a ghost hunting book. It's non-sensational, engaging, and Price's no-nonsense writing is a delight to read. Add in some great photos, witness testimony and background research, and you have a classic of its type.
Back in Price's day, things were different. People were more reserved, more level-headed, perhaps less credulous, thus this book has a matter-of-fact, documentary feel to it. Events are described in detail - and there are a lot of them - with possible suggestions dotted throughout the text. It's as much a painting of a long-forgotten interwar era as it is a ghost hunting book. It's non-sensational, engaging, and Price's no-nonsense writing is a delight to read. Add in some great photos, witness testimony and background research, and you have a classic of its type.
July 15, 2009
After watching The World's Scariest Ghosts Caught on Tape one Friday evening a few weeks ago, my interest in "true ghost stories" was peaked and so I scared up this volume.
Harry Price's The Most Haunted House in England is about a classic haunted house, Borley Rectory, which is a staple of many of the ghost and supernatural books I skimmed when I was younger. It is well-written in that competent British school boy fashion, with impeccable grammar, restrained wit, and conservative style.
Price explains how he was invited to explore Borley Rectory, which was built in 1863 by the Rev. Henry Bull and which had allegedly been visited by the ghost of a nun and by a spectral coach drawn by two headless men. Price details the history of the village of Borley and the tales of the haunted rectory; the legend of a nun who was buried alive at the site that would become the rectory for her illicit liaison with a monk; and spooky stories from various sources—those who lived in the house, their guests, and those invited specifically for the task of research into the hauntings.
Sadly, for its status as a classic in the genre of supernatural literature, the book is not really scary. Almost all of the activities described were of the nature of a poltergeist (or Poltergeister, as Price would have it) in the form of mysterious sounds, teleportation of small objects, movement of small objects, and, over a period of several years, the writing of messages and small marks on the walls of the house. There was surprisingly little about the spectral coach and ghostly nun, particularly seeing how these alleged phenomena were what drew Price to the house initially.
The book serves as a documentary history of the alleged haunting, and the author leaves it up to the reader to decide as to the veracity of the stories of Borley Rectory in light of all the documentary "evidence" presented. Many contemporary critics feel that Price and one of the couples who lived in the house (those to whom the mysterious messages were addressed) established this entire story as a hoax. It wouldn't surprise me.
In short, this is a high-quality reprint of a classic, if unconvincing and not very scary, early 20th century monograph on ghosts. The Time-Life Collector's Library of the Unknown is a classy series for those who are interested in the literature of the unexplained, even if only in fun, and this volume is no exception.
Harry Price's The Most Haunted House in England is about a classic haunted house, Borley Rectory, which is a staple of many of the ghost and supernatural books I skimmed when I was younger. It is well-written in that competent British school boy fashion, with impeccable grammar, restrained wit, and conservative style.
Price explains how he was invited to explore Borley Rectory, which was built in 1863 by the Rev. Henry Bull and which had allegedly been visited by the ghost of a nun and by a spectral coach drawn by two headless men. Price details the history of the village of Borley and the tales of the haunted rectory; the legend of a nun who was buried alive at the site that would become the rectory for her illicit liaison with a monk; and spooky stories from various sources—those who lived in the house, their guests, and those invited specifically for the task of research into the hauntings.
Sadly, for its status as a classic in the genre of supernatural literature, the book is not really scary. Almost all of the activities described were of the nature of a poltergeist (or Poltergeister, as Price would have it) in the form of mysterious sounds, teleportation of small objects, movement of small objects, and, over a period of several years, the writing of messages and small marks on the walls of the house. There was surprisingly little about the spectral coach and ghostly nun, particularly seeing how these alleged phenomena were what drew Price to the house initially.
The book serves as a documentary history of the alleged haunting, and the author leaves it up to the reader to decide as to the veracity of the stories of Borley Rectory in light of all the documentary "evidence" presented. Many contemporary critics feel that Price and one of the couples who lived in the house (those to whom the mysterious messages were addressed) established this entire story as a hoax. It wouldn't surprise me.
In short, this is a high-quality reprint of a classic, if unconvincing and not very scary, early 20th century monograph on ghosts. The Time-Life Collector's Library of the Unknown is a classy series for those who are interested in the literature of the unexplained, even if only in fun, and this volume is no exception.
July 1, 2016
Harry Price was a ghost hunters in the 1930's. Price spent ten years investigating The Borley Rectory. It was the most haunted house in England. I found some of the observations interesting but a lot of the material was duplicated throughout the entire book. It seems like things really only happen, when Price was around. Price left some stones unturned in his investigations. I enjoyed the historical facts about the Rectory and it surroundings. Somewhat towards the end of the book, Price states, I have presented my observations of The Borley Rectory and now it is up to the readers, to make up their minds, whether these finding are true or false.
February 17, 2018
First, let me point out that the building has been burned down. According to the book, some spirits still haunt the grounds, such as a nun, but I'm not sure how many people wish to run into a ghost nun out in the middle of nowhere.
Second, the book is an amazing piece of history in the field of ghost hunting. To my knowledge, Harry Price is one of the first to really focus on one haunted site for a multi-year period, using volunteers, cameras, policies and rules for dealing with ghost. Many of the raw information and reports come with the book and he gives a very well balanced, not-too-emotional account of the happenings.
In the end I feel he is the father of ghost hunting in which people were REALLY trying to explain things. True, there is also a few séances, but much of the volunteers and investigators use good old common sense, cameras, chalk, tape, and the Blue Book. To me this is the border, between when people just took the ghosts on face value and when people started to question WHAT was happening.
I feel a lot of it can be explained away. For example, like it or not, I think the house DOES have mice or rats. It is old, so it can made sounds and there is going to be cold spots, with or without ghosts. Now, does that explain everything? No. Yet some information has appeared after the book was published - just to a net search on the house - which suggests some of the events WERE fakes.
In the end, it is up to the person to each decide what they believe. And either way, this makes a wonderful book, a lovely slice of history.
Second, the book is an amazing piece of history in the field of ghost hunting. To my knowledge, Harry Price is one of the first to really focus on one haunted site for a multi-year period, using volunteers, cameras, policies and rules for dealing with ghost. Many of the raw information and reports come with the book and he gives a very well balanced, not-too-emotional account of the happenings.
In the end I feel he is the father of ghost hunting in which people were REALLY trying to explain things. True, there is also a few séances, but much of the volunteers and investigators use good old common sense, cameras, chalk, tape, and the Blue Book. To me this is the border, between when people just took the ghosts on face value and when people started to question WHAT was happening.
I feel a lot of it can be explained away. For example, like it or not, I think the house DOES have mice or rats. It is old, so it can made sounds and there is going to be cold spots, with or without ghosts. Now, does that explain everything? No. Yet some information has appeared after the book was published - just to a net search on the house - which suggests some of the events WERE fakes.
In the end, it is up to the person to each decide what they believe. And either way, this makes a wonderful book, a lovely slice of history.
May 10, 2018
Harry Price goes to great lengths to control the variables in his observations of the Borley Rectory, so it's light years away from the frantic yelling seen on modern day ghost investigations like Ghost Adventures or Most Haunted. He's also very careful to report all the details in an objective way, quoting reports from others verbatim when possible. This allowed me to find the creepiness by myself, rather than be influenced by atmosphere. It also means that, although the text is not dry, per se, it's also not a page turner. I didn't want to stop reading though, because the weird things that happened at the Rectory were confounding. One by one they're not much, but together they make a person wonder. Gluey substances, apported coats and other objects, and pencil marks from nowhere. The most astonishing thing to me was that a family lived there for a good while even though things were thrown at their heads, they were locked into rooms, and messages started appearing on the walls for the wife, calling her by name. And they only left because they didn't like the layout of the house. No conclusions are ever drawn, but this has to be one of the best documented haunted houses I've read about, and the lack of a narrative to the haunting makes it more real to me.
August 18, 2020
Interesting book published about 80 years ago by famous English 'ghost-hunter' Harry Price. Price spent most of his career in search of psychic phenomena, and was a bit like the Amazing Randy back in the day: he disproved many charlatans and tricksters in his day, and built quite a reputation is a serious student of 'psychical science'. His most famous case was Borley Rectory, a place that has been called the most haunted house in England. Price wrote two books about it, and it's shadow still reaches out across time and into popular culture (there was a recent BBC movie about Harry Price, for instance).
Thing is: it was all fake. Price faked some of it, the people living there faked some of it, and it is all just one big hoax. There is no such thing as ghosts (sadly). Still, this was an interesting read about the tail end of the great Spiritualism movement in England (which stretched from the Victorian Era to the dawn of WWII). The English love their ghosts, and I love them too!
This book is a facsimile, or some kind of a reprint of an older book. The layout is terrible and there were tons of typos.
Thing is: it was all fake. Price faked some of it, the people living there faked some of it, and it is all just one big hoax. There is no such thing as ghosts (sadly). Still, this was an interesting read about the tail end of the great Spiritualism movement in England (which stretched from the Victorian Era to the dawn of WWII). The English love their ghosts, and I love them too!
This book is a facsimile, or some kind of a reprint of an older book. The layout is terrible and there were tons of typos.
June 8, 2021
I really like shows like Ghost Adventures and so I had to read Harry Price report about the most haunted House in England. The phenomena is really restrained and nothing like the things happening in Horror movies but non or less it is an interesting book to read
October 27, 2023
Very interesting account. Harry Price spent an exhaustive amount of time-10 years, researching and compiling evidence of strange happenings at Borley Rectory. The results are fascinating and show a huge amount of planning and organization.
March 6, 2020
I loved the information in this book and all the detail on the buildings history and everything, but the book itself was very dry and not so exciting to read.
February 22, 2024
Boring garbage
December 28, 2019
Fascinating account of supernatural activity. Helps the reader understand a little bit more about the phenomenon. Although the reader is encouraged to draw their own conclusions, I disputable evidence remains. I can basically say this book scared me! I’m so glad that there are countless miles between me and Borley UK.
January 31, 2018
Very informative.
January 18, 2015
Two caveats up front: I don't believe in ghosts; I love ghost stories. Unfortunately for me, Harry Price's matter-of-fact writing style is not conducive to developing those delicious tingly spines one craves on a dark cold January night. Ultimately I came to appreciate this book for what it is--an early 20th century attempt at a scientific psychic investigation that took place over several years. One has to commend Mr Price for his doggedness if nothing else.
I don't know if Borley Rectory was haunted or not, either way it must've been a fascinating place to behold.
I don't know if Borley Rectory was haunted or not, either way it must've been a fascinating place to behold.
February 14, 2023
So… the book is well written. Although many people love to debunk Prices findings on the case, there have been hundreds of witnesses over hundreds of years so it’s hard to say the whole thing is a hoax. Still a very interesting read and a creepy story altogether
August 15, 2017
Borley rectory was a truly fascinating place. out in the middle nowhere, haunted beyond doubt and burnt to the ground, this house had it all. Harry Price did a lot of work at Borley, and his findings are presented extremely well in this book. Although he is very repetitious with his evidence and some of it is quite far-fetched, he is still one of the greatest psychical investigators of his time.
April 21, 2014
Interesting ... Do most of the action only take place when Harry Price is actually at Borley?
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews