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Ghosts of Devon.
Devon, glorious Devon, is a land full of mystery and of ghostly lore and legend; a land where it seems there is a subtle link between this world and the next; where centuries do not matter and time, occasionally, stands still. For the enquiring mind the countryside, the people and the ghosts of Devon have an in exhaustible attraction.
Here Peter Underwood, President of the Ghost Club, writes of the ghostly stories that saturate this lovely county.
Here Peter Underwood, President of the Ghost Club, writes of the ghostly stories that saturate this lovely county.
112 pages, Paperback
First published May 16, 1982
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About the author
Peter Underwood
89 books16 followers(1923/2014): Author, broadcaster, historian of the occult; investigator of the paranormal.
Born in Letchworth in Hertfordshire, Underwood wrote prolifically on ghosts and haunted places within the United Kingdom, and was a leading expert on ‘the most haunted house in England’, Borley Rectory.
An early formative experience came at the age of nine, on the day he learnt of his father’s death; that night, he awoke to see an apparition of his father at the foot of the bed.
Around the same time, he was fascinated to learn of a ghost story associated the old house at Rosehall - where his maternal grandparents lived for a time; it contained a bedroom where guests claimed to see the figure of a headless man..
It was at this young age that Underwood's interest in hauntings and psychic matters began to take root.
On January 1942, Underwood was called up for active service with the Suffolk Regiment. After collapsing at a rifle range at Bury St Edmunds, a serious chest ailment was diagnosed. He was discharged, and returned to his employment at the publishing firm J.M. Dent & Sons.
One of his early investigations was the Borley Rectory haunting, where, over a period of years, Underwood traced and personally interviewed almost every living person who had been connected with the mysterious events surrounding the place.
Underwood built upon the legacy of the work of Harry Price, who had investigated Borley before him. Together with Paul Tabori (literary executor of the Price Estate), Underwood was able to publish all his findings in The Ghosts of Borley (1973).
In his autobiography No Common Task (1983), Underwood remarked that ”98% of reported hauntings have a natural and mundane explanation, but it is the other 2% that have interested me for more than forty years”.
Having joined The Ghost Club back in 1947 - at the personal invitation of Harry Price, Underwood was to become its President for over thirty years: from 1960 to 1993.
Underwood was a long-standing member of the Society for Psychical Research and the Savage Club. In 1976, a bust of him was sculpted by Patricia Finch - winner of the Gold Medal for Sculpture in Venice.
In recognition of his more than seventy years of paranormal investigations, Underwood became the Patron of The Ghost Research Foundation (founded in Oxford), which termed him the King of Ghost Hunters.
Born in Letchworth in Hertfordshire, Underwood wrote prolifically on ghosts and haunted places within the United Kingdom, and was a leading expert on ‘the most haunted house in England’, Borley Rectory.
An early formative experience came at the age of nine, on the day he learnt of his father’s death; that night, he awoke to see an apparition of his father at the foot of the bed.
Around the same time, he was fascinated to learn of a ghost story associated the old house at Rosehall - where his maternal grandparents lived for a time; it contained a bedroom where guests claimed to see the figure of a headless man..
It was at this young age that Underwood's interest in hauntings and psychic matters began to take root.
On January 1942, Underwood was called up for active service with the Suffolk Regiment. After collapsing at a rifle range at Bury St Edmunds, a serious chest ailment was diagnosed. He was discharged, and returned to his employment at the publishing firm J.M. Dent & Sons.
One of his early investigations was the Borley Rectory haunting, where, over a period of years, Underwood traced and personally interviewed almost every living person who had been connected with the mysterious events surrounding the place.
Underwood built upon the legacy of the work of Harry Price, who had investigated Borley before him. Together with Paul Tabori (literary executor of the Price Estate), Underwood was able to publish all his findings in The Ghosts of Borley (1973).
In his autobiography No Common Task (1983), Underwood remarked that ”98% of reported hauntings have a natural and mundane explanation, but it is the other 2% that have interested me for more than forty years”.
Having joined The Ghost Club back in 1947 - at the personal invitation of Harry Price, Underwood was to become its President for over thirty years: from 1960 to 1993.
Underwood was a long-standing member of the Society for Psychical Research and the Savage Club. In 1976, a bust of him was sculpted by Patricia Finch - winner of the Gold Medal for Sculpture in Venice.
In recognition of his more than seventy years of paranormal investigations, Underwood became the Patron of The Ghost Research Foundation (founded in Oxford), which termed him the King of Ghost Hunters.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
October 22, 2017
Nice and informative, some interesting stories of murder, love and loss.
June 21, 2021
Chilling and great for those who love a psychological shiver!
July 24, 2025
I love the book's rather snappy and extremely insightful ways of noting these paranormal occurrences. Details are great and names of places mean easy further investigation. Also, it's Devon.
June 3, 2011
Good true hauntings from the President of The Ghost Club. Lots of photos.
Back Cover Blurb:
Devon, glorious Devon, is a land full of mystery and of ghostly lore and legend; a land where it seems there is a subtle link between this world and the next; where centuries do not matter and time, occasionally, stands still.
Here Peter Underwood, President of The Ghost Club Society, writes of the ghostly stories that pervade this lovely county.
Back Cover Blurb:
Devon, glorious Devon, is a land full of mystery and of ghostly lore and legend; a land where it seems there is a subtle link between this world and the next; where centuries do not matter and time, occasionally, stands still.
Here Peter Underwood, President of The Ghost Club Society, writes of the ghostly stories that pervade this lovely county.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews