Saturday, November 18, 2006

Simon makes a go of ghost-hunting - Daily Post North Wales

Simon makes a go of ghost-hunting - Daily Post North Wales

PEOPLE with a taste for the paranormal are being recruited to help sniff out the ghosts of North Wales.

Spooks Paranormal Ltd investigates hauntings across South Wales and is looking to expand northwards.

The company, which also holds ghost hunts for the public, is now looking forward to tapping into the region’s rich mine of haunted houses.

Spooks, based in Bridgend, was set up three years ago by former retail manager Simon Curwood after he had a psychic experience.

Mr Curwood, 34, said: "I was in a church in Italy for a wedding and had a very strange experience.

"I saw this haunting figure and, quite frankly, I was gobsmacked. It then felt as if I was being hanged, and afterwards the whites of my eyes had turned bloodshot.

"Only later I learnt people had been hanged around there. It was like someone trying to tell me ‘right you’ve got this skill, what are you going to do with it?’. So I quit my job, £26,000 down the pan, to do this."
The company conducts investigations into the paranormal across Britain, with 170 probes carried out in three years.

One investigation in Somerset last week centred on a woman being thrown around her room by an invisible presence at night, with another in Essex helping out a man who regularly woke at night to find coins in his mouth.

Mr Curwood said his most shocking investigation was into a 6ft 2ins, 22-stone man thrown around a room in Bridgend.

Mr Curwood said: "A bit of our work is entertainment, in that we take in groups and take them on tours at haunted locations. But a lot of it is extremely serious.

"We are more and more keen to move into north and mid Wales too. Wales is very, very rich in haunted locations, just through the history of the place.

"Mid Wales can be a little sparse, but North Wales is very good with a lot of places of interest. We want people to let us know the places they feel are worth investigating."

The company now employs 27 staff, mostly part-time, and Mr Curwood is looking to recruit 23 more staff for north and mid Wales. Mr Curwood is looking to recruit five area managers, five mediums, three technical staff and 10 senior investigators in north and mid Wales, most for part time work.

Anyone interested can contact Mr Curwood on simon.curwood@btinternet.com

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