CHRISTINE MILLER takes a look back on the Mary King’s Close Most Haunted Episode
Episode Title: Mary King’s Close
Location: Edinburgh, Scotland
Series: 4 Episode Number: 45
Originally broadcast: 2004
Main Medium: Derek Acorah
Guest Mediums: Ian Lawman, Brian Shepherd, Judith Cooney, Derek Ogilvie & David Wells
Parapsychologist: Dr. Matthew Smith & Dr. Ciaran O’Keeffe
A Subterranean Labyrinth Where The Black Death Thrived
The original area of Mary Kings Close was a number of dingy, squalid streets which provided a fertile breeding ground for the bubonic plague that caused utter carnage in 1645. The close was soon quarantined due to the sweeping number of cases, leading to many individuals to die miserable, lonely deaths.
In the mid-18th century Royal Exchange was built directly on top of the close, which left it buried and all but forgotten for centuries.
Dark shadows, apparitions and chilling screams are just some of the strange activity reported in Mary Kings Close in Edinburgh, and many staff refuse to enter certain areas on their own as they say some rooms have a particularly heavy, ominous feeling.
The ghost of a man standing and staring from a corner has scared many a shocked visitor. Could this be the same man who terrified a member of staff when she heard footsteps coming into the close? What she saw left her speechless – a pair of boots descended the staircase and then manifested into the silhouette of a man in a long black coat.
A very young girl has also been seen searching frantically for her mother, who allegedly left her to die of the plague alone.
Will the Most Haunted team encounter any paranormal activity when they spend 24 hours in Mary Kings Close?
The Walkaround at Mary Kings Close
With psychic medium Derek Acorah having arrived, the team begin their exploration. Walking through the close, Derek says he can sense a lot of screaming and moaning alongside a repugnant stench. He confirms that those who lived and died here were largely plague victims.
While Derek is talking there is a faint crying sound which is caught on camera. Derek states that he believes that the cry was that of a phantom cow which would have just been one of many animals who lived down here. Yvette confirms that the area was once used as a cattle shed.
Derek also picks up on a murderer who still resides in the dark rooms of the close, and confirms it is he that is responsible for a feeling of intense foreboding that many might feel in the area. He senses the name Major Thomas Weir and states that this man was into the dark side of witchcraft and was sentenced to death “for his deeds”. While researching, the Most Haunted team find that there was a Major Thomas Weir who lived in Edinburgh and was executed in 1670 for witchcraft, although Derek states his year of execution as 1691.
Lights Out
With night vision now turned on, it is the turn of guest psychic Derek Ogilvie to join the team and he soon senses the spirit of a woman who once lived in the close. He believes she likes to stand at the top of the stairs to watch those coming into the area; she appears unhappy with the large number of tourists and visitors who frequent the close where she once resided.
Derek Acorah now returns and is keen to continue his walkabout in Annie’s room, the area of the close where the young girl who perished during the plague has been most often sensed. He describes her as extremely open-hearted, and mercifully is on a “different level” from the evil man sensed earlier, so she is unable to be influenced by his wickedness. He says the girl is extremely lonely and sad, having starved to death alone. Derek believes her name to be Mary who would have been around the age of three.
A Brutal Murder Leds To A Terrible Haunting
In room 10, Derek believes a man died by the hand of another male who viciously beat him to death after luring him to the close for sex. The horrifying murder replays itself time and time and Derek states the murderer is unable to rest – it is he that is the shadow that people often report having seen here. The man was executed for his crime and is still unable to move on for fear what will await him on the other side.
A Vigil, A Psychic Attack, And A Flying Teddy Bear
Some of the group decide to hold a vigil but little happens, bar a few orbs being caught on camera.
Soon Derek Ogilvie again joins the team and immediately senses a man who is watching them from the corner, which he admits unnerves him somewhat. After a short time attempting to gather the man’s name, Derek becomes completely overwhelmed and has to leave the room due to the intensity of the spirit man.
Next, Derek Acorah is keen to investigate Annie’s Room again with the team. Derek feels the sensation of being touched on the leg by a gentle hand, but no other activity is reported by the group.
Back in the close, the team hear a constant banging noise but are unsure where it is coming from. After some investigation the team believe the banging is not paranormal in nature and more likely the result of vibrations causing the piping running throughout the close to make the sound.
The team then conduct a seance but with little happening, they decide to return to Annie’s room one final time. Several members of the group witness one of the many teddy bears left for the young child fly across the room and land in front of them.
Sadly, in true Most Haunted fashion, this was not caught on camera.
What did you make of the Most Haunted team’s 24 hours at Mary Kings Close? Let us know in the comments section below.
Tell us what you thought of this Mary King’s Close Most Haunted episode in the comments section below.
