BECKY KEANE takes a look back at Most Haunted: Ordsall Hall
Episode Title: Ordsall Hall
Location: Salford, Greater Manchester
Series: 5 Episode Number: 58
Ordsall Hall Most Haunted
Ordsall Hall is a beautiful 12th century manor house built in 1177. Surrounded by a housing development and modern Salford, the hall is said to have every room haunted including the grounds. It is reputedly where Guy Fawkes hatched the gun powder plot in 1605. The hall even has its own ghost cam. It has recently gone under major renovation to open more rooms to the public.
Yvette reports the crew seem to be at ease at the hall, despite it having a reputation. I have visited the hall and I can utterly say that there is no bad sense of atmosphere, or reputation given. If anything, its a lovely atmosphere with a welcoming nature. Several spirits have been documented to be haunting the hall, including the white lady and several others.
A woman tell of her experiences of a lady spirit she used to see as a child. She and her sibling called her ‘celery’. Most Haunted has especially failed to provide the information of this. I have asked the staff of Ordsall Hall myself who this could be and when they have reviewed records, the staff found a inhabitant called Cecily. Could this be the lady the children saw?
Audio and smell phenomena have been experienced at Ordsall by all kinds of people, including myself. I have smelt perfume on several occasions and have got numerous pictures with light anomalies on them including my daughter as a baby chasing ‘orbs’. On a visit, my husband stopped what he was dong and legged it as fast as he could to his car and drove off. Asked later on what was wrong he said someone had blown in his ear and we where the only two people in the room. Ciaran, the teams Parapsychologist, is apprehensive over any audio due to the location of the hall.
Derek Acorah begins his walk around in the Great Hall, he talks of a spirit energy relating to the little balcony situated in the Great Hall, stating several souls have been lost/taken here. Once again after speaking to the staff at Ordsall Hall some years ago they stated to me that this wasn’t the case at all! He comes up with another entity he claims to be communicating with. He give a date of death and how she died, however, the date he gives is wrong even though its the same year. Derek claims July 1599 the spirit passed, but records show it was November 1599.
It is then claimed the Star Chamber is a disturbing room, which I can definitely say it does not feel that way. Derek comes with several names in the room, But to my amusement he comes up with a name which is a made up character in a novel based on Guy Fawkes set at Ordsall.
He proceeds to tell of a dark secret that has been covered up by previous tenants. In the kitchen area Derek points out where he believes the energy of a murdered young boy lies, which has been covered up. Just short of digging up the kitchen floor this cannot be verified. He names the young boy as James Oldroyd, but no records are found. A James Oldfield resided at the hall in the late 17th Century. He says another soul is aware of the murder and kept the secret also.
In the Agecroft gallery (which is something else now) he detects another owner of the hall. Derek starts to say this man knew of the secret, and Yvette asks if this is the previous spirit he mentioned earlier who knew, Derek gets all muddled up and confused, and then promptly agrees with Yvette.
Now on to the vigils, Stuart calls out and seems to gets responses. He actually turns the camera around for viewers to see HOORAY! Karl also does a lone vigil and receives responses to from light anomalies, to the same response Stuart received. Ian Lawman, and two other crew members investigate the Solar room. Ian picks up a the same boy as Derek called James.
A light anomaly is captured here too, as well as what the crew say is a shadow moving in front of the camera. But I am not entirely convinced it was. Later on Yvette and Ian try scrying with a mirror and begin to describe what they experience. Now I can’t review what they say they saw but I can pick out the next bit. Yvette sighs and Ian Lawman promptly questions the noise and Yvette describes it as a moan and Ian as a breath. But you can quite clearly see it was Yvette. Did they honestly think viewers wouldn’t notice? Dear me!
Further on, the team try table tipping and apparently make contact with a female spirit. Ian Lawman crosses her over to the light and gives quite an animated speech. Now I’m not saying I don’t believe in mediums etc, in fact I have seen a few. But on Most Haunted, it seems all drama and theatrics. I can’t help but to disregard this episode due to information the staff of Ordsall Hall have told me and the experiences I have had there.
Tell us what you thought of this Most Haunted episode in the comments section below.
