'You can buy a doll and the spirit comes with it': Mother spends thousands on toys she claims are HAUNTED... and even hires a babysitter to watch them when she's out
Katrin Reedik has spent thousands on the haunted dolls
Mother-of-two claims each doll holds the spirit of someone who has died
She even hires a babysitter to watch them when she is out
A woman has revealed how she has to hire a babysitter to look after her dolls – because she believes they are possessed by the ghosts of dead people. Katrin Reedik, 33, from Glasgow, has spent thousands of pounds on what she claims are haunted dolls and believes they are possessed and if they are left alone they will cause mischief in her home.
The full-time mother-of-two says her nights are taken up with chatting to her charges about how they died. 'I became interested in the spirit world in 2008, while living in Estonia, Northern Europe, because I felt the presence of a spirit,' she said. 'This started my interest in the paranormal and when I moved to Glasgow in November 2008 I started researching spooky things and stumbled upon haunted dolls.' Katrin was first intrigued when she discovered through online shops and forums there were dolls with spiritual powers. 'Haunted dolls are not possessed as such, the doll is the spirit's home. 'The spirit is attached to the doll and sometimes leaves it in the same way humans go to work every day. 'You can buy a doll, get it in the post, and the spirit comes with it.' A shop in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, sells the dolls in the UK and scores of people chat about the subject on forums. Enthralled by this new discovery, in August 2010 Katrin ordered her first doll, Mystical, from the US for just £10. Katrin says that as soon as Mystical arrived she began to notice spooky goings-on in her home. 'When she arrived I realised straight away she was not a doll, she was a person,' she said. 'That night I put her near the television I told her: "If you're happy switch it off, if you are not happy leave it." 'The response was terrifying. The TV switched off and on, the lights flickered and I knew it was Mystical talking to me through the electricity.
'She told me she was happy to have been adopted by me. 'I was overwhelmed and had to put her away.' But a week later, Katrin tried to 'speak' to the doll again. 'She told me, in the same process through the TV, that she had died when she was 103 and is very wise.' After coming to terms with Mystical's power, Katrin now says that she sources her dolls from a number of different places. 'I usually get the dolls from collectors who have websites dedicated to them. 'They have purchased the dolls from people who didn't know the doll was haunted.' She says she is happy to spend a fair amount on the dolls because you are buying into their history. 'Cost depends on quality and history. You can't put a price on them, because they're so much more than dolls, they're links to another world.' Katrin has even sacrificed her basic needs in order to fund her habit. 'I am happy to go without other things to buy the dolls. I make my own clothes rather than buy new.' Katrin uses specialist ghost-hunting equipment to chat to her dolls, including voice recorders. 'I have also attempted to hear voices though my mobile phone. I put my phone on record when the dolls are in the room and listen back. 'You can hear them. They sound like humans, having conversations in the background.
'I heard a doorbell once, and I don't even have one.' Despite having devoted much of her time and money to the dolls not everyone is as keen on the collection as Katrin. 'Usually my sons are not scared by the dolls, they like them and read to them. 'But they are a bit scared of my latest doll, Agatha, as her body is soft and her head heavy. 'Some relatives don't like them, they make them nervous.' Katrin decided she wanted more dolls and has now bought 12. It was the purchase of Michael which showed Miss Reedik the dolls could 'misbehave.' 'Michael, the second doll I got in June 2011, is a baby who died from cot death in the 1980s and has since inhabited the body of a porcelain doll which I have now adopted into my care.' 'Michael is very active, he will twist his head. My mum noticed this too, and his facial expression changes. 'When Michael sees me playing with my children I often sense him crying out: "Mummy, play with me." But what do you expect? He is only a child. 'One day I was watching TV and the channels kept flipping to cartoons, I turned them back, but it kept flipping. 'I realised it was Michael. He is only a baby and he wanted to watch cartoons. 'I think he used his energy to do this.' It is not just Michael who plays up his 'doll mum' Katrin says she has witnissed other younger dolls becoming mischevious.
'Ashley came weeks after Michael. One night Ashley revealed to me, through the use of a pendulum, that he died more than three decades ago in a car crash. 'He regularly hides my car keys, because of the accident. His mum passed over in the crash and now he doesn't want me going out in my car. 'I shout out: "Ashley, Ashley," and the keys come back.' Each of Katrin's dolls have a story which can affect the way the doll's behave in the house. 'Isabelle was a young girl who died of cancer, she was a bald child as a result of treatment. Touchingly, the doll's hair is also wispy. 'She is quite cheeky, she teams up with Michael to turn on taps. I have no idea how they do this. It's a real mystery. 'I then got Yulia, 33, who died in a plane crash.' Katrin says that the dolls are even starting to play tricks on her children as well as her. 'Baby Blue came next in autumn 2011, he died when he was ten months old. His spirit sneaks into my sons' beds. They feel the covers go back. 'We know who it is so they are not scared.' Her next four dolls were Heather and Gretchen, both seven-years-old and Iris and Pearl, who died in their 20s. 'I know when Pearl is around, she smells of fresh washing and bread. 'They love to gossip to one another. I'm not sure what they talk about, like most young women they don't want to tell their old mum.' Kartin's last two dolls both arrived in May this year, Trena is a witch who died in her 30s and Agatha who is a portal for three spirits. But having the dolls around has not always been a smooth ride with Katrin claiming that they were responsible for an accident in her home. 'There was a small fire in my flat a few weeks ago and I know it was the spirits. 'They just have so much energy, but I wouldn't be without them.' She does not like to leave the dolls alone, so her mum babysits if she has to go away over night but she tries to avoid them where possible. 'Mum refuses to go into my room, where the majority of the dolls are kept. 'She said it is too scary, and is afraid of the spirits but I couldn't leave them alone.' Katrin admits that people do have a hard time believing her but she insists that she is telling the truth. 'I have had boyfriends and they don't mind them as they don't believe they are haunted. 'People think I am mad, but I have heard the dolls talk. I have adopted them like I would a child and I would not let them go.'
'When I woke up, I was a baby and you named me Luke': Mom claims her five-year- old son remembers his past life as a Chicago woman who died in a house fire
Luke Ruehlman, from Cincinnati, Ohio, made claims about his past life
Mother says he 'remembered' being Pam, 30, before he was born
Later pieced together than he was referring to real woman from Chicago
Pamela Robinson died when the Paxton Hotel caught fire in 1993
Said he recalls meeting God and being 'pushed back down' as baby boy
According to his mother, Luke's story can be verified by the facts
A five-year-old boy is convinced that he was a 30-year-old black woman in another life - and claimed to remember dying in a fire.
Luke Ruehlman, from Cincinnati, Ohio, thought he was once called Pam and lived in Chicago - until he leaped from a burning building in 1993. The child claims he was then reincarnated and - remembers being named Luke by his parents. Though the recollections have since stopped, Luke's mother Erika told local station Fox8 how from the age of two Ruehlman would make references to his apparent alter ego. At first, she said, he would simply name things Pam and seemed fixated with the name. Later, she said, he would start making references to his apparent past life as a female. She said: 'He used to say: "When I was a girl, I had black hair"’ or he would say, "I used to have earrings like that when I was a girl."' She added that when confronted about who Pam could be, he said that he in fact used to be her, and said he remembered a bizarre process of reincarnation when he was 'pushed back down' to earth as a newborn.
He said: 'Well, I used to be [Pam], but I died. I went up to heaven, and I saw God, and he pushed me back down and when I woke up, I was a baby and you named me Luke.' According to Erika, her son's claims were supported by facts he could not possibly have learned by himself. After revealing that in his 'former life' as Pam he lived in Chicago, Erika found an old news story which mentioned a Pamela Robinson, who died when the Paxton Hotel in the city caught light in 1993. An investigation by a paranormal investigations TV show also claimed to prove the veracity of Luke's story. In footage for the show The Ghost Inside My Child, Luke was shown a page full of pictures of black women in their 30s, only one of which was the dead Pamela Robinson. When asked to pick out Pamela, the footage claims, he chose the right picture. It was enough to convince Erika, who reached out to Robinson's family and said they told her more about her personality which seemed to match Luke. As examples, Erika said her son loves Stevie Wonder, as did Robinson, and also shares an enthusiasm for playing the keyboard, though her boy's was a children's version. When contacted by Fox8, however, they declined to comment.
Spooky moment bottle of cordial at 'haunted' pub suddenly moves on its own off the bar and along the ground
Birmingham pub dates back to 14th century and is said to be haunted
Bar staff have now captured footage they say proves ghoul's existence
CCTV images show bottle of cordial moving across the bar on its own
It then falls on floor and continues to move as shocked customers look on
Barmaid says she and cleaning staff have had bottoms pinched by ghost
Chef at pub quit his job after being confronted by the spectre of a woman
CCTV footage from a 'haunted' Midlands pub captures the moment staff say a ghost pushed a bottle of cordial off the bar.
A series of strange incidents have been reported at The Old Crown in Digbeth, Birmingham - where barmaids and cleaners claim a ghost pinches their bottoms. Staff at the pub now believe they have surveillance footage which proves the ghoul's existence. The video shows a bottle of blackcurrant cordial mysteriously moving across a surface and falling on the ground. The incident was witnessed by two customers seated at the bar, Andy Lightfoot, 48, and Rudie Jones, 26, who immediately leaned over to get a look at what had happened. Mr Lightfoot, a builder from Ellesmere Port who was staying in the pub at the time, said: 'It was very freaky. We couldn't understand how on earth the bottle toppled over the bar like that.' The eerie incident happened when barmaid Amy Carter had momentarily left the bar to go to the basement.
Ms Carter, 24, says: 'I went down to the cellar to get some more spirits and suddenly I heard a big bang from upstairs. 'I immediately rushed back to the bar to see Andy and Rudie leaning over staring at the bottle on the floor. 'They told me what happened and I was spooked. It's so weird.' The Old Crown's Landlord, Ciaran Healy, initially refused to believe Andy's and Rudie's explanation. Mr Healy, 24, said: 'When I came to the bar and saw the blackcurrant cordial on the floor, I was furious. 'I thought Andy and Rudie had been messing around and dropped the bottle on purpose. We were really busy that night. I didn't appreciate them fooling around like this. 'But Andy and Rudie kept swearing that it wasn't them and begged me to check out the CCTV footage. 'I actually made a £20 bet that they had pushed the bottle themselves as a prank. But when I saw the recording, I couldn't believe it. I tried to explain it away. 'I thought maybe Andy and Rudie had used some string to push the bottle but there's no rational explanation for what happens in that video. It's shaken me.' There have been several ghosts sightings reported at The Old Crown, which dates from 1368. Barmaid Miss Carter and another female staff member claim that they have had their bottoms pinched by the ghost.
Staff have even quit their jobs at the historic pub - which Queen Elizabeth I reportedly stayed in - because of fears about ghosts. Mr Healy added: 'Two years ago, our long-serving chef came in one morning and saw a ghostly figure of a lady walk straight through a door. 'He was so scared afterwards that he locked himself in the disabled toilet until the other staff arrived. A day later, he quit the job for good even though he'd been really happy at The Old Crown. 'To be honest, we usually try to detach ourselves from our ghostly reputation because it makes it hard to find employees who are willing to work here. 'Barmaids don't usually stay long here because they become terrified of the place when they're locking up at night.' Mr Healy has hired psychic mediums in a bid to put an end to the ghostly sightings. 'We've had several mediums come to The Old Crown. The Battle of Camp Hill during The English Civil War, was fought just outside the pub so they reckon that's why we have so many ghosts here. 'A few mediums have talked about a drunken ghost called Gus - who we think is responsible for pinching bottoms and smashing bottles. 'The psychics also mentioned a ghostly woman whose baby fell down the well that we have in The Old Crown. Apparently, she wanders around longing for her lost child.'
Mum and daughter critically ill following house fire 'hours after Ouija board session predicted their deaths'
Margaret Carroll and Katrina Livingstone, 37, are now being treated in hospital after the fire at their home near Consett, County Durham.
A 60-year-old woman and her daughter are critically ill in hospital following a fire at their home which happened hours after a Ouija board session reportedly predicted their deaths.
Margaret Carroll and Katrina Livingstone, 37, are now being treated in hospital after the fire near Consett, County Durham on Saturday.
It is alleged they used the Ouija board to contact their dead dog on the evening before the fire, which was discovered at around 8.45am on Saturday.
According to the Northern Echo newspaper, the daughter told neighbour Donna Sowerby about the session and how it had predicted their deaths.
Mrs Sowerby, 30, said: ‘The fire was right the way through the property. It was horrible.
"There was a mini explosion and one of the firefighters was blown back."
The women are the wife and step-daughter of a man who admitted dismembering a dog after at first claiming it had died when it was possessed following a ouija board session.
Paul Carroll, 51, will be sentenced later this month for causing unnecessary suffering to an animal.
A Durham Police spokeswoman said: "Two women aged 60 and 37 were taken to the University Hospital North Durham where they remain in a critical condition and are under arrest on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life.
"We are not looking for anyone else in connection with the incident."
It is understood their condition in hospital is not linked to the fire.
Rude ghost pushes woman over in the office – and it’s captured on CCTV.
A really rude ghost pushed a woman over in the lobby of her own office – and the bad-mannered entity was captured on CCTV. Well, actually, you just see the woman falling over in a really weird way – but would YOU fall over like that in the office just to get on TV?
Chilean Cecilia Carrasco, 34, said she had been walking past the reception desk at her lawyer’s office in the capital Santiago when the rude ghost struck. Cecilia said, ‘I hit the ground hard and had to be taken to hospital in an ambulance. I was inside for three days and I’m still off work as a result of my injuries.
‘When the receptionist told me that there was nobody there, I didn’t believe them until they showed me the footage. ‘Now I am convinced that it was a ghost because I felt the hands even though there was nobody around.’ Carrasco said she is too scared to leave her home in the wake of the ghost attack. Carrasco said, ‘I remember seeing a film where a ghosts kept attacking a woman and now I’m worried the ghost might be after me. I have no idea why I was shoved over. ‘I wasn’t aware of anybody in front of me as I passed the reception desk talking to a girl, and as I looked towards the receptionist I suddenly felt two pairs of hands shove me over. I hit the floor but when I looked up I couldn’t see anybody, and I thought they probably had run off.
'How I met the ghost of No10': Member of staff speaks about Downing Street 'spirit'
Listen to this unnerving story from a member of staff at No10 Downing Street who tells how in the darkness he 'felt the presence of someone else in the room'
If you're of a nervous disposition then make sure you have all the lights on and just check over your shoulder to make sure there really is no one there... Now you can listen to David's tale of what happened to him at No10 Downing Street. He sounds level-headed, rational, and didn't believe in the supernatural – until his encounter very early one morning in the darkness of the Small Dining Room.
Now he says: "I can’t explain it. It’s something I don’t often relate to people because it still sends shivers up my spine."
David, now Facilities Manager at No10, had just joined the staff when he had his strange encounter. He went in to the Small Dining Room at around 6am to check preparations for an event. He saw that lights had been left on in an adjacent room and went to investigate.
He said: "As I crossed the Small Dining Room to the two large doors that open up into the State Dining Room I passed the end of the table, and absolutely jumped out of my skin because someone walked past me.
"I’m talking about a space of a couple of feet, but because of the darkness I hadn’t seen the person. On spinning round, the light from the door I had entered through showed I was on my own.
"What really got my attention was that I heard the sound of a taffeta dress moving/rustling, and without wishing to sound dramatic, definitely felt a presence. Nothing malicious, or otherwise, but it definitely felt like someone was with me.
"So, about two hours later, I was joined by one of my colleagues and still buzzing with the earlier experience, related this to him, to which he said: 'Oh, you have seen the ghost.'
"He then proceeded to tell me that there is a lady in a white ballgown who goes between the State Dining Room and the Pillared Room.
"With the short period of time I had worked at No10, this was news to me, and as I said, I’m the kind of person who is sceptical of this kind of thing without some kind of evidence.
"Except that it happened to me. I can’t explain it.
Since then I’ve read up in a few London ghost books, it’s all mentioned, so maybe, just maybe, I’ve met the Lady in White!
"The following week, I made a point of coming down to the state rooms after evening receptions when the lights were off, to try and re-create the moment, and, here I am, thirteen years later and, I haven’t had any further contact."
