The Psychic Adventures of Derek Acorah: Star of TV’s Most Haunted. Derek Acorah
looking for something else and that is when the ring slipped off your finger. My insight is that if you return to the wardrobe department you will find your ring underneath the rail on which Becky’s outfit was hanging.’
With that I had to go and get changed and go over to the studios where the programme was to be filmed. I was very busy for the next few hours, but at the end of the filming, I came out of the studio to see Rachel waiting for me. She was smiling broadly and twiddling the fingers of her left hand in front of my face. On the third finger was her engagement ring!
‘You were right, Derek,’ she said excitedly. ‘I went back over to Wardrobe and I found my ring lodged in some clothes which were directly under the hangar which I had taken to Becky. Thank goodness! I had completely forgotten about going over to that department. In fact I think it’s the only time I’ve ever been over there in all the time I’ve worked for Granada!’
All’s well that ends well!
Before Rachel walked away she said to me, ‘Oh, Derek, I nearly forgot! The editor wants to see you.’
This was most unusual. I wondered what on earth I was being summoned to the office for. At the end of the programme I walked over to Dean Street rather apprehensively.
As I entered the editor’s office, she was smiling. ‘Come in, Derek. We’ve some good news for you.’ She went on to tell me that because of the popularity of Psychic Livetime it had been decided to create a new programme which was to be named Predictions. People would be brought to the studio to demonstrate the various disciplines of mediumship and I would be given the opportunity to demonstrate my mediumship to a live audience in the studio.
I was absolutely delighted. This would be a first for British television. I felt honoured that I was to be the first medium to appear regularly working with a studio audience.
The International Society for Paranormal Research (ISPR), headed by Dr Larry Montz, is based in Los Angeles, California. Dr Montz has been a paranormal investigator for over 27 years. His speciality is field parapsychology. Early in 1999, at his invitation, I had taken part in team investigations of various sites in Hollywood. (These investigations are fully documented in my first book, The Psychic World of Derek Acorah.)
After my return to the UK Dr Montz kept in constant contact with me and one day in March he phoned to tell me that the ISPR team would be travelling to the UK. They had teamed up with Dotted Line Entertainment and were coming over to conduct several investigations and make two videos.
On a breezy day in April the team arrived at Heathrow airport. It was wonderful to meet up with them all again. Dr Montz, Daena Schmoller, Linda Mackenzie, Shawn Roop and my good friend Peter James wearily walked into the arrivals hall and we were soon excitedly discussing the first of the locations they intended investigating the following day—the Jack the Ripper murder sites.
Jack the Ripper
The East End of London in the late nineteenth century was one of the most disreputable areas of the city and the Whitechapel district was witness to a series of horrible murders. It was to be the job of the ISPR team to uncover the identity of the murderer, who was known only as ‘Jack the Ripper’.
Donald Rumbelow, historian and Ripper expert, was invited to join the team on their investigation. Although Jack the Ripper has been ‘credited’ with the murder of six women at different locations, we would be visiting just two of those murder sites. It would be Donald’s job to authenticate any information the team members might produce.
The first place the team was taken to was Mitre Square. Today this is a pleasant flagged area where people may sit and enjoy a sandwich during a summer lunch break. Along one side of the square runs a schoolyard in which children play. However, the cheery sounds of a lunchtime game of football faded as I concentrated on opening myself up to the energies of the infamous events which had taken place over a century earlier.
I allowed myself to drift back in time. The April sunshine disappeared as the square darkened and it became nighttime. It was quiet, though I could hear shouting and merriment coming from a nearby hostelry. A woman’s raucous laughter echoed out of the darkness. The name ‘Catherine’ came into my mind. Clairvoyantly, I could see a woman dressed in dark shabby clothing. Wisps of greying hair could be seen straying from underneath a greasy bonnet. She had the raddled features of somebody who is no stranger to drink. I knew that she was a victim of the infamous Jack the Ripper and that Catherine was her name.
As I allowed myself to come forward to the present, I noticed a bench not six feet away from me. I walked over and touched it. ‘This is the spot!’ I shouted to Dr Montz. ‘This is where Catherine’s life was taken from her.’
Although the bench had been placed in the square at a much later date, I was able to use it to pick up on the residual energies of the woman’s dying moments. I could feel the dread and heart-stopping fear she had experienced. I was overcome by the stench of blood and something which I could not describe but which was horrible and offensive. I could also tell Dr Montz that Catherine had not been the first of this vile creature’s victims. By the time he met her, Jack the Ripper was a seasoned killer.
As I stood contemplating the spot, I became aware of another name. ‘Lily—Elizabeth!’ I said. ‘She was a victim too. There were two killings and both on the same night!’ I could sense the slashing of the victims’ bodies as they were disembowelled and butchered.
Donald confirmed that on the night of 30 September 1888 both Catherine Eddowes and Elizabeth Stride had fallen victim to London’s most famous serial killer. He had viciously killed and brutalized their bodies.
Then Donald guided us to another area. He stopped at a place called Durward Street. ‘This was Buck’s Row,’ he told us and stood back expectantly waiting to hear what we had to say.
I allowed myself to drift back in time once more. The small area of rough ground where I was standing bore no resemblance to the picture which unfolded before my eyes. Now it is a concrete jungle with high-rise flats and flagstones sprouting tufts of grass. There is a graffitiscarred concrete garage next to a fence with a wooden gate hanging off its hinges.
I was drawn to this break in the fence and as I walked over to it I could smell the same revolting odours which had assaulted my nostrils in Mitre Square. This time I could see the body of a rather stocky dark-haired woman; her clothes were obviously filthy but appeared to be soaked in blood. Her face was slashed and I could see that one of her ears was hanging off. In stark contrast, on the floor not far from her body lay what appeared to be a shiny black straw hat. I was impressed to utter the name ‘Nicholas’. Could this be the name of the murderer? The name ‘Polly’ was also strongly evident to me.
As I allowed myself to drift back to the present day, I relayed the picture I had seen to Dr Montz and Mr Rumbelow. They confirmed that it was in the area of the gateway that the body of a woman called Polly was found.
‘Can you describe the person responsible for the murders?’ Dr Montz asked me.
‘I feel that there were two people responsible,’ I said. ‘I believe that there was a “copy cat murder”. The man responsible for most of the murders is tall and slim—not heavy-set at all—and in his thirties. He has strong crease marks down the side of his face with high cheekbones. He has dark hair with touches of grey to the sides and he definitely has facial hair. He carries a pocket watch and seems to be constantly conscious of time. He certainly isn’t a poor working man. The person I’m talking about is used to mixing with the aristocracy and I feel he could have some connection with royalty.’
‘And a name?’ questioned Dr Montz.
Sadly, no. On this occasion I was not being impressed by the name of the man who became infamous as ‘Jack the Ripper’.
I