Nick Redfern's Blog, page 125

Werewolf Problems

 "Just the other night, I did a radio show which briefly touched upon my research and writing in the field of werewolves. One of the things I noted to the host is that despite the fact that most people think werewolves are born out of nothing more than fantasy, folklore, legend, and movie-scripts, the reality is that reports of dog-headed humanoids, and creatures that sound just like the classic imagery of werewolves, absolutely abound, and have done so for centuries.

"The bigger issue, which I also discussed with the host, is how such reports polarize the research community. And here’s what I mean by that: when it comes to werewolves, it’s not so much the fact that we have reports which is the problem. Rather, it’s the fact that the very mention of the word “werewolf” provokes controversial imagery born out of Hollywood movies (such as the 2010 version of The Wolfman) which starred Benicio Del Toro, Anthony Hopkins and Emily Blunt), or of traditional, centuries-old tales of human-to-wolf shape-shifters."

Those are the two opening paragraphs to my latest Mysterious Universe article.

And here's the link...

Monster or Oversized Critter

My latest Lair of the Beasts column at Mania.com deals with the usage of the highly emotive term of "monster" when it comes to creatures of the cryptozoological kind.

It begins like this:

"When is a monster not a monster? Well, I’ll tell you: when it’s a monster-sized animal. Within the field of Cryptozoology, when someone uses the term 'monster' they are usually referring to a creature of definitively unknown origin and identification. But, sometimes, the word is used to describe something that may be a regular animal, but one of unusually massive proportions.

"A classic example is the Loch Ness Monster – or, more correctly, the Loch Ness Monsters, since it’s absurd to think that the lore of the loch is based around just one long-lived animal. For the Scottish tourist board – Visit Scotland, as it’s known – it would be an absolute dream come true if the Nessies were proved to be plesiosaurs, those famous, long-extinct marine reptiles."
And here's the link...

Pig-Headed!

Over at The Huffington Post , there's a new article on Lee Brickley's new book, UFOs, Werewolves & The Pig-Man . And it's on the subject of that very same, terrible and unearthly porker that the article focuses.

You can find it - and the truth of the strange swine - right here.

Animal Mutilations in the UK

Late last year, Jon Downes' CFZ Press published my book Wildman: The Monstrous and Mysterious Saga of the British Bigfoot.

One of the chapters in the book is titled Mutilations and Anomalous Animals . It deals with a highly controversial topic: namely, the conjuring up of supernatural beasts - of a distinctly Bigfoot-like nature - via the ritualistic slaughter and sacrifice of animals.

A number of cases of animal mutilation and apparent sacrifice that I detailed in Wildman occurred in the English county of Devon, specifically on Dartmoor, and specifically during a full moon.

And, it just so happens that the wilds of Dartmoor have a long history of hairy man-beasts in their midst.

Well, it transpires that there is a brand new case of animal mutilation - and apparent sacrifice - on Dartmoor, which also occurred under a full moon.

You can find the story right here.

As the Falmouth Packet's new article notes:

"A Satanic cult is suspected of being behind the grisly death of a pony, found mutilated on Dartmoor after a full moon. Police have appealed for the public's help after the two month old pony was found dead on moorland at Yennadon Down, Dousland Yelverton by a horse rider at around 6.50pm on Tuesday. A police spokesman said that the pony appeared to have been 'deliberately mutilated' and officers are investigating the possibility that the body had been left in 'some kind of ritualistic way.'"

In Wildman I told the story of a woman named Jane Adams, a devotee of Wicca, who I first met in a Wiltshire Crop Circle back in August 1997.  As I specifically note in the book, Adams revealed to me that she possessed "personal knowledge"– as she specifically described it - that a certain group of occultists had engaged in sacrificing animals "near a stone circle in Devon some time ago."

"Some time ago," as I explain in the book, was 2006, when other mutilations were occurring on Dartmoor.

The purpose of the killings and sacrifices, Adams claimed, was to try and conjure up, from some ethereal netherworld, both "a black cat" and a creature that would most certainly fit the description of the British Bigfoot and which would then duly perform the group’s dark bidding.

Certainly, it's a very bizarre story, indeed, one made even weirder by the fact that we now - unfortunately - have yet another incident that might very possibly have resulted from the controversial actions of the exact same group of occultists that Jane Adams referred to, and which I cited in Wildman last year.
 
 

Mystery Animals of Staffordshire: Available Now

Available now, I'm very pleased to tell you, is  Mystery Animals of the British Isles: Staffordshire from me and Glen Vaudrey.

Published in POD format by CFZ Press in the UK, you can find it at this link.

And here's the blurb for the book:

"Throughout the county of Staffordshire, strange, monstrous and terrible things lurk. Exotic big cats are said to roam Staffordshire's thick woods. Ghostly black dogs with red, glowing eyes faithfully haunt and patrol its ancient roads and well-worn pathways. Bloodthirsty werewolves are rumoured to be on the loose throughout the county. Fantastic and vicious water-beasts lurk deep within its streams, rivers, lakes and pools. Out-of-place wallabies, wild-boar, porcupines, coypu and armadillos have all been reported. And, even the world's most famous hairy man-beast of all, Bigfoot, has been known to put in an appearance from time to time! Nick Redfern and Glen Vaudrey reveal the startling truths concerning these, and many more, mystery animals of Staffordshire."

Defining Cryptozoology

My new Lair of the Beasts post at Mania.com focuses on Cryptozoology, from the perspective of what should be considered a cryptozoological beast and, perhaps, what should not...

Here it is...

Roswell and Time Travel

My latest Mysterious Universe article digs deep into a controversial theory for the Roswell event of 1947 (namely, the time travel theory), as discussed by a controversial figure, the late Philip Corso, co-author with Bill Birnes of The Day After Roswell .

You can find it right here...

Lake Monsters: The Issue of Bodies

"Just the other night, while I was promoting my new Monster Files book, the host of the relevant radio show asked me why, if lake monsters are real, don’t we ever find hard and undeniable evidence of their existence? He was, of course, talking about a living specimen or a corpse. Okay, it’s a fair question, and many might take the view that the lack of a creature – alive or dead – is suggestive of the whole thing being nothing more than folklore, mythology, legend, hoaxing and misidentification. Right? Wrong.

"There are many reasons why, even in lakes close to highly populated areas, we might never find hard evidence of the existence of such creatures. Let us focus primarily on the world’s most famous lake monsters of all, the Nessies of Scotland’s Loch Ness."

The above-quote is taken from my latest Mysterious Universe article, which you can find right here...

David Weatherly's Strange Intruders

If, like me, you thought that David Weatherly's Black Eyed Children was a great book, you definitely won't want to miss his forthcoming title, Strange Intruders , which includes a foreword from Micah Hanks.

It's not listed at Amazon yet, but keep a look out for it...

That's David, below, photographed by me at last October's Paradigm Symposium in Minneapolis.

Strange Creatures of Staffordshire

My new Lair of the Beasts column at Mania.com digs into a certain forthcoming book from me and Glen Vaudrey: The Mystery Animals of the British Isles: Staffordshire .

Bigfoot, wolf-men, strange water-based beasts, wallabies, coypu, armadillos, big cats, weird winged things, and much more are contained in its packed pages.

It should be surfacing from its dark and terrible lair (CFZ Press HQ, in other words) in mid-August.