Brockeridge Common is in the parish of
Twyning and is, as the name states, a common. Back in the day, it was heavily
wooded, and people would walk or ride horses across it to access other villages
or areas and later on, roads would be built too.
There was an amazing discovery in one of
the quarries on Brockeridge common around 1850, an almost complete skeleton of
an Ichthyosaurus. The Ichthyosaurus was a marine reptile of the Mesozoic era,
resembling a dolphin with a long-pointed head, four flippers, and a vertical
tail.
The common has many tales about it, from
ghosts to darker tales and this time I will be sharing with you about ghosts
that have been witnessed on and around the common.
At the beginning of January 1934, the
Tewkesbury Register and Agricultural Gazette reported the residents local to
the common were discussing the spectral visitors that had been witnessed by
those using the common. Some of the local residents were reported as feeling
uneasy about such things happening so near to their homes. The newspaper had
received a letter from a reader of the publication, who remained anonymous
except for the three initials that they signed off with, so the paper decided
to print the entire letter and asked readers to make up their own minds.
So here is that letter, word for word and
any misspellings that the writer made, I will include also.
Dear Sir,
At Brockeridge and surrounding villages
seem to have nothing else to talk about that the Brockeridge Common Ghost, I
think it is my place to write to you about it, as I know for a fact that such a
Ghost do exist on the Common. One of my friends and myself had heard so much
about this ghost that we decided to investigate ourselves. So on Sunday night
at 11.30, we went to Brockeridge. A roadway about halfway down was the arranged
place so we waited by some sheds until the clock chimed 11.45 then we crept
back into the bushes then all of a sudden, we heard a terrible cry and it was
the cry like that of a woman. Then we seen a bright light appear in a wood a
little way off, know as Vauxhall Cover.
“Frightened to
Breathe”
This
shone in the same place for a time and then it came straight for the roadway
and the bushes where we were. We both crouched low, almost frightened to
breathe. The light came nearer and we were able to see that the ghost was in
the shape of a woman, dressed in white. The light we could see was coming from
what should have been her eyes, it went gliding by us without a sound and went
on to reach the main road. There it stood for a few moments, then it came back.
In
the meantime, my friend and I had decided to follow at a good distance behind
to see what would happen to this weird woman. So when she had gone by, we
waited a little while then followed her. She went back to the cover and entered
a sort of cellar, all that remains of a large house. Here it stopped for a
little while and just as we were thinking of going home, we heard that terrible
cry once and up, out of the cellar and made off into a different direction,
over a ploughed field and two green fields.
Then
it disappeared from view for a couple of minutes. The next thing we saw was the
light going up the hill. Which I think was known as Fowborough Hill. I think it
went round the hill 5 or 6 times, as though it had lost something.
Although
we waited for about 10 minutes, we never seen nor heard another sound so we
decided to go home and come again to find out about this weard woman next week
all being well. There is one thing however much anyone says there thing no such
thing as ghosts I will always after this, say there is.
The
newspaper never included the three initials from the letter. A reporter made
some enquiries in the area on the following Monday and was assured that the
story of a ghost appearing on the common was taken seriously by local residents
and those who used the common. One man called the newspaper to tell of his
ghostly experience on the common-
Saw the Ghost!
When
cycling home with 3 other young men on Saturday night, the ghost suddenly
appeared near the side of the road. Two of the men, which included the man’s
younger brother, pedalled as quickly as possible to get away from the scene.
The man on the phone said he and another man got off their bicycles and tried
to run after the apparition but it glided off into the trees.
Parties
of men have waited on the common for several hours at a time during the night,
to catch a glimpse of this spook. According to the reporter, there had also
been lots of disagreements as to what this ghost could be. A local resident
said that an old white horse would sometimes be parked on the common for a
night but those saying there is a ghost, this doesn’t explain what has been
witnessed.
The
newspaper finishes the report by saying “We’ll leave it at.”
