The Black Monk of Pontefract

Wayne Ridsdel

In 1966, the Pritchard family, of 30 East Drive, Chequerfield Estate, Pontefract, became the helpless victims of a terrifying chain of events that was to develop into the most unique and violent case of poltergeist activity in the documented history of the paranormal world.

It all began on the evening of 1^st September, 1966; this was the time when Joe and Jean Pritchard had recently moved into the house and had decided to take a long – awaited holiday, taking their twelve-year-old daughter, Diane with them.

After much discussion and long heated debates, Joe and Jean reluctantly decided that, due to unresolved, long standing family issues, it would be better for all concerned if their fifteen-year-old son, Phillip, was to stay at home under the watchful supervision of his grandmother, Mrs Sarah Scholes.

After the Pritchards had loaded the car and departed on holiday Sarah Scholes and her grandson settled down for the evening in the living room. Mrs. Scholes occupied herself with her usual past-time of knitting, while Phillip turned on the TV for a night of viewing; although it wasn’t long before he had convinced his grandmother to allow him to go visit his friend who lived a few doors away on the same street.

At 9pm. Phillip returned home, as had been stipulated by his grandmother. No sooner had the fifteen-year-old entered the house than a gust of wind blasted through the house and the back door slammed shut. Immediately the living room felt icy cold. Understandably the two of them looked at each other in shock; each of them believing that the back door had mistakenly been left open and when Phillip entered the house through the front door it had resulted in a ‘through draft’ rushing through the downstairs rooms of the house and quickly dissipating the heat from the gas fire, making the living room instantly feel cold.

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