Paranormal BBC show that will never be aired again still leaving people 'traumatised' 33 years later
Halloween is upon us, and what better way to celebrate spooky season than to revisit one of the most scary, controversial and criticised TV shows of all-time.
A mockumentary 90-minute special was aired by the BBC on Halloween night back in 1992, and it resulted in some experiencing PTSD and nightmares.
The show was eventually axed due to how scary it was for viewers, with many (over 30,000, to be exact) pointing out that it was too realistic in filed complaints to the Broadcasting Standards Commission (BSC).
It was called Ghostwatch, and the show followed TV presenters who were investigating the 'most haunted house' in the UK, which they claimed was in Northolt, London.
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The traumatic one-off show even caused for BBC's phone lines to become jammed, as the BSC claimed it fostered 'a sense of menace', airing too soon following the 9pm watershed.
Ghostwatch was a graphic watch, there's no doubt, and the inclusion of well-known children's TV presenter Sarah Greene added to the eerie feel of the 90-minute mockumentary.
Hosted in the studio by Michael Parkinson, Greene and her 'crew' take it upon themselves to investigate the home where there were reports of a poltergeist in 'the most haunted house in Britain'.
While it may have been bone-chilling, many believe it helped to inspire 'found footage' horror titles such as The Blair Witch Project and Rec that would enjoy success in the years following.
Inspired by the Enfield Poltergeist, an apparent real-life haunting in the 1970s, Ghostwatch was advertised as a drama, though it was presented as a documentary broadcast to the British public.
It follows a 'live ghost investigation' focused on two young girls named Kim and Suzanne Early, who were haunted by poltergeist 'Pipes' at their home, after hearing noises in the home.
Viewers were even told to phone in with ghost sightings on 081 811 8181, the regular number for BBC call-ins at the time, though they were met with a message detailing that the show was fictional, despite what they might think.
It was later estimated that a million calls were made to the BBC line, with many convinced that the programme was genuine, with no Google to help them verify its legitimacy.
The show's creator, Stephen Volk, later admitted that 'you couldn't do what we did nowadays and get away with it', though the revelation that Pipes was the troubled ghost of a paedophile named Raymond Tunstall didn't help with audience fears.
His presence was seen in snippets throughout the show, including within the 'studio'.
When scratch marks appeared on the girls' faces, along with odd noises and objects being moved in their bedroom, it horrified viewers, though as the lights are blown out in the studio, we can see the staff flee in terror, before Parkinson sings a nursery rhyme with just half his face on camera before being possessed by Pipes.
One woman claimed that the show induced her labour, while Volk told the BBC that 'a vicar phoned in to complain that even though he realised it wasn't real, he thought the BBC had raised demonic forces'.
The mockumentary was intended to be a six-part series but it was eventually condensed down, and Ghostwatch is now only available on DVD in the UK.
Unfortunately, the show was also accused of giving viewers PTSD after parents of an 18-year-old said it caused his death, as Martin Denham took his own life five days after it aired.
Speaking to BBC News in 2017, his stepfather said: "He seemed a bit upset because things were happening at that time in the house that had been happening [on Ghostwatch]. The pipes were banging."
While his mum April went on: "He seemed entranced with the talk of ghosts."
Joshua Nair