One of Jane and my best shows together was Something Strange for HTV in Bristol. For this one we were billed as mediums and were given the opportunity to demonstrate what we're best at- mediumship. We both gave very accurate proof of who we were communicating with and gave the correct names of the spirit person being described. For example I said to one lady in the audience "Your mother's in the spirit. Her name's Alice and she tells me that you've just bought a small yacht and are going to soon open a delicatessen shop" which was correct. And Jane told someone that she knew of "A fireman who had just hurt his back in a skiing accident" which was also correct.

Again there was the obligatory sceptic. This time they employed a magician who demonstrated sleight of hand to 'prove' that mediums, an particularly materialisation mediums, can employ trickery. Frankly, to put forward an argument based upon a few camera tricks was ridiculous and the audience knew it.

The medium Doris Collins also took part and was filmed giving some one-to-one readings in a private room. I've seen her do better and afterwards she seemed to be very snappy towards us. However, despite this, I believe that all the clairvoyants and mediums who took part, collectively gave some pretty convincing proof that it really is possible to prove that there is life after death.

Working under the hot lights of the studio and being told where to walk and stand and exactly when and how long to speak is of course not the perfect way to demonstrate mediumship. Television producers have no idea how ambient and subtle the spirit voices can be. They wrongly assume that we can switch our powers off and on to order. So when the makers of a programme called The Magic & Mystery Show asked if they could film my circle conducting a seance I was delighted. This time I could demonstrate mediumship on my own territory and surrounded by the supporting vibrations of my circle members. We would have what Spiritualist call the 'right conditions'.

They used the same 14th century hall that I hold my weekly meetings, lowered the lights and tried to film discreetly as I conducted the seance. Next to me that sat the sceptical psychologist Dr Richard Wiseman and opposite me the presenter Nick Knowles who I was to give proof of life after death

I opened my circle in my usual way talking the group through opening the psychic centres and we entered the silence of meditation. The energy in the room began to build. I resisted trance but held myself on the brink as I gave a spirit message to Nick Knowles. As I linked in I could tell that Nick didn't know many people who had died but I felt someone draw close to me who was really close to him. "There's a young man you know in the spirit" I said "He liked motorcycles"

 

 

 

"Yes" replied Nick as Dr Richard Wiseman sat next to me scribbling notes.

"He tells me that he died in Australia and that his name is **** ****" Nick Knowles nearly fell off his seat as I gave him the first name and surname of his friend who's grave he specially visited in Australia. "He says that he was recently engaged to a girl called *** before he died. Her birthday is **th ****. He sends his love and talks about children by the names of ***** and *****. You will be going to America soon."

Everything I had said was 100% except Nick hadn't made plans yet to visit America. I wasn't going to give them a chance to edit out the important bits so I shut up and told them that the power had now left me. I had learnt by now that TV will always edit what you say down to about 3 to 4 minutes at the most. They had to use what I'd said or cut it all.

All Richard Wiseman could argue was that if mediums get something wrong they say "Oh well that must be something for the future". But I'd only put America in the future and there was no way I could have cheated. I also had no idea who Nick Knowles was until they arrived and apparently they only decided to use him at the last minute. Also the spirit communicator wasn't of the Knowles family so he wouldn't have appeared in Nick's family tree. It was impossible for Dr Richard Wiseman to explain away how I knew these names and facts. I'd got em.

But the programme nearly didn't get transmitted at all.

They told me that what I'd said was so accurate that it may upset surviving relatives of Nick's dead friend. More likely they couldn't clear it with the ITC I thought. In order to show my section the programme was moved to late night viewing and they used a bleep to blank out the names and facts when I spoke to Nick. Fortunately however a commentator's voice explained that I'd given correct Christian names, surnames, locations and dates during my reading. But it wasn't quite the same.

I met Nick again sometime later when I was invited to do a telepathy experiment for a show called Put it to the Test with Carol Vordeman. Nick admitted that he'd been extremely sceptical at first but what I had said on The Magic & Mystery Show had astonished him. I blew his socks off again when I did the telepathy test and described in accurate detail what was happening in a clip of film that was being shown only to the studio audience. There was absolutely no cheating and a member of staff sat with me in the green room to ensure that there was no way I could inadvertently overhear conversations about what they intended to do.

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