Halloween Double Feature -- The Ghostwatch Hoax

     On Halloween night in 1992, BBC aired a television production called Ghostwatch. The show was presented as a live paranormal investigation of a haunted home in London, and included many such aspects that made it believable, like mixes of studio segments with documentarians playing themselves, pre-filmed footage of on-site investigation, and phone calls from the public. It was effectively a televised version of Orson Welles' infamous War of the Worlds broadcast, only substituting ghosts for aliens. 

    However, whereas the War of the Worlds hysteria was indirectly caused and mainly the result of confusion, Ghostwatch was deliberate. It featured presenters well-known to British audiences, a well-acted family "in distress," and a ghost named Pipes that lived in a cupboard under the stairs. The program was hosted as if it was live and real, when all along it was fictional.

    As a result of watchers believing the paranormal investigation was real, BBC received a host of complaints from parents whose children had been confused and scared. Furthermore, there were legitimate, documented cases of distress caused by the hoax---one 18 year old boy committed suicide five days after the broadcast, and the family attributed his death to Ghostwatch. The BBC was subsequently censored for airing the production; popular opinion and the opinion of regulatory bodies was that the program cultivated a sense of menace. 

(Source: Wikipedia)

    Because of the extreme reaction, Ghostwatch is seldom aired on British television. It has reached the point of cult status. Something I find particularly interesting is that it's considered one of the precursors to the found footage horror genre. Movies like The Blair Witch Project and Sinister would draw inspiration from Ghostwatch's decision to go with a hybridized documentary drama style. 

    I think what this shows is that, similar to War of the Worlds, the appearance of truth can serve just as well as actual truth. Welles' broadcast had impeccable sound design that was purposefully curated to make it seem as if Carl Phillips was a genuine reporter. But, again, I must return to the fact that this was only a problem if you tuned in to the show late. Ghostwatch, on the other hand, was entirely built from scratch for mischievous purposes. It was designed to trick you from the get go, and elements of its construction---the found footage style, the high-profile journalists, the terrified family---absolutely made sure they succeeded. 

    Interestingly, Ghostwatch is based on the tale of the Enfield poltergeist, a claim of supernatural activity involving two sisters who believed they'd witnessed acts of a malevolent spirit (things such as furniture moving of its own accord, knocking sounds on the wall, etc.). The Enfield poltergeist, not so coincidentally, is also the basis for The Conjuring 2 

    At any rate, the hoax at hand dealt with the television program and its misleading nature as opposed to the actual ghost, Pipes, itself. The hoax remains a seminal moment in British television history---it must be, otherwise it wouldn't have been essentially banned since 1992. 

    If interested, the film can be found on Shudder, an exclusively horror-focused streaming service, in the Internet Archive, and for purchase on Amazon. I highly recommend.