A ghost hunter from Gloucester says he is still suffering pain seven years after he was allegedly attacked by a spirit during an investigation at a former prison.
Paul Cowneadow said the incident took place in Gloucester Prison in 2019, after a threatening message appeared through the group’s equipment and appeared to single him out.
He told the BBC: “I remember him [one of the group] radioing down to me that my name came through on a piece of equipment and the words ‘I will hurt you’.”
Cowneadow said he then felt a sudden blow to his neck. “And then I had a massive pain in my neck, like someone put something blunt on my neck and it put me on my knees,” he said.
He claimed the incident caused “nerve damage” which continues to affect him. “It caused me nerve damage on my neck, I still suffer from it to this day. There’s no other cause to it, I didn’t fall or anything,” he said.
His account comes as another paranormal investigator has argued that hauntings are not necessarily frightening or dangerous.
Colin Browen, host of the Murder In America podcast and The Paranormal Files on YouTube, said he had encountered what he described as “happy, jovial spirits” during investigations. He said some appeared to interact with equipment and seemed to respond when investigators told jokes.
Browen attributed the perception that all ghosts are evil to horror films and documentaries, saying that spirits encountered in real life were often “lost souls” rather than “angry, demonic beings intent on raising hell”.
He added that many spirits appeared more interested in being acknowledged, helped with a task or treated with respect than in harming people.
