[Geist] - I remember

[lslaw.livejournal.com]

We are all of us touched by death at some time in our lives, more deeply than most; it's what makes us ripe for the bargain. Some Bound know exactly when it happened, others are never aware of it not being a part of their lives and a few never realised it and can't say when it began.

I know. I was there.

When you put in for the tickets, it's kind of pot luck what you get. When what he got was a live, Halloween special with a bunch of B-list celebrities exploring the supernatural instead of A Question of Sport, Dave said they were a present for Mum and me. Mum was underwhelmed, but I was so excited. I was going to see a TV show being made and see the real people and everything. Plus, at fourteen, I had a bit of a crush on Sarah Greene, but you don't need to tell anyone that.

The disappointments started early: Sarah Greene was with the field unit at a house they said was in London, while we were stuck with her husband and Michael Parkinson. Then there were the recordings of the hauntings, which were pretty dull, and the fact that nothing was happening at the house.

Until it did. Until all hell broke loose, literally. Until that... thing, call it Pipes or Mother Seddon or the devil himself, was called down into Studio 1 and sent its evil out into the world; until the veils tore and the underworld rose and every filter was ripped from the eyes of one young boy who would never be the same.

My mother had a screaming row with Dave and threw him out. The BBC claimed the whole thing had been a hoax all along; a drama, not a live broadcast at all. People will tell you now that Sarah Greene appeared in loads of things afterwards, but try getting them to name one of them. Try finding footage of Michael Parkinson or Craig Charles talking about Ghostwatch, never mind Mike Smith. Just try talking to them about it; believe me, I have done.

It's faded into urban myth now, the drama that fooled a nation; the War of the Worlds of paranormal horror.

I know better, 'cause I was there. I remember. Fuck; I can't ever forget. Don't think I didn't try, but some things won't go away. They hound you to your dying day then they scare you back out of the shadows, because there's no deal you won't make if you know Pipes is waiting past the veil.

So don't you tell me it was just a show, 'cause fuck you, I was there.