A giggling ghost, who has plagued a Faversham bookshop owner and cafe proprietor had an even more amazing effect on a dog owned by animal welfare worker Betty Gallop. Although a dossier of evidence is building up on the mischievous spirit that cavorts between Stonebridge Books in Gatefield Lane and nearby Good Witch cafe in Preston Street, the frightened reaction of Betty’s Japanese chin, Jade, lends new weight to the case.
Jade, who normally enters any town centre premises with aplomb, trembles with fear when asked to venture over the threshold of Graham Jones’ bookshop. Graham – who doesn’t believe in ghosts – nevertheless finds it difficult to explain the bizarre happenings. “I can spend an afternoon arranging new stock on a shelf and return the next morning to find titles out of place,” he said. “I frequently come in to find it has switched on my radio or lights, events for which I have no explanation.”
One of the most astonishing happenings was a paperback book which flew across the room.
Neighbours Ilse and Harold Daretsky, who run the Good Witch cafe and sandwich bar, have equally amazing tales. On Saturday, they bought a new toaster when the old one suddenly stopped working. The new toaster was switched on and immediately blew all the fuses. It was checked by the retailer and found to be in perfect working order. Then the couple tried the old toaster again, and it worked. “One of the most interesting events occurred last year when I was sitting at the back of the cafe and heard footsteps overhead. The apartment above has been empty for some time, and I checked there was nobody at the Fleur de Lis at the time,” Ilse said.
Electrical items are also switched on and off at the Good Witch, and sometimes Ilse gets so cross with the spirit she orders it away. “It goes next door and annoys Graham,” she added. Harold once felt the ghost walk past him three times, and a customer of Stonebridge Books heard laughter from the upper floor when he was looking in the window during the early hours.
Twelve-year-old Jade’s fear of the ghostly bookshop was witnessed by the Faversham Times on Monday.
Bad vibes: Reluctant Jade may be exhibiting her canine sixth sense by not wanting to enter the Gatefield Lane bookshop with owner Betty Gallop.
Faversham Times and Mercury and North-East Kent Journal, 16th October 1996.