Family flee nightmare of their haunted house.
Too scared to go home.
By Val Woan.
A young Liverpool family say they have been frightened from their home by a ghostly tormentor. Arthur and Kathryn Rea, along with their four children, are living with their parents in a cramped terraced house rather than their comfortable semi in Clubmoor. The reason – a series of mysterious occurences in the council house over the past six years.
The Reas claim they have experience: Lights switching on and off; Doors and curtains opening and closing; Toilet flushing on its own; Things disappearing and turning up again weeks later; Strange noises, with lamps and ornaments seen to move on their own. Some of these things have happened when the family is out – despite the house having an alarm system.
Mr Rea (29) said: “The different incidents are all so small we used to put it down to the kids or our own forgetfulness. But after six years, it all started to get a bit much.” Then eight weeks ago, after a few scares when footsteps could be heard on the landing and noises under the children’s beds, they called it a day. “We couldn’t stand it any more. The children had changed from being slightly bemused to really frightened and Kathryn and I were alarmed. We left for a couple of days. But, when we returned, it was obvious things had still been happening. On the times we have called in, we have experienced the same old things.”
Neighbours, a priest who blessed the house and housing officials have all witnessed the mysterious goings on during the past few weeks. Mrs Rea (28), said: “We can’t explain what is going on, but we have discovered that the previous tenants had the same problem.”
The couple have spent much of ex-Ford worker Mr Rea’s redundancy pay on decorating and furnishing the house with a view to buying it. But, added Mr Rea: “We just don’t want it now and pray the council can get us a transfer. We know we do not sound like a priority case. But, if people had only lived with what we have, they would change their view.”
Meanwhile, the Reas say they prefer to live with their parents – even if it means their three boys and a girl, aged two to nine, sleeping four to a bed.
Liverpool Echo, 10th January 1984.