Reviewed by Ashley Knibb
Neil Oliver’s Hauntings: A Book of Ghosts and Where to Find Them is not a typical ghost anthology, at least not one that we are used to. Oliver delivers something more in line with a travelogue and a memoir, but also delves into some quite philosophical aspects trying to make sense of memory and myth. Reading through the book pen in hand, each chapter spoke to me on aspects of the dead, on grief, guilt, time, and on belief. This was more than a collection of geographically orientated ghost stories, it was about the haunting process itself.
Neil Oliver, a Scottish archaeologist, historian, and broadcaster, is well known for his work on the BBC’s Coast and a History of Scotland. With a background in archaeology and a passion for storytelling, Oliver often brings a unique perspective to the exploration of Britain’s past. In Hauntings, we read about how he delves into the more supernatural tales of the British Isles, bringing history, folklore and his own personal experiences together in a particularly personal melting pot that provides quite an interesting angle to the stories.
Born in February 1967, in Renfrew, Scotland, then raised in Ayr and Dumfries, Oliver was always surrounded by these strange stories. He later attended Dumfries Academy and later the University of Glasgow, where he earned an MA (Hons) in archaeology. Something that helped increase his knowledge and understanding of the past and the stories that come with it. His fascination with history was likely also fuelled by family stories. Both his grandfathers served in the First World War. They survived battles like the Somme, but had lasting injuries that likely extended beyond the physical. Such personal connections with history likely made it feel more personal to Oliver, who now generously shares his passion for the subject.
Oliver’s loss of his father had a profound impact on him and this has heavily influenced the book. Within it there is a kind of personal reflection on a huge shift in the world that he used to know. These experiences appear to drive the context of the book and how he explores the subject at the core of the book.
Hauntings is not merely a compendium of ghost stories; it is a journey through the landscapes of memory, loss, and belief. Spanning 28 chapters, each dedicated to a specific location or legend, Oliver examines the roots of these tales, offering insights into the human experiences that give rise to them. His narrative is enriched by his own experiences and contemplations, making the book as much about the author as it is about the apparitions he describes.
I will not venture into providing overviews of each chapter within this review, as that may take some time. However, it is fair to say that Oliver manages to cover a large portion of the British Isles providing insights into the various stories from that area, their background history and often that connection to his own beliefs and experiences that may mirror those in the story he explores.
Oliver’s exploration of various folklore, ghostly battlefields, temporal anomalies, haunting presences, witchcraft, atmospheric phenomena, ghostly hubs, residual hauntings, the more famous cases like the Borley Rectory, the myths of the Angels of Mons, ghosts in the machine, emotional projection and psychic echoes; provides a widespread and detailed overview of the various oddities of the British Isles. Even though I have read a great deal over the years on the strange paranormal stories that can be found across our little island; and at times even visited a few of them myself; I think Oliver does a great job of threading these together with something that is more personal to him, his own experiences and experience of loss. We can often become quite clinical in our review of these cases of these events, forgetting perhaps that they are mostly situated around an individual or even a group’s experiences. Sometimes that group is a family and these experiences can lead to a great deal of fear, which is experienced in their own homes, a place that we all wish to be a place we feel safe. Often, when that security is shattered by those scary paranormal events, there may not be a way back to normality. Something which often resonates through these stories, and something that Oliver shares with his readers on a personal level that I think is quite a good approach. As investigators of the paranormal we are often viewed as being observers of the events or simply the person who records them on paper; but we also can become an experiencer ourselves. So, why not share that experience and place yourself within the story and show that vulnerability to your readers? Nice approach Oliver.
Oliver’s Hauntings can be broken down into a few key themes: emotional hauntings, living ghosts, projections, story as a myth-making entity, and societal fears. I found the last of these, societal fears quite interesting as this covered some interesting aspects relating to new technologies such as AI, but war and isolation too. This reminded me of how the world can generate different views and beliefs around things that have simple and normal explanations. Advancements in technology can generate great fear around how we may survive in the future and as such, can begin to feed the narrative related to the paranormal. As Oliver discussed a few haunting stories relating to war and battlefields, I quickly understood how these can often be related to stories of hope and also of sadness and fear. Spirits seen roaming the battlefields or even the ghostly planes continuing to fly their training missions many years after their loss.
Oliver writes about isolation and this was hard-hitting, as it is something that I think many of us came to think more about and experience during COVID-19 than previously. However, there are many that spend every day feeling isolated; even when they may be surrounded by people. Isolation does not mean that you are living alone in the deepest darkest valley of Scotland with little or no contact with the outside world. That feeling can be something we all encounter in our lives and can be crippling in many ways that perhaps are hard to explain.
Hauntings is a profound exploration of the spectral tales that shape our understanding of the past and ourselves. Oliver’s intertwining of personal narrative with historical and folkloric accounts offers a unique perspective on what it means to be haunted. It is a reflective read that challenges readers to consider the ghosts that linger not just in old buildings or battlefields, but within our own memories and fears.