As regular FT readers will know, I have been collecting and recording people’s testimonies of genuinely weird first- and second-hand experiences for several years now. I am delighted to say that this spring has not run dry and continues to flow. When writing them up for Fortean Times I will always try and group them around a particular theme or geographical area. This article focuses on Merseyside and Halsall Moss, adjacent areas which I have written about in the past (FT328:32-39; FT370:42-45; FT371:40-44; FT382:38-43). As I have lived on Merseyside for over 40 years it is probably easier for me to pick up on stories from this area; when people I talk to realise my interest, they will often suggest I contact someone they know who has had a similar experience.
The stories below extend the number of road ghosts spotted on or near Halsall Moss; and as I have referred to previous cases with a letter, ranging from A to M, I continue this practice. This means that I now have 16 specified cases. Interestingly, several of them relate in some way to monks and nuns. I do not read anything into this, merely note the fact.
Phantom Jaywalker (Case N)
It would have been before 2005 that Bill and Cynthia (pseudonyms) were returning home from a trip to Southport in the early evening. Bill drove their car down Southport Road (A570) and turned left onto Smithy Lane. They travelled along at around 30 miles per hour (48km/h) in clear daylight. As they were approaching a spot where there is a series of bungalows they both saw a person walking across the road in front of them from the left. They were pretty close – not close enough to hit him or her – but on reaching the middle of the road the person suddenly and completely disappeared. Both Bill and Cynthia were stunned and could not explain what they had seen. They noticed that there was a car parked at the side of the road, but this was not near enough for
