Speakers at the Fortean Times Uncon know well that there's nothing that titillates a fan of the Fortean more than a choice new morsel of unlikely freakishness, and they seldom disappoint.

Jon Ronson was on excellent form introducing the topic of his latest book 'The Psychopath Test' (Amazon US/UK), exposing insanity at the heart of psychiatry, from the dangers of faking madness too well, to the natural affinity between corporate capitalism and psychopathy, via 24-hour naked 'crotch eyeballing' sessions for psychopaths on acid.

Brian Regal, warming up to his main theme, 'Science and the Sasquatch', a review of the career of physical anthropologist Grover Krantz, mentioned in passing the dog-headed origins of St Christopher and Linnaeus' category for cryptic species called the 'Paradoxa' and treated the audience to a medieval depiction of various monsters in speedos. While Krantz never achieved his goal of proving the existence of the Sasquatch, there's no shame in the trying.

Next up, David Clarke reported on his investigation into a Sheffield woman's death caused by her sighting of a ghostly apparition in an early example of spiritualism in 1855, a year which also featured many Fortean phenomena including Devil's hoof-marks in snow.

When speaking on his chosen topic of talking dogs and canine intellectuals on German TV, Jan Bondeson (Amazon US/UK) drew complaints from viewers about his lack of respect for Hitler! Jan, with his delightfully dry wit, served up various canine personalities including a reincarnation of Pythagoras, a dog taught to say 'How do you do Grandmama' by Alexander Graham Bell and a talking dog named Don, who won over a hostile priest by offering up the word 'Hallelujah'.

Struggling with his technophobia, the CFZ's Richard Freeman gave an update on their latest expedition gathering data from local inhabitants in search of the yeti (stumbling upon stories of giant snakes along the way) and the orang pendek. While it must require extraordinary tenaciousness to maintain the slow but steady progress of cryptozoological research, it's also a challenge to fill an hour's talk with your latest findings. Who knew that false vampire bats taste like rabbit?

Day one's talks concluded with Sarah Angliss building on the apparent theme of the weekend - talking animals and voices of the dead - treating us to a spooky 1890 recording of Florence Nightingale (although Otto von Bismarck singing a cowboy song might have been more fun), the New Jersey accent of Hoover the talking seal, and giving an audience member the chance of vocal immortality via the wax cylinder of an Edison phonograph. For her finale, Sarah treated us to the music of the aether, a performance on Theremin accompanied by a ventriloquist doll/automaton, inspired by John Logie Baird's doll Stooky Bill, who featured in his early televisual experiments.

Day 2 kicked off with Christopher Josiffe's account of a mysterious phenomenon which gripped the Isle of Man in the 1930s - Gef the talking mongoose - who took up residence in a remote farmhouse, but in his own words "knew a hell of a lot", including all the gossip from the bus garage in Peel. Josiffe's impersonations of various choice quotes from the creature were a highlight!

An allegedly cursed (but recently-carved) stone head joined David Clarke and Andy Roberts on stage as they entertained with examples of ancient and more modern rock-based lore, from Tigh na Cailleach, believed to be the oldest known pagan shrine in continual use, home to a stone family who watch over livestock during upland summer grazing, to the Hexham heads of evil repute, eventually discovered to have been cast in concrete as a father's demonstration of his occupation to his daughter.

This was followed by best-selling authors Picknett and Prince. Lynn put a Hermetic spin on the origins of science, explaining that its pioneers (Copernicus, Galileo, Newton, Leibniz, Bacon, Kepler, Tycho Brahe) were all inspired by the occult. Clive followed up with the provocative conclusion that modern physics supports the idea of 'intelligent design'. Their book, The Forbidden Universe is available from Amazon US/UK).

In Ted Harrison's history of apocalypse-prediction, he shared just some of the stories behind the apparently 250 predicted apocalypse dates which have already passed, from one found on an Assyrian clay tablet from 2800BC, to Harold Camping's more recent attempt (which thankfully didn't dissuade Ted from preparing for his talk). Those seeking further information on the coming apocalypse might wish to refer to the Rapture Index.

Gail-Nina Anderson gave an amusing account of the mummy in popular culture, charting its appropriation and distortion by horror flick and comic book to the point where it has become a comical (and easily-dodged!) monster figure.

As a finale, we were treated to a screening of comedienne and ventriloquist Nina Conti's film tribute to her irrepressibly eccentric mentor Ken Campbell, who left his vent dolls to Nina in his will. The film follows Nina as she travels to a ventriloquist's convention, and to Vent Haven in the US (a museum-cum-rest home for bereaved vent dolls). Movingly funny and disturbingly odd.

I must try to make it to the evening event next year. Highly entertaining by all accounts!

Previously on TDG:

• Fortean Times Uncon 2010

My first experience of the Fortean Times Unconvention was sprung on me this last weekend after Greg offered me a press pass out of the blue. Once domestic leave was negotiated, I couldn't possibly refuse it - the central London venue of the University of Westminster being a mere hour's journey from my home counties base.

With simultaneous talks in two lecture theatres (one a little too big and the other a little too small), one was forced to make difficult choices at times. Thankfully though, having heard veteran researcher and Daily Grail blogger Paul Devereux speak earlier in the year, on the topic of 'Magical Mindscapes' - the investing of spiritual meaning in the landscape - a favourite topic of mine, mind you, and the subject of his latest book Sacred Geography: Deciphering Hidden Codes in the Landscape (Amazon US/UK), he was not too offended when I opted to attend Mark Pilkington's talk instead!

With the word 'Rendlesham' in the titles of no less than three of the weekend's talks, and another talk on the Berwyn Mountain UFO case, Mark, with his recently-published Mirage Men: An Adventure into Disinformation, Paranoia and UFOs (Amazon US/UK) , was hard put, in his talk on The Abuses of Enchantment - looking at the use of weapons of mass deception, to avoid the UFO topic in an effort to maintain some balance.

While it's good to see the results of quality research into UFO cases, and it's arguably not the fault of open-minded researchers (like mythbusting 'Rendlesham botherer' Ian Ridpath) if the ETH turns out to be largely unsupported by the evidence in the cases they study, the dominance of the UFO sceptic theme in this conference was somewhat unfortunate. Having said that, the individual presentations on this theme (that I attended) were all excellent.

Beyond the Ufological, Jan Bondeson's talk on the Bosom Serpent and its parasitic relatives, and Jeremy Harte's investigation into the trope of ghostly 'headlessness' were highly entertaining forays into the pre-scientific mind, both facilitated by the comic delivery of a moustachioed eccentric. I'd personally like to have seen more of an emphasis on how the symbolic significance of serpents and heads might lie at the root of these traditions though.

Charles Foster, speaking on the topic of his latest book Wired for God?: The Biology of Spiritual Experience (Amazon US/UK), gave a survey of attempts to explain away spiritual experience by reference to neurobiological research, before exposing the weakness of such reductionist arguments and concluding that correlations don't imply causes.

Gordon Rutter's talk on A History of Talking to the Dead did what it said on the tin, although largely focusing on the 19th century to the present day.

Feeling a bit under the weather on day 2, Ian Simmons' account of Fantastic (or is that bad taste) Taxidermy left me feeling rather worse for wear. Walter Potter kitten tableaux and Gunther von Hagens' plastinated bodies galore.

My powers of concentration impaired, I paid less attention to the Sunday afternoon offerings, although to be honest, they were of less personal interest to me than many of the other talks. Matthew Alford and Robbie Graham discussed their research into several cases of military and government interference in Hollywood. Authors Mark Chadbourn, Natasha Mostert and Adam Nevill discussed Forteana and Fiction, and Peter Brookesmith, David Clarke, Nick Pope, Ian Ridpath and Paul Devereux looked ahead to Ufology in the 21st Century.

While the Unconvention has not maintained a yearly presence, I look forward to the possibility of next year's event.

Review by Nick Redfern. For more information on The Cryptoterrestrials, visit the Anomalist books website. The book is available now from Amazon US and UK.

Over the course of the last 60 years or so, the world of ufology has spawned a truly huge number of books: many very good indeed, a not-insignificant number very bad, and a great deal hovering precariously somewhere in between. Just occasionally, however, a title comes along that is truly revolutionary, ground-breaking and - as far as its potential implications are concerned - thought-provoking in the extreme.

For me, personally, Jacque Vallee's Messengers of Deception and John Keel's UFOs: Operation Trojan Horse both fall into that latter category. Albeit in admittedly different ways, Vallee and Keel made equally strong cases for the existence of genuine UFOs in our midst. But, both Messengers and Trojan delivered to the reader two far more explicit messages: (A) UFOs are real; but that doesn't mean they are necessarily extraterrestrial; and (B) the phenomenon is clearly deceptive and manipulative in nature and intent.

Of course, for many of the longstanding (a.k.a. the bloody old) players within ufology, any talk of deceptive messengers, or of Keel's super-spectrum, is dismissed as mere speculation and not much else. For them, UFOs have to be extraterrestrial. After all, they have upheld such notions and beliefs for decades; and to relegate them to the rubbish-bin is not an option.

Well, I have a few choice words for those people who are so rigidly set in their ways: the extraterrestrial hypothesis is itself entirely speculative and totally lacking in hard evidence. All we really know for certain is that there most assuredly is a genuine UFO phenomenon. But, as for definitive proof of its actual point of origin or origins? Please! There is none. At all. There is merely a lot of data clearly demonstrating the presence of unidentified "others" amongst us.

Vallee and Keel most assuredly and astutely recognized this. They understood that a puzzle which - at first glance - seemed to be defined by the presence of nuts-and-bolts spacecraft and flesh-and-blood aliens in our midst, was far, far stranger than many within ufology wanted to admit.

And there was someone else who also recognized this ufological factor: Mac Tonnies. Mac was a very good friend of mine; and like all his friends I was shocked to the core when he passed away suddenly and tragically in October 2009, at the age of only 34.

But, I am pleased to say, Mac's latest - and, inevitably, final - piece of work ensures that his memory, legacy and ability to think outside of the conventional ufological box will live on. That work is The Cryptoterrestrials: A Meditation on Indigenous Humanoids and the Aliens Among Us.

Like Vallee and Keel, Mac rightly recognized that UFO encounters could not be dismissed as the ravings of lunatics, the tales of the fantasy-prone, or the lies of those seeking fame and fortune. But, he was also careful not to get sucked into the near-viral mindset that practically screams (take a deep breath): UFOs = alien spaceships piloted by little gray chaps from across the galaxy, who are on a mission to save their dying race by stealing our DNA, eggs and sperm.

Rather, Mac - right up until the time of his death - was chasing down the theory suggesting that the UFOnauts may actually represent the last vestiges of a very ancient race of distinctly terrestrial origins; a race that - tens of thousands of years ago may have ruled our planet, but whose position of power was thrown into overwhelming chaos by two things: (A) the appearance of a "debilitating genetic syndrome" that ravaged their society; and (B) the rising infestation of a violent species that threatened to eclipse - in number - their own society.

They are the Cryptoterrestrials. And that violent species that blusters around like an insane, unruly and spoiled child, and that has done more damage in its short life-time than can ever be truly imagined, is, of course, us.

With their society waning, their health and ability to even successfully reproduce collapsing, and their absolute worst nightmare - the Human Race - becoming the new gang in town, the Cryptoterrestrials followed what was perceived as the only viable option: they quietly retreated into the shadows, into the darkened corners of our world, below the oceans, into the deeper caverns that pepper the planet, and in their own uniquely silent and detached way, set about a new course of action.

That course of action - given that they were in some fashion genetically related to the Human Race - was to eventually resurface; to move amongst us in stealth; to pass themselves off as entities from far-off worlds (as part of a concerted effort to protect and hide their real point of origin); and to use and exploit us - medically - in an attempt to try and inject their waning species with a considerable amount of new blood: ours.

In addition, Mac believed, the Cryptoterrestrials were - and, by definition, still are - subtle-yet-brilliant, cosmic magicians. For them, however, there is no top-hat from which a white-rabbit is pulled. There is no hot babe sliced in half and then miraculously rejoined at the waist. No: their tricks are far more fantastic. As well as deceiving us about their origins, the Cryptoterrestrials have - via, perhaps, the use of advanced hologram-style technology, mind-manipulation and much more - led us to conclude that they have an infinite number of craft, resources and technologies at their disposal.

And that is the trick, the ruse: in actuality, their numbers today may be very small. They may well be staging faked UFO events to try and convince us that they have a veritable armada at their disposal when, perhaps, the exact opposite is the case. And, most important of all, they desperately want us to think of them as visitors from the stars. If their plan to rejuvenate their species is to work, then stealth, subterfuge and camouflage are the essential orders of the day.

Of course, the above all amounts to a theory - just like the ETH. And, Mac's book makes it very clear that he is theorizing, rather than being able to provide the reader with definitive proof for such a scenario. He does, however, offer a logical, and at times powerful, argument in support of the theme of his book.

As for so-called "alien abductions": the clumsy, intrusive means by which ova and sperm are taken by a race of beings we are led to believe are countless years ahead of us is addressed. That the ability of the aliens to wipe out the memories of those they abduct is constantly and regularly overturned by nothing more than simple hypnosis is highlighted. And the unlikely scenario that our DNA would even be compatible, in the first place, with extraterrestrial entities is also firmly dissected. Mac's conclusion: all this points not to the presence of highly-advanced aliens who are thousands of years ahead of us; but to the actions of an ancient Earth-based society whose technology may not be more than a century or so in advance of our current knowledge.

Mac also noted how the "aliens" seem to spend a hell of a lot time ensuring they are seen: whether its taking "soil-samples" at the side of the road; equipping their craft with bright, flashing lights; or hammering home the point to the abductees that they are from this planet, from that star-system, or from some far off galaxy. Just about anywhere aside from right here, in fact.

Roswell comes into the equation, too: and in ingenious fashion. Those who do not adhere to the extraterrestrial hypothesis for Roswell point to the fact that many of the witness descriptions of what was found at Roswell, are collectively suggestive of some form of large balloon-type structure having come down at the Foster Ranch, Lincoln County, NM on that fateful day in the summer of 1947.

The possibility that ET would be flying around New Mexico in a balloon is absurd. But, as Mac notes, a race of impoverished, underground-dwellers, highly worried by the sudden influx of military activity in New Mexico (White Sands, Los Alamos etc), just might employ the use of an advance balloon-type vehicle to secretly scope out the area late at night.

Perhaps, when elements of the U.S. military came across the debris, they really did assume it was balloon-borne material and probably of American origin. Until, maybe, they stumbled across something else amid the debris, too...

The Cryptoterrestrials continues in a similar vein; to the extent that we are left with a stark and surreal image of a very ancient - and very strange - race of beings who may once have been the masters of this planet; who were sidelined thousands of years ago; and who are now - under cover of darkness and while the cities sleep - forced to grudgingly surface from their darkened lairs and interact with the very things they fear (and perhaps even hate and despise) most of all: us.

Survival is the name of their game. And deception is the means by which it is being cunningly achieved.

Whether you agree with Mac's theorizing or not, The Cryptoterrestrials is a book that is expertly and beautifully written. It challenges the reader to throw out old, rigid views. It represents the careful studies of a man who knew he was going out on a limb - but who, thankfully, didn't give a damn about appeasing the UFO research community in fawning style. And, for me, it truly is a Messengers of Deception for the 21st Century and for Generation-Next.

For more information on The Cryptoterrestrials, visit the Anomalist books website. The book is now available from Amazon US and UK.

I have a soft spot for research into the possibility of an afterlife.There's some fascinating evidence out there that deserves closer inspection, and yet it is basically a heresy for any scientist to become involved in doing so. So I was eager to read Mary Roach's book Spook (Amazon US and UK), with its subtitle "Science tackles the afterlife". Roach's previous book, Stiff, had received very good reviews, so it was likely the new book would be perfectly suited to me.

In the introduction, Mary Roach makes clear that she started her research from absolute zero - she knew nothing about the topic. That approach has its positives (less likely to align to one side or the other on pure bias - although no doubt there were some), but also negatives (in that she is bound to miss some important research in the vast literature). During the book, written as a travelogue, she tours through topics such as reincarnation, attempts to weigh the soul, ectoplasm, Dr. Gary Schwartz's mediumship research, technological attempts to talk with the dead, and Michael Persinger's 'sensed presence' research with electromagnetic fields.

It soon becomes apparent when reading the book though that Roach is more interested in the 'follies' of science. The book entertains the reader primarily by laughing at researchers' (and our own) overzealous attempts to find something beyond death. That is not to say that she presents the entire book from a skeptical viewpoint. When visiting the mediumship research program conducted by Dr Gary Schwartz, she takes issue with his overly keen attempts to see 'hits' from mediums. But then she confesses to being gobsmacked when

The new X-Files movie (subtitled "I Want to Believe") was released today in Australia, reversing a recent trend which has seen Australia at the back end of the queue when it comes to movie release dates (not till tomorrow in the U.S.) I managed to get into one of the first showings this morning, and thought I'd do a little TDG review of Chris Carter's new feature.

For those wanting a taster of the film, the official X-Files website (linked above) has trailers and excerpts from the movie. Also you might be pick up some insights from Wired's Q&A with Chris Carter. Carter has also just released a new DVD, X-Files: Revelations (Amazon US), a compilation of episodes from the television series which is said to be the "essential guide" to understanding the film. (For those who want to take on the daunting mythology of the complete series, try this.)

The film certainly does revolve around the concept that Chris Carter described as "a story that involves the difficulties in mediating faith and science. 'I Want to Believe.' It really does suggest Mulder's struggle with his faith." But then, that pretty much sums the entire lifespan of the X-Files. Some of those allusions become pretty concrete though in the new film, which I'll discuss after the fold to avoid spoilers. In short though, my summary - without spoilers - would be: Great film, well-directed and acted, excellent storyline with surprises for fans. A worthy stand-alone film - just perhaps not paranormally 'epic' enough for my liking; this is The X-Files dammit!

** Warning: Spoilers after the fold **

------

The X-Files: I Want to Believe

Review by Greg Taylor

The filming of Chris Carter's latest X-Files feature film has been surrounded by the type of security one might expect at FBI headquarters. The plot of the film has been a closely guarded secret (scripts handed in at the end of each day, surveillance cameras monitoring the set, etc), as have the answers to those ever-present questions surrounding the entire The X-Files series: will Mulder and Scully hook up romantically, has Mulder found 'The Truth', and so on. The X-Files: I Want to Believe answers many of these questions, and some will delight audiences, while others probably will not.

The surprise answer to the mystery of Mulder and Scully's relationship is

We all grew up hearing those "believe it or not" tales of spontaneous combustion, frogs and fish falling from the sky, and other strange phenomena. Most of the general public don't know, however, that these impossible anecdotes originated not from scientific studies, but from the research of one man: Charles Fort. Spending untold hours in libraries, scanning newspapers and journals for strange happenings, Fort's work was so groundbreaking and far-ranging that these phenomena are now known by the simple appellation, 'Fortean'. However, while the word Fortean may be well-known, even appearing in the Oxford dictionary, the man himself remains a mystery to most.

Publishing house Tarcher Penguin have gone a long way to remedying this oversight however, with the simultaneous release (in the U.S.) of two books which - together as a compendium - offer a wonderful path to understanding more about the origins and subject matter of Forteana: Jim Steinmeyer's biography Charles Fort: The Man Who Invented the Supernatural (Amazon US and UK), and the anthology The Book of the Damned: The Collected Works of Charles Fort (Amazon US and UK). The latter is made up of Fort's four best-known books - Lo!, New Lands, Wild Talents, and the Book of the Damned - and features an introduction by Steinmeyer as well.

One can't underestimate the task Jim Steinmeyer takes on in telling the life story of the "mad genius of the Bronx". An intensely private man, Fort spent most of his adult life researching in libraries, writing at home, or relaxing with his wife Annie - hardly the makings of a cracking read. But if you can make the Statue of Liberty disappear - Steinmeyer is a renowned magical designer and historian, whose credits include the invention of David Copperfield's famous New York illusion - then illuminating the life and works of this one, strange American man shouldn't be too much of a step up.

He accomplishes this task through the words of the man himself. Using autobiographical notes, book excerpts and correspondence, Steinmeyer explores the harsh childhood Fort endured, his growth into a career in journalism and writing, and the formation of personal philosophies related to Monism - seeing connections between all things - and yet at the same time an exceptional skepticism of anything orthodox or authoritarian. Even when Fort began (unintentionally) attracting his own 'devotees' - the Fortean Society - he felt the urge to poke fun at the institution:

Most of us have sat through those awful mainstream television documentaries on UFOs, Bigfoot and various other mysteries. The faces of interviewees barely discernable through the heavy shadows, the terrible faux X-Files soundtrack, and a breathy voiceover issued three octaves below normal pitch. And, as the final indignity, if the viewer is able to sit through the torture of all that, they are usually subjected to the opinion of some pseudo-skeptic at the end admonishing us all for taking an interest in the topic. Thankfully, this review is about something completely different.

Canadian director/producer Paul Kimball is a man who knows ufology. While he may not be a favourite with many notables in the UFO research community - due to his tendency to state what he thinks of various theories, cases and personalities quite openly - he does know the history behind the topic very well, and brings a natural skepticism as well (without being a debunking zealot). Indeed, one could hardly think of a better person to produce a definitive documentary about the best UFO sightings to this point.

Well, happy times are here, because Kimball has recently completed exactly that: Best Evidence: Top Ten UFO Sightings premiered on Canada's "Space: The Imagination Station" network last month, and is now in the process of being sold and distributed to networks around the world (with DVD release to follow later). Though perhaps lacking in the type of big budget provided to features such as the relatively recent Peter Jennings special 'Seeing is Believing', the methodology, knowledge and intellectual honesty of the Best Evidence team makes this documentary stand out above those big budget efforts.

Instead of picking the top ten cases on their apparent 'sellability' - eg. Roswell - Kimball surveyed the experts in the field for their opinion on the best ever cases (based on evidence, reliability and number of witnesses etc). Notables such as Karl Pflock, Nick Redfern, Stanton Friedman, Richard Hall, Don Ledger, Kevin Randall (amongst many others) all put forth their opinion, and the resulting top ten will probably surprise many who aren't conversant with ufological history (most especially, television executives!). No trace of Roswell. No Adamski photo. No Phoenix Lights. So what's left?

The list, in short (see Nick Redfern's excellent review for a more detailed rundown):

• #10: Nuremberg, 1561
• #9: Skylab III
• #8: Yukon 'mothership'
• #7: Malstrom AFB
• #6: Shag Harbour
• #5: Kelly Johnson
• #4: McMinnville/Trent Photo
• #3: Rendlesham Forest
• #2: Iran, 1976
• #1: RB-47

The 45 minutes of Best Evidence is pretty much all devoted to analysis and discussion of these ten cases...no lead-up hype, no philosophical meandering. Just an outline of each case, intermixed with excellent interview footage with ufological luminaries such as Stanton Friedman, Nick Pope and Brad Sparks (again, amongst others), and actual 'experiencers' such as Robert Salas (Malstrom) and Charles Halt (Rendlesham).

This is an excellent exposition of a number of cases which will - in my opinion - leave the lay viewer with their mouth agape, wondering how orthodox science can get away with dismissing 'true' ufology as some sort of joke. Cases such as Rendlesham, Shag Harbour and the 1996 Yukon sighting, with multiple reliable witnesses, can only invoke an astonished response from anyone not already conversant with the details of the cases.

Nevertheless, while the 'straight' exposition works well in presenting the evidence behind each case, it would still have been nice to hear some of the balancing 'skeptical' arguments to each case, as well as having some of the bigger philosophical questions addressed. When the Kelly Johnson case was presented, my reaction was to wonder what sort of coincidence would allow for both aeronautical design genius Kelly Johnson, and members of his team elsewhere aboard an aircraft, to make independent sightings of the same UFO - does this argue for some sort of government psy-op, or does it argue for some sort of ufological intelligence directing itself towards these scientists working in such a related field? Similarly, when UFOs dive underwater and make a beeline for an advanced submarine detection base, what can we read from the situation? These questions are not addressed at all, although I think this was actually intentional - in effect, let the viewer make up their own mind, rather than forcefeed them an explanation (although I did note habitual use of the extraterrestrial meme, in comments such as 'out of this world', 'mothership' etc).

Also, it would have been nice to see the locales in which the cases took place, and a few more of the primary witnesses, to give the viewer a better sense of 'gestalt' of each case. However, I have no doubt this is more related to budgetary concerns than Kimball overlooking such an option - travelling with a crew in tow is notoriously expensive, and it must be remembered that Best Evidence is not a primetime mainstream television feature. Certainly, I bring this up only as a minor comment, not any sort of catastrophic flaw in the film.

Barring the above criticisms, Best Evidence is a wonderful documentary. Special effects vary from average, such as in the Kelly Johnson case, to excellent - the Trent case is done beautifully with moving footage morphing into the photo. One surprise is the narration, provided by Canadian actress Kris Lee McBride, which turns the worn out cliche of deep and breathy narration in UFO documentaries on its head. Although at times McBride seems a little stiff in her presentation - at points you can almost hear her reading the script - for the most part, the rational/logical vibe of the female voiceover works extremely well (similar to the use of female narration in British documentaries - Horizon's Dilly Barlow is a close comparison). More experience at narration, and also perhaps with ufology itself, will no doubt serve McBride well over time, giving her the confidence to use her voice to its full advantage.

The interviews with ufologists and experiencers are shot beautifully, and for me were the central focus of Best Evidence. Not having the access to conferences and events that some do, it's always a pleasure for me to watch the experts explain their point of view - and Kimball gives them plenty of chance to do so. Friedman brings gravitas as well as some theatre with his wonderfully intoned comments (see the Malstrom case interviews on Google Video), Brad Sparks speaks with a knowledge of ufological history as well as technical nous, and Mac Tonnies offers a wonderful concluding comment to the documentary. I am told that the DVD, when it goes on sale, will offer a second disc with extended interviews covering not only the top ten presented here, but others as well - something to look forward to.

In the meantime, keep your eyes peeled on your local television station, and hope that it comes your way soon. And also that Paul Kimball continues to receive commissions to create fascinating documentaries of the standard of Best Evidence.

Fore more information about the documentary, visit the Best Evidence blog, or Paul Kimball's blog The Other Side of Truth.

Rosslyn and the Grail is available from Amazon US and UK.

Another book about Rosslyn? It’s amazing the amount of words that have been written about this small chapel, which lies in the countryside a surprisingly short distance away from the centre of Edinburgh. Not just words though, but memes. In our heads, it has become a Templar strong-hold, a bastion of treasures from the Holy Grail to the body of Jesus himself.

However, this little book – rather than adding to the already confused situation – might just flush all those previous words and memes right down the drain. Mark Oxbrow and Ian Robertson are dedicated Rosslyn researchers. They have spent more than ten years investigating the various histories and myths surrounding the enigmatic chapel (and associated locales such as Rosslyn Castle). What they have discovered in this decade long journey is that there is truly a hidden dimension to Rosslyn Chapel. But it has nothing to do with everything you’ve heard. A quote from the pair in the introduction sums it all up:

"Without careful research, it is easy to make serious mistakes."

This book is about undoing many of those ‘serious mistakes’. Never mind the disclaimer that their aim "is not to debunk the myths or to explain away the magic and mystery of the chapel and castle," because that is exactly what the book does, and in a methodical way. Each chapter is devoted to one particular myth about Rosslyn, and within them Oxbrow and Robertson detail the actual history – derived from in-depth research – versus the claims made by alternative historians, or in some cases the local folklore.

Much of this will be tough going for romantically-minded readers. The authors might feel correct in saying "the odd thing is that the actual history of Rosslyn is far more incredible and spell-binding than any of the theories and fantasies," but I personally doubt that readers will agree. It’s hard to top hidden treasure, the quest for the Holy Grail, and the burial place of Jesus for incredible! However, this book is a necessary read. The revelations are eye-opening, even if it is in a debunking vein. For instance, the sculpted "Masonic angels", often trumpeted as proof of a secret connection to early Freemasonry, are revealed to be 19th century additions carried about during controversial restoration work by architect – and Freemason – David Bryce.

The various myths and fantasies upon which the chapters are based include the murdered apprentice, the haunted castle, Robert the Bruce and the white deer, the secret crypt, the Knights Templar, the Holy Grail and The Da Vinci Code. The first chapter, "Amidst the Woods", provides an historical introduction to the area while also making a claim for a connection to Arthurian myths (which the authors say was coopted by English monks in Glastonbury during the 12th century). From there Rosslyn and the Grail alternates between sentimental expositions of local folklore, and attacks on alternative historians. Andrew Sinclair in particular comes in for some savage treatment, while others criticised include Tim Wallace-Murphy, Knight and Lomas, and Baigent and Leigh. Strangely enough, the only mention of Henry Lincoln is a short passage praising him for his courage in taking on new ideas and admitting to being wrong...some Rennes le Chateau critics might wonder at this treatment compared to the others.

Amid the myths to be exploded is the identification of aloe and maize carvings within Rosslyn Chapel (said to be strawberry leaves and wheat), that the crypt hides some great secret, that the chapel is based on the ground-plan of Solomon’s Temple, and that the Templars had a hand in its construction. The attribution of pagan worship via the Green Men within Rosslyn is also debunked, with Robertson and Oxbrow pointing out that the Green Men are a decorative feature first used by the Romans which flourished in medieval churches – although they later acknowledge a link to vegetative cycles, when they point out that the Green Men ‘age’ as you walk around the chapel clockwise...yet another fascinating revelation amongst many to be found in Rosslyn and the Grail.

The sheer amount of facts and historical references which the authors have turned up sometimes actually detracts from the book a little. Reader interaction often takes a backseat to the listing of facts, and some may feel they are being preached to, more than taught (always a bad thing in a debunking book). This problem extends to a number of clumsy segues between topics; at times it took me more than four paragraphs to realise I was reading about a different topic. The authors’ warning of serious mistakes arising from lack of careful research is not something which readers should forget about when reading this book either. A number of times the reference is made to the official ‘start date’ of Freemasonry (when addressing alternative historians’ claim for Masonic influences at Rosslyn), when there are obvious historical footnotes which suggest speculative Freemasonry arose – in some form – well before this date. Small items such as this detract from the presentation in Rosslyn and the Grail, as it sounds like the authors are all too keen to support their own beliefs uncritically.

Overall though, that simply can’t be said of the book as a whole. The research is first rate, the revelations often startling. Readers will also be fascinated by much of the local lore which hasn’t turned up in the ‘popular’ literature on Rosslyn, such as the tales of the ghostly White Lady, and the treasure in Rosslyn Castle. The fourteen chapters are supplemented by six appendices (almost half as many pages in the appendices as in the rest of the book) which provide a timeline, historical writings supporting their research and associated myths.

Curiously enough, the authors seem to continually hint at a real connection between Rosslyn and the Arthurian myths and legends of the Holy Grail (also seen in the title of the book). However, they never really develop this idea as they promise – perhaps the scene is being set for a sequel which moves from debunking mode to providng fresh insights. Whatever the case, this is simply a must-have book for Rosslyn enthusiasts.

Entangled Minds is available from Amazon US and UK. For more information, visit Dean Radin's website.

Parapsychology has no better spokesperson than Dr Dean Radin. His 1997 book, The Conscious Universe, has become the go-to book for those interested in investigating the ‘serious’, scientific side of psi research. From telepathy to group consciousness, from precognition to the sense of being stared at, Radin is familiar with the research and is able to communicate the results – and their implications – to a lay audience with more ease than would be expected.

Now, after a nine year hiatus from ‘popular publishing’ (he has remained active in writing for specialised groups and also in scientific publishing), Radin returns with a new book on the
topic. Titled Entangled Minds, this latest effort is an updated version of his previous best-seller – in that he goes through the latest research into various areas of parapsychology – with the added theme of contemplating quantum entanglement as a possible mechanism behind psi effects. Radin sets out his thoughts on the matter right at the beginning of the book:

Science is at the very earliest stages of understanding entanglement, and there is much yet to learn. But what we’ve seen so far provides a new way of thinking about psi...psi is reframed from a bizarre anomaly that doesn’t fit into the normal world – and hence is labeled paranormal – into a natural phenomenon of physics.

Radin starts by laying the foundations of the book, recounting the history of psi, of quantum physics, and also his own involvement in parapsychology. Readers are sure to be fascinated by some of the material here, such as how the EEG machine had its origins in the telepathy research of Hans Berger, and Radin’s description of a ‘future experiment’ which would prove psi...which has actually already taken place!

This introduction moves right up to modern times, with discussion of the machine interaction experiments at the Princeton Engineering Anomalies Lab (PEAR), and the remote-viewing experiments of Targ and Puthoff which led into the Stargate program (Radin mentions here that he actually worked on Stargate as well).

Radin then works through the various types of psi research, which he splits into areas such as ‘conscious psi’ (sense of being stared at, ganzfeld telepathy experiments etc), ‘unconscious psi’ (autonomic responses to physically removed influences, gut feelings etc.), mind-matter interactions, pre-sentiment, and group consciousness (the Global Consciousness Project, the ‘noosphere’). He collates the data via meta-analysis, checks for statistically significant results – and in most cases they are – as well as searching for possible explanations such as the file-drawer problem (using funnel plots) and weak controls.

Much of the book to this point is similar to The Conscious Universe (though with more up-to-date results), but the final chapters set it apart with the introduction of the hypothesis that quantum entanglement may explain psi effects. Radin does well to compact a complicated subject into a few short chapters of readable text (I only had to reread a couple of pages!).

Beyond that, he also explores other theories of psi, and where we should be heading from here. This final section also includes a short rebuttal of skeptical arguments against psi, though it is hard to go past the relevant chapter in his previous book for deconstructions of the ‘skeptical’ position.

Radin is careful not to seem over-eager to naively link psi and quantum entanglement purely because they are both ‘mysterious’. Rather he simply asks us to consider it, as a more than possible idea:

Quantum entanglement as presently understood in elementary atomic systems is, by itself, insufficient to explain psi. But the ontological parallels implied by entanglement and psi are so compelling that I believe they’d be foolish to ignore.

This is a fascinating book and is certainly another important contribution to ‘new paradigm’ thinking (and diplomacy) by Dean Radin. Although some readers may find the statistical analysis employed when discussing experimental results a little tedious, the author is caught somewhat between a rock and a hard place. The controversial nature of psi research means that any skeptical reader would demand that Radin offer data to prove his claims. As such, his hand is forced. Certainly, this does detract from the readability of the book to the general public, who simply want a quick and fascinating read. But Radin also manages to keep the reader interested by providing thought-provoking ideas, and a number of anecdotes which are sure to surprise. Once again, Dean Radin has established himself as the leading communicator between psi researchers and the general public.

As strange as it may seem after all this time, anyone who lays claim to the ‘truth’ about the providence of the crop circle ‘phenomenon’ is bound to be castigated by some section of the croppie (and wider) research community. This is in large part due to the fact that, despite circlemakers/hoaxers claiming to have made most or all of the major crop circles, they have always stopped short of giving specifics on which particular circle, or how it was done. This has always allowed the ‘true believers’ in the phenomenon to write off their claims – a situation, presumably, which the circlemakers are more than happy to continue with, as it allows some mystique to remain attached to their work….if they are the ones responsible!. Nevertheless, demonstrations by the circlemakers (for commercial purposes) and basic common sense must lead one to heavily favour the human explanation for the formation of the glyphs.

However, for the better part of the last fifteen years, all manner of tripe has been written about the crop circle 'phenomenon', most of it uncritical, or even worse, untruthful. Apart from the 'Doug and Dave' publicity in the early 1990s, those who are said to have made the circles (and I'm not talking about alien gods or telluric currents) have remained below the radar, allowing the 'true believers' to hold court. Apart from the paid work exhibited by the Circlemakers, and the confession (and prosecution) of Matthew Williams, information about human construction of crop circles has not had a high profile in alternative and New Age circles (pun not intended).

However, that has now changed with perhaps the definitive book on the art, history and philosophy of human crop circle construction: The Field Guide by Rob Irving and John Lundberg (edited by Mark Pilkington). Irving and Lundberg were pioneers of the 'second wave' of circlemaking, following on from the earlier, simpler work of Doug and Dave with the more complex and stunning large scale glyphs prevalent throughout the 1990s. They are intimately familiar with all the aspects of the crop circle scene, and as such are well-credentialed to author such a book.

The book begins by laying out the history of crop circles, albeit largely from a circlemakers point of view. The authors cover the 'prehistory' of the circles (815 to 1976 AD) including the infamous "mowing devil" reports and other instances of circle strangeness throughout that period; the inside story of how Doug and Dave began their mischief-making; and the subsequent evolution of the hoaxing into a pseudo-scientific genre through the following decades - from the early meteorological theories of Terence Meaden to the modern analyses of the BLT team - and self-supporting belief system within the New Age movement. Various well-known cases are touched on by the authors; however, while hints and suggestions are tabled often, there is little in the way of direct confession. Of course, this allows just enough space for the mythos of the circles to continue - and therefore the raison de etre behind circlemaking, that of social art on the level of mythmaking, to remain intact.

The history of crop circles is an important one to study, because it gives pertinent insights into other areas of interest. It's very easy to look back now with some disdain for the ideas and hype surrounding crop circles in the early 1990s, but it must be said that at the time, the gestalt of the crop circle mystery was capable of carrying many people away into uncritical acceptance of the phenomenon (at least, those not familiar with the circlemakers' abilities). The mysterious appearance of the circles - and perhaps more importantly, the historic ambience of the landscape and sacred geometry of the glyphs - led many to ignore the most simple answer: that people were stomping around the fields making them.

And while the circlemakers were certainly happy to perpetuate the mystery, there were obvious signposts that this was in fact the case - not least, the massive media blitz surrounding the 'Doug and Dave' confession, and also the advice of certain circlemakers such as the author of this book, Rob Irving. The Field Guide analyses this movement away from the obvious conclusion, in to ever more bizarre theories, in terms of Leon Festinger's theory of 'cognitive dissonance'. Festinger suggested that we strive to preserve our belief systems by adapting threatening new information to reinforce our beliefs rather than challenge them. From The Field Guide:

As with the aftermath of the Today story and subsequent "hoaxing" revelations, those with the most to lose appropriated and interpreted information to meet their own and group's ends. Followers were of course free to either confront any disparities in the information, or accept it as true. For many, and many since, faced with this choice, rather than challenging their existing belief, the disconfirmation only served to confirm and even strengthen it.

We should all take note of this history, and the lessons that can be learnt from it, when approaching other fringe topics (from UFOs to alternative history). Indeed, the analysis of the philosophy of making the circles, and their capability of supporting complete belief systems, is one of the main attractions of this book. Irving and Lundberg's thoughts on the subject are intelligent and relevant.

It must be said though that the book is infused with a certain smug superiority - a likely natural result of pulling the wool over the eyes of true believers for so long, but certainly not an aspect of the book that I found enjoyable. More troubling is the almost malicious glee had in 'outing' the mistakes, gullibility and (in some cases) dishonesty of high-ranking croppies. While it must be said that many researchers certainly ended up lying in the bed they made themselves, the circle mythos has been one capable of inducing researchers to devote large parts of their life and resources to it. As this very book points out, many of these individuals were caught up in their own belief systems (however incorrect) - happily perpetuated by the circlemakers themselves - and I found the mocking tone in some places to be distasteful considering the authors’ obvious comprehension (and use) of human fallibility when it comes to belief.

The other problem facing the authors of this book is the paradox of writing an authoritative book on fooling others. By its very philosophy, that must make all readers skeptical of all the claims within the covers of The Field Guide, and any researcher would therefore have great difficulty in treating any ‘revelations’ as truthful – from the tales of earthlights seen during construction, through to the actual claims of designing the circles. At one point in the book the authors quote historian Felipe Fernandez-Armesto regarding the ‘higher truths’ seen by circle believers, but many could easily apply it to the ‘truth’ in The Field Guide:

Such truth usually comes with strings attached to human manipulators, disseminated by dubious experts and interpreted by self-conferred figures of authority.

This raises the important question of whether circlemaking should be considered a large-scale art experiment of sorts, or just plain mischievous hoaxing at others' expense. Personally, I can see both sides of the argument. As someone who seeks to get to the bottom of mysteries, in one way it disturbs me that there are individuals purposefully contaminating the field (again, pun not intended). On the other hand, I do see the inherent artistic beauty of creating a mystery, and watching the ripples spreading from that proverbial pebble in the pond.

The Field Guide isn’t just a treatise on the history and philosophy of the circles though. It is also a practical manual. The authors firstly lay a little groundwork (truly, the puns are not intended) by illuminating the artistic context of circlemaking, before moving on to showing the reader how to ‘roll their own’ (with disclaimers as to getting farmers’ permissions etc). This brief guide describes the various crops that can be used, the equipment that is needed, and how to go about laying your pattern down in a field. There is some humourous comment on how to make the circle seem genuine (ironically, by doing very human things), and finally, the important step of getting the media interested in your circle so that it gets some coverage.

The book is rounded out with two interviews – John Lundberg interviews Doug Bower about his life of circlemaking, and Mark Pilkington (who is also the editor of The Field Guide) talks to a group of circlemakers – including Lundberg and Irving – about their ‘hobby’. These interviews are fine inclusions in the book, as they give an inside and personal look at the motivations and opinions of those who (allegedly!) make the circles.

The Field Guide should be the epitaph to the crop circle movement, but it won’t be. Once again, the circlemakers avoid specifics and direct evidence of the circles they have constructed. This will allow the true believers room enough to dismiss their claims, and the ‘phenomenon’ will continue. However, this is an important book in the history of the circles, and necessary reading for anyone interested in the topic. Even for those who see the circles as genuine, and who don’t believe Irving and Lundberg, it would be intellectually dishonest not to read The Field Guide if you want to lay any claim to understanding the topic. Certainly, read it with skepticism – the trickster must accept that by his very actions, he diminishes trust. But perhaps that is exactly as Irving and Lundberg would rather have it…

More information about The Field Guide can be found at the Strange Attractor website