A Ghost Story of Christmas
Long before A Christmas Carol, another festive haunting chilled England's baubles
In November 1843, Charles Dickens published a slim novella that was fully titled A Christmas Carol; In Prose; A Ghost Story of Christmas. It sold for five shillings and was praised as “wonderful,” “playful and sparkling,” and “one of the smartest little books for a Christmas present that we have ever seen.” Almost everyone today knows the story of Ebenezer Scrooge and the ghosts of Christmas past, present, and future (even if that knowledge comes from the version told by the Muppets).
But Dickens’ popular tale was not the first Christmas ghost story. There is a much earlier story, and this one is purported to be true. We find it in an edition of Jackson’s Oxford Journal from 1762 — more than 80 years before Dickens wrote his famous story (and 230 years before the Muppets updated it).
The story concerns a man named Taylor, who lived with his daughter in a house in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire. It was over a period of several nights during Christmas 1761 that Taylor and his daughter were terrified by strange noises at the doors of their house. The noises were described as “the Knocking and Scratching of a Ghost”.
One night, Taylor met with an unnamed gentleman and described the troublesome affair. The gentleman advised Taylor to draw circles on both sides of the doors at which the knocking and scratching had been heard. Taylor followed the gentleman’s advice — and it worked. Taylor was, the Oxford Journal reported, “now ready to verify upon Oath that the Ghost has since entirely abandoned the House.”
“Great pity it is that this Gentleman’s Advice had not been had in Relation to the COCK-LANE GHOST,” added the newspaper. This referred to a then-famous haunting, which was being reported in the press at the time. The inhabitants of a lodging house in Cock Lane, near London’s Smithfield Market, were bothered by strange sounds attributed to a ghost known as “Scratching Fanny.” Fanny Lynes was the former partner of Cock Lane lodger William Kent and had died from smallpox. But the ghost claimed she had been poisoned with arsenic by Kent.
The affair became a huge public sensation. However, it was eventually determined that the haunting had been a hoax perpetrated by another of the lodgers, Elizabeth Parsons, under duress from her father Richard, who was tried and sentenced to be pilloried (placed in stocks for public humiliation) and serve two years in prison. Coincidentally, among those who took great interest in the Cock-Lane Ghost was Charles Dickens. He mentioned it in three of his books. (But not in A Christmas Carol. In Nicholas Nickleby, Mrs Nickleby says her great-grandfather “went to school with the Cock-Lane Ghost.”)
As for the unnamed gentleman who helped to exorcise the Aylesbury ghost, the Oxford Journal said he was willing to help others and “in like cases will give Advice gratis.”⬧
It’s been several months since the last edition of Singular Discoveries. I stopped for a while because I was busy and because, let’s be honest, the newsletter just wasn’t generating enough interest. Since I stopped publishing, more readers signed up — welcome! But I still have to work out how to do this going forward, and I have some reservations about the Substack platform. I’ve no plans to monetise this newsletter. The aim is to build an audience away from social media. So you can expect to receive these emails less regularly, when I have the time to write and something to say, and when I feel there’s enough interest to read it. Think of it as an occasional update, perhaps. If you have any thoughts about the newsletter and its future direction do let me know. And if you haven’t already, please do sign up — and encourage like-minded friends to join us.
I’m pleased to say my story about the wannabe American Gangsters who botched a disastrous bank robbery in Newcastle upon Tyne made Narratively and Pocket’s top five most-shared list for 2021. You can read the story (and listen to it) here.
I didn’t publish a whole lot of words in 2021, but I did write a whole lot, some of which will hopefully appear in a book / film / podcast very soon. Some highlights: As well as the above-mentioned The Gangsters Who Robbed the Wrong Bank at Narratively, I published The Female Horse Thief over at Medium Longium. On a sport / true crime theme, I wrote about The Undercover Cricketers for Wisden's The Nightwatchman and about The Man Who Stole the FA Cup for FourFourTwo.
My book The Ruhleben Football Association: How Steve Bloomer's Footballers Survived a First World War Prison Camp was published in 2020 but got lost during the Great Unpleasantness, so I relaunched it in 2021 so it could get lost again in the Ongoing Great Unpleasantness. Here’s a Twitter thread about how the prisoners celebrated four Christmases in Ruhleben:
Finally, here’s a Twitter thread of some of my favourite longform articles by other writers that weren’t included in the excellent Sunday Long Read Best of 2021 list:
As always, all of my stuff is available on my website: stuffbypaulbrown.com
Back relatively soon. Have a Merry Christmas / Happy Festivus, and don’t have nightmares.
Oh, and if you enjoyed this post please click this magic button:
Main sources: Jackson’s Oxford Journal, 27 March 1762; London Morning Chronicle, 20 November 1842.
"Katika ""A Christmas Carol"" ya 1843, Charles Dickens alitoa hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi ya hadithi." "Kama ilivyoelezwa hapo juu, ""Kutoka kwa siku ya Krismasi, karibu kila mtu leo anajua hadithi ya Ebenezer Scrooge na roho za Krismasi ya zamani, ya sasa, na ya siku zijazo (hata kama maarifa hayo yanatokana na toleo lililoelezwa na Muppets)." Lakini hadithi maarufu ya Dickens haikuwa hadithi ya kwanza ya roho za Krismasi. Kuna hadithi ya mapema zaidi, na hii inadaiwa kuwa ya kweli. "Hii ni kwa sababu ya ""The Oxford Journal"" ya Jackson ya mwaka 1762 ambayo ilichapishwa miaka zaidi ya 80 kabla ya Dickens kuandika hadithi yake maarufu, na miaka 230 kabla ya Muppets kuibadilisha." Hadithi hiyo inahusu mwanamume aitwaye Taylor, ambaye aliishi na binti yake katika nyumba moja huko Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire. Katika kipindi cha usiku wa Krismasi ya mwaka wa 1761, Taylor na binti yake waliogopa sana waliposikia kelele za ajabu kwenye milango ya nyumba yao. Sauti hizo zilifafanuliwa kuwa "Kupiga na Kukwaruza kwa Roho". Usiku mmoja, Taylor alikutana na mwanamume asiyejulikana na akamweleza kuhusu uhusiano huo mgumu. Mwanamume huyo alimshauri Taylor achore duru pande zote mbili za milango ambako kugonga na kukwaruza kulikuwa kumesikika. Taylor alifuata shauri la yule mwanamume <unk> na lilifaulu. "Taylor alikuwa tayari kuthibitisha kwa kiapo kwamba roho hiyo imeacha nyumba hiyo kabisa, ""na ni bahati mbaya sana kwamba ushauri wa Bwana huyu haukuwa umepatikana kuhusiana na roho ya Cocklane." Hilo lilirejelea tukio maarufu la wakati huo la kuogopeshwa, ambalo liliripotiwa katika vyombo vya habari wakati huo. Wakazi wa nyumba ya wageni huko Cock Lane, karibu na soko la Smithfield huko London, walifadhaishwa na sauti za ajabu zilizohusishwa na roho inayojulikana kama Scratching Fanny. Lakini roho hiyo ilidai kwamba alikuwa ametiwa sumu kwa aseniki na Kent. Jambo hilo lilitokeza msisimko mkubwa miongoni mwa watu. Hata hivyo, hatimaye iligunduliwa kwamba kuogopwa kulikuwa ni udanganyifu uliofanywa na mwenzake, Elizabeth Parsons, chini ya kulazimishwa na baba yake Richard, ambaye alishtakiwa na kuhukumiwa kuwa na hatia (kuwekwa kwenye hisa kwa aibu ya umma) na kutumikia miaka miwili gerezani. Kwa bahati mbaya, miongoni mwa wale waliopendezwa sana na The Cock-Lane Ghost alikuwa Charles Dickens. Alitaja jambo hilo katika vitabu vyake vitatu. (Lakini si katika A Christmas Carol. "Nicholas Nickleby, mke wa Nickleby, anasema babu yake mkubwa ""alienda shule na roho ya Cock Lane"" na ""alienda shule na roho ya Cock Lane"" na ""alienda shule na roho ya Cock Lane"" na ""alienda shule na roho ya Cock Lane"" na ""alienda shule na roho ya Cock Lane"" na ""alienda shule na roho ya Cock Lane"" na ""alienda shule na roho ya Cock Lane"" na ""alienda shule na roho ya Cock Lane.""" Niliacha kwa muda kwa sababu nilikuwa na shughuli nyingi na kwa sababu, hebu tuwe wakweli, jarida hilo halikuwa likitokeza upendezi wa kutosha. Tangu nilipoacha kuchapisha, wasomaji zaidi walijiandikisha <unk> karibu! Lakini bado ninahitaji kufanya kazi jinsi ya kufanya hili kwenda mbele, na nina baadhi ya reservations kuhusu jukwaa Substack. Mimi sina mipango ya monetize jarida hili. Lengo ni kujenga watazamaji mbali na vyombo vya habari vya kijamii. Kwa hiyo unaweza kutarajia kupokea barua pepe hizi mara chache, wakati nina muda wa kuandika na kitu cha kusema, na wakati nahisi kuna nia ya kutosha kuisoma. Fikiria kama update mara kwa mara, labda. Kama una mawazo yoyote kuhusu jarida na mwelekeo wake wa baadaye kufanya nijulishe. Na kama hujafanya hivyo tayari, tafadhali jiandikishe na kuhamasisha marafiki wenye mawazo kama yako kujiunga nasi. "Ninafurahi kusema hadithi yangu juu ya ""want-be"" Gangsters wa Amerika ambao walifanya wizi mbaya wa benki huko Newcastle upon Tyne, waliingia kwenye orodha ya tano ya Narrative na Pocket ya ""mashirika ya kugawanywa zaidi"" kwa 2021." Unaweza kusoma hadithi hiyo (na kuisikiliza) hapa. """Sikuchapisha maneno mengi mnamo 2021, lakini niliandika mengi, ambayo baadhi yatatokea katika kitabu cha filamu podcast hivi karibuni." "Kama ilivyoelezwa hapo juu, ""The Gangsters Who Robbed the Wrong Bank"" ni kitabu cha kwanza cha vitabu vya hadithi vya kisasa, na ""The Female Horse Thief"" ni kitabu cha kwanza cha vitabu vya kisasa." "Kama sehemu ya mchezo wa kuigiza, ""The Undercover Cricketers"" ilichezwa katika filamu ya Wisden's The Nightwatchman na ""The Man Who Stole the FA Cup"" katika filamu ya Four Four Two." "Kama ilivyoelezwa katika kitabu chake ""The Ruhleben Football Association: How Steve Bloomer's Footballers Survived a First World War Prison Camp,"" ""The Ruhleben Football Association: How Steve Bloomer's Footballers Survived a First World War Prison Camp"" ilichapishwa mnamo 2020 lakini ilipotea wakati wa Unpleasantness Mkuu, kwa hivyo nilianzisha tena mnamo 2021 ili iweze kupotea tena katika Unpleasantness Kubwa inayoendelea." "Hii ni thread ya Twitter kuhusu jinsi wafungwa walivyosherehekea Krismasi nne huko Ruhleben: ""Mwishowe, hapa ni thread ya Twitter ya baadhi ya makala zangu za muda mrefu za wapendao na waandishi wengine ambazo hazikujumuishwa katika orodha bora ya Jumapili ya Kusoma kwa Muda Mrefu ya 2021: Kama kawaida, vitu vyangu vyote vinapatikana kwenye wavuti yangu: stuffbypaulbrown.com." Kuwa na Krismasi Njema Happy Festivus, na si kuwa na ndoto mbaya. "Kama unavyoona, hii ni moja ya ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"" wa ""mfano"""