BBC Sounds, June 13, 2022

With Listen Live Event

“Without a doubt, whatever was in that room was evil, and it wanted to do us harm, it wanted to frighten us. It certainly succeeded.”

OK so I have questions from part 1, and they are burning. Danny and the gang bring some answers straight off the bat, with a deep dive into Newfoundland folk tales and history thrown in for context. Charis Cotter, an author of a book on Newfoundland ghosts, gives interesting insight into the life and times of the people living in coastal fishing villages, and the way death and tragedy would have been a routine part of their harsh, wet and windswept lives. It’s a compelling backdrop and one that would be a suitable opener for any gothic tale.

I’m not surprised Scott’s brother, Callum, doesn’t really want to talk about his experience that night – would he even remember them clearly, if he had suffered some form of possession? What about that eponymous room next door, where his Dad, Brian, was? Brian is your typical no-nonsense, been-around-the-block Uncanny witness. Someone sensible and stoic, used to being in control. Someone not used to hearing gravel crunch just outside when the house he’s in is surrounded by grass, and footsteps outside his room with no one there when he opens the door. Crucially, Brian is convinced that the sinister thud he heard was his son Callum being thrown across the room. We seem to have corroboration from other witnesses!

As the case for Team Believer is built, we have a Team Sceptic spanner thrown in the works in that Scott was ‘deep into his Stephen King era’, which may well have put some vivid, frightening images onto his subconscious. Add into the mix the weird landlord, the lone fisherman, the voice on the radio – and you have a cocktail of fear.

It’s a genuinely challenging case for me as there is clear logic and sense to the sceptical explanations this episode when you take the entire trip and location into context. As Danny says, it’s grim, and “equally menacing conclusions” could be drawn. Either it’s a supernatural entity who is baiting them in a childish way, or someone with a screw loose is messing with the family in quite a disgusting way. Despite the unsanitary nature of the find, it does bring some moments of levity into the Listen Live event on twitter immediately afterwards as the Uncanny Community dissects the case with its typical respectful, engaged and insightful interactive conversation with our experts. This has become one of the most enjoyable aspects of Uncanny, and restores your faith in open, non-confrontational debate on social media. There’s nothing uncanny about that – it’s lovely.

Verdict: No clear conclusion for a terrified and isolated family, but a jumping-off point for an interesting debate. As Danny might say, “No shizzle”. 7/10

Claire Smith