John Glynn Jones was a friendly young man who pretty much kept himself to himself. An apprentice draughtsman who was soon to join the military, he lived with his family at 1 Byron Street, Runcorn. His home life was a little unusual, in that the family of five lived in cramped conditions, sharing a single bedroom with just two beds. Otherwise everything about him was distinctly normal. In August 1952 that changed. John and his family found themselves in the middle of what, to this day, remain a series of unexplained supernatural events.
The Chilling Tale of the Byron Street Poltergeist
One night a simple tapping noise seemed to be coming from the dressing table. John’s granddad accused him of playing games. At which point the table started to shake violently, crashing against the wall with greater and greater force. The entire family ran terrified from the room and spent a sleepless night elsewhere in the house.
The following night was even worse. Again, as the family drifted off to sleep, the dresser started to make a tapping noise. Drawers creaked open and slammed shut. The dresser mirror swung back and forth, banging against the wall. The family continued to blame John – he was a young lad and the most obvious suspect for pranks. Two members of his family pinned him down and demanded he stop messing about. While they were sitting on him, the bedclothes were ripped off the beds and thrown around the room.
The Rage of the Runcorn Thing
That was the turning point. They realised whatever was happening in their home, it wasn’t a young lad playing tricks. Over the coming days news of the strange happenings in Byron Street filtered out into the wider community. The family weren’t keen on people knowing their business but, as with all good gossip, the story was soon all around town.
The Runcorn Guardian ran a series of stories about “the rage of the poltergeist” and locals lined up outside the house hoping to catch sight of what had become known as “the Runcorn Thing”.
The story reached the national, and then international, press. Advice on dealing with poltergeists came from as far afield as Germany. Whatever was happening to the Jones family, the rest of the world had concluded it was paranormal at least.
As time passed, the activity became more and more aggressive. And it seemed John was the focus of this supernatural attention. Every night without fail he would be dragged from his bed and hurled to the floor. Pots and pans were thrown at him. Vases would fly from shelves directly at him. Fourteen independent witnesses observed household objects levitating, the bedroom carpet folding in half, the kitchen ceiling crack open, pillows bursting and china being smashed. Three policemen sent to investigate one such disturbance were thrown across the room by an unseen force.
Thomas Barrow, a friend of John Glynn Jones, said: “I came home on leave in August 1952 and John and his and my friend John Berry, of the adjoining Picow Street, asked me to stay in the bedroom concerned to which I agreed. I went down on four nights during that week and witnessed the destruction of the furniture, and the police sitting on a single bed and being lifted a couple of feet up in the air and being dropped down, after which they promptly departed.”
In September, Philip Francis, a spiritualist medium, turned up at Byron Street. Having heard the tales, he believed the family were being terrorised by a ghost. And he was convinced he could stop the activity. Unfortunately his efforts only succeeded in making things worse. Within a few seconds of starting a séance, a bottle of ointment was plucked from a shelf and thrown around the room before smashing against the wall. Two Bibles and a photo album followed – thrown against the wall as Mr Francis tried to speak.
Salvation eventually came when Methodist Minister, Rev WH Stevens arrived from London. He was certain his many years experience would proved invaluable in ending the ghostly activity. As soon as he entered the house he was hit on the back of the head by a dictionary which had been flung at him. But Stevens insisted he knew exactly what was going on and, more importantly, what he could do to stop it.
He explained the events, which some would describe as poltergeist activity, were unwittingly being caused by John himself. He was frustrated that he was soon joining the army. He was struggling in his transition to adulthood. His emotions were running high and, through it all, he still kept himself to himself. It was this which was causing the psychic activity which was making the family home a terrifying place to be. Sure enough, when John Glynn Jones left to join the army, the violent poltergeist activity stopped.
The damage caused by the Runcorn Thing – to the house, the adjoining property and a nearby pig farm – was estimated to be around £20,000. Of course the damage to the mental health of the family can’t be calculated but we’re pretty sure it was quite a while before any of them got a decent night’s sleep.
