Farmer’s whipping had naked phantoms on the run

Pity the phantoms who dared to parade naked near Blairgowrie in 1900. They materialised in the middle of a ghost panic gripping east Perthshire but their stay in this realm was not a happy one. For weeks, spooks had been putting the shivers up communities as far apart as Kirkmichael and Newtyle. But when they tried their tricks with a farmer driving a carriage home from Blairgowrie one late November night they met their match.

A party of ghosts suddenly appeared at his side and then tore past him with alarming speed. The farmer coaxed his horse into a sprint and began to deal the spectres a thrashing with his whip.

He tanned their naked hides as he crashed on and the ghouls scattered in all directions.

Next day, however, an inquiry began into an attack on members of Blairgowrie Harriers who had been out training in white jerseys and pants.

The east Perthshire hauntings made headlines at the time and warranted a police inquiry.

The visitor from the nether regions first appeared in Longforgan before flitting towards Meigle and Alyth. In Meigle, a young girl was said to have died of fright when she saw a ghoulish phosphorescent face as she drew her curtains.

Footballers became sick with terror when the wraith reared up during a game and two young girls had a terrifying encounter with it in Bridgend, Perth. They described it as a most horrible man with horns.

Perthshire chief constable John Macpherson said he was confident the hauntings were a hoax perpetrated by the son of a wealthy Dundee businessman, but still the panic continued.

Nerves were frayed and the press reported the story of two unfortunate girls who went on a visit to Murthly Castle.

They chanced upon a closed door and dared to turn the handle and open it. Immediately, a “strong and active” skeleton clasped them in its bony arms.

The girls could not fight it off and were only released when someone familiar with the castle arrived and operated a spring to loosen its grips.

The girls were so traumatised they went into a state of hysteria which lasted months.

He tanned their naked hides as he crashed on and the ghouls scattered in all directions