Predicting Death: Strange History of the Premonitions Bureau
After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal
Deep Dive
Why did John Barker create the Premonitions Bureau in 1966?
John Barker, a psychiatrist, was fascinated by the idea of precognition and wanted to explore whether people could foresee disasters. His interest was sparked by the Aberfan disaster, where he collected stories of premonitions and coincidences, leading him to establish the Bureau to study these phenomena scientifically.
What was the Aberfan disaster, and how did it influence Barker's work?
The Aberfan disaster in 1966 was a coal waste landslide that killed 144 people, mostly children, in a Welsh mining village. Barker, who visited the site, collected stories of premonitions and coincidences related to the disaster, which fueled his interest in studying precognition and led to the creation of the Premonitions Bureau.
What role did media play in the Premonitions Bureau's operations?
The Bureau used media, particularly through journalist Peter Fairley, to publicize its efforts and gather premonitions from the public. Fairley, the science editor of The Evening Standard, helped spread the word, leading to a flood of responses from people who believed they had premonitions.
Who was Kathleen Middleton, and what were some of her notable predictions?
Kathleen Middleton was a piano teacher who became a key contributor to the Premonitions Bureau. She made several predictions, including one about the death of a Soviet cosmonaut, the assassination of Bobby Kennedy, and a train crash in London that killed over 40 people.
How did the Premonitions Bureau function on a practical level?
The Bureau operated through a network of people, including Jennifer Preston, who sorted and filed premonitions received via letters, telegrams, and phone calls. The data was then analyzed by Barker and Fairley, who sought patterns and correlations between premonitions and actual events.
What was the significance of Barker's death in relation to the Premonitions Bureau?
Barker's death in 1968 was predicted by one of the Bureau's contributors, Alan Hensher, who called Barker to express his concern. This event, which aligned with Barker's own research on the effects of receiving a death prediction, marked the end of the Bureau's active operations.
What percentage of predictions sent to the Premonitions Bureau were considered successful?
About 3% of the predictions sent to the Bureau were recorded as successful, which is close to the margin of error and suggests that while some predictions were accurate, the results were not statistically significant enough to prove precognition.
- Aberfan disaster resulted in 144 deaths, including many children
- John Barker, a psychiatrist, became fascinated by premonitions surrounding the disaster
- Barker's interest in precognition led to the creation of the British Premonitions Bureau
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