In January 1956, an ordinary terraced house at 63 Wycliffe Road in South West London became the site of one of the most puzzling and prolonged poltergeist cases in history. What began as a few strange occurrences soon escalated into a decade-long ordeal of terrifying supernatural events. At the center of the disturbances was 15-year-old Shirley Hitchings, whose presence seemed to attract a wide range of unexplained phenomena, including mysterious noises, objects moving without explanation, and physical attacks. The case, known as the “Battersea Poltergeist,” garnered widespread attention and remains one of the most well-documented paranormal cases in Britain.
The first sign of disturbance occurred when a mysterious silver key appeared on Shirley’s bed. Despite extensive efforts, the family could not find a lock in the house that matched the key. Shortly afterward, loud knocking sounds began to echo through the house, which seemed to follow Shirley wherever she went. At first, the noises were intermittent, but they soon grew louder and more frequent, sometimes so intense they could be heard from the street outside the house.
This marked the beginning of what was to become a long and terrifying ordeal. The knocking sounds appeared intelligent, responding to questions with taps. For instance, one tap would signify “yes” and two taps would mean “no.” Over time, these knocks evolved into more direct communications, often frightening and cryptic, which the family attributed to a malevolent presence which they later named “Donald” after the mischievous, temperamental, and pompous personality of Disney’s character Donald Duck.
The phenomena grew in both scope and intensity. Objects began moving on their own: furniture shifted, objects flew across rooms, and bedclothes were yanked off sleeping family members. Shirley’s own experiences were particularly unsettling. She was frequently the target of physical attacks, including being scratched, pinched, and even levitated from her bed while family members watched in horror​. At one point, Shirley reported being lifted several inches above her bed while her bedclothes were violently pulled away from her.
The house also experienced inexplicable fires, with matches igniting spontaneously and bedclothes catching fire without an apparent source. These episodes grew increasingly dangerous, leading the family to temporarily move out of the house. However, the phenomena followed them even when they returned, adding to their distress.
As the activity progressed, written messages started appearing around the house, many of them crude or threatening in nature. The poltergeist, “Donald,” left notes that ranged from simple insults directed at Shirley to cryptic messages about his identity. He claimed to be a deceased boy with whom Shirley had supposedly played as a child, though no one could confirm this connection. Investigators, including the prominent paranormal researcher Harold Chibbett, sought to identify Donald’s origins. Some messages even contained references to historical figures, including Louis XVII of France and James Dean, adding an odd and theatrical twist to the case​.
Chibbett, along with others, conducted numerous séances and investigations over the years, but the mystery only deepened. Shirley sometimes entered trancelike states during these séances, with the poltergeist allegedly using her as a conduit for communication. Despite these efforts, attempts to verify the claims made by Donald led to dead ends, and the true source of the disturbances remained elusive.
The peak of the poltergeist activity occurred in the late 1950s, with physical attacks on Shirley becoming more frequent and severe. The poltergeist seemed to relish creating chaos, hurling objects, starting fires, and manipulating electrical devices. On one occasion, a glove Shirley had dropped flew up and struck her father in the face, witnessed by family and visitors alike.
As media coverage of the case grew, the Hitchings family found themselves the subject of widespread public curiosity, with both skeptics and believers weighing in. Paranormal investigators, journalists, and even neighbours witnessed some of the strange phenomena first-hand, leading many to believe that something truly paranormal was happening.
By the early 1960s, the poltergeist activity began to subside, though it did not cease completely. Shirley got married in 1961, and the disturbances gradually lessened in both frequency and intensity. By 1968, after more than a decade of terror, the phenomena had largely stopped. However, the Hitchings family maintained that they never truly felt free of the presence, and odd occurrences would still happen occasionally, though far less dramatically​. The house was demolished in the late 1960s.
The house at 63 Wycliffe Road was demolished in the late 1960s, but the legacy of the Battersea Poltergeist lives on inspiring numerous books, articles, and in 2021 a BBC Radio 4 podcast, “The Battersea Poltergeist,” which reignited public interest in the case. The podcast was hosted by Danny Robins.
Though skeptics have offered alternative explanations, ranging from psychological disturbances to deliberate hoaxes, the sheer volume and diversity of the documented phenomena continue to make the Battersea Poltergeist one of the most perplexing cases in paranormal history. Whether the result of supernatural forces or other unknown causes, the case continues to capture the imagination of both believers and skeptics alike.
