In German folklore and ghostlore, a poltergeist is a type of ghost or spirit that is responsible for physical disturbances, such as loud noises and objects being moved or destroyed. Most claims or fictional descriptions of poltergeists show them as being capable of pinching, biting, hitting, and tripping people. They are also depicted as capable of the movement or levitation of objects such as furniture and cutlery, or noises such as knocking on doors. Foul smells are also associated with poltergeist occurrences, as well as spontaneous fires and different electrical issues such as flickering lights.
A haunted house, spook house or ghost house in ghostlore is a house or other building often perceived as being inhabited by disembodied spirits of the deceased who may have been former residents or were otherwise connected with the property. Parapsychologists often attribute haunting to the spirits of the dead who have suffered from violent or tragic events in the building's past such as murder, accidental death, or suicide.
John Zaffis is a paranormal researcher born and based in Connecticut, United States. He starred in the SyFy paranormal reality TV show, Haunted Collector, and runs the Paranormal and Demonology Research Society of New England, which he founded in 1998.
Ghost Hunters is an American paranormal and reality television series. The original series aired from October 6, 2004 until October 26, 2016 on Syfy. The original program spanned eleven seasons with 230 episodes, not including 10 specials. The series was revived in early 2019 and aired its twelfth and thirteenth seasons from August 21, 2019, to May 27, 2020, on A&E, after which it was cancelled and then revived for its fourteenth season only months later on Discovery+, which started airing on October 31, 2021. Season 15 began October 1, 2022 on Travel Channel. Season 16 of Ghost Hunters is set to release on Travel Channel on April 6, 2023.
Destination America is an American cable television channel owned by the Warner Bros. Discovery Networks unit of Warner Bros. Discovery. The network carries programming focused on the culture of the United States—including food, lifestyles, and travel. The network first launched in 1996 as Discovery Travel & Living Network, as part of a suite of four digital cable networks the company launched that year. From its launch until 2008, the network primarily focused upon home improvement, cooking, and leisure-themed programs.
Paranormal television is a genre of reality television that purports to document factual investigations of the paranormal rather than fictional representations seen in traditional narrative films and TV. Over the years, the genre has grown to be a staple of television and even changed the programming focus of networks like the History Channel and the Travel Channel. By highlighting beliefs in topics ranging from Bigfoot to aliens, paranormal television continues to elevate popular interest in the paranormal.
Edward Warren Miney and Lorraine Rita Warren were American paranormal investigators and authors associated with prominent cases of alleged hauntings. Edward was a self-taught and self-professed demonologist, author, and lecturer. Lorraine professed to be clairvoyant and a light trance medium who worked closely with her husband.
Proof Positive is a paranormal investigation reality television show broadcast by the SciFi Channel beginning on October 6, 2004, through December 8, 2004. It was shown as part of the "SciFi Wednesday" evening schedule line up in the United States along with other reality television programs as Scare Tactics and Ghost Hunters. Proof Positive ran for ten episodes.
Ghost hunting is the process of investigating locations that are purportedly haunted by ghosts. The practice has been heavily criticized for its dismissal of the scientific method. No scientific study has ever been able to confirm the existence of ghosts. Ghost hunting is considered a pseudoscience by the vast majority of educators, academics, science writers and skeptics. Science historian Brian Regal described ghost hunting as "an unorganized exercise in futility".
Truth or Scare is an American television series on the Discovery Kids network. The show aired from October 25, 2001, to January 1, 2003. It was hosted by Michelle Trachtenberg in a style similar to Maila Nurmi as horror host "Vampira" and Cassandra Peterson as horror host "Elvira, Mistress of the Dark." The series first aired on Discovery Kids as a part of the network's Scary Saturday Night Sleepover lineup. After the series ended, reruns of the show aired on The Hub until October 29, 2012.
A Haunting is an American paranormal drama anthology television series that depicts eyewitness accounts of alleged possession, exorcism, and ghostly encounters. The program features narrations, interviews, and dramatic re-enactments based on various accounts of alleged paranormal experiences at reportedly haunted and mostly residential locations.
Peter Underwood was an English author, broadcaster and parapsychologist. Underwood was born in Letchworth, Hertfordshire. Described as "an indefatigable ghost hunter", he wrote many books which surveyed alleged hauntings within the United Kingdom - beginning the trend of comprehensive regional 'guides' to (purportedly) haunted places. One of his well-known investigations concerned Borley Rectory, which he also wrote about.
Ghost Adventures is an American paranormal and reality television series that premiered on October 17, 2008, on the Travel Channel before moving to Discovery+ in 2021. An independent film of the same name originally aired on the Sci-Fi Channel on July 25, 2007. The program follows ghost hunters Zak Bagans, Aaron Goodwin, Billy Tolley, and Jay Wasley as they investigate locations that are reported to be haunted.
My Ghost Story is an American television series on the paranormal, which premiered on July 17, 2010, on the Biography Channel. The series features ghost stories told from a person's own supposed experience with the supernatural. Each episode features claims of encounters at reportedly haunted locations all over the United States, as well as a few locations in other countries. A spin-off series My Ghost Story Asia premiered on the Biography Channel (Asia) on 16 August 2012 featuring stories from Singapore and Malaysia. The fifth season started on October 5, 2012, on Fridays at 9/8 Central. The sixth season which began on August 12, 2013, aired on the Biography Channel, the original broadcast channel, but halfway through the season the broadcast channel was changed to the Lifetime Movie Network (LMN).
Extreme Paranormal is an American paranormal documentary TV special that premiered on Monday, October 26, 2009, on A&E Network at 10pm EST. It aired as a two-part 1 hour special for Halloween and followed the missions of three paranormal investigators that go to extremes in order to make contact with spirits during their investigations.
Gaurav Tiwari was an Indian paranormal investigator, UFO field investigator and ParaNexus representative in India who appeared on television shows such as MTV Girl's Night Out with Rannvijay Singh, Haunted Weekends with Sunny Leone, Aaj Tak, Live India, News 24, Star TV, Zee TV, Fear Files: Darr Ki Sacchi Tasvirein, Syfy's 'Haunting: Australia', and Sony TV's Bhoot Aaya. Tiwari was also a guest on paranormal radio shows and CEO and Founder of the Indian Paranormal Society.
Haunting: Australia is an Australian paranormal television series that premiered on 3 February 2014 on Syfy. The series was commissioned by SF in July 2013, with production beginning in August 2013 and set to premiere on the network in 2014. However, following the closure of SF on 31 December 2013 and the launch of Syfy as its replacement, the series instead premiered on the newly launched Syfy channel on 3 February 2014.
Haunted Discoveries is an American paranormal and documentary television series. It premiered in North America on October 6, 2023, on T+E as part of the Canadian network's "Creep Week" Halloween programming.
Brandon Alvis is an American paranormal investigator, filmmaker, author, and television personality. Alvis is the producer, director, and lead investigator for the television series Haunted Discoveries, which began airing on Canada's T+E network in 2023. Before that, he was a co-investigator and paranormal technician on the A&E Ghost Hunters reboot from 2019 to 2021.
