Hoax, proven
Doug and Dave's crop circle confession
On 9 September 1991 the British tabloid Today reported that two Hampshire men, Dave Chorley and Doug Bower, had started the crop circle craze back in 1978 for a joke.
Something ToldObscurity 7 of 7
Disputed
Franklin's lost expedition
The 1845 Franklin Expedition went looking for the Northwest Passage through Canada's Arctic, and CBC News says close to 130 sailors died. Inuit accounts, recorded by John Rae in 1854 and later by Charles Francis Hall, describe what became of some of the men.
Something Left BehindObscurity 7 of 7
Disputed
Gambo, the Gambian sea creature
On 12 June 1983, Owen Burnham and three relatives came across the carcass of a large sea creature at Bungalow Beach on The Gambia's coast. Cryptozoologist Karl Shuker and others recorded his account.
Someone Who Was ThereObscurity 7 of 7
Folklore
Genderuwo
A spirit of Indonesian belief, described as having a jet-black body and large fangs. Its name traces back to the Sanskrit gandharva, and Kompas has reported the 2021 death of a child in Temanggung, suspected killed by parents who believed a genderuwo possessed the child, and a 2025 case in Banyumas where a man sexually abused a 14-year-old under the pretext of a ritual to drive out a genderuwo.
Before you read on. The belief has harmed children. In 2021 a child in Temanggung died, suspected killed by both parents, who believed a genderuwo possessed the child after an adviser urged a cleansing ritual (Kompas); in 2025 a man in Banyumas sexually abused a 14-year-old under the pretext of a ritual to drive out a genderuwo (Kompas).
Something ToldObscurity 1 of 7
Fiction
Ghostwatch, the BBC Halloween broadcast
On 31 October 1992 the BBC aired Ghostwatch, a staged programme presented as a live investigation of a haunted house in Northolt. Many viewers took it for real, according to a crew member.
Something SeenObscurity 1 of 7
Folklore
Gonjiam Psychiatric Hospital
A closed psychiatric hospital in Gonjiam, Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province, which drew ghost hunters after CNN listed it among the world's creepiest places and gave its name to a 2018 horror film. The building was demolished in 2018.
Something ToldObscurity 1 of 7
Folklore
Heron-Allen's Cursed Amethyst
A stone at the Natural History Museum in London, known from Edward Heron-Allen's story as the purple sapphire, which the museum calls a cursed amethyst. The museum repeats a rumour that Heron-Allen made up the curse himself.
Something Left BehindObscurity 6 of 7
Claimed sighting
Hindu statues drinking milk, 1995
In September 1995 worshippers reported that statues of Hindu deities took offerings of milk, first at a temple in New Delhi and then in temples around the world.
Something SeenObscurity 6 of 7
Folklore
Hitobashira, the human pillar
Hitobashira, or human pillar, is the Japanese legend that people were buried or drowned to make an embankment, bridge or castle hold. The stories attach to real places such as Matsue and Maruoka castles.
Something ToldObscurity 3 of 7
Disputed
Houdini's Margery sitting
On 23 July 1924, Harry Houdini and a Scientific American party attended a séance with the medium known as Margery at 10 Lime Street, Boston.
Someone Who Was ThereObscurity 5 of 7
Religious tradition
Hungry Ghost Festival: China, Hong Kong, Taiwan
An observance held during the seventh lunar month, known as Zhongyuan in China and Yu Lan in Hong Kong, with offerings to ancestors and rites for wandering ghosts. It is practised in mainland China, Hong Kong and Taiwan.
Provenance · Religious tradition
Something Told
Folklore
Impundulu, the lightning bird
The impundulu, or lightning bird, is a witch's familiar in the beliefs of South Africa's Pondo, tied to thunder and lightning. Monica Hunter recorded it in 1936, and a Port Elizabeth paper explained it in 2005.
Before you read on. Monica Hunter (1936) recorded that the impundulu is always kept by a female witch. In 2005 The Herald, Port Elizabeth, explained the belief in its report on an attack on a toddler, which its headline blamed on the killer's belief in omens and spirits.
Something ToldObscurity 7 of 7
Disputed
Ingo Swann's Jupiter session
On the evening of 27 April 1973, Ingo Swann gave a recorded remote viewing of Jupiter for researchers at SRI, years before spacecraft reached the planet. Supporters and sceptics assess it differently.
Someone Who Was ThereObscurity 1 of 7
Folklore
Inunaki Pass and the Inunaki Village legend
The old Inunaki Tunnel, between Hisayama and Miyawaka in Fukuoka Prefecture, is known as a ghost spot and tied to an internet-era legend of a hidden village. Separately, a real murder took place at the tunnel in 1988.
Somewhere You Can GoObscurity 3 of 7