Tom Slemen

[Barrington]

Tom Slemen, the Liverpool ghost-book author was on a talk radio station last night (Mon 14/04/08). The station, CityTalk, which broadcasts from Liverpool, has him on as a guest to talk about local ghosts/hauntings. This is the first time he has been on the show for a while as he fell out with the presenter, Pete Price. In the introduction to the show, Mr Slemen said that his forthcoming Ripper book will be out soon and that he is now at the indexing stage. Mr Slemen said that he expects his book to cause some controversy in Ripper circles.

[Mike Covell]

I covered one of Tom Slemen's books "Biazarre People" in my blogg after he covered a small section on Jack the Ripper.

Slemen has been planning his Ripper book for some time, and at one point actually believed that Robert D'Onston Stephenson's "Dead or Alive" story took place in Liverpool, even though Stephenson mentions it took place in Hull!!

[Barrington]

I know the story that you are referring to, Mike. It's featured in one of his books. I think the story is called the The Valentine Ghost. It tells of two lovers, Robert D'Onston Stephenson and Alice Harwood. Knowing that they were to be parted, they arranged to meet exactly one year later at the same hour. Alice died before the time of this meeting. Mr Slemen has the setting of her ghostly apparition appearing on Valentine's Day at the bridge in Sefton Park, Liverpool.

[Mike Covell]

Yes thats the one, even though Stephenson writes that he arranged to meet her on the bridge in Hull over the "Drain"!!

I have loads of versions of the story, from the origional,
Rev. Charles Tweedale's "Mans survival after death",
Melvin Harris's "Sorry you've been duped",
Melvin Harris's "Investigating the unexplained",
Len Markhams "Great Hull Stories",
and I have seen the version as it appaers in Bernard O'Donnell's Manuscript over on the JTR Forums.

There are so many differences in each re-telling but I have never read the full Slemen version. Sounds intresting though.

[Rigby]

The TS wiki page now states that "Jack the Ripper: British Intelligence Agent" has a publishing date of 2008. As he generally edits it himself that should be accurate information I would have suspected. How long have we been waiting for this now ? Is it ten years yet ? I'm actually one of those who hopes that he doesn't fall flat on his face given the amount of research which he says has gone into this but I've got a cringey feeling in my bones about it. However, I genuinely hope that he believes in the veracity of his own theory.

[ChrisGeorge]

The TS wiki page now states that "Jack the Ripper: British Intelligence Agent" has a publishing date of 2008. As he generally edits it himself that should be accurate information I would have suspected. How long have we been waiting for this now ? Is it ten years yet ? I'm actually one of those who hopes that he doesn't fall flat on his face given the amount of research which he says has gone into this but I've got a cringey feeling in my bones about it. However, I genuinely hope that he believes in the veracity of his own theory.

Hi Rigby

Yes Tom Slemen's website states:

Jack the Ripper: British Intelligence Agent (Harper Collins 2008)

I don't yet see any listing on the site for HarperCollins UK but that doesn't mean of course that it might not be still forthcoming from them.

Chris

[Rigby]

Mr S just on the radio here in Liverpool only caught it by accident. Just said that the "booook" is definitely out in February or March 2010 and that Richard Whittington-Egan has penned a glowing foreword for it.

[Tom_Wescott]

If Whittington-Egan writes a glowing forward for known crank and liar Slemen I will kiss AP Wolf.

And Slemen did not think Stephenson's Dead or Alive story happened in Hull. He plaguirized the story without credit and published it in one of his books.

Yours truly,

Tom Wescott

[Stewart P Evans]

More Ghost Stories

Yes thats the one, even though Stephenson writes that he arranged to meet her on the bridge in Hull over the "Drain"!!
I have loads of versions of the story, from the origional,
Rev. Charles Tweedale's "Mans survival after death",
Melvin Harris's "Sorry you've been duped",
Melvin Harris's "Investigating the unexplained",
Len Markhams "Great Hull Stories",
and I have seen the version as it appaers in Bernard O'Donnell's Manuscript over on the JTR Forums.
There are so many differences in each re-telling but I have never read the full Slemen version. Sounds intresting though.

The story was also published in W. T. Stead's More Ghost Stories: A Sequel to "Real Ghost Stories" Being A New Year's Extra Number of the Review of Reviews, London, 1892. Here's a scan from page 47 of my copy of this book.