Ghostbusters busted
6/1/06

A GROUP of intrepid Leyland students got more than they bargained for
when their film about the ghostly goings on at Worden Park proved too
lifelike.

Worden Park has long had a reputation for being haunted which prompted
three media students from Runshaw College to hold a mock seance in the
Arts and Craft Caf as part of their final project.James Entwistle,17,
Georgina Morris, 19, and Hema Patel, 18, set up cameras around the arts
centre to record footage with the help of fellow student Rebecca
McDermott but what they saw next made them decide to pack up and leave.

James and Georgina are both fans of TV's 'Most Haunted' TV programme and
decided it would be a good idea to do their last project on Worden
Park's ghostly history.
James played the role of medium Derek Acorah but was soon feeling uneasy
when he felt the temperature drop and his fellow students started to
shiver.The group began the filming in the evening and locked themselves
in to the cafe."We heard a crash from the kitchen next door but just
ignored it," Georgina said.

"We started the seance with James talking as we all held a cup in the
middle of the table."We thought we'd get a connection with a ghost but
were shocked by what happened next. The cup moved as the film rolled. Me
and Hema screamed we were petrified!"The three teenagers decided to cut
short the experiment after an hour-and-a-half but found that the door
they had locked at the start of the exercise was now open.When the
students replayed the video they could hear the sound of a deep sigh
even though none of them had made it.

Georgina suggested the location for the filming as she works part-time
at the cafe and had witnessed at first-hand Worden Park's supernatural
powers."I've seen some unexplained things while I've been there," she
said. "The coffee machine pouring itself a cup and the commercial
fridges turning themselves off. "The teenagers are all studying for a
national diploma in media."I'm in no doubt it's haunted," she said. "And
nor are my fellow students. Mind you, it's made for a good
project."Worden Arts Centre used to be the derby wing of Worden Hall
which was built in 1780. It is the last remaining part of the building
after fire damage in 1941 and demolition in 1976.Coun Matthew Tomlinson,
cabinet member for community services said: "Worden Park has
traditionally attracted visitors of the alive variety, but it's great to
find out our facilities there are so good that some of our customers
have chosen to stay for hundreds of years!"