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The true story behind the Blue Bell Hill ghost

As we enter the spooky season we have decided to revisit the tale of the Blue Bell Hill Ghost.

The main road linking Medway and Maidstone has been the topic of many ghostly sightings over the years, and it all started back in 1965.

The crash in 1965. Credit to S.B Publications
The crash in 1965. Credit to S.B Publications

On November 19, Suzanne Browne and her two friends tragically died in a car crash.

The 24-year-old was returning from her hen night when her Ford Cortina spun out of control on the A229, colliding with a Jaguar heading the other way.

Susan was due to marry RAF technician Bryan Wetton the following day.
Despite a common belief that she died on the road, it was actually her friend Judith Lingham who passed away there.

Miss Browne and Patricia Ferguson died a few days later in Maidstone Hospital.

Front page of the Maidstone Gazette shows the horror crash
Front page of the Maidstone Gazette shows the horror crash

But the tragedy has also left a mysterious legacy, with unexplained visions being reported throughout the 1960s and 70s at the site - although ghostly sightings there are said to date even further back, to the 1930s.

For the 50th anniversary of the crash a number of spiritual believers gathered outside the Lower Bell pub, nearby.

Sonya Roseman, a film maker, released a drama entitled The Ghost of Blue Bell Hill in 2014.

The 39-year-old from Rochester said: "I think it frightens people way to much to talk about it but there are still things going on up there.

"When it was the 50th anniversary the paranormal teams picked up some weird stuff. They had this device that meant you could hear the ghosts and it picked up some voices, screaming and shouting for help.

Judith Lingham was killed in the crash
Judith Lingham was killed in the crash

"I just think the whole place is tragic and there is such a bad feeling there."
Miss Roseman filmed shots for her movie along the road and carried out extensive research into the history of the area.

She added: "There had been a motorcycle crash just days before the filming, so it is still going on these days.

"There were a lot of people who didn't want me to make the film because they were worried something would happen to me.

"When I was researching it I put pictures up in my kitchen and just days later my flat burnt down but the pictures weren't destroyed. I thought 'I have just got to make this film'.

"The road is just a really eerie, nasty road. The whole place has a bad karma about it.

Sonya Roseman
Sonya Roseman

"Every time I go down there I have to pinch myself and will nothing to happen."

In 1972 Bob Vandepeer said he gave a lift to a girl on the hill only to later turn around and discover the hitchhiker had vanished in the back of the car.

In 1971 James Skene was driving home from work when a girl in her early 20s suddenly appeared in front of his car. He gave her a lift to Chatham, but when she got out she disappeared.

There have also been stories of a girl who stares into the eyes of drivers as she steps out into the road, unable to stop cars crashing into her - but when a driver checks to see if she is okay, she has vanished.

Have you encountered the Blue Bell Hill Ghost? Get in touch by emailing jsharp@thekmgroup.co.uk.

Read more: all the latest news from Maidstone

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