On Saturday February 18th, I undertook the Lincoln Ghost Tour. This tour travels around some of Lincoln’s most haunted locations in it’s Cathedral quarter, including the Cathedral itself, the White Hart Hotel, and other locations. At each of these locations, the tour guide gathers the group around and tells the story that relates to the location that we are in, as well as giving a brief history of the location.
The tour draws the audience in by starting off with the origin of each story, setting the scene before moving on to explain the paranormal activity. The stories are all prefaced with who saw the ghost, before going into the story itself. Then possible history about its origin is told, rounding off the story. Some stories are also prefaced with how they have affected the tour directly, bringing them more into the real world. This draws the audience in, and creates an atmosphere for the stories, making them more spooky.
The way the story is told is an important part of creating the event. The tone and build up to the ‘punch line’ of every story is an important hook to keep the audience engaged in every story. This formula is repeated throughout the course of the tour, showing its effectiveness, as the formula works every time. A few of the stories do not relate to the location that the tour is at, however, the story is still engaging due to the tales’ delivery. The ones that are at a location incorporate it into the story. Through gestures and visual references to the locations, these stories further engage the audience then the location-less ones.
The stories in this tour can be used as inspiration for my own ghost tour, and reveals more of the stories around this haunted area. The techniques used throughout the tour can be re-created in order to give my ghost stories the same effectiveness. Some of the stories heard during this tour could also be incorporated into my event, albeit edited in there telling in order to not be a direct copy.
After the tour, I spoke with the tour guide about hosting my projection event in collaboration with the tour itself; building on their existing narrative and clientele to bring my project to as many people as possible. Health and Safety permitting, this is an idea that may be possible for my final presentation.