Haunted Antiques Center Lets Visitors Play With the Possessed

Have you ever had the eerie feeling a piece of antique furniture in your house is haunted? Have you had the eerie feeling that it would cool to sit in a piece of haunted antique furniture? Then Neil Packer is the guy to see. He just opened the Haunted Antiques Paranormal Research Centre and has haunted items for on display for those who want to study them or the curious who just want to see what it’s like to sit in a haunted rocker holding a haunted doll in a haunted building. Eerie?

Although there are a few similar shops in the U.S., Neil believes his is the first in the U.K. The shop is in Hinckley in southwest Leicestershire in England’s West Midlands. According to the Leicestershire Mercury, the project is a natural occupational progression for this paranormal investigator. Parker began collecting haunted antiques a year ago and moved them from his home for the obvious reasons – not enough space and too many ghosts.

Objects can absorb the energy – both positive and negative – of their owners or of people who handle them. Common haunted or possessed objects that become antiques include dolls (Robert and Annabelle), paintings ("The Hands Resist Him" painting), containers (the Dybbuk Box), mirrors (The Myrtles Plantation's Mirror) and clothing. A quick check for haunted objects on eBay shows dolls are really popular these days.

Being a paranormal investigator, it seems natural that Neil Packer would want a haunted building for his center. A trip around town with fellow investigators brought them to a building on Regent Street in Hinckley that had a medium feeling spirits.

The Haunted Antiques Paranormal Research Centre is a hands-on experience. Packer allows visitors to get involved with the objects – touching, sitting on, lying in, riding, etc. – and then encourages them to record their experiences in a log. There’s also a room to discuss the day’s paranormal experiences with other visitors. The centre’s Facebook page has a nice selection of photographs of the objects. He’s looking for more objects and plans to hold overnight events.

Neil Packer calls his centre "a brand new concept in the already huge paranormal field" and he’s right on both counts – it’s a new concept and the field is huge. The best part is the hands-on experience. With all of the haunted houses and haunted items in the U.S., perhaps he should consider franchising the concept and call it the International House of Paranormal.