In 1984, Ken Webster from Dodleston, England began noticing strange paranormal activity around his home, as well as mysterious messages on his computer. Eventually, Webster started writing back to his supernatural pen pal and learned, not only was he communicating with someone from 1546, but from the year 2019 as well.
Ken Webster's book on his experience titled “The Vertical Plane”. Courtesy of Ken Webster, Iris Publishing and Amazon.com
A BBC Microcomputer similar to the one that received the Dodleston Messages. Courtesy of The National Museum of Computing
Reconstruction of what the messages may have appeared like. Courtesy of A Box Of Chocolates blog and wordpress
Episode Source Material
BOOKS
FILM/TV
- Nostalgia Nerd: This Mysterious Computer Could Prove Time Travel Exists. (Documentary).
- Out of This World: 20th August 1996. (TV Documentary).
- Out of This World: 27th August 1996. (TV Documentary).
WEB/SOCIAL MEDIA/MESSAGE BOARDS
- Historic Mysteries: The Dodleston Messages: A Warning from the Past? (online article).
- Bethlem Museum of the Mind: The Ghost in the Machine? (blog entry).
- Couple claim Cheshire ‘ghost’ accused them of stealing his house in message typed on computer. (online article).
- Timeline of Computer History. (online article).
- How Stuff Works: The Dodleston Messages: Hoax or Ghost From 1546? (online article).
- Mercurius Politicus: Ghost in the Machine? (blog entry).
- FragHero: Did A Computer Really Communicate With A 16th Century Farmer? | ‘The Dodleston Messages’ Explained. (online article).
- Live Science: Internet history timeline: ARPANET to the World Wide Web. (online article).
- Historic Royal Palaces: Katherine Parr: Scholar, Stepmother, Survivor. (online article).
- All That’s Interesting: The Controversial History Of Ley Lines, From The Theory’s Origin To Its New Age Connection To UFOs. (online article).
- Jesus College Oxford Homepage. (online article).
- Brasenose College Archives and History. (online article).
- Society for Psychical Research. (online article).
- Space.com. Tachyons: Facts about these faster-than-light particles. (online article).
- North Wales Live: ‘Ghost’ typing on 1980s computer accuses couple of stealing his house. (online article).
- The Joy of Mere Words: The Vertical Plane, by Ken Webster. (blog entry).