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PRESS RELEASE 2003-01-09 For immediate release:
A motorist is driving through a remote rural area at night. He sees something
move by the side of the road. A badger? Too large it must be a deer. But as he
nears the object it becomes apparent it is like nothing he has ever see before.
Rearing up on two legs like a man the thing is 8 feet tall and covered in shaggy
hair. Its eyes burn red in the car's headlights as the startled driver floors
the pedal.
You could be forgiven for thinking this was a report of the
Sasquatch or Bigfoot in North America but it is not. It happened here, in
Britain - and similar encounters are being reported up and down the country
today. Such reports are normally few and far between, but over the last six
weeks there has been a proliferation of them unparalleled in British
history.
The creatures have been reported from a wood in Sussex, from
Lancashire, from Sherwood Forest, from Scotland, and most notably from the
vicinity of Bolam Lake in rural Northumberland. One of the first witnesses
described how he saw "a dark figure", which "looked about 8ft tall, heavy built,
its eyes, or what seemed to be its eyes, glowed in the darkness." There have
been several other reports, which seem to be startlingly similar.
These
accounts are so impressive that Britain's foremost team of professional monster
hunters are travelling to Northumberland next week in order to investigate the
phenomenon. The four-man team from the Centre for Fortean Zoology, based in
Exeter, hit headlines all around the world last year when they successfully went
in search of a monstrous creature that had been attacking swans at a Lancashire
Nature Reserve. On that occasion the culprit turned out to be a giant catfish
from Eastern Europe. What do they think it is going to be this
time?
"Whereas there is very little doubt that creatures such as the yeti
or the Orang Pendek of Sumatra are bona fide species of higher primate that have
so far escaped detection by scientists, other man beasts from Australia, North
America and Europe are far more problematical" says expedition leader Jonathan
Downes (43), director of the Centre for Fortean Zoology.
"There simply
isn't a suitable climate, habitat, or food source in Britain to support an
unknown great ape" says expedition Zoologist Richard Freeman (33), "but then
again I would love to be proved wrong". Richard, who studied Zoology at Leeds
University and is also a qualified zoo-keeper has worked with all the great apes
and will be playing recordings of known ape species and also sounds allegedly
made by the North American Sasquatch in an attempt to attract the beast of Bolam
Lake. During the week-long expedition the team will also be utilising hi-tech
equipment in an attempt to solve this fascinating mystery.
" We are all
very excited about this trip" says John Fuller, (40), the newest member of the
CFZ Team. " After all how often does one get the chance to confront a medieval
folk tale which seems to have come to life?"
NOTES FOR EDITORS:
· The giant ape is a legend found in many countries most
famously the Yeti of Asia but few realise that our tiny, overcrowded island is
home to such a tradition. In the dark ages such figures were referred to as
trolls (via Norse influence) or Woodwoses (from Anglo-Saxon). They are found in
folktales right across Europe. The Wildman was a familiar figure in the mumming
plays of medieval times, but could these stories have some substance behind
them?
· The idea of such creatures in the forests of sub-tropical Asia or
even the woods of Canada is not too far fetched. Indeed some of the Asian man
beasts have been backed up by hair, bone and scat samples. Many zoologists
believe the creatures to be descendents of a species of giant ape,
Gigantopithecus blackii, thought extinct since the last Ice Age. The fossils of
this giant have been uncovered since then in China and India but are unknown in
Europe. If such huge primates had ever lived in our country it would be likely
that they would have been hunted to extinction along with the bear and the
wolf.
· The CFZ team intend to follow up their investigations in a
Northumberland with expeditions to Sussex and to Sherwood Forest to investigate
other recent sightings of similar phenomena.
· The Centre for Fortean
Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the
last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico,
various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the
UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website,
www.cfz.org.uk. Full biographies of Expedition members together with their media
CVs can be found on the site.
· Pictures of the expedition members are
available.
· C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on
the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled The monster of the Mere,
recounts the 2002 expedition in the search of a giant fish in a Lancashire
lake.
· The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is
renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best
known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions
during the 1970s.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
Please feel free to contact Richard or Jonathan on 01392
424811 until Thursday 16th January. After that you can contact the expedition on
07901 935443
This is a preliminary press release. When the itinerary for
the expedition has been finalised another press release will be issued.
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