The Royal Oak Case presented me with many things to think about and constantly challenged me to learn more about the paranormal, driving me deep into spirituality to gain an understanding of something that was quite simply an undiscovered country for me. I guess it was this that began to open me up to the concept of becoming more aligned with an explorer within the paranormal. However, there were certainly some experiences that I encountered whilst at the Royal Oak that pretty much pushed me beyond the usual ‘boggle factor’ and left me having to trust things that to be honest were not things I was used to in any form.

When I first arrived at the Royal Oak my focus was mostly on debunking elements of the paranormal, as most always seemed to have simple or reasonable explanations that could be found. Granted that from time to time in our previous investigations we would encounter the odd strange occurrence that had no explanation; but the Royal Oak placed me in a position where explanation was escaping me more and more.

On the 21st of June 2014, I headed to Swanage and the Royal Oak to try an investigation of a different kind, one using a strange box covered in odd symbolism. The box itself had come into existence through a combination of strange events; and if I was totally honest, I was not even sure why I was going along with it. This was beyond my usual approaches to paranormal investigation and to be quite frank felt somewhat bonkers. Actually I was questioning how I got to this point at all and at times thought I must be loosing the plot completely.

The wider story of the box itself can be found in my book, The Royal Oak Investigations, but simply put this physical thing came into existence following a couple of instances which I find hard to describe; maybe they were waking dreams, maybe imagination, maybe hallucination, its simply not clear to me. However, the original pattern first became a strange table design to use during the time we sat with the local spiritual circle, but later evolved into a physical box with specific dimension and understanding, that my father would build for me.

Since writing the book on the Royal Oak and being invited to discuss it on various podcasts, I have attempted to think through certain questions I may be asked; but still I struggle with providing a definitive explanation for what it may be or even why I thought it should be built. I know that some will see it as a product of my imagination, attempting to add substance to something I could not explain. Others may believe it hold a more important spiritual position, perhaps as some kind of communication device or focal point. If it helps, I personally struggle with the whole concept of the box, and there is a part of me that really wishes that I never saw the image in my head on the way home from the Royal Oak one night. I completely accept that a tired brain may do strange things, but I have never experienced the need to chase up something like this and beyond that, make it a real physical object.

Oddly though the story of the box does not end with the Royal Oak or me, as following its visits to the pub it moved on. No, it did not magically disappear, as I have a fair idea of where it may be and if you’re a UK ghost hunter you may have even seen it without really realising. After the Royal Oak I passed it on to some friends of mine that were more into the spiritual side of the paranormal so they could work with it for a little while. Once they had finished, rather than bringing it back to me, I agreed to allow the box to move on to a Haunted Museum where it may encounter others interested in the paranormal. To my surprise, as I truly thought it may end up sat in the corner gathering dust, others have continued to work with the box. However, to date I have yet to pursue the results of this work or gain an understanding of it in any form. In all fairness all may have discovered there is nothing associated to the box, but the fact that some more spiritual individuals still feel they should work with it provides me with hope that there may be something more to it than my slightly tired brain or imagination. I guess that part of this story is yet to be told.

During my visits to the Royal Oak we attempted various methods to attempt to gain some kind of activity or understanding. Whether they were truly scientific or not is really neither here or there, as we were really just exploring. However, one of my firm favourites was the Singapore Theory Victorian Seance, mainly because we got to dress up in Victorian clothing and attempt a seance with hopes of connecting with some local spirits. Chapter nine of my book covers this whole session and it was a really interesting session. There was certainly an odd feeling in the air that night and beyond the potential for paranormal activity alone, it was great fun. Granted it may not be consider true science, but perhaps sometimes we just need to try something different.

Investigating the paranormal in these kinds of scenarios, like what we encountered at the Royal Oak is not always about finding concrete proof. Especially as it often does an excellent job of eluding us as we seek it out; but documenting the details of what occurs during those times enables us to begin to look into the mystery before us. Sometimes we simply must record what happens, stress-test our own interpretations and often accept the ambiguity where it remains.

The Royal Oak Investigations book officially launches tomorrow on the 26th May 2026; and I am really excited to share this story with you all. That which is contained between its covers connects to my own experiences at the Royal Oak, in most. How my own story of the paranormal intersected with this truly interesting location, which provided me with new perspectives of the paranormal to look into and helped me to expand my knowledge of psychical research through organisations like the Society for Psychical Research.

I spent many years at the Royal Oak investigating the paranormal, learning quite a bit about the spiritual side of the paranormal from those at the pub, whilst learning much more about psychical research in general from the SPR. Hopefully I have managed to capture some of this journey in my book; The Royal Oak Investigations, and you can enjoy reading about it.

Links to order the book can be found under the My Books section of this website; please feel free to check it out and if it is interesting to you then order yourself a copy. And if you do, please feel free to provide a review.