SUFOG Newsletter No 073

Magazine Overview

This document is the Southampton UFO Group Newsletter, issue number 73, dated November 1996. The newsletter is edited by Steve Gerrard and provides updates on UFO-related news, reports, and media coverage.

Editorial

The editor, Steve Gerrard, begins by apologizing for the late dispatch of the previous month's newsletter due to a back injury. He expresses hope that the December edition will be available early in the new year and extends Christmas and New Year wishes to the group members and subscribers. Gerrard muses on what 1997 might hold for ufology and advocates for greater cooperation and pooling of resources within the community, though he expresses doubt that this will happen. He notes that several reports have been received and discussed at the latest group meeting, including a sighting of a Flying Triangle near Eastleigh, Southampton. Gerrard also mentions his intention to contact Omar Fowler in Derbyshire for more information. He encourages group members to submit articles and letters for publication.

The editor highlights the return of UFO researcher Malcolm Robinson, who is actively researching UFO reports in Scotland and working on a book. Gerrard welcomes him back and hopes he will remain an active member of the sky-watching community. The newsletter also notes a significant increase in UFO-related television programs, both on cable and regional channels. Gerrard mentions having trouble keeping up with these programs and specifically points out an ITV children's program about alien abductions featuring abductee Ros Reynolds, and a BBC2 education program about a Martian rock found in Antarctica, which featured abductee Elsie Oakensen. He asks readers if they managed to record these items.

Regional Articles (June 1995)

A section titled 'WHAT THE PRESS HAD TO SAY IN JUNE 1995' lists various regional newspaper articles related to UFO sightings and related topics:

• Doncaster Courier (9.6.95): 'Boffins baffled by 'Fire Ball in Sky Sightings.'
• Crewe Evening Chronicle (14.6.95): (No Title)
• Northumberland Herald & Post (14.6.95): 'Strange... But True!'
• Thurrock Recorder (14.6.95): 'Lights in the Sky! But They Weren't Blue.'
• Rossendale Free Press (16.6.95): 'Tantrum did not Help UFO Cause.'
• Carrock Chase Chronicle (Staffs) (16.6.95): 'Chase is a UFO Hotspot - Couple.'

More Regional Articles (June 1995)

This section continues listing newspaper articles:

• Gloucester Citizen (22.6.95): 'Aliens Molested Me' Claims Businessman.
• Cornishman (Penzance) (22.6.95): UFO Spotting Groups.
• Ipswich Evening Star (22.6.95): 'Do Drop in.'
• Western Daily Press (Bristol) (23.6.95): 'Close Encounters of the Wrong Kind.'
• Carrock Chase Chronicle (Staffs) (23.6.95): 'A Fruitful Response to Sightings.'
• Gloucester Echo (Cheltenham) (26.6.95): 'Psychics Probe Close Encounters of Sexual Kind.'
• Wolverhampton Express & Star (27.6.95): 'Signal Failure for Alien Research.'
• Burton Mail (Staffs) (30.6.95): 'What's Special About Us ?'
• Gloucester Citizen (30.6.95): 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind!'
• Colchester Yellow Advertiser (30.6.95): UFO Alert.
• Diss Express (30.6.95): UFO Group Meeting.

National Articles (June 1995)

• The Independent (3.6.95): 'UFO Prof Could Find Himself Alienated.'
• Daily Express (22.6.95): No Title.

Newspaper Unknown (June 1995)

• 1.6.95: No Title.
• 2.6.95: The Star: UFO Over Commons.
• 3.6.95: Evening News: No Title.
• 9.6.95: Evening Post: No Title.
• 24.6.95: Mystery Lights in the Sky.

Magazine Articles (June 1995)

• 6.95: Cable Guide: 'X Marks the High Spot of David's (David Duchovny) Career.'
• 6.95: Focus: No Title.
• 6.95: Options: The Sex Files.
• 21.6.95: Eva: No Title.

Local Articles (June 1995)

• 30.6.95: Andover Advertiser: Editor's Asian Tv Role.

Crop Circle Articles (June 1995)

• 10.6.95: Southampton Evening Echo: 'Going Round in Circles (Letter).'
• 24.6.95: Southampton Evening Echo: 'Ever Increasing Crop Circles (Letter).'

Press/TV/Radio Matters Over the Past Month

Press

• 10.96 (The Independent): An article concerning the government planning to hold prisoners at the former USAF base at Woodbridge in Suffolk, noting that the base was central to a 1980 UFO incident involving a metallic, triangular craft seen over Rendlesham Forest.
• 10.96 (The Independent Magazine): An article discussing American art galleries exhibiting alien art created by individuals who claim to have been abducted and subjected to alien experiments. It explores the artistic elements of ufology.
• 6.10.96 (Sunday Mirror): 'Real Life X Files' article covering items like Witches, Vampires, Monsters, and UFOs. It includes a photograph of Jenny Randles and Peter Hough and discusses the Rendlesham Forest Incident (1980), the Ukley Moor Abduction (1987), and the Stockbridge Bypass Mystery (1987).
• 26.10.96 (Daily Mail): 'Mecca of Mystery Honoured' article about Warminster, Wiltshire, being declared the UFO capital of Britain. The town is a popular site for vigils on mysterious lights, near prehistoric stone circles like Stonehenge and Avebury, and has seen crop circle activity. The award is inspired by Twentieth Century Fox, coinciding with the release of the film 'Independence Day'. Ron Morrison Smith of the West Country Tourist Board highlights the area's mystic links. The article also briefly mentions an unexplained explosion over the Hebridean Island of Lewis.
• 29.10.96 (Southampton Evening Echo): 'The Favourite Spot for Planet-hopping Aliens' reporting on strange unexplained objects and blinding lights seen above Salisbury.

TV

• 21.10.96 (Sightings - Sky One): 'Mexican UFO Update and American Built UFO's.'
• 21.10.96 (Sightings - Sci-Fi Channel): 'Saucers Are Real. Mexican Update.'
• 25.10.96: 'Strange But True Encounters - Abductions.'
• 28.10.96 (Sightings - Sky One): 'Nellis AFB Footage 1994. The Roswell Autopsy.'
• 28.10.96 (Sightings - Sci-Fi Channel): 'Mantell Re-examined. Life on Mars.'
• 30.10.96 (It's a Mystery - Children's TV): 'Do UFO's Really Exist?' This program, aimed at 7-12 year olds, featured a BUFORA investigator and dubious photographs. It lasted about 10 minutes.
• 31.10.96 (Sightings - Sky One): 'Area 51 Poisoning. The Shag Harbour Incident.'
• 3.11.96 (Discovery Channel - 4 Hr UFO Special): 'UFO: Reason To Believe. UFO: Great Balls of Fire. UFO: Retrieval. UFO: Dreamland.' This extensive program covered ufology history, ball lightning, green fireballs, recovered flying saucers, Roswell, Dreamland, and Area 51. The editor notes that Alan Godfrey's alleged abduction was featured in three of the programs.
• 3.11.96 (Equinox - Earthlights): This program attempted to explain UFO sightings, such as Kenneth Arnold's, by attributing them to minor earthquakes and ball lightning. The editor expresses skepticism about this explanation for Arnold's sightings.
• 5.11.96 (Discovery Channel): 'Are We Alone - Life on Mars.'
• 7.11.96 (Sightings - Sky One): 'UFO Sighting in Shikmona, Israel. Area 51 Update - Buying More Land.'
• 11.11.96 (Sightings - Sci-Fi Channel): 'Silent Vulcans. Conversation with Nick Pope. UFO Artwork in Manhatten (USA). Roswell Metal Fragment.'
• 11.11.96 (Horizon): 'Aliens from Mars - Follow-up on the recovery of the piece of rock from Mars that allegedly contains life from Mars.' (50 Mins).
• 13.11.96 (The UFO Incident): 'Betty and Barney Hill Abduction.... (Repeated Yet Again !!!)'
• 14.11.96 (Sightings - Sky One): 'The Mars Complex (Avebury/Mars Structures (David Perry)). John Mack fighting to survive. Arch Cape (Oregon) - Sand circles. 1976 Iranian UFO Update.'

UFO Hotline

Charges are 36p Standard Rate and 48p Peak Rate. The BUFORA WEEKLY NEWS UPDATE hotline is 0891 121 886.

Newsletter Subscription Details

The newsletter consists of at least 5 double-sided A4 pages and press items. The cost is £5 per year, including postage.

Magazine Reviews - Mr Ernie Sears

Ernie Sears reviews several magazines:

• SIGHTINGS: Described as an ultra-glossy magazine with photos and articles on known and lesser-known UFO incidents. It includes articles on Chris Grimes' abduction, crop circles, conspiracy theories, and the Roswell autopsy. It also mentions an 'Encounter experience' event in Bristol featuring Colin Andrews, Nick Pope, and others. Published by Rapide Publishing, it costs £2.95 per issue or £25 for 12 issues.
• THE UNOPENED FILES: A special edition glossy from UFO Magazine, claiming access to well-kept secrets. It covers topics like the moon landing, 'Forces of Darkness', RPVs, radar returns, the Todmorden 'Adamski' incident, Alan Godfrey's UFO encounters, and 'Near Misses'. It costs £2.95 and the next issue is due March 27th, 1997.
• SKYSEARCH: A Sussex-based research organization's summer issue. It features articles on 'Black Triangles', 'The Alien Reality', and communication with a 'captive' Alien. It also covers ley lines, crop circles, and UFO merchandise. It costs £2.30 inc. postage from Skysearch.
• UFO MAGAZINE: Celebrates the 50th anniversary of Roswell with a poster. It includes claims by Michael Wolf about his work at Area 51, an 'amateur astronomer's' disbelief in UFOs (challenged by the editor), the Kent 'near miss', Hungarian landing photos, the 1996 British UFO wave, and a Hampshire 'Triangle' video. It costs £1.95.
• XPOSE: Described as a glossy that started as a 'fanzine'. It covers Mulder and Scully, and other related films. It costs £2.50 and is published by Visual Imagination. The editor hopes it doesn't trivialize the subject.

Magazine Reviews (Continued)

• UFO REALITY: A glossy publication featuring articles on 'wedge shaped craft', 'turning vigilante', and 'Project Noah's Ark'. It includes impressive crop circle photos by Steve Alexander and an article by Colin Andrews. It also details 'Ray Palmer's Hollow Earth plots' and the Mexico wave. Bob Dean is quoted as sounding knowledgeable. It costs £2.50.
• ENIGMA: A magazine described as 'small but nicely formed'. It features an item on the 'Independence Day' film and the associated power cut in the US. It also covers UFO sightings at Overton, East Kennet, and UFOs over Norfolk, mentioning radar, a tanker, a civilian aircraft, and police video footage. It is published quarterly for £8.00.
• UFO MAGAZINE (Canadian): This issue covers the Mars 'life' news, Canadian crop circles, Area 51, and mentions a 'Penthouse' magazine's 'girlie' spread in relation to Roswell. It also discusses 'Chupacabras' and Carl Sagan's book 'The Demon Haunted World'. It costs $19.95.
• TRUTHSEEKERS REVIEW: Features an update on 'Newsdesk', Nick Redfern's 'discovered document' being withdrawn by the MOD, and mentions Bristol sightings, Gulf Breeze updates, and Nick Pope. It includes details of an 'implant' removal video and a report on Phil Schneider, an alleged 'underground base' engineer who claimed a 'fire fight' between aliens and military, and who was found murdered. It also includes excerpts from his lecture and an interview with Bob Dean.

Book Review - Ernie Sears

Ernie Sears reviews Derek Sheffield's new book, 'UFO. A DEADLY CONCEALMENT.' The book focuses on Belgian triangle sightings from 1989-1990 and the author's difficulties with authorities, including the Post Office. It mentions ex-MOD UFO spokesman Nick Pope's 'contradictory' replies and an interview with abductee Maria Ward. The author also claims to have witnessed a 'triangle' in August 1962 near his Kentish home. The book is priced at £9.99 and published by Blandford Press.

Forthcoming Events and Lectures

• 25.1.97: 1st Lancashire UFO Conference in Southport, featuring Jenny Randles, Matthew Williams, and Anthony James.
• 26.10.97: Contact International Conference in Kidlington.

Southampton's First Internet Cafe

A new internet cafe in Southampton offers internet access at £3.00 per half hour (with student discounts) and training courses. It is located at 75 Bedford Place, Southampton.

Sighting Report

A sighting was reported on October 28, 1996, at 7:30 pm on the M3 motorway heading from Winchester towards Southampton. The witness observed three vertical lights (Red-Green-Red) in the sky, which blinked in sequence and then 'banked and moved off at high speed towards Eastleigh'. The witness, who works for Hampshire Police, suggests that these lights could be mistaken for aircraft lights, as they have often seen similar lights over the motorway, and once mistook a plane for a 'Flying Triangle'.

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The newsletter consistently covers a wide range of UFO-related topics, including sightings, alleged abductions, crop circles, and media coverage (press, TV, radio, and magazines). There is a strong emphasis on reviewing and critiquing various publications and media reports within the ufology field. The editor, Steve Gerrard, appears to be open to new reports and encourages reader participation, while also expressing a desire for greater unity and scientific rigor within the ufology community. The reviews often include critical commentary on the content and the authors' perspectives, particularly when dealing with skeptical viewpoints or perceived trivialization of the subject matter. The newsletter also serves as a hub for information on upcoming events and resources within the UFO research community.

This issue of UFO Data Magazine, Volume 3, Issue 12, dated December 1996, with a cover price of £2.50 and ISSN 1355-640X, focuses on UFO sightings, crop circle formations, and paranormal phenomena. The cover headline highlights 'UFOs Crop Circle Formations and The Paranormal' with a subtitle 'The Secrets Run Out, As Time Runs Out'. The cover image depicts an alien head, the Barbury Castle crop formation, a Flying Black Triangle, and Stonehenge.

UFO Lecture at Salisbury College (14.11.96)

The author and Mr Ernie Sears were invited to give a presentation on the UFO phenomenon to students at Salisbury College. Despite initial apprehension from the organiser about low attendance, the event proceeded with a slide/video presentation. Mr Sears shared his personal experiences with UFOs over 40 years. Although only 10 people attended the auditorium, they were reportedly very interested, and the author attributed the low turnout to the college's remote location.

The 1996 Oxford Conference - Ernie Sears

Ernie Sears recounts his experience at the 1996 Oxford Conference, describing a lively event despite poor weather. The conference featured numerous stalls selling UFO-related materials, ample seating, a good sound system, and opportunities to interact with enthusiasts and prominent figures in the field. The introduction was given by Ray Hunt, a pilot with extensive experience, who discussed air accidents and 'near misses,' including the Manchester 1995 incident. Brian P. James, co-ordinator of Contact International and an experiencer of unexplained events, spoke about anomalous objects in photographs. Matthew Williams, producer of 'The Truth Seekers Review,' was highlighted for his investigative work on covert underground bases and his research into a 1965 MOD official letter concerning UFOs. Nick Pope, former head of the MOD UFO desk, discussed his standard themes from his book 'Open Skies, Closed Minds,' and his upcoming book on abduction scenarios was anticipated to be significant.

Roy Lake presented his experiences, including a sighting from forty years prior, and discussed his work with psychologists on regressing abduction experiences. Roy Dutton delivered a technical presentation on his theories involving the 'delivery' of spacecraft and their interaction with the atmosphere. The day concluded with a panel Q&A session, leaving attendees satisfied and looking forward to future events. The author noted the presence of many young seekers of truth and the growing importance of the subject.

SUFOPIA (PT 1)

This section introduces a new monthly column by the author to promote SUFOPIA, aiming to educate readers about UFOs in an interesting manner. The column will feature examples of reports from credible individuals, such as those in positions of power, who have witnessed UFOs. The author intends to include more such reports monthly, noting that there are too many to cover in a single article. A quote from a July 1947 FBI/Army Intelligence study report is included, stating that the 'flying saucer situation is not all imaginary' and that 'Something is really flying around.'

UFOs Crop Circle Formations and The Paranormal (Video Review)

This section reviews a video titled 'U.F.O.s Crop Circle Formations and The Paranormal,' which features Colin Andrews, Busty Taylor, and Reg Presley. The reviewer found the video's content to be unexciting, rehashing familiar tales. The participants discussed the 1992 UFO incident at Alton Barnes, Busty's discovery of a 'strange jelly substance' in a crop circle, and an encounter from 1976. Reg Presley commented on weather balloons from the Roswell era being made of condom material. The reviewer expressed skepticism about the authenticity of most crop formations, suggesting many are man-made, and criticized the video's participants for withholding evidence. The review also touches upon alleged UFO footage by Von Dorkheim and S Alexander, noting discrepancies in locations mentioned. The video concludes with the 'A' team discussing deep questions, with Colin Andrews being guarded about the Santilli footage. The reviewer concludes that the video is pointless and likely to appeal more to the American market or the credulous.

Readers Article - Mr Barrie Wright

Barrie Wright, a teenager, writes in response to an article in a UFO special magazine that questioned the Apollo moon landings. He expresses his indignation at the 'ludicrous explanations' for some photographs, arguing that people who claim the moon landing never happened lack research and understanding of lunar photography and the Lunar Module. He specifically addresses the claim about thruster shadows, explaining the presence of small thrusters on the Lunar Module. He also clarifies that the US flag was 'wired' for aesthetic purposes, not because of wind on the moon. Wright criticizes the proliferation of such articles, questioning how serious UFO investigators can solve mysteries like Roswell when such misinformation is published. He also mentions the 'Alien Autopsy' film and notes the resemblance of the alien to characters from Star Trek. He concludes by mentioning a made-for-cable film about Apollo 11 broadcast on 'The Family Channel'.

Southampton UFO Group Greeting

A festive greeting from the Southampton UFO Group wishes readers a 'Happy Christmas and a Happy New Year.'

Recurring Themes and Editorial Stance

The magazine consistently explores UFO sightings, investigations, and related phenomena, including crop circles and paranormal events. There is a clear editorial stance in favour of serious investigation into UFOs, as evidenced by the critical reviews of unsubstantiated claims and the promotion of credible sources and research. The magazine aims to educate and inform its readership, encouraging critical thinking while acknowledging the profound nature of the subject. The inclusion of reader contributions and reports from conferences suggests an effort to foster a community of enthusiasts and researchers.