Deborah Hyde

I think Chib very, very clearly had his own needs.

The desire to try and establish life after death was quite strong.

In addition, we get the idea that Chib wanted to be a celebrity.

This was his life's work.

Oh, I absolutely do, yes.

I suspect that the reason this case really had momentum was because Chib wouldn't go away.

I think that Donald is a story with many authors and he's been created communally, both consciously and unconsciously, according to a script that's readily available to everybody in that culture.

The thing about the early to mid part of the 20th century is that it was absolutely awash with this stuff, not least because of the work of Harry Price.

And Harry Price was a paranormal investigator and writer.

If he was alive today, he would undoubtedly be presenting Most Haunted or something like that.

He produced a book called Poltergeist Over England.

It became very famous at the time.

It was just part of the zeitgeist.