"Come on!!!! Haway!!!".....we shouted, willing the van up the hill from Shildon to Brusselton as it gasped and spluttered its way to the top, smelling like it was burning 50cm to a gallon of oil getting us to our gig in Richmond...which it did, ye of little faith and all that.

Mal stood laughing at us as we pulled up behind his car in 'The Dingle mobile' on the delivery driveway to the rear of the Black Lion Hotel in the scenic Richmond.

The venue was really nice, cosy and in keeping with the rustic facia of the surrounding buildings. The people were really nice too, well up for a good time, which made for a great night for all, trully cracking!

Now then, a very interesting and somewhat eerie incident occured during our time there. Our Drummer Paul was casually urinating in the hotels downstairs facilities when out the corner of his eye he saw what he described as a tall lady in her mid twenties with long black hair staring at him, not 6 inches from his face. He actually turned briefly to look and seeing that there WAS someone there, looked straight back again and she was............gone.

He looked genuinely shaken when he came out as I was walking down the long corridors to the gents. He told me everything he'd just seen which made me feel great as I stood alone in the very same toilets, the hairs on the back of my neck tingling with grim anticipation and the though of some hideous inexplicable entity of sorts appearing beside me. I'm shuddering now at the thought. To make matters worse, just as I was ready to leave, a bloke who looked like Harry Potters father burst through the door! I then had to be peeled off the ceiling.

We told the lad who booked us about it and he informed us that the building was haunted. He told us that other people had seen things too. Needless to say, Paul did not return to the gents alone for the rest of the night.

Later on, after the gear had been packed back into the van, Paul AND MAL, went to the toilet. I saw them head down the corridor and well, my evil streak took command and dragged me down after them. I waited outside the door and I could hear them babbling about e-mails or something and to be prepared incase I was outside the door (which of course I was) hahahahahaha. At that point I thought my evil ploy was sunk, how wrong I was. Paul opened the door, purposely distancing himself from the frame, when I jumped in and screamed.

Paul absolutely soiled himself, the only way I can describe his face is that it was identical to Arnold Schwazenegger's in TOTAL RECALL, when he fell onto the desert of Mars with his space helmet smashed. His eyes popping out on storks and is mouth wide open.

I couldn't speak or do anything for 20 minutes due to uncontrollable laughter, just seeing Pauls face in my head as I screamed through the door.

Driving home we talked about nothing but Pauls spooky sighting and other supernatural occurances that we'd heard about in our lives. Wonder how Paul was, driving home alone from Crook after taking Wayne home. I haven't heard from him yet........

Anyway, top night, better crowd, lovely venue...Brilliant. Looking forward to going back, possibly with Derek Akora lol.

Thanks again to the people in charge for booking us and to the people who came to watch.....AND...Many thanks to Malcolm for the loan of the van, much appreciated.....sorry for the piss taking hahaha was really funny watching Paul struggling to steer it and Wayne frantically screaming at Paul, almost wiping out parked vehicles near the Hotel, whilst Wayne and I were sqeegying the inside of the windscreen due to 'nee blowers'

Rock n trundle.

Gibbeaux