The first ever ‘Scarey South West’ annual conference took place on Saturday, March 11, at The Castle in Bude. 

S.C.A.R.E.Y (which stands for: S - Super natural beings to spooky places; C - Cryptozoology; A - Ancient civilizations to abandoned places; R - Rituals to ruins; E - Extraterrestrials; Y - Yin and Yang) South West provides professional, educational, and inspiring talks and lectures to Devon and Cornwall on the paranormal and the ancient. All profits made by Scarey South West through their talks and events are donated to Dog Welfare and Rescue.

The annual conference was a day full of scary happenings with guests speakers talking about their paranormal expertise. 

The guests speakers at the conference were; Kirsten Honey, paranormal manager of Bodmin Jail. 

Kirsten explained: “I had a wonderful time with every person attending including other guest speakers. Thank you to all the staff who worked really hard to put all this together at such a beautiful location – you were phenomenal hosts. I shall definitely be returning.’’

Neil Packer, founder of The Haunted Antique Paranormal Research Centre in Hinckley and organiser of the big nationwide event, Parameet, commented: ‘‘Thank you for the invite it was an awesome day. Well done for organising it’’

Jane Rowley helped Neil during his talk and also works with him at the HAPRC as well as being a really fabulous medium. 

 Barri Ghai, keynote guest speaker, co-presenter of Help! My House is Haunted and Celebrity Help! My House is Haunted as well as loads of other paranormal TV shows, Professional Paranormal Investigator for over 20 years and Founder of the Ghostfinder Paranormal Society. 

Barri said: “The first annual Scarey South West conference was a brilliant success. It brought together so many like minded people and also attracted local individuals with an interest in the paranormal field who would never have had the opportunity to meet others with similar interests. The conference was everything I expected. From start to finish it was friendly, fun and professionally organised. Tracey and Mark were also brilliant hosts and made everyone feel welcome. The venue added the perfect setting to host this event attracting people locally and from all across the South West of England. I really enjoyed spending the weekend in Bude and engaging with so many interesting people. Sharing my passion for the paranormal in person and not on screen was also a great thrill and opportunity for me.”

And lastly, Dave Hodrien, is chairman and lead investigator for Birmingham UFO Group (BUFOG), one of the most active modern UK-based UFO organizations and United Kingdom Deputy Representative for the International Coalition for Extraterrestrial Research (ICER). 

Tracey Berridge, founder of SSW commented: ‘‘Wow – what an amazing day everyone had at the first ever Scarey South West Conference at The Castle, Bude. A really special thank you to all the outstanding guest speakers – Barri, Dave, Kirsten and Neil - you were all awesomely fabulous. A huge thank you to all the attendees who came from far and wide to support the Conference and make the day exceptional – what a great interactive audience you all were. 

‘‘A special mention to Katie and all The Castle staff who put on a great spread for lunch and provided first class vegetarian food and refreshments throughout the day. We really hope that all those who came had an enjoyable thought provoking day, and we sincerely hope to see you all again next year on Saturday, March 16 2024.’’