British Werewolves - The Saga Continues...

The British Chase Post newspaper continues to report on the controversy surrounding the alleged werewolf encounters in the vicinity of England's Cannock Chase woods, as the following article from last week's edition demonstrates:

Internationally-renowned X-File investigator and author Nick Redfern has shed new light on the mystery wolf-like creature said to be roaming the ancient woodlands of Cannock Chase. Speaking exclusively to The Post from his Dallas home, Walsall-born Nick said he has been busily amassing credible evidence on paranormal experiences across the Chase.

And while his research has found that it is 'highly unlikely' to be a werewolf or 'caveman' lurking in the undergrowth, he believes the cause of people's sightings is of paranormal origin: "I have investigated reports of wild boar, wallabies, big cats and even Bigfoot-like beasts in the area. But the werewolves are definitely the strangest. Back in the eighties, reports surfaced of something that became known as the Ghost Dog of Brereton which was a strange, large dog-like animal. And last summer there were local stories of a wild wolf seen near the M6. So I'm convinced people are seeing something."

Nick also takes seriously the idea that a real-life wolf may be at large on the Chase."We know that people who have had big cats as exotic pets have released them into the wild when they got too big to handle. Perhaps something similar has happened here with a wolf."

But what of the idea that actual werewolves are on the loose on Cannock Chase? Nick said: "Britain has a long history of werewolf encounters, from the Flixton Werewolf of the 10th Century, to the story of the Hexham Heads of the 1970s. Personally, I think that if people are seeing some sort of werewolf-like creature, then it's likely to be paranormal in origin rather than physical."

Nick also notes that the German War Cemetery, where the sightings have occurred, has also been the site of many supernatural encounters with ghosts, UFOs, big cats and other strange things: "I think it is highly unlikely that an evolved, physical creature - a werewolf or caveman - could hide out in caverns beneath the Chase and remain undetected. But people are definitely seeing something out of the ordinary, and it is a fascinating story."

Nick also told The Post that his brand new book - 'The Lords of the Grey Woods: Strange Creatures of the Cannock Chase', which is scheduled to be published towards the end of the year, has a whole section on wolf and werewolf-style creatures seen on the Chase.

"I'll be investigating these new cases as they parallel some of the reports in the book already." *What's your view? Discuss this story - and lots more - by logging on to: www.iccannock.co.uk/messageboard