Claims of unexplained phenomena at Kilkenny property

Rumours and claims of Shankill Castle being haunted come as no surprise to people living around Paulstown who have grown up with numerous legends surrounding the imposing 17th century residence and the goings on there.

When volunteers from Kilkenny Investigative Paranormal Society visited the family home back in 2011, they were at the centre of a number of unexplainable experiences.

Jay O’Donoghue has a lot of experience in dealing with the unexplained and even he was unprepared for the sudden drop in temperature in one room while they were investigating.

“We heard a faint cry and later we found on the Electronic Voice Phenomenon recorder that it was the voice of a little girl crying ooooh,” he said.

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When they sent to the servants quarter things got scarier. “A man’s voice told us to back off,” he said.

However, the most spectacular event took place when they were outside having a cigarette during a break in the night long escapade.

“We saw a tree light up with no source of power near it,” he said.

This is near to the famous “haunted gates” of Shankill Castle which never opened, apparently, since they were cursed by an unidentified priest during Penal times.

It is said that the cleric swore that the gates would never close and that grass would grow up along the avenue and that’s exactly what happened.

It was only when they were going home in the early morning that Jay found out from two other volunteers with KIPS that they had heard a name called out in another part of the Castle that might have been Tina or Georgina.

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Whether you're a believer in the supernatural or not, the intrigue and mystery of properties such as that at Shankill will continue to attract attention long into the future.