Ghost picture mystery resolved?
A 15-year-old mystery surrounding a photograph which supposedly showed
the ghost of a schoolgirl standing in an inferno has been resolved, after a
researcher found the image is copied from a postcard.
1 of 3 Photos
The infamous photo of the 'Wem Ghost', pictured during the fire at Wem Town
Hall in
November 1995 Photo: SWNS
Amateur photographer Tony O'Rahilly took the snap while photographing a
blaze which destroyed Wem Town Hall in Shropshire on November 19, 1995.
After developing his film, Mr O'Rahilly claimed he had captured an image of a
young girl wearing old fashioned clothes standing amid the flames staring into
the camera lens.
Mr O'Rahilly, who died in 2005, always denied doctoring the photograph -
nicknamed the 'Wem Ghost' - and the image made headlines around the world.
Locals even claimed it was an apparition of 14-year-old Jane Churm who
accidentally set fire to the town hall in 1677.
But eagle-eyed Brian Lear, 77, has finally put an end to the mystery after he
noticed a striking similarity between the spooky shot and a girl in a postcard
which appeared in his local paper.
The postcard, printed in the Shropshire Star's Pictures from the Past section,
shows a street view of Wem in 1922.
A young girl standing in a shop doorway on the left handside of the picture
bares an uncanny resemblance to the Wem Ghost.
Mr Lear, a retired engineer and taxi driver, from Shrewsbury, Shropshire, said:
''It is interesting to compare the two pictures.
''I was intrigued to find that she bore a striking likeness to the little girl
featured as the Wem ghost.
''Her dress and headgear appear to be identical.''
The 'Wem Ghost' led to a plaque being placed on the newly built town hall and
Wem was briefly renamed 'Ghost Town' attracting hundreds of tourists every
year.
A 15-year-old mystery surrounding a photograph which supposedly showed
the ghost of a schoolgirl standing in an inferno has been resolved, after a
researcher found the image is copied from a postcard.
1 of 3 Photos
The infamous photo of the 'Wem Ghost', pictured during the fire at Wem Town
Hall in
November 1995 Photo: SWNS
Amateur photographer Tony O'Rahilly took the snap while photographing a
blaze which destroyed Wem Town Hall in Shropshire on November 19, 1995.
After developing his film, Mr O'Rahilly claimed he had captured an image of a
young girl wearing old fashioned clothes standing amid the flames staring into
the camera lens.
Mr O'Rahilly, who died in 2005, always denied doctoring the photograph -
nicknamed the 'Wem Ghost' - and the image made headlines around the world.
Locals even claimed it was an apparition of 14-year-old Jane Churm who
accidentally set fire to the town hall in 1677.
But eagle-eyed Brian Lear, 77, has finally put an end to the mystery after he
noticed a striking similarity between the spooky shot and a girl in a postcard
which appeared in his local paper.
The postcard, printed in the Shropshire Star's Pictures from the Past section,
shows a street view of Wem in 1922.
A young girl standing in a shop doorway on the left handside of the picture
bares an uncanny resemblance to the Wem Ghost.
Mr Lear, a retired engineer and taxi driver, from Shrewsbury, Shropshire, said:
''It is interesting to compare the two pictures.
''I was intrigued to find that she bore a striking likeness to the little girl
featured as the Wem ghost.
''Her dress and headgear appear to be identical.''
The 'Wem Ghost' led to a plaque being placed on the newly built town hall and
Wem was briefly renamed 'Ghost Town' attracting hundreds of tourists every
year.
Ghost picture mystery resolved?
