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We Called Her Annie, Wolverton

Reposted by Steph Lay

How Haunted? Podcast @howhauntedpod.bsky.social · 5d

🎃 October’s off to a spooky start on the podcast and two episodes are already out!

👻 @stephlay.bsky.social joins me to explore haunted Milton Keynes

🦕 Ep 117: Monster Month begins with "what is a cryptid?"

And another episode drops tomorrow when @icysedgwick.bsky.social and I discuss Ghostlore

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Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · 9d

New Milton Keynes case! A family haunted across years and houses… footsteps in the night, ghostly apparitions, voices whispering in the dark, scratches on a child’s face. And the name they gave their ghost? It was real. #UncannyCommunity cityofsecrets.blog/2025/10/02/w...

Some stories arrive as fragments – fleeting memories, half-remembered encounters that still manage to unsettle. Others arrive whole, rich with detail, stretching across years and leaving no d…

Ghosts In Milton Keynes: Paranormal Tales From The City Of Roundabouts | Spooky Isles

Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · 11d

It's here! Listen to me and Rob talking about the dark side of Milton Keynes and the ghost stories I'm finding here. I also read a very creepy story about a mysterious encounter at a local pub: was it a warning, a curse or something even darker? I'd love to know what you think! #UncannyCommunity

How Haunted? Podcast @howhauntedpod.bsky.social · 11d

👻NEW EPISODE👻

October is here!! In the first of EIGHT, very special episodes coming this month, I'm joined by @stephlay.bsky.social to discuss the ghosts of a city usually overlooked as being a hotbed of ghosts and ghouls....Milton Keynes

Hear all about her unique, spooky, project 👻

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Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · 11d

Happy Halloween-on-the-horizon! What a massive privilege and delight to be kicking off spooky season with Rob tomorrow - I might stay up till midnight just to see it drop ;) #UncannyCommunity

How Haunted? Podcast @howhauntedpod.bsky.social · 11d

The biggest, scariest month ever of How Haunted? starts tomorrow.

Eight massive episodes, and the first one is coming tomorrow as I'm joined in conversation by @stephlay.bsky.social to discuss her spooky Milton Keynes project 👻

How Haunted? Podcast @howhauntedpod.bsky.social · 24d

Coming across October on How Haunted? 🎃 (sound on 🎶)

Spread the word. The biggest, scariest, month of the podcast ever is heading your way 👻

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Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · 16d

Nothing at all to do with the fact she’s got a book out for sale - nooo, not at all :)

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Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · 24d

So exciting!! My chat with Rob will be coming out very soon - and just look at everything else he’s got planned for October! #UncannyCommunity

How Haunted? Podcast @howhauntedpod.bsky.social · 24d

Coming across October on How Haunted? 🎃 (sound on 🎶)

Spread the word. The biggest, scariest, month of the podcast ever is heading your way 👻

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Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Sep 5

:D Very exciting to see this go live - thank you to David for featuring my project @spookyisles.bsky.social !

The stories are certainly coming in now - ghost by ghost, the grid is filling up... www.spookyisles.com/ghosts-in-mi... #UncannyCommunity

Even the most unremarkable places can harbour the uncanny, as ghost stories from Milton Keynes begin to emerge from the shadows, writes guest writer DR STEPH LAY

www.spookyisles.com

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Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Sep 1

White rabbits, white rabbits - the first of the month, and that's particularly exciting because it means my article in @hauntedmagazine.bsky.social is going out to the world! It was such an honour to write this, can't wait for people to read it. #UncannyCommunity
cityofsecrets.blog/2025/09/01/c...

City of Secrets featured in Haunted Magazine!

Around this time last year, long before this project even existed, I decided I wanted to start writing more non-fiction pieces as well as stories. I sat down and made a list of topics I could cover…

A Presence in the Pictures, Bolbeck Park

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Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Aug 24

New blog post from the City of Secrets! My witness Karen finds comfort in messages from beyond - and I wonder why I never had any of my own. cityofsecrets.blog/2025/08/23/a... #UncannyCommunity

It sometimes seems amazing to me that I only started this project in April – it’s hard to believe that it’s only been five months, so much has happened in that short time. I&#8217…

Going Back To The Ghosts, Milton Keynes

Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Aug 20

Here’s a sneak preview of my article about this surprisingly haunted city! Haunted is out on the 1st of September, in the UK shops a day later and should be with our US and Australian distributors by the end of that week. Order now at hauntedmag.com wherever you are. #UncannyCommunity

A screenshot of an article in Haunted Magazine all about Milton Keynes. The link to order is hauntedmag.com

The cover of the 47th issue of Haunted magazine. The link to order is hauntedmag.com

A stack of copies of Haunted magazine. The link to order is hauntedmag.com

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Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Aug 10

I'm sharing a different kind of story tonight - my first interview for the project! It was a pleasure to talk to renowned poet and filmmaker Wade Radford about his teenage ghost hunting days, what MK means to him, and why EVPs are so very scary... cityofsecrets.blog/2025/08/10/g... #UncannyCommunity

One of the things I love most about this project has been how it’s led to me meeting so many fascinating, generous and generally awesome people! Honestly, I’ve crossed paths with some a…

Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Jul 29

New story time! 'Bless The Light' is included in this new anthology from @commapress.bsky.social and is all about rituals, protection and pride - and the things that wait for the darkness to fold in. Thanks again to @mattjwesolowski.bsky.social for a fab course! www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B...

A cover image for a story called "Bless The Light" by Steph Lay. The picture shows a snowy village in a valley, all the houses blazing with candlelight, except for a dark cottage in the foreground, only one window lit.

Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Jul 28

That was a great talk, thank you! Sorry my question on EVPs popped up *just* after you'd answered a similar one ;) I've pre-ordered!

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Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Jul 24

Milton Keynes people! I've collected true spooky stories from across 25% of the city - but there's still a lot more to find! If you've got a story to share, I want to hear it... cityofsecrets.blog/tell-your-st...

Everyone else - v grateful for shares to get the word out! #UncannyCommunity

A dramatic nighttime photograph of The Rose memorial in Milton Keynes, with the city skyline in the background. Four lines of text read:
Milton Keynes
City of Secrets
I've found dark stories for a quarter of the grid
Help me find the rest!

Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Jul 19

:D

Cabaret of Ideas | IF: Milton Keynes International Festival

Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Jul 9

Very exciting news: I'm going to be one of the 'experts' at this excellent @ifmkfest.bsky.social event! So, if you'd like a slightly more than one-in-four chance of chatting to me about MK's poltergeists, spooks and haunted shops, come along! ifmiltonkeynes.org/event/cabare... #UncannyCommunity

ifmiltonkeynes.org

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Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Jul 9

I didn't realise these photos I took the other week would become historic artefacts quite so soon... I'm glad that the site will be used for something now, but it is always sad to see an old landmark vanish. www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

View of The Point in Milton Keynes as seen from the shopping centre car park. It's abandoned, derelict and sprayed with graffiti.

View of The Point in Milton Keynes as seen from the shopping centre car park against the city skyline - Hotel la Tour and the XScape visible in the distance. It's abandoned, derelict and sprayed with graffiti.

View of The Point in Milton Keynes as seen from the empty shopping centre car park opposite.

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Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Jul 8

I'm delighted to be reviewing these tiny slices of life - it's such an excellent format for capturing the most intense sort of flash story, and it's always a pleasure working with the @fiveminutelit.bsky.social team - if you've got a moment you'd like to share, get your submission in now :)

Five Minutes @fiveminutelit.bsky.social · Jul 7

July Reader @stephlay.bsky.social is an English writer, psychology researcher, and aspiring parapsychologist. Previously published at Five Minutes and MKLitFest, she shares her eerie stories at cityofsecrets.blog. Get micros in to Steph and the rest of the July team: fiveminutelit.com/submissions

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Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Jul 5

Ever wonder what's going on in your house when you're not there? My latest haunted Milton Keynes story might have you thinking about that more than usual - read Fiona's story here: cityofsecrets.blog/2025/07/05/w... #UncannyCommunity

When You’re Not There, Pennyland

Tonight’s story takes us across the city to the charmingly named Pennyland estate. There’s a lovely tradition in MK where the street names on each estate are themed, and my witness told me al…

Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Jun 20

That was excellent! "It's the quest for magic, the search for something more out there" - yeah, that! The ghost in the shower - that eerie gentleness - reminded me a lot this story I was told... cityofsecrets.blog/2025/06/07/a...

#UncannyCommunity #UncannyListenAlong

Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Jun 20

Well, I don't care if I'm the only one doing it, I'm going to have my own little #UncannyListenalong at 9pm :P (The fact I've just got in from the pub has nothing at all to do with it!) (I probably won't live post it all though!) #UncannyCommunity @dannyrobins.bsky.social

Into The Fog with Peter Laws

Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Jun 18

:D I've just voted for Into The Fog with Peter Laws - podfollow.com/1758531943 in the British Podcast Awards Listeners' Choice Award. I'd love it if you did too: www.britishpodcastawards.com/voting. #UncannyCommunity #BritishPodcastAwards

Scary true storytelling told with immersive audio. Catch the Video Version on YouTube (links in show notes for each episode) or listen on the go with this audio edition. Note: Peter Laws was the ...

podfollow.com

Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Jun 16

Did my latest witness see the face of a demon in a burned-out lightbulb? Come with me to Bletchley, where a dark entity lingered until the bulb was smashed. #UncannyCommunity, you'll like this one :) cityofsecrets.blog/2025/06/15/a...

After the Light, the Darkness, West Bletchley

Tonight’s story takes us to the quiet, tree-lined streets of West Bletchley — more specifically, to Angus Drive, where a seemingly ordinary household lightbulb became the source of something altoge…

The Shadow Line, Two Mile Ash

Steph Lay @stephlay.bsky.social · Jun 13

Tonight's eerie MK story comes from Two Mile Ash, and is part two of a tale about shadowy entities that appear in the most unlikely of places. Just to warn you, this one includes themes of domestic abuse and paranormal attachment. #UncannyCommunity

cityofsecrets.blog/2025/06/13/t...

You might remember that a few days ago, I started telling you Jadee’s story — and I promised I’d come back to it. When we left her, she was still at her childhood home in Woolmans on Fuller’s Slade…