THE myth of the Loch Ness Monster tops a list of the most intriguing British supernatural of unexplained mysteries, a new study has revealed.
Nessie edged out contenders including The Enfield Haunting and the Rendlesham Forest UFO to take top billing on the list of UK "phenomena".
The research, specially commissioned to mark the Halloween season – or #Halloweek – running on TV channel Really, gathered the views of 2,000 British adults to identify the eerie and unexplained historical mysteries which continue to baffle the nation.
Topping the list was the Loch Ness Monster, a story dating back to the 6th century and has regularly resurfaced with people claiming to have even captured it on film.
Stonehenge – a formation of massive stone pillars built on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire – came second, as its origin story remains unknown to this day.
The Beast of Bodmin Moor came third, followed The Enfield Haunting – a tale of an 11-year-old girl who was repeatedly possessed by the spirit of an old man.
The other Scottish entrant was the suicidal dogs at Overtoun Bridge near Dumbarton. Around 50 dogs have died there by leaping to their deaths in the past 70 years – no one has been able to explain the canine inclination to date.
Completing the top 10 is the vanishing of Agatha Christie in 1926; the The Rendlesham Forest UFO 'sighting'; the tale of the Devil's Footprints in Devon; the Highgate Vampire; and the Hampton Court Ghosts.
Richard Williams general manager for UKTV Play, which is hosting over 250 hours of paranormal programming on Really over Halloween, said: “Britain has stories of unexplained phenomena dating back centuries, but we have seen new mysteries unfold in more recent decades.
"We continue to be fascinated by the things we can’t quite unravel – that’s why we are celebrating the things we are at a loss to explain with our Halloween season.”
The new research also reveals that belief in ghosts and ghouls is alive and kicking among Brits with more than half convinced supernatural entities exist.
In addition, more than a third claimed to have seen a ghost, while half say they know someone who has witnessed some form of ghostly apparition.
Really’s Halloween season of programming includes Ghost Adventures and Most Haunted and is available now at www.halloweenonreally.co.uk
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