Marilyn & Billy in Inveraray! See below!

The poll gives visitors to the 19^th century courthouse and living prison in Argyll the opportunity to reveal who they would most like to share a prison cell with and who they would most like to see locked up.

Whilst a partner or spouse was on top of the visitor’s cellmate wish list, following second was Scots comedian Billy Connolly, third place Brad Pitt and fourth place George Clooney. UK glamour model Katie Price rated fifth on the wish list whilst at the same time rating fourth in who they would like to see locked up.  Top on the “Lock Up” list was former PM Gordon Brown followed by second place Tony Blair, third place Sir Fred Goodwin of the Royal Bank of Scotland and “a relative” came in fifth place.

Other names contributed to the cellmate wish list included Marilyn Monroe, Zac Efron, Lady GaGa and Cheryl Cole as well as comedians Russell Brand, Lee Evans and Michael Macintyre.  More recently, the “Go Compare” man, from the insurance comparison website‘s TV advertisement, is a popular suggestion amongst those on the Lock Up list.

Our Staff, Hanna as Marilyn & Kenny as Billy!

Our visitors always have great fun completing the poll cards. The results every month tend to reflect the range of age groups that come here every year, from children to grandparents, as well as what is going on in the current climate.   Plus, we are delighted to see a spouse or partner at the top of the list.  Perhaps it is the romantic effect a holiday in Argyll has!

Entries where taken from some of the over 100,000 visitors to the Jail in the last 18 months.  The visitor questionnaires give visitors the opportunity to name anyone they wish and are available at the end of their visit in the kitchen at the jail.

The Jail will feature on the channel’s new travel guide show. The channel, which reaches 60 million viewers in Russia, regularly features programmes devoted to myths, legends and traditions from places all over the world.

Mikhail Kozhukhov (second from right)

The interactive guides at Inveraray Jail were delighted to assist the show’s presenter and General Director, Mikhail Kozhukhov, who is one of the most famous journalists in Russia and former Press Secretary to the Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation, Vladimir Putin.  Mikhail is the author of many travel shows, including In Search of Adventures and Round the World, that were transmitted on primetime television channel Russia.  His new programme will broadcast in September and is expected to be a big hit on the TV3 channel.

The visit to Inveraray Jail, organised by VisitScotland’s international PR team, involved Mikhail dressing up as a prisoner during the filming.

Gavin Dick, Prison Governor at Inveraray Jail said: “We were delighted to play host to TV3 and Mikhail Kozhukhov.  The crew were good fun, very enthusiastic and interested in our history.  The show will be a fantastic opportunity to spread the historic story of Inveraray Jail to such a wide audience overseas.  Our thanks go to VisitScotland for the opportunity.”

Fell from the sky!

Prison warder Adam Trela witnessed an unusual fish, 60cm long, fall from the sky this morning (1st June) into the grounds of the Jail. It is assumed to have been dropped by a sea bird.

Alex Blackman, manager of the neighbouring Sea Life Sanctuary in Oban, identified the fish as a red bandfish (Cepola rubescens). This particular variety of red bandfish is commonly associated with the south west coasts of England and Wales and is thought to extend to the the west coast of Scotland.

It is unusual to find individuals of the species above 15m of water.

The Sanctuary Curator Dennis Chamberlin adds: ‘Red bandfish live at the bottom of the sea bed and burrow into muddy areas. It may have swum into a creel or lobster pot, which is fairly common – and been caught by a gull whilst a fisherman was releasing it back into the sea’.

Like a goldfish put through a mangle!

Gavin Dick, Prison Governor for the interactive 19th century jail, says: ‘We were amazed to find this peculiar looking fish in our prison grounds this morning! It looked like someone had put their pet goldfish through the Jail’s mangle!. Had this happened in the 19th century, I’m sure the prisoners would have fought over who was going to have this for their tea!’

Inveraray Jail was once the courthouse and prison serving Argyll.  Real life warders, matrons and prisoners bring the 19th century prison alive.

Visitors – or visiting masochists -  can try out prison beds and hammocks in the old and new prisons, sit in on a trial in the spectacular courtroom, sample the brutal 19th century prison punishments and search through prison records for their naughty ancestors.

No trouble so far!

However the young pipers and drummers, led by Pipe Sergeant Dougie Campbell were hoping not to meet any of the ghostly inmates of the Jail. But to get them in the mood, they decided to watch, “Paranormal Activity” prior to entering!

At 11p.m. they went into the Jail and were shown round by Head Warder, Rob Irons who told them stories of ghostly happenings in the Jail and showed them to the cells where they would spend the night. The girls decided to bed down for the night in one cell with a view to “safety in numbers”.

The boys were more curious and went round the whole building hoping to meet some of the “old prisoners”. Some of them spent a while in the Court House and are convinced that they did indeed experience some strange happenings.

After a sleepless night the team emerged from the Jail at 8a.m., cold and tired but unscathed. They all made it through the night and so earned over £1,000 in sponsor money for band funds.

The band thanked Inveraray Jail for their “hospitality” and head warder, Rob Irons for looking after the band throughout the night.

Matron and Prisoner

The prison matron and one of the jail’s prisoners will escape for five days across the next two weeks to embark on an exciting school roadshow.  The two jail guides, who will also be judging the competition, are searching for six lucky pupils who will win the chance to play the part of a child prisoner for one afternoon this summer at the Jail.

Participating pupils have been rehearsing monologues for the past few weeks which they will perform in front of the Inveraray Jail judges.  Pupils have the choice to audition as 11 year old Duncan McColl, who is facing the judges for stealing an apple from a market stall, or as a 10 year old girl and prisoner describing her experiences of being refined to a dark, damp and cold prison cell.

11 schools across Argyll are taking part including Ardrishaig Primary, Kilcreggan Primary (Dunbartonshire), Drumlemble and Castlehill Primary (Campbeltown), Strachur Primary, Dunoon Primary, Furnace & Minard Primary (by Inveraray), Ashfield (Achnamara), Lochnell Primary (Connel) and Kilchrenan Primary (Taynuilt).  Over 130 pupils are expected to audition.

Kilcreggan Primary School

Before the auditions, the prison matron and her prisoner will perform a sketch for the school pupils, giving an insight into a typical day in the life of a 19^th century prisoner.

As well as a fun acting role in the summer, the six winners will also win Inveraray Jail goodies for their class.  Winners will be announced Monday 7^th June.

Gavin Dick, Prison Governor for Inveraray Jail said: “We are excited to be working with local schools.  It will be a really fun way for pupils to learn more about their local history.  Children as young as seven served sentences at Inveraray Jail in the 19^th century for being naughty, so pupils will need to be on best behaviour!”

A Day in Jail!

He added:  “We would like to wish all the pupils who are auditioning the very best of luck and we look forward to welcoming our winners to the jail this summer.”

Raring to go?!

On Sunday 9^th May 2010, keen runners fled from prison as the Inveraray Jail Break race returned to Argyll for a second year.  First place male category winners failed to beat last year’s records whilst all three first place female category winners beat the records.

The warder rings the escape bell!

Thirty-four runners from near and far set off from Inveraray Jail at 11am to the clang of the warder’s escape bell.  The race continued up some 250 metres high to Dun na Cuaiche, the watch tower above Inveraray.  The runners thinned out as the steep climb took hold and by the time the summit was reached the result was decided as Philip Price reached the top ahead of all others.

The going gets tough!

Runners completed the circular route down at the finishing line in the grounds of Inveraray Castle.

The event was part of this year’s Inveraray Bluebell Festival, an exciting month long programme of cultural events taking place in the Inveraray area by Loch Fyne.

Winning categories included first male and first female junior, senior and veteran.  The overall fastest time recorded was an impressive 29 minutes and six seconds from first male senior Philip Price.  The fastest female time was 32 minutes 34 seconds, from first female senior winner, Emma O’Shea.

2010 – this year’s first place winners:

• First male junior – David McAlister – 31:22
• First male senior – Philip Price – 29:06
• First male veteran – Alan Smith – 29:55
• First female junior – Freya Corner – 40:07 – (RECORD)
• First female senior – Emma O’Shea – 32.34 – (RECORD)
• First female veteran – Dinah Bosomworth – 37:20 (RECORD)

All the Winners

2009 – last year’s first place winners:

• First male junior – Paul Cameron – 28:54
• First male senior – Nick Emsley – 28:46
• First male veteran – Paul Thompson – 29:14
• First female junior – Naomi Sturrock – 44:14
• First female senior – Naomi Dixon – 41:02
• First female veteran – Fiona Corner – 38:59

Participants each received a free Inveraray Jail T-shirt and there were trophies, medals and prizes for category winners.  The race catered for a range of running enthusiasts.

Voting forms are currently on display throughout the jail showing images of the party leaders behind bars, including Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg.  Visitors are being asked to vote for the party leader or someone of their own choice they would like to be released from jail to run the country.  Just like a normal election, visitors can fill out the ballot paper and pop their completed form into the jail’s ballot box.  Since the voting forms went on display on 7^th April, the jail has received a number of votes, particularly from Easter Holiday visitors, and they plan to make a prediction before the Election Day on Thursday 6^th May.

We are looking forward to see which party leader will receive the ‘get out of jail’ card and it will be interesting to see if our predictions are right! We suspect all the party leaders will be left to stay in Jail and a peoples’ choice will attract the most votes!  Those voting in our opinion poll should bear in mind that many prisoners of Inveraray Jail faced transportation to Australia or were sentenced to years of punishment and hard labour in cold, damp prison conditions!

The Warder

Rob as Warder

Andrew Boyd, one of the jails longest serving warders, is played today by staff member Rob Irons.  Visitors can identify him by his uniform which is, and was, an all black button neck tunic and peaked cap.  Rob, a former present day prison officer, likes to regularly lock up inmates (visitors)! After all, it is his job.  The warder assisted the Governor who was in total charge of the prison.  Boyd’s employment at the jail began in 1880.  He lived just over the wall behind the prison in one of the cottages but he was only allowed to go home for just two hours every evening.  The warder was expected to sleep in the prison every night and work long hours for very little pay.  Today, visitors can have good nosy round his room.

The Matron

Hanna as Matron

The Jail had a matron, usually the Governor’s wife, whose duty it was to be responsible for the female prisoners.  A typical day in the life of the matron is performed by actors at the jail.  Her day-to-day routine involved the general up keep of the female prison block (known as the Old Prison) and, along with her husband, she was expected to teach the prisoners how to read and write.

Some Naughty Argyll Ladies

Some prisoner stories are too terrifying to bring back to life, so the characters at Inveraray Jail focus more on the light-hearted, comical stories. In particular, there were some very naughty ladies in Argyll during the 1800s!  Take 38 year old thief Helen Mackintosh from Campbeltown.  After stealing eight stockings, a petticoat and a series of clothing originally left outside to dry, Helen’s footprints in the snow were traced back to her home.

Sam as Elizabeth

She refused to walk after she was arrested so they had to wheel her to the courthouse in a wheelbarrow!  Helen was jailed for three months whilst waiting to be transported to Australia.  Meanwhile, re-offender Elizabeth Henderson, portrayed by Sam Potts,  regularly features in today’s prison.  Elizabeth stole silverware from the Dunoon Hotel where she worked and sold it for alcohol (gin was her favourite!).

Museum Guide and actor Hanna Nixon explains her role at the jail: “Many times I play the role of female prisoner Eliza Thorpe from London who, according to our records, served a two month sentence in the jail in the late 1800s.  Eliza was locked up in the Old Prison which, at that time, was where all female prisoners were held.  Whilst on holiday in Oban, Eliza was accused of stealing from a hotel.  However, it is thought that the man she was with, who seems to have been a very bad influence, was the actual guilty party.”

She added: “What is so fascinating about Inveraray Jail is that after meeting one of the characters when exploring the prison and courthouse, visitors can go on to the exhibition and find out what happened in the end for the prisoner.  It’s a great reminder that these characters actually existed once and makes the experience very real.”

‘Criminal Lunatics’

Luckily, visitors won’t come across Peter Campbell in today’s prison.  On Thursday 11^th January, 1844, according to a report at the time in the Glasgow Herald, Campbell assaulted his aunt and his mother.  Using a razor blade, the schoolmaster from Craignish, almost ‘severed the head of his aunt’ and ‘severely cut his mother about the face, neck and arms’ leaving her in a ‘dangerously ill’ state.  Campbell was judged ‘insane’ and received a life sentence on 19^th April. After spending three years in Inveraray Jail, Campbell was finally moved in March 1847 to the new criminal lunatics section of the General Prison in Perth.

Thousands of male prisoners were tried and locked up at the jail, serving sentences for a range of crimes including assault, theft and murder.  Male prisoners occupied the twelve cells in the New Prison when the completed building was opened in 1848.

Mischievous Children

Many children, some as young as seven years old, served sentences at Inveraray Jail.  Juvenile crimes were normally for very minor offences.  13 year old Hector MacNeil from Lochgilphead got 30 days for stealing a turnip whist 11 year old James Muckle was sentenced to eight days for stealing apples.  For children without a home, committing a petty crime was usually a purposeful way to get a warm bed, food and clothing.  However, in 1852, ‘whipping’, for boys only, was introduced as a punishment and an alternative to sending juvenile offenders to prison.  Many children were often sent to reformatory school at the end of their prison sentence.

The Haunted Cells

Though the jail was closed down in 1889, there is a chance that many of its occupants never left.  Unexplained sightings and unusual activity recorded by visitors, staff and paranormal investigators suggest that Inveraray Jail is in fact haunted.  With its dark history and a haunting reputation, the jail was recently an obvious venue for TV programme Most Haunted in 2009.  Overnight Ghost Hunting events open to the public take place throughout the year at the jail.

Mark Turner

Mark Turner, Paranormal Investigator at Ghost Events said: “We have carried out investigations for several years now at Inveraray Jail.  We are starting to notice several patterns in our findings particularly with the noises and sounds we have recorded.  The jail certainly has a high level of paranormal activity in comparison with many other sites we have visited around Scotland.  This nation is blessed with such rich history so it’s the ideal place to search old buildings and historic landmarks for evidence of the afterlife amid the countless reports of paranormal activity.”

Back to www.inverarayjail.co.uk

On the alert!

A psychic medium was said to have picked up a spiritual presence during a real-life ghost hunt at Argyll’s 19th century courthouse and prison, Inveraray Jail, at the weekend.

More than 6,000 men, women and children were tried and served sentences in the jail between 1820 and 1889.

Today, it is a popular visitor attraction and museum at the town of Inveraray, on Loch Fyne.

Paranormal investigations at the jail provide both novices and enthusiasts the opportunity to communicate with the traumatised spirits of old prisoners.

Saturday night’s event, hosted by Ghost Events Scotland, Scotland’s leading paranormal events company, was attended by 16 people.

The evening started with a walk around the location with a psychic mediums.

Mark Turner, paranormal investigator at Ghost Events Scotland, said: “Our psychic medium picked up the presence of a woman in the old prison block. It was thought she was a nasty character who disliked children.”

The event continued in the dark with interactive experiments which included filmed vigils, trigger object experiments, electronic voice phenomenon experiments and a variety of other ghost hunting gadgets.

Ending at 4am yesterday, participants looked at the recordings to see the results.

Mr Turner added: “One of our participants felt a sensation in his ribs as if he had been punched and claimed to have seen a green light moving through the air. A woman also felt that someone was touching her head.

“Our voice recordings, which are recorded below the human hearing frequency, picked up voices in response to questions asked by our participants. It is not clear what is exactly said but there are sounds of loud shouting. Also, in the new prison block, there were sounds of footsteps and tapping.”

The next paranormal investigation at the jail take place on February 20, May 8, September 11 and November 6 next year. Advance booking is essential. For further details www.inverarayjail.co.uk or call 01499 302 381.

Ghost Hunting events open to the public take place throughout the year at Argyll’s 19^th century courthouse and prison – Inveraray Jail.   6000 men, women and children were tried and served sentences in the jail between 1820 and 1889. Today, it is a popular visitor attraction and museum. Unexplained sightings and unusual activity recorded by visitors, staff and paranormal investigators suggest that the establishment is haunted.  With a history of depression, torture, death and damnation and a haunting reputation, the jail was recently an obvious venue for TV programme Most Haunted earlier this year.

Arriving at 10pm at the eerie jail, just off the banks of the misty Loch Fyne, brave event goers are greeted by Ghost Events Scotland, Scotland’s leading paranormal events company.  The opportunity to communicate with the traumatised spirits of old prisoners – without the gimmicks – begins.

The Ghost Hunting nights start with a walk around the location with one of Ghost Events Scotland’s Psychic Mediums in search for spiritual presences. The lights go out and the event continues in the dark with interactive experiments which include filmed vigils, trigger object experiments, Electronic Voice Phenomenon (EVP) experiments and a variety of other ghost hunting gadgets.  Ending at 4am, participants look back at the recordings to see the results.

On the Look out for Paranormal Activity

Mark Turner, Paranormal Investigator at Ghost Events said: “We have carried out investigations for several years now at Inveraray Jail.  We are starting to notice several patterns in our findings particularly with the noises and sounds we have recorded.  The jail certainly has a high level of paranormal activity in comparison with many other sites we have visited around Scotland.  This nation is blessed with such rich history so it’s the ideal place to search old buildings and historic landmarks for evidence of the afterlife amid the countless reports of paranormal activity.”

Most of our staff at Inveraray Jail have their own stories on ghostly sightings and unexplained activity around the jail and many visitors share with us their stories and pictures, from a feeling they got in a certain room to an unexplained object in their photograph.  Cell 10 is the one to watch!

For further details or to book event tickets please visit www.inverarayjail.co.uk or www.ghostevents.co.uk