Welcome to this new series of interviews/articles about our Paranormal Investigation Groups, profiling the real deal guys who do their best to solve paranormal mysteries and return peace to troubled households and premises. First up is one of the foremost groups, headed by Mickey Gocool.
IN PROFILE: NORTH LONDON PARANORMAL INVESTIGATIONS -NLPI
It was recently my pleasure to get to know Mickey Gocool and the rest of the crew at North London Paranormal Investigations (NLPI). From the very beginning it was clear to me that these guys take their business very seriously and are committed to carrying out all of their investigations with care, compassion and a keen sense of the ethical responsibilities involved.
Mickey is the founder member of NLPI and is the host of their weekly internet radio show alongside Kurt Logsdon, Mickey’s counterpart in the U.S. I asked Mickey how this all came about.
NLPI was born in 2001 when Mickey was working alone although he already had 25 years of paranormal experiences under his belt. His work was all done on a private basis then without the help of a spiritualist medium. His first memorable experience was at the age of 18 at the King and Tinker pub in Enfield, North London. He was sitting outside the pub with new work colleagues, it was in fact his first day at work. He was comfortable and relaxed when he saw a fight going on in the car park. It was 3pm on a Friday afternoon and there were no cars around, but he was looking at a large group of people engaged in a hefty brawl. The fight stopped as suddenly as it had started and as Mickey looked away, the whole scene disappeared. Believing it a set up by his new colleagues he laughed it off and rode home.
The experience has never left him, and as we see shortly, he returned to the King and Tinker in 2012 to investigate the location. This investigation can be seen in full at NLPIs website and on youtube.
Mickey is the founder and lead investigator at NLPI and also describes himself as the team dogsbody. He describes himself as ‘sensitive’ but dislikes any labels such as psychic or medium. He is usually extremely accurate when it comes to picking up on atmospheres or spirit contact and his overriding intent is simply to obtain answers to paranormal events and seeking the truth and facts behind any paranormal activity and thereby helping to restore peace to locations, especially when the location is a family home. To this end, Mickey spends a great deal of time before an investigation in researching the history of the location and its personalities both past and present. Above all Mickey is interested in finding proof of life beyond the physical.
His most memorable investigation was The King and Tinker pub in Enfield in 2012. His research showed him that the cottage opposite the pub was once occupied by none other than Guy Fawkes who the team believed was the ‘tinker’ of the pub’s name and in fact it was this historical character that made interesting contact with Mickey and the team during the investigation.
NLPI’s co founder is Mickey’s lovely Partner Louise, who accompanies him on investigations and generally keeps the team together by taking care of the admin, getting involved in the research of a location, accompanying Mickey on the investigations, as well as being a full time mum to their three beautiful daughters. Louise has a great deal of personal experience with the paranormal which began in her childhood home which required the offices of a priest and holy water! Like Mickey, Louise is keen to find the truth behind reported hauntings and to bring peace back to troubled locations and the people it affects.
Mickey and Louise are joined by paranormal investigators Graeme Paskin, Christine Bull, Charlotte England, Phillip Kemp and Gareth Harding who variously take care of EVP recordings (Electronic Voice Phenomena) and camera tech.
NLPI have their own recording studio from where they produce and broadcast their weekly programme covering all aspects of the paranormal as well as playing host to guests from all aspects of the paranormal. They even had me on their show! Here’s a link http://www.nlpi.co.uk/nlpiparanormalradio.htm
After Mickey was a guest on Kurt Logsdon’s show from the U.S, they teamed up to produce the regular show on Friday nights at 9 o’clock, UK time. Tune in to listen to them or take part in their chat on blogtalk radio! Speaking from experience, it was thoroughly enjoyable. Although the team obviously have fun on their show, the discussions and debates are very serious and they look at all aspects of the paranormal with their guests and each other.
One thing the team is adamant about is that if there is no evidence to report after an investigation then that is precisely what they do report. They have no time for fakery and deception which brings the whole paranormal community into disrepute. NLPI carry out private investigations for which there is no fee, but they are grateful for donations that ensure the continuation of their work. Paranormal activity can be extremely distressing for those experiencing it, and Mickey and the team from NLPI do their best to resolve these situations in a professional and compassionate manner. NLPI pay for their own research and the training of their investigators In the field training and at headquarters, and is carried out over a twelve month period for all new investigators in order to ensure nothing but professionalism.
The training covers the important subject of Health and Safety in the first module to ensure that everyone remains safe at the location. Other subjects covered are radio procedures, risk assessments, the various types of haunting, the equipment and the use of it, field work, and also the rudiments and implications of mental illness which may play a factor in witness impressions of an event.
An investigation can take up to six months from the initial contact with their client, spending at least 2 weeks prior to the investigation on thorough research and preparation which will include a period of building up trust between the team and the client, writing journals and recording disturbances or anomalies, and looking for patterns in behaviour and phenomena. The investigation itself can take anything up to 60 hours and recorded on video and audio equipment. All of this is analysed after the investigation and a report produced. Post-investigation consists of efforts to resolve and spiritual disturbance and return a peaceful home to the client. The team carry out two follow up visits, one at 2 weeks and one at 3 months.
As we can see, this is a serious business undertaken to the fullest degree of professionalism and care. I know who’d I’d call!
One thing that NLPI are pioneering is Paranormal Unity. Of course, there are many different groups of paranormal investigators around the country and indeed the world, all with differing values and opinions and ParaUnity is aimed at teaching without limits, the sharing of information and promoting other responsible groups. This is being achieved by the use of their fabulous radio show. Tune in to NLPIRADIO for first hand experience, every Friday night at 9pm on blogtalkradio. Needless to say there is some resistance from groups that are less ethical.
Mickey told me that the most important thing to achieve is the building of trust between the living and those souls that have passed into spirit. Trust is vital and not more so than within the team itself. NLPI set high standards in their investigators and are strict in their standards and code of practice. They are currently recruiting new investigators and are looking for serious, sensible and responsible people who are willing to undergo the rigorous training and have the skill of logical investigation. Thrill seekers need not apply!
The core team consists of 12 investigators, three or four of which turn out for an investigation. Core members in addition to Mickey and Louise include Gareth Harding, the EVP (Electronic Voice Phenomena) specialist, Phil Kemp – paranormal investigator, Christine Bull a trainee investigator and Team Manager Graeme Paskin.
NLPI are shining a positive light on the paranormal community. Who you gonna call? No contest!
NLPI PARANORMAL RADIO
www.nlpi.co.uk
