This page contains details of the articles reported in Psychic News between Nov 1992 and April 1993 that refer specifically to what has become known as 'the trumpet incident'. The medium concerned was Colin Fry working under the pseudonym of 'Lincoln'.

Text transcribed from the original Psychic News Report

Initial report on the analysis of the plastic restraints. Scanned image and straight text version.

Psychic News report of NAS statement supporting Lincoln (April 10, 1993)

Further report on analysis of broken bonds in Psychic News (April 10, 1993)

Noah's Ark Society rocked by fraud allegations

Medium caught holding trumpet

Shocked sitters witnessed physical medium Lincoln “standing in the middle of the room holding a spirit trumpet in his hand” when the lights suddenly came on during a Noah’s Ark Society (NAS) séance last month.The séance held before an invited audience, took place at NAS chairman Robin Foy’s home in Scole, Norfolk. The incident is alleged to have occurred within 20 minutes of the circle getting underway.

Sheffield medium Betty Allen – “a Spiritualist for 50 years” – told PN, “I was shocked. There were 30 disillusioned people there that night.” Up to that moment, she said, the circle had proceeded in a normal fashion. “Lincoln came in and sat in the chair provided,” she explained. “I had never seen him before. “He took off his shoes and rings. Then the leader of his home circle tied his hands with plastic straps and put leather straps around his ankles. He stressed how strong the bands were. Sandra Foy (Robin’s wife) tied one of the straps on herself.”

A saucer of molasses, minerals, a bell, a keyboard, a toy illuminated octopus and two trumpets, on celluloid and the other metal were among the objects placed in the centre of the circle. Before going into trance, the medium is said to have asked for “certain items, like the saucer of molasses and the bell,” to be removed. “He also asked for the keyboard to be set back,” Mrs Allen commented.

Robin Foy opened with a prayer, and, in the total darkness, the séance commenced. Mrs Allen – she was sitting in the front row – said she was taken aback when the medium asked for a cushion to be put under him as the chair was hard. “I thought once entranced, it wouldn’t matter to a medium whether the chair was hard or not, she explained.

The sitters joined together in a number of songs in order to raise the vibrations.The singing was so robust and enthusiastic, Mrs Allen commented, “the house could have fallen down and nobody would have heard anything.” At this point a woman sitter is claimed to have called out, “something has fallen on me. I think it is a cushion.”

“An illuminated trumpet began moving up and down in front of Robin Foy,” Mrs Allen recalled. “At that time we thought the séance was marvellous. The bell had rung and we heard music from the keyboard. “Somebody in the back row screamed when the toy octopus caught the side of her face and a man said the celluloid trumpet had fallen between his legs.”

Then a totally unexpected occurrence ensued. The ceiling light, said Mrs Allen, suddenly came on, flooding the room with brilliant light. “And there was Lincoln standing in front of me,” she stated. “He was holding the trumpet up in the air with his own hand. I was utterly socked.

“Although the light was on for only four or five seconds, it was quite sufficient for people to see him standing there. There was deathly silence.” At that point it in claimed the medium cried out before “throwing himself backwards to the floor.” Lincoln was then helped to his feet and escorted from the room.

Later, it is alleged the medium commented, “They have let me down. It was Daniel’s fault.” It is believed the “Daniel” referred to was a mischievous earthbound spirit, who allegedly entered the medium’s body during the sitting. It is further claimed that the lights were turned on by the spirit world in order to rid Lincoln of his possessing entity.

Mrs Allen commented that on examining the chair in which the medium had been tied, it was found “the only band remaining intact was that tied by Sandra Foy. The others were either broken or undone.” The Sheffield medium said she was “no stranger to physical phenomena. “I was privileged to sit with that fine physical medium Bill Olsen and also direct-voice medium Leslie Flint,” she explained. “I have also visited the Arthur Findlay College in Stansted on many occasions. “Bill Olsen used to be tied up in his chair with rope,” she pointed out. “Later, they tied him in with cotton. His coat and waistcoat were removed during that séance just the same, yet the cotton remained absolutely intact.”

Shocked ay what she had witnessed at Scole, Mrs Allen told PN: “I love Spiritualism. And I am a stickler for the truth. But I don’t believe it was the truth I witnessed that day.” Many visitors who attended the circle had journeyed from remote parts of the country, she pointed out.

“One couple had travelled 370 miles and had to book a hotel for the night,” she said. “Another visitor from the Ilse of Man had spent 10 hours getting there.” Gale Buckley of Doncaster who attended the circle together with her husband and a friend commented: “We were devastated at what happened. WE had read so much about Lincoln and were really looking forward to it.”

Telling her own version of what transpired, Mrs Buckley said, “The toy octopus was thrown behind me and a red trumpet landed between my husband’s legs. “We saw another trumpet moving about. Then a bright light suddenly went on. “I looked at Lincoln’s chair, but he wasn’t sitting in it. When I turned I could see him standing quite a distance away. He had a spirit trumpet in his hand.”

Neither Mrs Allen or Mrs Buckley could explain who had actually turned the light on for those few seconds.

On behalf of the Noah’s Ark Society committee, publicity officer George Cranley last week issued the following statement regarding Lincoln and the Scole séance:

“1. We wish to state emphatically that, through previous experiments, experience and long association with this medium, genuine physical phenomena has been consistently demonstrated.
2. The medium is as perturbed by the occurrence as the society and has, of his own free will, expressed his desire to be fully tested by the committee at Scole. Members will be kept fully informed of developments through the monthly newsletter.
3. Until such a time as this has been successfully done he will not demonstrate to members at Scole or at any of the Society’s seminars.
4. Physical mediumship has historically proved to be controversial, enigmatic and paradoxical.

In order to avoid such difficulties the Spiritualist movement largely divorced itself from such mediumship 50 years ago to court respectability. This incident will not weaken the Society’s function nor resolve to see this highly evidential and precious form of mediumship emerge once again and become available to all people. The spirit world has entrusted us with this work and in consequence the Ark will proceed through rough and smooth waters on its journey. We shall not shirk our responsibility.”

Mrs Buckley has this to say of the proposed Lincoln “test” sittings by NAS committee members: “I think someone other than committee members should be on this team who are investigating this. “I would suggest that an impartial observer be invited along.”

The society stated that they had commissioned Dr Jim White, a polymer expert in the materials department of Newcastle-upon-Tyne University, to scientifically analyse the plastic wristbands that secured Lincoln to his chair. They also told PN a full report of the sitting will be appearing in the society’s November newsletter.

Lincoln was unavailable for comment.

Initial Psychic News report on analysis plastic bonds

Psychic News February 6, 1993
Lincoln’s bonds analysed at a cost of £200, but results say little.

THE BONDS which bound medium Lincoln to his chair the evening he was seen holding a séance trumpet have been analysed at a cost of £200. The results, however, are rather disappointing.
A report written by a Newcastle-upon-Tyne University scientist is inconclusive in its findings. However, it does indicate that each of the three plastic bonds examined were broken by three different methods.
Picture one indicates a bond broken with special pliers by a NAS representative – normal procedure after a séance as Lincoln is usually cut free in this manner.
Picture two shows a bond severed, in the report’s opinion, with the blade of a saw. Hylton Thompson, technical officer to the NAS, told me that the slight curvature of the markings indicated that possibly a circular saw could have been used.
Picture three highlights why the report could not come to any definite conclusions because it failed to pin-point any possible method by which the bond could have been broken to leave such surface features on the fracture.
But without getting too carried away and thinking no earthly hand could have been involved in its snapping, the report does say that the actual cause of the break “remains unexplained, but not unexplainable.”

Society issues statement in support of Lincoln

Following their investigation into the Scole séance, where the physical medium known as Lincoln was caught holding a trumpet, the Noah’s Ark Society (NAS) has issued a statement supporting the demonstrator.

It was sent to PN together with a report by technical consultant Hylton Thompson on the broken tyraps (bonds) used to secure Lincoln to his chair.

We had fully considered the circumstances surrounding the incident in the Scole cellars,” explains the statement.
“And in light of the forensic report on the broken tyraps and the critical analysis by our technical consultant, Hylton Thompson, together with consultations with the guides of the medium, are of the opinion that no useful purpose would be served by prolonging the investigation any further.
“The history of physical mediumship is riddled with anomalies as was stated in recent issues of our newsletter and PN.
“We have been fortunate in that Lincoln has shared his mediumship with us from its inception so that members have been able to follow its progress and development with it’s concomitant encouragement to other circles.”
The statement continues: “We feel that Lincoln now needs time to strengthen his mediumship within the confines of his home circle and will, therefore, not demonstrate publicly until such time as his guides give explicit instructions for its resumption.
“In view of the incident we have reviewed our security precautions and have taken extra measures to protect the mediums who demonstrate for us.
“Finally we would like to thank all those who took the trouble to write or phone expressing their support to Lincoln and the Society.”

Technical consultant reports on bonds broken during seance

Commenting on the examination of Lincoln's bonds, Hylton Thompson describes the tyraps as extremely strong, quick-fastening cable ties "rather like a PVC bracelet."

Designed so that they cannot be undone by pulling once tightened, the technical consultant explains that the two fractured tyraps could not have snapped, as neither sample showed evidence of stretching.

"Viewed through a simple magnifying glass, one of the principle fractures appeared to have been sawn with a very fine saw," he writes.

"The other fracture did not offer any immediate clues other than that it did not appear to have been conventionally cut, deformed or fatigued prior to breaking- the general appearance indicated a high-speed fracture."

Taken to a commercial research facility specialising in testing plastics to destruction, the fractured tyraps underwent an unofficial and free investigation.

Unaware of the circumstances surrounding the breaks, an examining scientist felt one had been produced using a small very high speed circular saw with very little pressure being applied - deduced from the cutting pattern.

"The other break was of more interest to him," explains Mr Thompson.

"Asked how he would attempt to reproduce this fracture, he said he would tightly grip the tyrap between two vices and with the narrowest possible gap between them, "He would then arrange for a sharp, heavy pendulum to strike the exposed material centrally at high speed - rather like a guillotine but much faster. This would cause a brittle fracture.

"On reflection he thought that it would be better to freeze the tyrap to a very low temperature first - using liquid nitrogen."
After further studies by polymer scientist Dr Jim White at Newcastle-upon-Tyne University, he agreed one bond has been sawn, but was unable to reach a conclusion about the second, more interesting break.

"Clearly, it would be unreasonable to expect a straightforward explanation in material terms if forces were used which could not be explained within the confines of present day scientific knowledge," writes Mr Thompson

"On the other hand, the results certainly haven't proved that a supernormal force was responsible for freeing the medium's wrists from the wooden chair arms."

Commenting on the precautions which were taken at the séance to prevent deception, the technical consultant stressed:

• The tyraps were selected at random from a bag of several hundred.
• They were examined before use.
• At least one wrist was "tyrapped" by an independent sitter.
• There was no smell of chemicals in the room - it was suggested these
  could have been used to help break the bonds - and experts said those required
  would have a pronounced odour.
• There was no damage either to the medium's wrists or the chair arms.

"Deception cannot be denied but I refute that it was conscious deception on the part of Lincoln, who, all the evidence suggests, was in a very deep trance and suffered considerably in many ways as a result of the incident," he says.

"Furthermore, I am totally convinced of the integrity, dedication to truth, and sincerity of the NAS's officers and committee and the leader of the Swift home circle (in which Lincoln sits) who were present at the incident - I have come to know them all.

"The society has, to its credit, devoted considerable effort and funds towards proving the innocence of one of its young mediums who has great potential."

In Mr Thompson's opinion the deception was the work of an intruding entity, "who should not have been able to gain entry," and that no conscious fraud was perpetrated by either the organisers or the medium.