Dare YOU enter our twilight zone?

ARE you afraid of things that go bump in the night?

The you'd better steer clear of HAUNTED, the Sunday Mercury's spooky blog.

Click on www.sundaymercury.net for reports of real-life Midland ghosts and ghouls.

Each week Joanne Morris and the Birmingham Ghosts and Hauntings team of investigators probe sinister sightings.

Armed with hi-tech equipment, they take you to the heart of the supernatural.

And they reveal the fascinating history of the sites they're called in to check.

In recent weeks, they've reported on everything from ghost trains to hellhounds, and from grey ladies to spectral soldiers.

Among the famous landmarks they've reported on are the castles at Warwick, Tamworth and Dudley.

They've looked into sightings at Birmingham Town Hall, the Jewellery Quarter and Warley Woods.

But, of course, a favourite haunt is pubs, where the spirits aren't just behind the bar.

Check out the Haunted team's reports from Rubery's Cock Inn, the Three Tuns in Sutton Coldfield and Erdington's Lad In The Lane.

Then there are background features on Guy Fawkes, poltergeists, Hallowe'en and the science behind the investigations.

All the reports are archived on the site. Simply click 'Blogs & Comment' then click the 'Haunted' link.

You can even join in the debate by adding your comments, and members of the team often respond.

So just who are Birmingham Ghosts and Hauntings UK, or BGAH for short?

Founder Joanne Morris explains: "We spend our free time investigating hauntings and ghostly sightings around Brum, the West Midlands and sometimes further afield.

"We have 10 investigators, all of whom have had their own personal experiences with unexplained phenomena.

"I have been interested in the paranormal, particularly ghosts, all my life.

"This fascination stems from my childhood.

"I grew up in Harborne, a leafy suburb of Birmingham. My family and I lived in a Georgian townhouse, not far from the High Street.

"It was here that my interest in the paranormal began.

"My whole family and unsuspecting visitors witnessed unusual occurrences during the time we lived there, and even now, years later, I cannot find any logical explanation.

"But when I finally left that house, I continued to encounter these strange experiences, and my curiosity grew ever deeper.

"For a long time I had been looking, without success, for a local paranormal group to join. I eventually decided to set up my own group and was very much surprised by the amount of interest it generated.

"Now it has become almost a fulltime job. We have been on many investigations and have seen, and heard, some pretty strange stuff!"

Although some of what the team encounters can be explained, there is plenty that can't.

Mysterious balls of light, doors opening and closing of their own accord, footsteps in empty corridors, to name but a few.

"Our recording equipment has picked up voices of unknown origin and our locked-off video cameras have recorded strange movement," says Joanne.

"Are these paranormal events? If they are, is there a common denominator that links them? We aim to find out.

"It is not the aim of BGAH to convince people that the paranormal exists. We simply want to explore the possibility that there is something out there we don't quite understand yet.

"We combine psychical and scientific approaches in our work, pushing the boundaries, looking for the answers. Join us on our trip into the unknown."

HAUNTED appears each week at http://blogs.sundaymercury.net/haunted/

CAPTION(S):

Ghost-hunter Joanne Morris