Dr Ben Horner
@theaudiosphere.bsky.social
Audiodoc maker, hauntology explorer, music & media lecturer, landscape drifter and general arty type. I make imaginary maps of real places. https://theaudiosphere.com
Also thanks to @azaldua.bsky.social for putting me onto this way back in about 2018 I think. I remember I was reading it on the train to the Music and/as Process conference in Edinburgh when I was doing my PhD. I was having a tough time health-wise and this book was/is gloriously strange escapism.
November 17, 2025 at 10:07 AM
Also thanks to @azaldua.bsky.social for putting me onto this way back in about 2018 I think. I remember I was reading it on the train to the Music and/as Process conference in Edinburgh when I was doing my PhD. I was having a tough time health-wise and this book was/is gloriously strange escapism.
A3 and A4 versions (beautifully digitally printed with lovely rich colours on very high quality card stock) will be available for sale shortly, hopefully in a week or so
studiososs.etsy.com
There's already Canterbury, Sandwich and Deal ones, plus decorator's colour chart art designs too
studiososs.etsy.com
There's already Canterbury, Sandwich and Deal ones, plus decorator's colour chart art designs too
studiososs.etsy.com
November 17, 2025 at 7:47 AM
A3 and A4 versions (beautifully digitally printed with lovely rich colours on very high quality card stock) will be available for sale shortly, hopefully in a week or so
studiososs.etsy.com
There's already Canterbury, Sandwich and Deal ones, plus decorator's colour chart art designs too
studiososs.etsy.com
There's already Canterbury, Sandwich and Deal ones, plus decorator's colour chart art designs too
And on the east side there's Folkestone Harbour station, which is still there, beautifully restored, and hub of the very excellent Harbour Arm arts-based regeneration project. It won't be seeing a train anytime soon, tho.
#folkestone #art #tubemap #underground #mapmaking
#folkestone #art #tubemap #underground #mapmaking
November 17, 2025 at 7:45 AM
And on the east side there's Folkestone Harbour station, which is still there, beautifully restored, and hub of the very excellent Harbour Arm arts-based regeneration project. It won't be seeing a train anytime soon, tho.
#folkestone #art #tubemap #underground #mapmaking
#folkestone #art #tubemap #underground #mapmaking
As usual my favourite bits are the closed real-life railway stations - Cheriton Halt here used to serve the Elham Valley line up to Canterbury South, which is now where Kent & Canterbury hospital is
November 17, 2025 at 7:45 AM
As usual my favourite bits are the closed real-life railway stations - Cheriton Halt here used to serve the Elham Valley line up to Canterbury South, which is now where Kent & Canterbury hospital is
Ooh! Which school was that? I can recommend the book very highly, it's excellent.
November 16, 2025 at 3:15 PM
Ooh! Which school was that? I can recommend the book very highly, it's excellent.
How do I say this without spoiling it? It says horror but it's not what it seems; it says ghosts but it's not what it seems. It's very intelligently done and clever in the best way!
November 15, 2025 at 12:35 PM
How do I say this without spoiling it? It says horror but it's not what it seems; it says ghosts but it's not what it seems. It's very intelligently done and clever in the best way!
Also, thanks for letting me waffle on about this stuff, I really love it and any excuse! Did a hauntology talk for my Kent students last week :-)
November 15, 2025 at 12:33 PM
Also, thanks for letting me waffle on about this stuff, I really love it and any excuse! Did a hauntology talk for my Kent students last week :-)
This looks great, thanks for the recommendation! I will in turn suggest m.imdb.com/title/tt5516... which is adapted from the stage play and is an excellent exploration of what it means to be haunted.
Ghost Stories (2017) ⭐ 6.4 | Drama, Horror, Mystery
1h 38m | Not Rated
m.imdb.com
November 15, 2025 at 10:42 AM
This looks great, thanks for the recommendation! I will in turn suggest m.imdb.com/title/tt5516... which is adapted from the stage play and is an excellent exploration of what it means to be haunted.
>> There's also evidence to suggest that the presence of infrasound (often caused by traffic/structural phenomena) can cause hallucinations. Maybe animals get this, too?
November 15, 2025 at 10:39 AM
>> There's also evidence to suggest that the presence of infrasound (often caused by traffic/structural phenomena) can cause hallucinations. Maybe animals get this, too?
>> and the humans place an eerie interpretation on something that really isn't?
There's plenty of parapsychological research that shows once we are on alert for creepy things we are quick to assign that meaning to everyday occurrences. >>
There's plenty of parapsychological research that shows once we are on alert for creepy things we are quick to assign that meaning to everyday occurrences. >>
November 15, 2025 at 10:39 AM
>> and the humans place an eerie interpretation on something that really isn't?
There's plenty of parapsychological research that shows once we are on alert for creepy things we are quick to assign that meaning to everyday occurrences. >>
There's plenty of parapsychological research that shows once we are on alert for creepy things we are quick to assign that meaning to everyday occurrences. >>
Maybe! There's many, many tales of dogs particularly being able to somehow sense the presence of something strange before humans can. Or is it that the humans are already primed and on edge and the dog hears something perfectly ordinary a few streets away, raises the alarm >>
November 15, 2025 at 10:39 AM
Maybe! There's many, many tales of dogs particularly being able to somehow sense the presence of something strange before humans can. Or is it that the humans are already primed and on edge and the dog hears something perfectly ordinary a few streets away, raises the alarm >>
BSky has unhelpfully scrambled the order of my answers. I hope they kind of make sense.
The more I study the subject the more I realise ghosts are not about the deceased. A ghost is an idea, a thought, a trauma, an ideology that cannot or will not be laid to rest.
But also, ghost stories are ace
The more I study the subject the more I realise ghosts are not about the deceased. A ghost is an idea, a thought, a trauma, an ideology that cannot or will not be laid to rest.
But also, ghost stories are ace
November 15, 2025 at 12:32 AM
BSky has unhelpfully scrambled the order of my answers. I hope they kind of make sense.
The more I study the subject the more I realise ghosts are not about the deceased. A ghost is an idea, a thought, a trauma, an ideology that cannot or will not be laid to rest.
But also, ghost stories are ace
The more I study the subject the more I realise ghosts are not about the deceased. A ghost is an idea, a thought, a trauma, an ideology that cannot or will not be laid to rest.
But also, ghost stories are ace
And also this, which is brilliant, and is an excellent overview of hauntings from a nostalgic, political, capitalist and literature point of view, drawing all the threads together. It makes the point that hauntings and Freudian psychoanalysis are closely entwined.
November 15, 2025 at 12:27 AM
And also this, which is brilliant, and is an excellent overview of hauntings from a nostalgic, political, capitalist and literature point of view, drawing all the threads together. It makes the point that hauntings and Freudian psychoanalysis are closely entwined.
Can I thoroughly recommend this? It's the book that really illuminated the subject for me, making the observation that ghosts are coloured by sociocultural influences, folklore, and expectation, suggesting their tangibility is unlikely. And yet we still see them. @skionar.bsky.social is the author.
November 15, 2025 at 12:22 AM
Can I thoroughly recommend this? It's the book that really illuminated the subject for me, making the observation that ghosts are coloured by sociocultural influences, folklore, and expectation, suggesting their tangibility is unlikely. And yet we still see them. @skionar.bsky.social is the author.
Brilliant screenwriter Nigel Kneale wrote The Stone Tape in 1972 which suggests that the traumas of past spirits imprint on the geology around them. It's excellent and I think on YouTube still.
But maybe they fade as people forget the folklore around particular places and goings on, really
But maybe they fade as people forget the folklore around particular places and goings on, really
November 15, 2025 at 12:12 AM
Brilliant screenwriter Nigel Kneale wrote The Stone Tape in 1972 which suggests that the traumas of past spirits imprint on the geology around them. It's excellent and I think on YouTube still.
But maybe they fade as people forget the folklore around particular places and goings on, really
But maybe they fade as people forget the folklore around particular places and goings on, really
Another theory is that when a ghost is seen it is a timeslip where past reality temporally displaces into now (there's a very famous purported case of this at the Palace of Versailles). If this is indeed the case, what are the affected historical people experiencing?
November 15, 2025 at 12:10 AM
Another theory is that when a ghost is seen it is a timeslip where past reality temporally displaces into now (there's a very famous purported case of this at the Palace of Versailles). If this is indeed the case, what are the affected historical people experiencing?
But they are not conscious as such. A good summary might be that they display 'intent without mind'. Can something without consciousness perceive other beings?
November 15, 2025 at 12:07 AM
But they are not conscious as such. A good summary might be that they display 'intent without mind'. Can something without consciousness perceive other beings?
The question as to whether ghosts can see other ghosts is genuinely intriguing. Hauntings typically fall into a small number of categories, and the ones which might appear as perceivable apparitions are either replaying past trauma or attempting to warn of forthcoming disaster...
November 15, 2025 at 12:07 AM
The question as to whether ghosts can see other ghosts is genuinely intriguing. Hauntings typically fall into a small number of categories, and the ones which might appear as perceivable apparitions are either replaying past trauma or attempting to warn of forthcoming disaster...
Ghosts of horses, dogs and cats are reasonably common, the former particularly in a military context. Cats have witchy connotations and dogs loyalty - i.e., they are often invoked as ciphers for their stereotypes.
Very common for animals to become spooked in ghost stories and alert their humans.
Very common for animals to become spooked in ghost stories and alert their humans.
November 15, 2025 at 12:00 AM
Ghosts of horses, dogs and cats are reasonably common, the former particularly in a military context. Cats have witchy connotations and dogs loyalty - i.e., they are often invoked as ciphers for their stereotypes.
Very common for animals to become spooked in ghost stories and alert their humans.
Very common for animals to become spooked in ghost stories and alert their humans.
I've become a bit obsessed with ghost stories and the uncanny after a post midlife crisis revisiting of childhood interests. Turns out it's absolutely fascinating from an adult/serious/academic viewpoint. I'll outline some answers best I can but point you in the direction of some excellent books too
November 14, 2025 at 11:54 PM
I've become a bit obsessed with ghost stories and the uncanny after a post midlife crisis revisiting of childhood interests. Turns out it's absolutely fascinating from an adult/serious/academic viewpoint. I'll outline some answers best I can but point you in the direction of some excellent books too
Hellooooooo! Belowwwwww therrrre!
November 14, 2025 at 3:18 PM
Hellooooooo! Belowwwwww therrrre!