David Clarke Biography & Publications
Frequently
asked Questions
Do I believe
in UFOs?
People see
objects in the sky they can't identify, therefore there can be no
serious doubt that UFOs exist until they are identified (usually as
natural or man-made phenomena). As far as I'm aware no 'UFO' has ever
been identified as an alien spaceship; but this question frames my
interest in the subject. When I'm asked, as I frequently am,
particularly by the media, "do I believe in UFOs?" what
they actually mean is "Do I believe UFOs are alien
spaceships?" As Carl Sagan wrote in his Demon Haunted World:
"I'm always struck by how the question is phrased the suggestion
that this is a matter of belief and not evidence." To me this
incredibly strong belief - in visits by aliens - is a modern myth,
and myths of all shapes and sizes are what fascinate me.
My approach
to the subject of UFOs and UFOlogy is from the viewpoint of a
journalist and a historian. Although I take a sceptical stance, I
remain open-minded about the possibility that some "UFOs"
might have an exotic origin, most probably as UAPs - Unidentified
Atmospheric Phenomena. But I would need a lot more evidence than has
currently been brought to the table to convince me that aliens, as
opposed to human or natural phenomena, lie at the root of the UFO
phenomenon. My stance is similar to that of Carl Jung who in his book
Flying Saucers: A Modern Myth of Things Seen in the Skies
(1958) said: "..something is seen, but one doesn't know what."
The problem I
see it is not with UFOs, but with the practice of UFOlogy. There is
no agreed body of knowledge to work from, because all the 'evidence'
rests upon witness testimony. The 'best' reports have been so
poorly investigated that they are largely worthless. The field known
as UFOlogy is disorganized, chaotic and belief-driven. As such it is
never likely to be taken seriously by mainstream science, which is a
pity because there are aspects that could be usefully studied by both
social and physical scientists. On the one hand some of the most
intriguing UFO cases seem to involve novel 'new' phenomena such as
ball lightning, earthquake lights and plasmas, the study of which
could prove useful to meteorologists and atmospheric physicists. On
the other hand, social scientists and historians can study the UFO
movement itself and how the subject has evolved from the human
perspective, asking why people continue to believe, so emotionally,
in the extra-terrestrial or supernatural origin for UFOs despite a
complete lack of evidence.
Probably the
most relevant academic discipline of all to UFOlogy is contemporary
legend and folklore. To my way of thinking, the cultural factors
which influence people to 'believe' and to 'see' UFOs, and how those
stories are then passed on by word of mouth, the media and the
internet, leading to more belief, is the most fascinating aspect of
the subject. UFOs, in my view, tell us more about ourselves than they
do about 'alien visitors.'
What
are my qualifications?
I have
written seven books on different aspect of supernatural belief and
tradition - including volumes on UFOs, ghosts and angels. I teach
journalism at Sheffield Hallam University and folklore at Sheffield
University. My Ph.D in Folklore was taken at Sheffield's Centre for
English Cultural Tradition. My permanent employment is as a Lecturer
in Journalism and Public Relations in the Department of Media
Studies, Sheffield Hallam University. As a journalist, I have ten
years experience working on regional newspapers in northern England
including the Sheffield Star and the Yorkshire Post. I also have five
years experience working as a public relations officer in the civil
service. During the past fifteen years have published widely as
freelance journalist and author. I am a regular contributor to
the BBC History Magazine and The Fortean Times where I write a
monthly column with Andy Roberts, Flyingsaucery.
Alongside
journalism I have contributed to a range of radio and television
productions dealing with folklore and unexplained phenomena including
a radio series, Britain's X-Files, for BBC Radio 4 in 2003-4 and a TV
documentary for the BBC's Timewatch series, Britain's X-Files
(January 2004). I have also contributed to numerous TV and radio
productions on strange phenomena including: LWT 'Strange But True' (2
series); BBC Mysteries; BBC Close Up North; Granada TV Origin
Unknown, Channel 4 Equinox, Four Winds Production, XYTV; Granada TV
"The Haunted Valley" (November 2000)
My
books include:
Flying Saucerers: A social history of UFOlogy, with Andy Roberts (Alternative Albion 2007) The Angel of Mons: London: John Wiley, 2004 Out of the Shadows: UFOs, The Establishment and the Official Cover up (with Andy Roberts) London: Piatkus, 2002 Supernatural Peak District, London: Robert Hale, 2000 The UFOs that Never Were (with J. Randles and A. Roberts) London: Allison & Busby, 1999 Twilight of the Celtic Gods (with A. Roberts)London: Cassell/Blandford Press, 1986. Ghosts and Legends of the Peak District, Norwich: Jarrold, 1992, 128 pp. Third edition, 2000. Phantoms of the Sky, UFOs: A Modern Myth? (with A. Roberts)London: Robert Hale, 1990In addition I have contributed articles and chapters to these books: UFOs 1947-87 (Fortean Times); Phenomenon (edited by John Spencer & Hilary Evans) Earthlights Revelation (Paul Devereux) Journal articles and edited collections include:
TNA Research Guide No 6: Unidentified Flying Objects. The National Archives, Kew, Surrey (2005) The Secret Search for Aliens,' BBC History Magazine Vol 6/8 (August 2005), pp.43-46 'Phantom helicopters: A rumor-generated visual epidemic,' Contemporary Legend new series 5 (2005), pp. 1-25. 'England's Black Helicopters,' in Robert E. Bartholomew and Benjamin Radford (editors), Hoaxes, Myths and Manias: Why we need critical thinking (New York: Prometheus, 2002). 'Rumours of Angels: A legend of the First World War,' Folklore, Vol 113/2 (2002), pp. 151-75. 'Scareships over Britain: the airship wave of 1909,' Fortean Studies, Vol 6 (1999), pp. 39-63. 'Heads and Tales: The Screaming Skull Legends of Britain' (with Andy Roberts), Fortean Studies, Vol 3 (1996), pp 126-59History of involvement in UFOlogy I became interested in UFOlogy after seeing Spielberg's movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind in 1978 when I was 12 years old. I joined BUFORA in 1980 and was accredited as an investigator in 1985. I was a BUFORA council member from 1988-1991 and press officer in 1997-98. I was a founder member of the IUN (Independent UFO Network, 1987-1994), which published UFO Brigantia, and a founder member of the UFO Investigators Network (UFOIN in 1998). In 1987 I was instrumental in establishing Project Pennine (a UK version of Project Hessdalen), which contributed to the research by Paul Devereux and Paul McCartney which appeared in Earthlights Revelation (London, 1989). I served on the board for the European Journal of UFO and Abduction Studies (1999-2003) and am currently a member of the EuroUFONet "a virtual community of scientifically-oriented UFOlogists in Europe." Folklore BA (Hons) Archaeology and Medieval History at Sheffield University (graduated 1990) Ph.D in English Cultural Tradition and Language, University of Sheffield (1999): The cult of the human head in British tradition and folklore. I hold a Honorary Research Fellowship in the National Centre for English Cultural Tradition and Language, University of Sheffield, where I teach CEC3001 Traditions of Supernatural Belief and CEC201 Urban Legends, undergraduate modules in the School of English. My specialist areas of research interest are:
- contemporary legend and belief: specifically 'space age' folklore (conspiracy theories,'flying saucer' and UFO beliefs);
- rumour transmission and rumour-panics within a supernatural context;
- The interface between archaeology, oral tradition and belief;
- custom and belief, specifically in the context of northern England and the Peak District
The Isle is Full of Noises (Celtic survivals in Britain) - consultant BBC 1 Everyman, 1 November 1992 The Haunted By-Pass (Stocksbridge Bypass Ghosts) - consultant ITV Strange But True, 2 December 1994 The Haunted By-Pass - (Stocksbridge ghosts) - consultant Discovery Channel, 1995 The Mystery of Dark Peak (Peak District earthlights) ITV Strange But True, 1 November 1996 Identified Flying Objects (Earthlights) - consultant Channel 4 Equinox, 3 November 1996 Ghost Fliers (Phantom Aircraft) - consultant ITV Strange But True, 1997 Howden Moor incident BBC1 Mysteries, October 1997 Howden Moor UFO Granada TV Origin Unknown, 1998 The Northern Lights (UFOs over Yorkshire) BBC2 North, 28 January 1999 The Haunted Valley (Peak District earthlights) BBC2 Close Up North, 2 November 2000 Britain's X-Files (The Flying Saucer Working Party) BBC Radio 4, 25 April 2002 http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/science/xfiles.shtml Britain's UFO Hunters (Flying Saucer Working Party and Ministry of Defence files) Discovery Channel, 24 July 2002 Scream Team: The Curse of the Crying Boy (Urban Legends) Living TV/ftn, 15 October 2002 Britain's Closest Encounter (Rendlesham Forest incident) BBC4, 6 March 2003 The New X-Files (Rendlesham incident/Berwyn Mountains case) BBC Radio 4, 3 November 2003 http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/science/xfiles.shtml Britain's X-Files - consultant BBC 2 Timewatch, 9 January 2004 Richard & Judy Channel 4, 9 January 2004 Danny Wallace's Conspiracies: UFOs Sky 1, 26 October 2005 The Condign Report on UFOs BBC News, 7 May 2006 Stranger than Fiction: The British UFO Mystery Five, 1 November 2006Index