CFZ Press Releases

DEVON GATHERING IS WORLD’S WEIRDEST!

2011-07-28T10:16:00.000-07:00

For one weekend a year the tiny North Devon village of Woolsery becomes the weirdest village in the land. The largest gathering of scholars of esoteric natural history in the English-speaking world, is set to take place in rural north Devon. The Centre for Fortean Zoology’s annual conference, the Weird Weekend, will see speakers from all over the country gathering Woolsery to discuss their work and discoveries.

The Weird Weekend,held over the weekend of the 19-21st August, now in its 12 year is the largest convention of its kind. This year’s speakers include one of the world’s leading geneticists Professor Bryan Sykes. Professor Sykes will be speaking on the yeti and samples of hair he has tested. Continuing the theme, cryptozoologist Richard Freeman will be talking about the Centre for Fortean Zoology’s latest expedition that took them into the Garo Hills of northern India on the track of the yeti.

Last year at the convention scientists announced that hairs found in local woodland were those of a leopard. These findings were later confirmed by DNA analysis. A world exclusive this year comes from Dr Darren Naish from Portsmouth University and Max Blake from Bristol University who will produce conclusive proof that over 100 years ago there were still mystery cats in Devon.

Other speakers include Fortean researcher Matt Salusbury who has been on the track of pigmy elephants in India, entomologist Nick Wadham on giant spiders, cryptozoologist Adam Davies on the orang-pendek, the mystery ape of Sumatra, and Glen Vaudrey on the waterhorse, a sea serpent from Scottish legend.

As well as monstrous creatures, other esoteric subjects are covered. Former police officer John Hanson describes UFO cases reaching back to the 1940s.

Other subjects include Ronan Coghlan on the labours of Hercules, and Henry Hartley on Fortean aspects of the modern Mayans.

As well as a series of talks there will be stalls, workshops and events.

The Weird Weekend raises funds for village charities dealing with children and for the Centre for Fortean Zoology, the only full time organization in the world dedicated to the investigation of mystery animals.

The Weird Weekend takes place from 19th-21st of August.
For further details visit http://www.weirdweekend.org/
Or ring 01237 431413

NOTES TO EDITORS

* The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] is the world’s largest mystery animal research organisation. It was founded in 1992 by British author Jonathan Downes (52) and is a company limited by guarantee registered with HM Government.
* Life-president of the CFZ is Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his groundbreaking youth work organising the ‘Operation Drake’ and ‘Operation Raleigh’ expeditions in the 1970s and 1980s.
* CFZ Director Jonathan Downes is the author and/or editor of over 20 books. His latest book is Island of Paradise, his first hand account of two expeditions to the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico in search of the grotesque vampiric chupacabra.
* The CFZ have carried out expeditions across the world including India, Russia, Sumatra, Mongolia, Guyana, Gambia, Texas, Mexico, Thailand, Puerto Rico, Illinois, Loch Ness, and Loch Morar.
* CFZ Press are the world’s largest publishers of books on mystery animals. They also publish Animals & Men, the world’s only cryptozoology magazine, and The Amateur Naturalist, Britain’s only dedicated magazine on the subject.
* The CFZ produce their own full-length documentaries through their media division called CFZtv. One of their films `Lair of the Red Worm` which was released in early 2007 and documents their 2005 Mongolia expedition has now been seen by nearly 90,000 people.
* The CFZ is based in Jon Downes’ old family home in rural North Devon which he shares with his wife Corinna (55). It is also home to various members of the CFZ’s permanent directorate and a collection of exotic animals.
* Jonathan Downes presents a monthly web TV show called On the Track which covers cryptozoology and work of the CFZ.
* Following their successful partnership with Capcom www.capcom.com on the 2007 Guyana expedition, the CFZ are looking for more commercial sponsors.

JAPANESE MONSTER BOOK TURNS THE WEIRDOMETER UP TO ‘11’.

2010-07-19T03:30:00.001-07:00

Sick of werewolves, tired of zombies, will you scream if you read ay more about vampires? Well Richard Freeman’s new book ‘The Great Yokai Encyclopaedia; An A to Z of Japanese Monsters’ is the perfect antidote. No one could accuse Japanese folklore or Japanese monsters of being run of the mill.

With early public literacy, access to the printing press and hundreds of years of Shinto, Buddhist, and Taoist cultural cross pollinations, the stage is said for some truly insane legendary beasts that make the creations of H.P.Lovecraft look as wholesome as the Care Bears.

Collectively known as Yokai, the ghosts and monsters from the Land of the Rising Sun are so strange that to a western mind they are like having a mental enema. The book lists a cavalcade of the weirdest monsters in the world. Gant man eating sea cucumbers that grow from girl's knickers, pervert water goblins, grave robbing giant rabbits, dragons that impregnate women, flaming pigs that steal human genitals, monsters that eat your hair, monsters that lick the ceiling, monsters that lick poorly kept public toilets, cats that animate dead bodies, dogs with shape shifting testicles, blood sucking weasels and un-dead whales, it's all in here and much, much more!
Were did they come from? Why did people believe in them? Why are they so damn strange? Cold any of them have a distorted basis in reality? Could some of them still exist today?

‘The Great Yokai Encyclopaedia; An A to Z of Japanese Monsters’ is available from CFZ Books at www.cfz.org.uk
Richard Freeman is available for interview.

EXPEDITION TO TEXAS IN SEARCH OF STRANGE DOGS

2010-03-03T14:37:00.000-08:00

For Immediate release
4th March 2010

The earliest animal recognisable as the ancestor of modern dogs, foxes and wolves was Prohesperocyon which evolved in southern Texas about 40 Million years ago. Other species followed, and Texas can rightly be called "The Cradle of Dogs". Now, in the early 21st Century there are strange new dogs around in the Lone Star State.
Jonathan Downes (50) and his wife Corinna (53), the Director and Administrator of the UK-based Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ], the world's largest mystery animal research organisation, fly to Texas on Friday. Together with their friends and colleagues Richie and Naomi West who very generously financed the expedition, they will spend two weeks continuing the research into the Texas blue dogs, first carried out by Jonathan Downes in November 2004.

When the first acounts of blue, hairless dogs from Texas first began to filter into the cryptozoological community back in the summer of 2004 they were widely dismissed by cryptopundits as being of mangy coyotes. The CFZ was never happy with that explanation, basically because according to the testimony of every veterinary expert whom we consulted, if an animal was as riddled with mange (or any similar condition) as to be completely hairless, then it would be so ill as to hardly be able to walk, let alone run around, attack chickens or sire progeny (which - by all accounts - are as hairless and blue as the adults).

Some pundits, especially in Texas have described them as "chupacabras". This Spanish term meaning - literally - 'goat sucker', was coined on the island of Puerto Rico (subject of two expeditions by the CFZ) in the mid 1990s to describe a hairless, semi bipedal animal with spikes down its back, suspected of being responsible for the vampiric deaths of domestic livestock across the island. "The Texas blue dogs have nothing to do with the chupacabras" says Jonathan, who has written two books about the Puerto Rican enigma. "They are clearly members of the dog family, but they are something that deserves a proper scientific investigation".

Jonathan visited Texas in November 2004, and has been continuing the investigation at long distance ever since. He believes that the explanation for these creatures is a complicated one, but one which will very much repay the effort the CFZ will be putting in. There is a dedicated blog for this expedition which will be updated daily. It can be found at http://texasbluedogs.blogspot.com/

Watch this space!

Jon and Corinna are available for interview. Pictures are available.
For further details (UK) telephone Graham or Oll on 01237 431413 or (US) Naomi on 254-238-1909

NOTES TO EDITORS

* The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] is the world’s largest mystery animal research organisation. It was founded in 1992 by British author Jonathan Downes and is a non-profit making (not for profit) organisation registered with H.M. Stamp Office.
* The Texas expedition is being filmed by London-based Minnow films for a major BBC2 feature documentary on the CFZ
* Life-president of the CFZ is Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his groundbreaking youth work organising the ‘Operation Drake’ and ‘Operation Raleigh’ expeditions in the 1970s and 1980s.
* CFZ Director Jonathan Downes is the author and/or editor of over 20 books. His latest book is Island of Paradise, his first hand account of two expeditions to the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico in search of the grotesque vampiric chupacabra.
* The CFZ have carried out expeditions across the world including Russia, Ireland, Sumatra, Mongolia, Guyana, Gambia, Texas, Mexico, Thailand, Puerto Rico, Illinois, Loch Ness, and Loch Morar.
* CFZ Press are the world’s largest publishers of books on mystery animals. They also publish Animals & Men, the world’s only cryptozoology magazine, and The Amateur Naturalist, Britain’s only dedicated magazine on the subject.
* The CFZ produce their own full-length documentaries through their media division called CFZtv www.cfztv.org. One of their films Lair of the Red Worm which was released in early 2007 and documents their 2005 Mongolia expedition has now been seen by nearly 82,000 people.
* The CFZ is based in Jon Downes’ old family home in rural North Devon which he shares with his wife Corinna (53). It is also home to various members of the CFZ’s permanent directorate and a collection of exotic animals.
* Jonathan Downes presents a monthly web TV show called On the Track (available through YouTube) which covers cryptozoology and work of the CFZ.
* The CFZ are opening a Visitor Centre and Museum in Woolsery, North Devon.
* Following their successful partnership with Capcom http://www.capcom.com/ on the 2007 Guyana expedition, the CFZ are looking for more commercial sponsors.

22-08-2009 Baby fish in a haunted pub

2009-12-27T09:35:00.000-08:00

SATURDAY, AUGUST 22, 2009
BABY FISH IN A HAUNTED PUB

PRESS RELEASE:

The landlord of a haunted North Devon pub awoke this morning to find 1,000 extra fish in a tank donated to him by the Centre for Fortean Zoology (CFZ), the world’s largest mystery animal research organisation.

Allan Lindsay, of the Farmers Arms, Woolsery, has been working with the CFZ’s Jon Downes on a special project to breed fish with a view to placing tanks in local educational establishments, schools and community centres, to illustrate biodiversity and the work of the CFZ. Last night Lindsay’s daughter, Clarissa, aged 11, noticed massive numbers of baby three spot gourami (originally from the streams and ponds of southeast Asia) in one of the new fish tanks located in her dad’s pub. Earlier this year the pub made headlines across the world after a series of poltergeist incidents involving the landlady and some teenage waitresses which followed the uncovering of an ancient well right in the middle of the building. But on this occasion it is fish experts, not ghost hunters, making a beeline towards the Farmers Arms.

“This is the fourth successful breeding we have witnessed this summer,” said Mr Downes. “This is excellent news as it means that we will be able to press ahead with our initiative to help local people and also to gain better, more expert knowledge. Already we have been able to place two tanks in the Farmers Arms and we are working with a local hospice to provide fish tanks as soon as possible,” he added.

Other species successfully bred include such unusual fish as Heterandaria formosa (the seventh smallest species in the world), and Girardinus metallicus (found only on the island of Cuba). The fish tank initiative is part of the CFZ’s outreach project, whose aim is to educate local people about the wonders of the natural world. At the recent Weird Weekend, the annual conference of the CFZ, held at Woolsery Community Centre, hundreds of people came along to hear a series of talks on mystery animals, rare species and the paranormal. “It is a great feeling to be able to engage with the local community, give them the benefit of our expert knowledge and help people understand more about the world around them,” said Jon Downes, who celebrates his fiftieth birthday this weekend.

“We welcome enquiries from local establishments interested in finding out more about the fish tanks or about our outreach for schools.”

NOTES TO EDITORS

* The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] is the world’s largest mystery animal research organisation. It was founded in 1992 by British author Jonathan Downes and is a non-profit making (not for profit) organisation registered with H.M. Stamp Office.
* Life-president of the CFZ is Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his groundbreaking youth work organising the ‘Operation Drake’ and ‘Operation Raleigh’ expeditions in the 1970s and 1980s.
* CFZ Director Jonathan Downes is the author and/or editor of over 20 books. His latest book is Island of Paradise, his first hand account of two expeditions to the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico in search of the grotesque vampiric chupacabra.
* The CFZ have carried out expeditions across the world including Russia, Sumatra, Mongolia, Guyana, Gambia, Texas, Mexico, Thailand, Puerto Rico, Illinois, Loch Ness, and Loch Morar.
* CFZ Press are the world’s largest publishers of books on mystery animals. They also publish Animals & Men, the world’s only cryptozoology magazine, and The Amateur Naturalist, Britain’s only dedicated magazine on the subject.
* The CFZ produce their own full-length documentaries through their media division called CFZtv www.cfztv.org. One of their films `Lair of the Red Worm` which was released in early 2007 and documents their 2005 Mongolia expedition has now been seen by nearly 50,000 people.
* The CFZ is based in Jon Downes’ old family home in rural North Devon which he shares with his wife Corinna (52). It is also home to various members of the CFZ’s permanent directorate and a collection of exotic animals.
* Jonathan Downes presents a monthly web TV show called On the Track (http://cfzmonthly.blogspot.com/) which covers cryptozoology and work of the CFZ.
* The CFZ are opening a Visitor Centre and Museum in Woolsery, North Devon.
* Following their successful partnership with Capcom www.capcom.com on the 2007 Guyana expedition, the CFZ are looking for more commercial sponsors.

19-05-2009 Weird Weekend

2009-12-27T09:31:00.000-08:00

TUESDAY, MAY 19, 2009
PRESS RELEASE: 2009 Weird Weekend

Once again, this August, the tiny North Devon village of Woolfardisworthy becomes the weirdest place in the land, as people from all over the world converge upon the Community Centre for the tenth annual Weird Weekend.

The Weird Weekend is the world-famous annual fundraiser for the Devon based Centre for Fortean Zoology – the world’s largest mystery animal research group, and is three days of fun for all the family. There are lectures, films, music and theatre, and the world’s leading experts on a whole range of mysteries.

Highlights this year include:

TIM THE YOWIE MAN
An Australian naturalist who has spent his life researching the yowie – Australia’s version of the yeti. He even changed his name by deed poll.
NICK REDFERN
An English author now living in Dallas who has uncovered one of the strangest stories of post war USSR: That Stalin hoped to breed a race of super soldiers who were part human, part gorilla.
ANDY ROBERTS
A much-respected UK investigator tells the strange story of the Big Grey Man of Ben McDhui – a mountain in The Cairngorms

But the Weird Weekend does not just provide a forum for well-established researchers to present their research. MAX BLAKE (18) will be making his conference debut this year with a fascinating account of how creatures unknown to science can turn up in the pet trade. What’s more he will be bringing some of these animals along with him.

There is also a whole programme of events for children; something which makes this event unique. “Unlike other conferences on these subjects,” says organiser Jonathan Downes, who celebrates his 50th birthday the same week as the event, “the Weird Weekend is aimed at the whole family, and at the general public as well as the specialist researcher.”

“The Weird Weekend has become a real community event over the past few years,” he continues. “Last year the eldest person through the door was 87, and the youngest only 2.”

It is not just a fundraiser for the CFZ. Local charities also benefit, and it is a showcase for several environmental and animal welfare groups.

The Weird Weekend takes place from 14-16th August 2009, and advance weekend tickets are on sale at £20. For more details telephone Jon or Corinna on 01237 431413

NOTES TO EDITORS

* The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] is the world’s largest mystery animal research organisation. It was founded in 1992 by British author Jonathan Downes and is a non-profit making (not for profit) organisation registered with H.M. Stamp Office.
* Life-president of the CFZ is Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his groundbreaking youth work organising the ‘Operation Drake’ and ‘Operation Raleigh’ expeditions in the 1970s and 1980s.
* CFZ Director Jonathan Downes is the author and/or editor of over 20 books. His latest book is Island of Paradise, his first hand account of two expeditions to the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico in search of the grotesque vampiric chupacabra.
* The CFZ have carried out expeditions across the world including Russia, Sumatra, Mongolia, Guyana, Gambia, Texas, Mexico, Thailand, Puerto Rico, Illinois, Loch Ness, and Loch Morar.
* CFZ Press are the world’s largest publishers of books on mystery animals. They also publish Animals & Men, the world’s only cryptozoology magazine, and The Amateur Naturalist, Britain’s only dedicated magazine on the subject.
* The CFZ produce their own full-length documentaries through their media division called CFZtv www.cfztv.org. One of their films `Lair of the Red Worm` which was released in early 2007 and documents their 2005 Mongolia expedition has now been seen by nearly 50,000 people.
* The CFZ is based in Jon Downes’ old family home in rural North Devon which he shares with his wife Corinna (52). It is also home to various members of the CFZ’s permanent directorate and a collection of exotic animals.
* Jonathan Downes presents a monthly web TV show called On the Track (http://cfzmonthly.blogspot.com/) which covers cryptozoology and work of the CFZ.
* The CFZ are opening a Visitor Centre and Museum in Woolsery, North Devon.
* Following their successful partnership with Capcom www.capcom.com on the 2007 Guyana expedition, the CFZ are looking for more commercial sponsors

08-02-2009 Do giant snakes still crawl the earth?

2009-12-27T09:29:00.000-08:00

PRESS RELEASE: Do Giant Snakes still crawl the earth?
For Immediate Release
2009-02-08

DO GIANT SNAKES STILL CRAWL THE EARTH?

The scientific world was rocked recently when the remains of eight gigantic snakes were unearthed in a Columbian quarry. Measuring 43 feet, Titanoboa cerrejonensis was among the largest fossil snakes ever to have been uncovered. You might think such monsters must surely be restricted to the dim, primordial past – but you would be wrong, say a group of Devon-based scientists.

The Centre for Fortean Zoology is the world’s only full-time scientific organisation dedicated to the investigation of anomalous or undiscovered species of animal. The group has tracked gigantic serpents all across the globe.

Zoologial director Richard Freeman, a reptile specialist, says:

"Stories of monstrous snakes appear in most cultures, but there may be much more than ancient legend in these tales. In the year 2000, I explored the rivers, caves and jungles of Thailand. I interviwed a number of witnesses who claimed to have seen a huge snake, known as a naga. The animal lived in water and bore an erectile crest on its head. In Sumatra the tribespeople spoke of encountering vast horned snakes in the deep jungle.

“Such creatures are not restricted to the tropics. Whilst in the Caucausus mountains of Russia, we were told of a 33-foot-long species of snake that inhabited marshy areas of the former Soviet Union."

However the most promising accounts come from South America, says Richard.

"In 2007 we travelled to Guyana on the track of the giant anaconda. Our guide, Damon Corrie, was an Arawak Indian chief. He told us of a titanic anaconda inhabiting a remote lake. It was so huge that he hunters who saw it fled in terror. They pointed out a 30-foot tree to him and said the snake was far larger. The anaconda in question would have been in the region of 40 feet!

"Frustratingly, due to adverse weather conditions, we could not reach the lake where the giant snake dwelt. More recently, very large anaconda have been reported closer to Damon's village in the grasslands of Guyana."

The CFZ is currently looking for sponsorship, so that Richard can lead an expedition to return to Guyana and travel to the lake in question.

"We know where the lake is, so we will not have to search too wide an area. The creature is a 'sitting duck'. We hope to head out this spring or summer, funding permitting," he says.

"Because anacondas give birth to live young, rather than laying eggs, they have severed their last link with land. Very big ones spend most of their time buoyed up in the water."

But such large snakes can prove dangerous. As recently as the late 1990s, an anaconda thought to be 45 feet long devoured Daniel Menezes in Soa Paulo Brazil as his father Joao looked on helplessly.

Pictures are available. For further details, or to arrange an interview with Richard please telephone Jon or Corinna on +44 (0)1237 431413

NOTES TO EDITORS

* The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] is the world’s largest mystery animal research organisation. It was founded in 1992 by British author Jonathan Downes and is a non-profit making (not for profit) organisation registered with H.M. Stamp Office.
* Life-president of the CFZ is Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his groundbreaking youth work organising the ‘Operation Drake’ and ‘Operation Raleigh’ expeditions in the 1970s and 1980s.
* CFZ Director Jonathan Downes is the author and/or editor of over 20 books. His latest book is Island of Paradise, his first hand account of two expeditions to the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico in search of the grotesque vampiric chupacabra.
* The CFZ have carried out expeditions across the world including Russia, Sumatra, Mongolia, Guyana, Gambia, Texas, Mexico, Thailand, Puerto Rico, Illinois, Loch Ness, and Loch Morar.
* CFZ Press are the world’s largest publishers of books on mystery animals. They also publish Animals & Men, the world’s only cryptozoology magazine, and The Amateur Naturalist, Britain’s only dedicated magazine on the subject.
* The CFZ produce their own full-length documentaries through their media division called CFZtv www.cfztv.org. One of their films `Lair of the Red Worm` which was released in early 2007 and documents their 2005 Mongolia expedition has now been seen by nearly 50,000 people.
* The CFZ is based in Jon Downes’ old family home in rural North Devon which he shares with his wife Corinna (52). It is also home to various members of the CFZ’s permanent directorate and a collection of exotic animals.
* Jonathan Downes presents a monthly web TV show called On the Track (http://cfzmonthly.blogspot.com/) which covers cryptozoology and work of the CFZ.
* The CFZ are opening a Visitor Centre and Museum in Woolsery, North Devon.
* Following their successful partnership with Capcom www.capcom.com on the 2007 Guyana expedition, the CFZ are looking for more commercial sponsors.

09-01-2009 It was us! We did it

2009-12-27T09:24:00.000-08:00

Bloody hell, The Sun says we have stolen the skull....
For immediate release
9th January 2009
It was us! We did it....

The saga of the mysterious cadaver of Croyde Beach in sunny North Devon trundles on., According to today's papers, "Last night, in a further twist, police reported the beast’s skull STOLEN." Well it hasn't been... we've got it! Because of the possibility that this corpse might conceivably be the body of only the second sealion ever to turn up on British waters, we were concerned that a specimen of potential scientific importance would be removed by the environmental health department, or chewed up by a badger, fox, or dog, and unilaterally decided that we should try our best to preserve it for posterity.

The beach is actually owned by a holiday camp, which in turn is owned by a firm based in Newcastle. We were unable to get all of anybody at the holiday camp, because it's the middle of the winter, and nobody in their right minds would be on holiday in North Devon at this time of year. So, determined - as always - to be good law-abiding citizens, we telephoned the parent company. Nobody in the management department was available to speak to us, but we spoke to a delightful young lady called Gemma who told us that she was sure that nobody from a major holiday network would actually want the suppurating carcass remains of an unfortunately deceased pinniped, but nevertheless agreed to log my call and be witness to the fact that neither I, or anyone else at the CFZ has any intention of permanently depriving Parkdean holidays of part of a dead seal, and that if they want the shull and/or rear flipper back they only have to ask. Gemma thought that this was all terribly exciting, and rather amusing. She wished us luck, and our call ended.

After reading today's papers, CFZ Director Jon Downes (49) telephoned Braunton Police Station, and spoke to the Duty Officer, telling him the state of affairs, and explaining that the missing skull and flipper are at present in a bucket of formalin at the offices of the CFZ (the world's largest mystery animal research group). Disappointingly for his street cred, he was told that an immediate arrest was highly unlikely, and that the Police were merely happy that the cadaver was "in the hands of the professionals". On hearing this, Corinna Downes (52), Jon's wife, and administrator of the CFZ stopped making the placards reading "Free the CFZ Three" and went back to her normal activities.

There are still two mysteries to be solved.

Today's newspapers said that "Some locals suggested it could be a seal, but The Marine Conservation Society and the National Seal Sanctuary both stated it was not." We telephoned both organisations, who stated categorically that not only was the corpse that of a seal, but that they had always said as much to each reporter who had interviewed them. Someone has got the wrong end of the stick at some point during this mildly amusing saga.

The second mystery of course, as we said in an earlier press release, is to establish the precise identity of the creature. Whilst it is almost certain that is a grey seal, there is the outside possibility that it could be something more exciting. One of the experts who first viewed of the photographs suggested that it looked like the skull of a sealion. There are seven species in the world, but with the exception of one species found on the coast of Argentina, all sealions are restricted to the Pacific Ocean. However, in the 1980s a Steller's sealion turned up on the Brisons - two tiny islets, a mile out to sea from the west coast of Cornwall. No one knew how it got there, and - as far as we know - it may still be there today. So, the mysterious cadaver of Croyde might just be only the second sealion ever to grace these shores.

Totally coincidentally, this weekend sees the CFZ annual general meeting, and experts from across the country will be coming to Jon and Corinna's house to discuss the next years activities. Tomorrow afternoon, experts will be examining the skull and other samples, and we will hopefully have a conclusive answer. So, although it certainly isn't anything to do with the beast of Exmoor, it might just be only the second sealion ever to grace these shores.

Jon Downes will be appearing at London's Royal Academy on Saturday the 17th of January, and he will make a public announcement to finally wrap the affair up, once and for all.

JON DOWNES IS AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEW, AND PICTURES OF THE CORPSE AND ALL THE PEOPLE INVOLVED ARE AVAILABLE. PLEASE TELEPHONE JON OR CORINNA ON 01237 431413

NOTES TO EDITORS

* The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] is the world’s largest mystery animal research organisation. It was founded in 1992 by British author Jonathan Downes and is a non-profit making (not for profit) organisation registered with H.M. Stamp Office.
* Life-president of the CFZ is Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his groundbreaking youth work organising the ‘Operation Drake’ and ‘Operation Raleigh’ expeditions in the 1970s and 1980s.
* CFZ Director Jonathan Downes is the author and/or editor of over 20 books. Island of Paradise, his first hand account of two expeditions to the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico in search of the grotesque vampiric chupacabra, will be published in the next few weeks.
* The CFZ have carried out expeditions across the world including Russia, Sumatra, Mongolia, Guyana, Gambia, Texas, Mexico, Thailand, Puerto Rico, Illinois, Loch Ness, and Loch Morar.
* CFZ Press are the world’s largest publishers of books on mystery animals. They also publish Animals & Men, the world’s only cryptozoology magazine, and Exotic Pets, Britain’s only dedicated magazine on the subject.
* The CFZ produce their own full-length documentaries through their media division called CFZtv www.cfztv.org. One of their films `Lair of the Red Worm` which was released in early 2007 and documents their 2005 Mongolia expedition has now been seen by nearly 50,000 people.
* The CFZ is based in Jon Downes’ old family home in rural North Devon which he shares with his wife Corinna (52). It is also home to various members of the CFZ’s permanent directorate and a collection of exotic animals.
* Jonathan Downes presents a monthly web TV show called On the Track (http://cfzmonthly.blogspot.com/) which covers cryptozoology and work of the CFZ.
* The CFZ are opening a Visitor Centre and Museum in Woolsery, North Devon.
* Following their successful partnership with Capcom www.capcom.com on the 2007 Guyana expedition, the CFZ are looking for more commercial sponsors.

09-01-2009 Mystery skull on North Devon beach

2009-12-27T09:21:00.000-08:00

WHAT A WAY TO START 2009
For immediate release
9th January 2009

Mystery skull on North Devon beach

Well it's a beast. It was found fairly near Exmoor. But is it the beast of Exmoor? Of course not. It has flippers for one thing.

Two nights ago a carcass was washed up on Croyde Beach in North Devon. The Centre for Fortean Zoology, [CFZ], were informed, and they sent a three-man team of investigators - Graham Inglis (52), deputy director, Oll Lewis (28), ecologist, and Matthew Osborne (28), one time Bideford town councillor, trainee Methodist lay preacher, and all round good egg - to find out what the fuss was about. The CFZ are the world's largest mystery animal research organisation, and they happen to be based less than 30 miles from where the mysterious carcass was washed up.

Various newspapers and media pundits have claimed that what was washed up was the cadaver of the beast of Exmoor - the notorious big black cat which for decades has been selling newspapers and killing sheep with equal abandon. From the photographs we had been e-mailed, it was pretty obvious that this was nonsense, that the CFZ would not be doing their job properly if they just took a cursory look at the photograph on their computers, before dismissing the matter from their minds.

The body was about 5 ft long, and - according to the team - reeked to high heaven. It was obviously a member of the seal family, and is almost certainly the remains of an unfortunate grey seal (Halichoerus grypus), which is a fairly common resident of the wilder parts of the Bristol Channel. However, there is an outside possibility that it could be something more exciting. One of the experts who first viewed of the photographs suggested that it looked like the skull of a sealion. There are seven species in the world, but with the exception of one species found on the coast of Argentina, all sealions are restricted to the Pacific Ocean. However, in the 1980s a Steller's sealion turned up on the Brisons - two tiny islets, a mile out to sea from the west coast of Cornwall. No one knew how it got there, and - as far as we know - it may still be there today.

Experts will be examining the skull and other samples over the next few days, and will hopefully have a conclusive answer. So, although it certainly isn't anything to do with the beast of Exmoor, it might just be only the second sealion ever to grace these shores.

Watch this space.

NOTES TO EDITORS

* The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] is the world’s largest mystery animal research organisation. It was founded in 1992 by British author Jonathan Downes and is a non-profit making (not for profit) organisation registered with H.M. Stamp Office.
* Life-president of the CFZ is Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his groundbreaking youth work organising the ‘Operation Drake’ and ‘Operation Raleigh’ expeditions in the 1970s and 1980s.
* CFZ Director Jonathan Downes is the author and/or editor of over 20 books. Island of Paradise, his first hand account of two expeditions to the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico in search of the grotesque vampiric chupacabra, will be published in the next few weeks.
* The CFZ have carried out expeditions across the world including Russia, Sumatra, Mongolia, Guyana, Gambia, Texas, Mexico, Thailand, Puerto Rico, Illinois, Loch Ness, and Loch Morar.
* CFZ Press are the world’s largest publishers of books on mystery animals. They also publish Animals & Men, the world’s only cryptozoology magazine, and Exotic Pets, Britain’s only dedicated magazine on the subject.
* The CFZ produce their own full-length documentaries through their media division called CFZtv www.cfztv.org. One of their films `Lair of the Red Worm` which was released in early 2007 and documents their 2005 Mongolia expedition has now been seen by nearly 50,000 people.
* The CFZ is based in Jon Downes’ old family home in rural North Devon which he shares with his wife Corinna (52). It is also home to various members of the CFZ’s permanent directorate and a collection of exotic animals.
* Jonathan Downes presents a monthly web TV show called On the Track (http://cfzmonthly.blogspot.com/) which covers cryptozoology and work of the CFZ.
* The CFZ are opening a Visitor Centre and Museum in Woolsery, North Devon.
* Following their successful partnership with Capcom www.capcom.com on the 2007 Guyana expedition, the CFZ are looking for more commercial sponsors.

29-07-2008 Scientists hunting apemen return from Russian to headline UK conference

2009-12-27T08:39:00.000-08:00

For immediate release:
2008-07-29
SCIENTISTS HUNTING APEMEN RETURN FROM RUSSIA TO HEADLINE UK CONFERENCE

A team of British scientists have returned from a three-week expedition to the Caucasus Mountains in Russia with what may be evidence of a creature closely related to man. The five man team from the Centre for Fortean Zoology teamed up with Russian and Ukrainian scientists to hunt the almasty, a huge, hairy wildman said to inhabit parts of Russia and the former USSR.

Cryptozoologist Richard Freeman said "We found hair, dung and skull shards that may be from an almasty. These are going to be analysed by geneticists in order to establish if the DNA points to an unknown species."

Freeman, who nearly died no less than four times on the mountain adventure, says he and his colleague, the explorer Adam Davis, may have come within 12ft of an almasty whilst staking out an abandoned farm at 2.30 in the morning.

"We were in a room in the farmhouse with a door facing out on to the veranda. The 7ft high door was open a couple of inches and starlight was flooding through. We heard a deep, guttural vocalisation. A few seconds later something passed by the door blocking out the starlight to a height of at least 7ft. We grabbed our cameras and rushed out into the night, but whatever it was had vanished."

Richard and his team will be revealing their findings at the Centre for Fortean Zoology's annual conference, the Weird Weekend. Among the other firsts at the conference will be a new book launched by world renowned zoologist Dr Karl Shuker. Dr Shuker's Casebook examines a whole menagerie of bizarre and mysterious beasts from all over the planet.

The Weird Weekend is held in Woolsery, North Devon, from the 15th to the 17th August. More information can be gained on the Weird Weekend website at www.weirdweekend.org

This Year's Speakers:

The CFZ take no responsibility for disappointment caused by the non-appearance of any of the advertised speakers

MATTHEW WILLIAMS: Crop Circles
POLLYANNA PICKERING: Yeti skull in Bhutan
MIKE HALLOWELL: The Tyneside poltergeist
LEE WALKER: New Ferry after dark
JON DOWNES + RICHARD FREEMAN: An introduction to cryptozoology
JON DOWNES: The Owlman and Others
Dr MIKE DASH: In Search of Dr MacRae (Loch Ness)
MATT SALUSBURY: Water elephants of the Congo
TIM MATTHEWS: Weird stuff happens - my part in UFOlogy's downfall
RONAN COGHLAN: The theology of extra-terrestrials
BOOK LAUNCH: `Dr Shuker's Casebook` by Dr. Karl Shuker
RICHARD FREEMAN ET AL: Guyana 2007 Expedition report
GRAHAM INGLIS: CFZ Museum - annual report
PAUL VELLA - the last 12 months in BHM
OLL LEWIS: The last 12 months of lake and sea monster reports
CHRIS MOISER: Confessions of a fortean zookeeper
RICHARD FREEMAN ET AL: Russia 2008 Expedition report
MICHAEL WOODLEY: In the wake of Bernard Heuvelmans
Dr GAIL-NINA ANDERSON: Fairies in art
MIKE HALLOWELL: Invizikids - Childhood imaginary friends
GEOFF WARD: Spirals - the Pattern of Existence
RONAN COGHLAN: The Duncannon incident
JONATHAN DOWNES: Keynote Speech and Closing Remarks.

Exhibition: Nature art by Rebecca McGowan-Griffin
Exhibition: Wildlife photography by Benjiman Leese
Exhibition: Metamorphosis - exotic insects

There are also stalls, music, drama, films, and a full programme of entertainment for children.

Tickets are £20/adult in advance. Accompanied children under 15 free.

Buy tickets online:
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Weird-Weekend-2008-15-17-August_W0QQitemZ150210919807QQihZ\ 005QQcategoryZ88433QQcmdZViewItemQQ_trksidZp1742.m153.l1262

19-06-2008 Quest for a caveman

2009-12-27T08:36:00.000-08:00

For immediate release
2008-06-19
QUEST FOR A CAVEMAN

Man beasts and cave men in the 21st Century? Surely not. But a group of British explorers and scientists, backed by a renowned Geneticist from Oxford University, embark on an intrepid expedition into a war zone on Saturday, and they hope to come back with compelling evidence for the existence of such things.

The yeti is one of the most iconic mystery animals in the world. Even in the 21st Century when mankind likes to think that it has conquered all the wild places of the planet, this hulking, hairy man beast still rears its ancient head and intrigues zoologists and explorers alike.

Only this week, there has been news of a new yeti sighting in the remote West Garo hills of north-eastern India. Park ranger Dipu Marak described seeing "a black and grey ape-like animal which stands about 3m (nearly 10ft) tall". Recently Derbyshire based artist and conservationist Pollyanna Pickering hit the headlines when she released details of what appears, on the face of it, to be a specimen of a yeti scalp found in a remote monastery in Bhutan. The yeti appears to be an unknown species of ape, but sightings of such creatures, and perhaps more intriguingly, sightings of alleged primitive human-like creatures, which appear similar to the iconic Hollywood images of cave-men, still come in on a regular basis from around the world.

The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] in North Devon (the world's largest organisation which searches for unknown animal species) is launching a major new expedition this week. The five explorers, led by zoologist Richard Freeman - the Zoological Director of the Bideford-based centre - will be ignoring Foreign Office suggestions and flying to the tiny Russian state of Karbadino-Balkaria for a three week expedition. In Russia they will be liaising with Ukranian biologist Grigoriy Panchenko who has been studying the creatures for fourteen years and who has had four sightings of the wildmen, which are known locally as almasty. The expedition is being backed by renowned academic Prof. Bryan Sykes of Oxford University, who hit the headlines a few years ago with his remarkable book The Seven Daughters of Eve which conclusively proved, through analysis of the mitochondrial DNA of a large sampling of people across the continent, that nearly everyone living in Europe today is descended from one of just seven women who lived between 10,000 and 45,000 years ago.

The Foreign Office website warns against travel to several Russian republics including Kabardino-Balkaria "as terrorism and kidnapping in these regions remain a serious problem", but in a statement released today Freeman explains why the expedition will still be going ahead. "We haven't really got an option", he says. "If we pull out now, a lot of money and even more work will have been wasted. Grigoriy has told us that kidnapping and terrorism have not been an issue in the parts of the country where we are going, and anyway, the path of science MUST continue unhindered, if we are to push back the boundaries of human knowledge. There will be eight or ten of us in the party, if you include Grigoriy's guides, and any band of potential kidnappers would find that they had a fight on their hands."

The expedition will be tracking the almasty and using sophisticated infra-red trigger cameras and ex-military nightsight equipment, but will also be carrying out a campaign of DNA testing amongst the inhabitants of the remote mountainous forests. "According to local folklore the almasty can interbreed with human,s" says Jonathan Downes, the Director of the Centre for Fortean Zoology. "Professor Sykes has done some remarkable work with mitochondrial DNA, and if any of the people whom we are testing have any trace of DNA from anything other than a modern human, it will tell us that somewhere in the maternal line, one of his or her ancestors was not a member of the same species as the rest of us."

Although the expedition will not be returning to the UK until mid-July, you needn't wait until then for news from the expedition. Through the wonders of satellite technology the expedition website will be running updates every few days. On the 17th August the team will be presenting their findings to the world as part of the three-day annual convention of the CFZ. Pollyanna Pickering will also be there and, following the interest that her revelations about a putative yeti scalp in Bhutan caused recently, will be taking questions from cryptozoological researchers from around the world.

CFZ Director Jonathan Downes is available for interview. Images are also available. Please telephone Jon or Corinna on +44 (0)1237 431413 for details.

Notes for Editors:

* The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] is the world’s largest mystery animal research organisation. It was founded in 1992 by British author Jonathan Downes and is a non-profit making (not for profit) organisation registered with H.M. Stamp Office.
* Life-president of the CFZ is Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his groundbreaking youth work organising the ‘Operation Drake’ and ‘Operation Raleigh’ expeditions in the 1970s and 1980s.
* CFZ Director Jonathan Downes is the author and/or editor of over 20 books. Island of Paradise, his firsthand account of two expeditions to the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico in search of the grotesque vampiric chupacabra, will be published in the next few weeks.
* The CFZ have carried out expeditions across the world including Sumatra, Mongolia, Guyana, Gambia, Texas, Mexico, Thailand, Puerto Rico, Illinois, Loch Ness, and Loch Morar.
* CFZ Press are the world’s largest publishers of books on mystery animals. They also publish Animals & Men, the world’s only cryptozoology magazine, and Exotic Pets, Britain’s only dedicated magazine on the subject.
* The CFZ produce their own full-length documentaries through their media division called CFZtv(www.cfztv.org). One of their films Lair of the Red Worm which was released in early 2007 and documents their 2005 Mongolia expedition has now been seen by nearly 40,000 people.
* The CFZ is based in Jon Downes’ old family home in rural North Devon which he shares with his wife Corinna (51). It is also home to various members of the CFZ’s permanent directorate and a collection of exotic animals.
* Jonathan Downes presents a monthly web TV show called On the Track (http://cfzmonthly.blogspot.com/) which covers cryptozoology and work of the CFZ.
* The CFZ are opening a Visitor Centre and Museum in Woolsery, North Devon.
* Each year the CFZ presents an annual conference. This year’s event will be held in August, and will feature the first public appearance by the Russian Expedition team.
* Following their successful partnership with Capcom www.capcom.com on the 2007 Guyana expedition, the CFZ are looking for more commercial sponsors.

04-06-2008 British scientists hunt living cavemen in Russian mountains

2009-12-27T08:32:00.000-08:00

For Immediate Release:
2008-06-04
BRITISH SCIENTISTS HUNT LIVING CAVEMEN IN RUSSIAN MOUNTAINS

A group of scientists from the UK based Centre for Fortean Zoology, the world's largest mystery animal research organisation, are to travel to the Caucasus Mountains of the Southwest Russian republic of Karbadino Balkaria in search of what may be mankind's closest living relative; a hominid known as the almasty. The three week expedition is being filmed by October Films for UK Channel 4 television, and by the team themselves for a feature length documentary to be broadcast, for free, on the CFZtv multimedia website, the only dedicated cryptozoological web based TV station in the world.

Ukrainian biologist Grigory Panchenko, who has been on the track of the ape-like man for over 14 years, will join the five-man team. Panchenko has seen the creature on four occasions including a hair rising encounter on a remote farm, when he got to within ten feet of the creature.

Zoological director of the Centre for Fortean Zoology, Richard Freeman (38) believes the creatures to be large, primitive descendants of our own ancestor Homo erectus:

"Homo erectus was the ancestor of not only modern man but the Neanderthal and the tiny, recently discovered Homo floresiensis. There is no reason why it should not have had other descendants. The almasty is described as large, hairy and powerful. It is smaller and more human in appearance than the better-known yeti of the Himalayas. It has no fire and only rudimentary, ape-like tool use. Grigory Panchenko believes that it is on the increase in the Karbadino Balkeria area of the Caucasus. There are many more reports here than in other areas and also reports of family groups."

The team are also working with Professor Bryan Sykes, Professor of Human Genetics at the University of Oxford and a Fellow of Wolfson College. Sykes is best known outside the community of geneticists for his bestselling books The Seven Daughters of Eve, and Blood of the Isles: Exploring the Genetic Roots of Our Tribal History which describe the investigation of human history and prehistory through studies of mitochondrial DNA. Because all the stories of the almasty insist that these creatures can, and do, interbreed with humans, the team will be taking DNA samples from a wide range of people in Karbadino Balkaria, and Professor Sykes hopes that through mitochondrial DNA analysis the true identity of the almasty will be discovered.

The three week expedition leaves the UK on June the 21st and will be employing camera traps in the hope of photographing one of these creatures as well as interviewing witnesses and exploring the areas were the almasty has been sighted. They will also be investigating reports of a huge species of snake, some thirty feet long, said to inhabit the mountains. The size of a large python, it is far bigger than any species known to inhabit the area.

The Centre for Fortean Zoology is the only full time organisation dedicated to investigating reports of unknown animals. They have searched for anomalous creatures all around the world, as well as publishing many books on the subject. More information can be found on the CFZ website www.cfz.org.uk and the dedicated expedition website http://almasty.blogspot.com

Richard Freeman, and CFZ Director Jonathan Downes are available for interview. Images are also available. Please telephone Jon or Corinna on +44 (0)1237 431413 for details.

Follow the expedition, with regular sat-phone updates from the team in Russia, and commentary by Jon Downes, Nick Redfern and other crypto pundits on http://almasty.blogspot.com

Notes for Editors:

a.. The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] is the world's largest mystery animal research organisation. It was founded in 1992 by British author Jonathan Downes (48) and is a non-profit making (not for profit) organisation registered with H.M. Stamp Office.
b.. Life-president of the CFZ is Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his groundbreaking youth work organising the 'Operation Drake' and 'Operation Raleigh' expeditions in the 1970s and 1980s.
c.. CFZ Director Jonathan Downes is the author and/or editor of over 20 books. Island of Paradise, his first hand account of two expeditions to the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico in search of the grotesque vampiric chupacabra, will be published in the next few weeks.
d.. The CFZ have carried out expeditions across the world including Sumatra, Mongolia, Guyana, Gambia, Texas, Mexico, Thailand, Puerto Rico, Illinois, Loch Ness, and Loch Morar.
e.. CFZ Press are the world's largest publishers of books on mystery animals. They also publish Animals & Men, the world's only cryptozoology magazine, and Exotic Pets, Britain's only dedicated magazine on the subject.
f.. The CFZ produce their own full-length documentaries through their media division called CFZtv (www.cfztv.org). One of their films Lair of the Red Worm which was released in early 2007 and documents their 2005 Mongolia expedition has now been seen by nearly 40,000 people.
g.. The CFZ is based in Jon Downes' old family home in rural North Devon which he shares with his wife Corinna (51). It is also home to various members of the CFZ's permanent directorate and a collection of exotic animals.
i.. Jonathan Downes presents a monthly web TV show called On the Track (http://cfzmonthly.blogspot.com/) which covers cryptozoology and work of the CFZ.
j.. The CFZ are currently building a Visitor Centre and Museum in Woolsery, North Devon.
k.. Each year the CFZ presents an annual conference www.weirdweekend.org . This year's event will be held in August, and will feature the first public appearance by the Russian Expedition team.
l.. Following their successful partnership with Capcom www.capcom.com on the 2007 Guyana expedition, the CFZ are looking for more commercial sponsors

23-11-2007 Monthly web TV show covers monster stories from around the world

2009-12-27T08:29:00.000-08:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
23rd November 2007
MONTHLY WEB TV SHOW COVERS MONSTER STORIES FROM AROUND THE WORLD

The Centre for Fortean Zoology – the world’s largest mystery animal research organisation – is pleased to announce a new project through their media division CFZtv(www.cfztv.org).

‘On the Track’ is a monthly web TV programme, which covers the latest news from the world of cryptozoology (the study of unknown animals). Presented by CFZ Director Jonathan Downes, this show is available for free on a dedicated weblog (http://cfzmonthly.blogspot.com/) and presents groundbreaking scientific news stories together with archival reports in a light-hearted and entertaining format, which is winning the show fans of all ages from across the world.

The latest edition (episode two) contains a round-up of stories about cryptozoological bats, new and re-discovered creatures, the current status of the South China tiger, other mystery cats from around the world, and an in-depth interview with zoologist Richard Freeman (37) about the expedition in search of the giant anaconda, the didi (a South American bigfoot-like creature) and the water tiger (a hitherto unknown aquatic carnivore). The expedition is currently in the depths of the almost unexplored savannah grasslands of Guyana in South America.

The next edition will be broadcast in early December, and will include exclusive film from the Guyana expedition, as well as the usual news and features.

Watch this space.

For more information, screen shots, and promotional photographs please telephone Jon or Corinna on 01237 431413.

NOTES FOR EDITORS

· The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] is the world’s largest mystery animal research organisation. It was founded in 1992 by British author Jonathan Downes and is a non-profit making (not for profit) organisation registered with H.M. Stamp Office.
· Life-president of the CFZ is Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his groundbreaking youth work organising the ‘Operation Drake’ and ‘Operation Raleigh’ expeditions in the 1970s and 1980s.
· CFZ Director Jonathan Downes is the author and/or editor of over 20 books. Island of Paradise, his first hand account of two expeditions to the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico in search of the grotesque vampiric chupacabra, will be published in early 2008.
· The CFZ have carried out expeditions across the world including Sumatra, Mongolia, Guyana, Gambia, Texas, Mexico, Thailand, Puerto Rico, Illinois, Loch Ness, and Loch Morar.
· CFZ Press are the world’s largest publishers of books on mystery animals. They also publish Animals & Men, the world’s only cryptozoology magazine, and Exotic Pets, Britain’s only dedicated magazine on the subject.
· The CFZ produce their own full-length documentaries through their media division called CFZtv(www.cfztv.org). One of their films Lair of the Red Worm which was released in early 2007 and documents their 2005 Mongolia expedition has now been seen by nearly 30,000 people.
· The CFZ is based in Jon Downes’ old family home in rural North Devon which he shares with his wife Corinna (51). It is also home to various members of the CFZ’s permanent directorate and a collection of exotic animals.
· Jonathan Downes presents a monthly web TV show called On the Track (http://cfzmonthly.blogspot.com/) which covers cryptozoology and work of the CFZ.
· The CFZ are currently building a Visitor Centre and Museum in Woolsery, North Devon.
· Each year the CFZ presents an annual conference(www.weirdweekend.org)
· Following their successful partnership with Capcom(www.capcom.com) on the 2007 Guyana expedition, the CFZ are looking for more commercial sponsors

23-11-2007 Guyana monster hunters 'phone home

2009-12-27T08:27:00.000-08:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
23rd November 2007
GUYANA MONSTER HUNTERS ‘PHONE HOME

Five British explorers from The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ], based in rural North Devon, are deep in the little known grasslands of Guyana, South America on the track of unknown animals. The expedition is sponsored by Capcom, one of the world’s leading video game manufacturers, and is led by Richard Freeman (37) a British zoologist and explorer. The team have been in the wilds of South America for over a week now, and despite setbacks such as injury, heatstroke, equipment malfunction, and even a burgeoning political crisis which many commentators have described as an “invasion” of Guyana by neighbouring Venezuela, their initial findings appear remarkable.

They have obtained a wealth of anecdotal evidence for the existence of the three animals that they went there to investigate.

· Didi
· Giant anaconda
· Water tiger

They have secured this evidence in the form of filmed interviews with eye-witnesses in this remote part of rural Guyana. Amongst these are two chilling accounts of young women being abducted by the didi (pronounced ‘die die’). None of these stories have been published in Europe or America before.

Perhaps the most important results so far are evidence for two completely hitherto unknown animals: a tiny brown crocodile, and a three-foot high hairy creature that walks upright like a man, and has a bright red face. They also have secured the first video footage of a living specimen of a recently discovered species of green scorpion.

The team do not return to the UK until Wednesday, 28th November, so there is plenty of time for you to join the thousands of people worldwide who follow their adventures on http://cfzguyana.blogspot.com/

CFZ Director Jonathan Downes is available for interview, and photographs of expedition members, and other images, are also available. Please telephone Jon or Corinna on 01237 431413.

NOTES FOR EDITORS

· The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] is the world’s largest mystery animal research organisation. It was founded in 1992 by British author Jonathan Downes and is a non-profit making (not for profit) organisation registered with H.M. Stamp Office.
· Life-president of the CFZ is Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his groundbreaking youth work organising the ‘Operation Drake’ and ‘Operation Raleigh’ expeditions in the 1970s and 1980s.
· CFZ Director Jonathan Downes is the author and/or editor of over 20 books. Island of Paradise, his first hand account of two expeditions to the Caribbean island of Puerto Rico in search of the grotesque vampiric chupacabra, will be published in early 2008.
· The CFZ have carried out expeditions across the world including Sumatra, Mongolia, Guyana, Gambia, Texas, Mexico, Thailand, Puerto Rico, Illinois, Loch Ness, and Loch Morar.
· CFZ Press are the world’s largest publishers of books on mystery animals. They also publish Animals & Men, the world’s only cryptozoology magazine, and Exotic Pets, Britain’s only dedicated magazine on the subject.
· The CFZ produce their own full-length documentaries through their media division called CFZtv(www.cfztv.org). One of their films Lair of the Red Worm which was released in early 2007 and documents their 2005 Mongolia expedition has now been seen by nearly 30,000 people.
· The CFZ is based in Jon Downes’ old family home in rural North Devon which he shares with his wife Corinna (51). It is also home to various members of the CFZ’s permanent directorate and a collection of exotic animals.
· Jonathan Downes presents a monthly web TV show called On the Track (http://cfzmonthly.blogspot.com/) which covers cryptozoology and work of the CFZ.
· The CFZ are currently building a Visitor Centre and Museum in Woolsery, North Devon.
· Each year the CFZ presents an annual conference(www.weirdweekend.org)
· Following their successful partnership with Capcom(www.capcom.com) on the 2007 Guyana expedition, the CFZ are looking for more commercial sponsors.

12-11-2007 Five explorers in giant snake adventure

2009-12-27T08:20:00.000-08:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
12TH NOVEMBER 2007
FIVE EXPLORERS IN GIANT SNAKE ADVENTURE

On Wednesday evening, 14th November, a five-person expedition flies from Heathrow Airport in search of adventure. The five explorers from the UK based Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] – the world’s largest organisation dedicated to the search for unknown animals – are on the track of three potentially deadly monsters.

1. The giant anaconda. Although the largest known specimen of this snake was a mere 28 foot, there have been reports for centuries of far larger reptiles in the swamps of South America. Snakes measuring 40 – 50 feet have been reported from the trackless swamps of Guyana in the past few years. Are these creatures giant specimens of a known species? Or something entirely new? We aim to find out.
2. The didi. Often described as a bigfoot-type creature, some reports confuse it with the mapinguari; another huge South American mystery beast that some people believe is a surviving giant ground sloth. Giant ground sloth bear, hominid, or bogeyman? We aim to find out.
3. The water tiger. This poorly known aquatic beast is practically unknown in the west, but across South America it is famed for its ferocity. Is it something entirely new? Or is it something based upon sightings of the extremely rare giant river otter? We aim to find out.

The expedition will be keeping in touch with CFZ headquarters in rural North Devon by satellite ‘phone, and CFZ Director Jonathan Downes hopes to be able to post daily bulletins on a dedicated blog: http://cfzguyana.blogspot.com/

The expedition members are: Richard Freeman, Zoological Director of the CFZ - expedition leader
Dr. Chris Clark, cryptozoologist
Lisa Dowley, photographer
Jon Hare, science writer and explorer
Paul Rose, journalist and author

Photographs of expedition members, a press pack, and other information are available. Please telephone Jon or Corinna on 01237 431413 for further details.

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, Mongolia, Sumatra, West Africa, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK.
+ Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website www.cfz.org.uk
+ CFZ Press are now the world’s most prolific publishers of books on mystery animals.
+ The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.
+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors.
+ The CFZ make their own documentary films which can be seen at http://www.cfztv.org
+ `Lair of the Red Worm`, the 60 minute film of their 2005 expedition to Mongolia has now been seen by 27,000 people

24-10-2007 South American monster hunt

2009-12-27T08:17:00.000-08:00

SOUTH AMERICAN MONSTER HUNT
For Immediate Release:
2007-10-24

On the 14th November 2007, five members of the Centre for Fortean Zoology – the world’s largest organisation dedicated to the search for mystery animals – leave the UK for South America, on their most ambitious expedition yet. They will be searching the remote swamps and jungles of Guyana. They are looking for three elusive, potentially lethal, and hitherto undiscovered animals.

· The giant anaconda
· The didi
· The water tiger

As far as we are aware, this is the first cryptozoological expedition in search of evidence for the existence of these three animals that has ever been mounted. After months of complex negotiations, we can also announce that the expedition is sponsored by Capcom – one of the world’s leading video game publishers, who are concurrently launching Monster Hunter Freedom 2, their exciting new game for the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Portable (PSP).

The expedition will take the five members, and their guides, deep into unexplored swamps in the west of Guyana. The area is so remote and poorly known that it doesn’t even have a name.

· The anaconda (Eunectes murinus) is the largest known snake in South America. The largest specimen shot was 28ft (9m) long. However, in the past, reports have come in from Guyana of anacondas of mind-boggling proportions, 40-60ft (12-18m) long. In some areas these giants are referred to as manatorro (the bull killer). As recently as last year, a specimen estimated at being 40ft (12m) long was observed by a party of native hunters. The giant snake frightened them so much that they fled. The target area for these monster serpents is a series of remote lakes in the grasslands.
· The didi is a more nebulous beast. It is said to walk upright like a man and be armed with scythe-like claws. It is alleged to tear out the tongues of living cattle, and leave swathes of terror in its wake. Although this last attribute may well be apocryphal, the claws in particular recall the supposedly extinct giant ground sloths or mylodonts. These bear-sized herbivores supposedly died out ten thousand years ago, but reports from across the Amazon, and surrounding areas, suggest they may well still survive.
· The water tiger is an aggressive aquatic animal said to have pointed teeth and webbed, humanlike hands. In the past, it was reported to have attacked both people and livestock. The water tiger may be based on reports of the rare giant otter (Pteronura brasiliensis) which can grow to a length of 6ft (1.8m).

The group intend to interview native witnesses to gather information on the animals and search the grasslands and lakes for evidence. They are being guided by Damon Corrie - a chief of the Eagle Clan Arawak tribe – who is also one of the few people to have visited the area in question.

The group consists of: · Dr Chris Clark, engineer
· Lisa Dowley, photographer
· Richard Freeman, cryptozoologist
· Jon Hare, science writer
· Paul Rose, journalist

Photographs, a press pack, and further information are available, and expedition members are available for interview. Please contact Jon or Corinna at the CFZ Press Office on +44 (0)1237 431413.

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, Mongolia, Sumatra, West Africa, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK.
+ Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website www.cfz.org.uk
+ CFZ Press are now the world’s most prolific publishers of books on mystery animals.
+ The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.
+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors.
+ The CFZ make their own documentary films which can be seen at http://www.cfztv.org
+ `Lair of the Red Worm`, the 60 minute film of their 2005 expedition to Mongolia has now been seen by 27,000 people.

04-08-2007 "Shaggy dog story is no surprise," say monster hunters

2009-12-27T08:10:00.000-08:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2007-08-04
SHAGGY DOG STORY IS NO SURPRISE SAY MONSTER HUNTERS

According to the Guardian, the revelation that the photograph of a `beast` on Dartmoor actually shows a Newfoundland dog named `Troy` is a “Blow to Monster Watchers”.

Nothing could be further from the truth.

The photographs, purporting to show a ‘monster’ that turned out to be nothing more than a Newfoundland dog, come as no surprise to mystery animal experts at The Centre for Fortean Zoology – the world’s largest mystery animal research group. The team were shown the pictures at the beginning of June, and identified the animal as a large dog. They were amazed that photos made it into the national papers at all. The ‘revelation’ comes as no blow, because they knew it from the start and didn’t think the story worth pursuing.

Cryptozoologist Richard Freeman was near the mark when he told Sun writer John Sturgis last week that he thought the pictures showed a Newfoundland/mastiff cross.

The Centre for Fortean Zoology, the world’s only full time, scientific organisation for the study of anomalous beasts, investigate reports of weird creatures all around the globe as well as in the UK. They have no doubt that there are odd animals on Dartmoor, including feral big cats and a population of wild boar.

For the record, they believe that the most recent film purporting to be a great white shark, is actually of a basking shark, although the previous film from earlier in July may well be the real thing.

If the public are interested in genuine monsters, then they could do no better than to come to the Centre’s annual convention, the Weird Weekend. Held from 17th –19th of August at Woolfardisworthy, North Devon. It features the largest collection of monster experts in the world, and talks this year include Ukrainian biologist Grigoriy Panchenko on the almasty - a Russian ape man - Oll Lewis on Welsh lake monsters, Mike Hallowell on a 20th Century dragon worship cult (and the object of their veneration), Ronan Coghlan on fairy lore, and Paul Vella on the sasquatch.

Tickets cost £20 for the three days (in advance) and are available from the CFZ website on www.cfz.org.uk or by emailing cfz@eclipse.co.uk

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website www.cfz.org.uk.
+ CFZ Press are now the world’s most prolific publishers of books on mystery animals.
+ The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.
+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors.
+ Photographs are available.

Please contact Jonathan Downes or Mark North on +44 (0)1237 431413.

01-08-2007 Have you seen the big cat?

2009-12-27T08:08:00.000-08:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Have you seen the big cat?

Over the last couple of years, residents of the tiny North Devon village of Woolsery have reported seeing a huge cat-like animal, black in colour, and up to 8 foot in length, in the area surrounding Huddisford Woods, just outside the village. Now, scientists from the Centre for Fortean Zoology – the world’s largest mystery animal research group – which is, coincidentally, based in an early 19th Century house in the village, are appealing for witnesses in the hope that they can build up a data base of information which will give them clues as to the identity of the mysterious beast.

Professor Bernard Heuvelmens, the Belgian scientist who first coined the term cryptozoologist – the study of unknown animals, once wrote that “there are lost worlds everywhere”. However, CFZ Director, Jonathan Downes (47), admits that after travelling around the world for the last 15 years in search of peculiar creatures, it is ironic that he should be carrying out a full-scale investigation on his own doorstep.

But it is not just big cats which are attracting monster hunters to Woolsery. Only three weeks after the wedding, the couple are hosting the 8th annual Weird Weekend – the largest cryptozoological conference in the English-speaking world. On the weekend of the 17th – 19th August, cryptozoologists from all over the world will converge upon the tiny North Devon village of Woolfardisworthy, where the newly weds live and work.

Amongst this year’s influx is Grigoriy Panchenko, a scientist from the Ukraine who will be presenting evidence for the continued existence of primitive hominids in the former Soviet Republic of Kabardino-Balkaria.

If you have any information that could help the CFZ on their quest, or are interested in finding more out about the Weird Weekend, please telephone Jon or his wife, Corinna, on 01237 431413.

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website www.cfz.org.uk.
+ CFZ Press are now the world’s most prolific publishers of books on mystery animals.
+ The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.
+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors.
+ Photographs are available. Please contact Jonathan Downes, Corinna Downes or Mark North on +44 (0)1237 431413.

09-07-2007 The most in-depth study yet of British big cats

2009-12-27T08:06:00.000-08:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2007-07-09
THE MOST IN-DEPTH STUDY YET OF BRITISH BIG CATS

Big Cats: Loose in Britain is an impressive tome. At 368 pages, it is the largest book ever written on the subject. Author, Marcus Matthews began writing on his remote Dorset farm in 1987! The book focuses on the 1970s and 1980s, when the idea of exotic predators roaming the British countryside started to become widely known. Scouring newspapers, writing to local councils and police forces, Marcus began to amass a huge amount of data, and during the years he was contacted by over 1,000 witnesses.

As well as this, Marcus has hit the road on the track of the beasts themselves looking at animal kills, footprints, film and photographs. He has been lucky enough to spot big cats in the UK himself on three occasions. With hundreds of one-to-one interviews with witnesses under his belt Marcus has produced an incredibly detailed volume. This is no armchair researcher, but a man who works in the field, and as a country farmer knows his animals.

Two decades worth of research is now, for the first time, available to the general public. After languishing unpublished for 17 years, the Centre for Fortean Zoology is now proud to present this legendary book.

· Paperback: 384 pages
· Publisher: CFZ Press (13 Jun 2007)
· Language English
· ISBN-10: 1905723121
· ISBN-13: 978-1905723126
· Product Dimensions: 25.2 x 18.2 x 2.2 cm

Marcus is available for interview. Photographs and review copies are also available. Please telephone Jon, Mark, or Corinna on 01237 431413 for details

09-07-2007 Monsters as you have never heard or seen them before

2009-12-27T08:04:00.000-08:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2007-07-09
MONSTERS AS YOU HAVE NEVER HEARD OR SEEN THEM BEFORE “SAMEBITOS, JACUKUS AND POPOBAWA, OH MY!”

Have you ever heard of the Damascus apartments hound? No? Well, how about the otoroshi or the malapas? No again? It is unsurprising, as almost no-one in the west has any knowledge of these obscure monsters.

All that is about to change with the publication of a new and unique book by fortean research Neil Arnold. Monster! The A to Z of Zooform Phenomena is the very first book of its kind to be published. It is an encyclopaedia of strange creatures from all the world’s cultures. Unlike more familiar creatures such as sea serpents, yeti and bigfoot, which are likely to be real animals unknown to science, the creatures in Neil’s book fall into a strange and poorly understood category known as zooform phenomena.

Zooform ‘creatures’ are not animals at all, but paranormal manifestations in animal form. Perhaps the best known are the black dogs of British legend. Neil has catalogued such oddities as the kama-itachi of Japan – weasel-like creatures said to attack victims with sickle like claws in a maelstrom of wind - and the arrancalenus, or ‘tongue ripper’, of Nicaragua that is said to resemble a cross between a cat and a turkey and tears out its victims' tongues.

Stories range from the absurd like the Zulu basket monster (said to resemble a basket with legs) to the horrific, for example the tale of a monstrous maggot-like entity said to have killed a number of people in a Yorkshire village.

From ancient legends to modern day urban scares, from the streets of Tokyo to the wilds of Brazil, Monster! is a veritable menagerie of the bizarre. So, if you don’t know your tezzy parlour pigs from your fence rail dog, this is the book for you.

Neil is available for interview, and press photographs and pictures are also available. Telephone Mark, Jon or Corinna on 01237 431413

Product details
· Paperback 396 pages
· Publisher CFZ (23 May 2007)
· Language English
· ISBN-10 1905723105
· ISBN-13 978-1905723102
· Product Dimensions 24.1 x 18.3 x 2.3 cm

09-07-2007 Russian scientist comes to tiny Devon village

2009-12-27T07:54:00.000-08:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2007-07-09
RUSSIAN SCIENTIST COMES TO TINY DEVON VILLAGE

For three days this August, from the 18-19, the sleepy North Devon village of Woolsery will host the world’s largest conference on the subject of mystery animals.

One of the speakers lecturing at this year’s Weird Weekend (the 8th annual event) is a Ukrainian biologist who has spent years hunting for the Russian equivalent of the yeti. Grigoriy Panchenko has been on the trail of the almasty - as the beast is known in the Caucasus Mountains - for more than a decade. In 1991, in a barn on a remote farm, he saw one of the creatures himself. He also claims to have bones from a dead almasty that are currently being examined by a team of scientists in Paris. Grigoriy will be revealing his findings for the first time in the west.

Grigoriy is heading a line up of speakers at the three-day event. Organised by the Centre for Fortean Zoology - the world’s only full time mystery animal research organisation - the Weird Weekend is the largest event of it’s kind in the world. Other speakers include:

· Adam Davis - an explorer who trekked through the Congo investigating reports of living dinosaurs
· Mike Hallowell - a researcher who investigated a dragon worship cult reputed to have practiced human sacrifice well into the 20th Century (Mike claims to have seen the beast himself!)
· Paul Vella - a forensic computer scientist, who will present his analysis of the 1968 bigfoot film
· Dr Darren Naish - who will speak about the possible survival of creatures assumed to be extinct on remote island chains
· Ecologist Oll Lewis - will talk about Welsh lake monsters
· Dr Charles Paxton – will talk about the mathematical likelihood of sea serpents
· Ronan Coghlan, from Ireland - talking about fairy lore
· Richard Freeman - speaking about giant eels
· Nick Redfern, who will be coming all the way from Texas - giving a lecture on the man-monkey of Ranton (a simian phantom reported from Staffordshire)

As well as talks, there will be displays and exhibitions that will include live exotic insects, British big cats, wildlife photography, and fortean art. Book dealers will be selling rare and out of print books on strange creatures, and other esoteric subjects. Monster maker Anthony James, who has worked in film, theatre and television, will be giving a workshop on how to build your own monster.

Tickets cost £20 for the whole weekend or £10 per day. They are available from the Centre for Fortean Zoology at:

http://www.cfz.org.uk/conferences/weirdweekend/ww2007/ww07index.htm Or by telephone: 01237 431413

The Centre for Fortean Zoology
Myrtle Cottage
Woolsery
Bideford
North Devon
EX395QR

Tel:01237 431413

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website www.cfz.org.uk.
+ C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled `Monster Hunter` is his long awaited autobiography.
+The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.
+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors

07-01-2007 A Monsterous evening at the Natural History Museum

2009-12-27T07:52:00.000-08:00

A MONSTEROUS EVENING AT THE NATURAL HISTORY MUSEUM
One of the world’s leading cryptozoologists will be talking about his adventures on the track of unknown animals at the Natural History Museum on the 26th of January. Richard Freeman of The Centre for Fortean Zoology, the world’s only full time organisation dedicated to the study of anomalous beasts, will be arguing the case for such animals as the yeti, the Tasmanian wolf, and the sea serpent.

The talk is being held at the Darwin Centre in the Museum and begins at 7pm. Zoologist and former zoo keeper Mr. Freeman has worked with over 400 species of animal from spiders to elephants and is the author of the book “Dragons: More Than a Myth?” As well as speaking about the possible existence of “monsters” he will be speaking about his own expeditions. These include the naga - a sixty-foot snake in Thailand, orang-pendek - a bipedal ape from Sumatra, and the infamous Mongolian Deathworm. Later this year he is leading an expedition to West Africa in search of ninki-nanka a much feared, thirty foot, dragon-like animal said to inhabit the mangrove swamps.

The talk will be followed by a questions and answers session and a dissection on the existence or otherwise of these inhabitants of zoology’s “Twilight Zone”

The talk is free but attendees are required to book seats in advance.

01-11-2006 Monster hunters release film

2009-12-27T07:50:00.000-08:00

MONSTER HUNTERS RELEASE FILM
Only a month after returning from the Lake District, the Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] the world's only full time organisation dedicated to searching for unknown animals, has released "Eel or No Eel", a forty-minute film chronicling their attempts to find a strange creature reported from Lake Windermere.

The film is the flagship production for CFZtv - an exciting new project for the CFZ: The world's first multimedia website devoted entirely to Cryptozoology: The study of unknown animals. The website already hosts over six hours of exclusive video, and it is hoped that within the next twelve months, an ongoing partnership between the CFZ and some of the market-leaders in both hardware and software will bring forth fruit.

The CFZ, the world's leading cryptozoological organisation, took an expedition to Windermere after Steve Burnip, a university lecturer, saw and photographed an eel-like creature over 20 feet long. Prior to the investigation there were no known reports of 'monsters' from the lake but the team turned up witnesses going back to the 1950s. All described what seemed to be a huge eel. The team employed an underwater camera, a diver and underwater bait in their hunt. The film follows them as they carry out their investigations and make plans for the future, and features well-known television personality Jon Ronson.

CFZ zoologists think the creature may be a strain of giant sterile eel. Huge eels have been reported from other bodies of water such as the 25-foot specimen seen by Canadian tourists in Loch Ness in 2004. The Centre for Fortean Zoology carried out a similar hunt at Loch Morar in Scotland were they heard tell of two tourists from Yorkshire being frightened off the Loch by a 30 foot creature resembling a tree trunk. The team intend to return to both Windermere and Loch Morar in 2007.

Other adventures have taken the Centre for Fortean Zoology to remote parts of Asia, Central America, and Africa in search of ape-men, giant snakes, monster worms dragon like beasts and blood drinking creatures. Their adventures both abroad and in the UK are being made into films available on their website at www.cfztv.org

Already you can see clips from their 2005 expedition to the Gobi desert including an eyewitness account of a monstrous worm and spectacular sight of their camp being destroyed by a tornado. There is also a short taster from the forthcoming film of the team's 2006 trip to the swamps of West Africa on the track of a killer dragon.

With plans afoot for new monster-hunting expeditions in Asia, South America, and the South Atlantic on the cards the resulting films should be of interest both to naturalists and aficionados of the strange.

Watch this space!

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website, www.cfz.org.uk.
+ C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled `Monster Hunter` is his long awaited autobiography.
+ The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.
+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors
+ Photographs from the expedition are available. Please contact Jonathan Downes or Mark North on +44 (0)1237 431413

07-07-2006 First news from Gambian dragon hunters

2009-12-27T07:48:00.000-08:00

FIRST NEWS FROM THE GAMBIAN DRAGON HUNTERS
Tuesday, July 5th 2006
For immediate release

The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ], the world's largest mystery animal research group, based in rural North Devon announced tonight that they have received the first news bulletin from their expedition in West Africa. The J.T.Downes memorial Gambia Expedition 2006 has three main aims:

· To dig up part of a beach where an amateur naturalist claims to have buried the carcass of a mysterious fifteen foot sea creature
· To get the first filmed witness testimonies of a dragon-like creature, known to the natives as `Ninki Nanka`, which has terrorized the tiny African state for generations, and has reportedly killed people as recently as the 1990s
· To get the first photographs and film of Armitage's Skink (Chalcides armitagei) - a tiny lizard first described in 1922 and only rediscovered in 1989.

Richard Freeman, the Zoological Director of the CFZ writes:

"A little way up Bungalow Beach we came upon a market place where jewellers made silver Ninki-Nankas. Chris Moiser has known about these traditional designs for years, and knew the man who made them. One of the sellers, Baka Samba told us that his late uncle, a hunter, had seen Ninki-Nanka many years ago. He could not describe it well, as his uncle only described it as very big and terrible. It had four legs, a long tail and an awful looking head. He said it had fire in its mouth. This may actually mean that the inside of the creature's mouth was red, or that it had a red/orange forked tongue that flickered in and out like flame. He said that the creature was very dangerous, and that those who saw it usually died within four or five years of the sighting".

Another local told them of a "lake in Senegal where Ninki-Nanka was supposed to live. The lake was five kilometers long and was about 250 kilometers away. He said he had seen strange lights on the lake at night, and large disturbances in the water during the day. He drew a furrow in the earth and said he had seen drag-marks like these, but around four feet across around the lake".

The expedition will be in the Gambia for the next two weeks, and hopes to come home with conclusive evidence for the existence of these creatures, which Freeman (36) believes are a hitherto undiscovered species of extremely large Monitor Lizard.

Team members are:

· Chris Moiser: Biologist and team leader
· Dr Chris Clark: Engineer
· Lisa Dowley: First aid and security expert
· Richard Freeman: cryptozoologist
· Oll Lewis: Ecologist
· Suzi Marsh: computer expert

You can follow the progress of the expedition at:

http://2006-gambia.blogspot.com/

There will be regular updates and photographs as and when we get them.

Watch this space!

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website, www.cfz.org.uk.
+ C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled `Monster Hunter` is his long awaited autobiography.
+ The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.
+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors
+ Photographs from the expedition are available. Please contact Jonathan Downes or Mark North on +44 (0)1237 431413

07-07-2006 Monster TV project

2009-12-27T07:43:00.000-08:00

For Immediate Release:
July 7, 2006
PRESS RELEASE: MONSTER TV PROJECT

The Centre for Fortean Zoology (CFZ), Britain's leading cryptozoological organisation and the world's only professional research agency dedicated to the discovery, documenting and study of unknown animals, has announced that it is to launch its own web based multimedia site. This site, which can be found at www.cfztv.com , is to be launched on the 17th of August.

The website is timed to go live at the same time as the CFZ's annual convention (the Weird Weekend) and will show live and interactive video streams of the visiting lecturers who have come from all corners of the world and are experts in the field of cryptozoology.

Using new encoding techniques coupled with bandwidth efficient means to transmit and upload the content, CFZTV intends to offer a vast library of existing footage combined with unique new programmes produced for internet broadcasting. Future expeditions will be available via live webcasting from remote locations such as the Gobi Desert and the Atlantic Island of Saint Helena, all discoveries and revelations will be available to an unlimited audience at the click of a button.

In addition to this, it will feature downloadable video clips showcasing the important work that the CFZ does through its expeditions in locations as far flung as Puerto Rico and Mongolia, as well as the current expedition to The Gambia in search of a semi-mythical dragon-like creature called `Ninki Nanka`.

CFZ TV is a collaboration between the CFZ and some of the leading technicians in web-based multimedia. Members of the team have worked on everything from the European Space Programme, to some of the most popular reality TV shows of recent years. The new project will be a format leader in web-based broadcasting, utilising cutting edge technology to achieve extraordinary results.

Jonathan Downes, Director of the CFZ, (46) says "We want to create the web resource for anyone and everyone with an interest in cryptozoology. We want to be able to educate people about the natural world but, most importantly, we want people to realise that what we know about the biology of the world is just the beginning - there are still plenty of new species that are yet to be discovered. We want this website to spark people's imagination and, through it, hopefully create a new generation of cryptozoologists."

For further information, please refer to www.cfz.org.uk

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website, www.cfz.org.uk.
+ C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled `Monster Hunter` is his long awaited autobiography.
+ The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.
+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors
+ For more information please contact Jonathan Downes or Mark North

29-06-2006 Expedition prepares to leave for Africa

2009-12-27T07:40:00.000-08:00

For immediate release
Thursday, June 29, 2006
EXPEDITION PREPARES TO LEAVE FOR AFRICA

With only a few days to go before they leave for Africa, the six members of the "J.T.Downes Memorial Gambia Expedition 2006" are at fever pitch. The expedition which is organised by and partly financed by the Centre for Fortean Zoology, the world's largest mystery animal research organisation, which is based in rural North Devon, has three main aims:

a.. To dig up part of a beach where an amateur naturalist claims to have buried the carcass of a mysterious fifteen foot sea creature
b.. To get the first filmed witness testimonies of a dragon-like creature, known to the natives as `Ninki Nanka`, which has terrorised the tiny African state for generations, and has reportedly killed people as recently as the 1990s
c.. To get the first photographs and film of Armitage's Skink (Chalcides armitagei) - a tiny lizard first described in 1922 and only rediscovered in 1989.

Suzi Marsh (22) the youngest team member is particularly looking forward to the trip: "I am excited about having the chance to experience some hands-on cryptozoological research, and looking forward to helping keep the expedition a truly interactive experience, one where people all around the world can log on and experience our findings as and when we discover them."

It is rare, at this stage in the 21st Century, to find out about such a gloriously anachronistic project as a hunt for killer dragons, which sounds as if it comes from the pages of `The Boys Own Paper` about a century ago. "OK, the dragons are probably extremely large monitor lizards," says CFZ Director Jonathan Downes (46) who manning the office back in England, "but if we are right, these lizards could be reaching sizes in excess of twenty feet".

Team members are:

· Chris Moiser: Biologist and team leader
· Dr Chris Clark: Engineer
· Lisa Dowley: First aid and security expert
· Richard Freeman: cryptozoologist
· Oll Lewis: Ecologist
· Suzi Marsh: computer expert

You can follow the progress of the expedition at:

http://2006-gambia.blogspot.com/

There will be regular updates and photographs as and when we get them.

Watch this space!

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

+ Press photographs are available on request
+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website, www.cfz.org.uk.
+ C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled `Monster Hunter` is his long awaited autobiography.

+ The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.

+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors

11-04-2006 Book marks 30 years of monster sightings

2009-12-27T07:38:00.000-08:00

11th April 2006
For Immediate Release:
Book marks 30 years of Monster Sightings

Thirty years ago this week, one of the strangest episodes to have happened in Britain in recent history took place. Two young girls playing in the churchyard of Mawnan Old Church in southern Cornwall were frightened by what they described as a "nasty bird-man" flying over the church tower. A few weeks later it was seen again, and the witness said: “It was like a big owl with pointed ears, as big as a man. The eyes were red and glowing. At first I thought that it someone dressed-up, playing a joke, trying to scare us. I laughed at it. We both did. Then it went up in the air and we both screamed. When it went up you could see its feet were like pincers!” Her friend added some details of her own: “It’s true. It was horrible, a nasty owl-face with big ears and big red eyes. It was covered in grey feathers. The claws on its feet were black. It just flew up and disappeared in the trees.” These were the first of a series of sightings of what has become known as `The Owlman of Mawnan` - a series of sightings that has continued to the present day. These grotesque and frightening episodes have fascinated researchers for three decades now, and one man has spent years collecting all the available evidence into a book.

To mark the 30th anniversary of these sightings, Jonathan Downes (46), the Director of the Centre for Fortean Zoology - the world's largest mystery animal research group - has published a special edition of his book `The Owlman and Others` which was first published in 1997. However, to mark this special anniversary, he has allowed artist Mark North (30), full access to his archives for the first time, and the book is packed with over 300 large format pages of rare and never before seen pictures, interviews and memorabilia. "Mark has done a wonderful job" says Jon. "I never realised there was so much stuff in my archives until he gathered it all together. Re-reading my source material for the first time in ten years made me realise quite how horrifying some of these incidents were"...

A witness who saw the creature in 1995 likened it to "a vision from hell", and another witness (identified only as `Gavin`) describes how his Owlman sighting in 1989 has blighted his life ever since. The book also tells the story of Morgawr - the Cornish Sea Serpent, and the summer of 1976, which was not only the hottest on record, but was the year that the whole of southern Cornwall went crazy!

"I have explored various explanations for the events in the book" says Jon, "and I am not completely sure which one is true. But I know one thing for sure. I wouldn't let my children play alone in those woods...."

NOTES FOR EDITORS

· The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] was founded in 1992, and is now the world’s largest and fastest growing cryptozoological research organisation. We have mounted expeditions to Puerto Rico, Sumatra, Thailand, Mongolia, Texas and Mexico.
· Information about team’s adventures can be found by visiting the Centre for Fortean Zoology website at www.cfz.org.uk.
· Jon Downes is also available for interviews, and can be contacted on 01237 431413 or alternatively by e.mail jon@eclipse.co.uk

05-11-2005 Harry Potter's monster foes based on real creatures?

2009-12-27T07:33:00.000-08:00

For immediate release
2005-11-05
COULD HARRY POTTER'S MONSTER FOES BE BASED ON REAL CREATURES?

As the world braces itself for the next Harry Potter movie, "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire", an English zoologist is posing the question: `could dragons actually be real?`

Gigantic reptiles have haunted the legends and folklore of every country on Earth since recorded history and are favourites in literature such as Tolkein's "The Hobbit", the Narnia series by C.S Lewis, and J.K Rowling's books.

Cryptozoologist Richard Freeman believes that dragons are very real animals that still exist in remote areas of the world today.

"I have travelled the globe in search of strange creatures, and heard astounding stories of latter day dragons in the rivers and caves of Thailand, the jungles of Sumatra, and the Gobi Desert in Mongolia." he says.

Richard (35) is the zoological director of the Devonshire based Centre for Fortean Zoology; the world's only full time mystery animal research organisation. He is also the author of a new book: "Dragons: More Than a Myth?" in which he follows this uber-monster right across the globe, from prehistory to the present day. He tracks it from the steamy jungles of the Congo, to the desolate lakes of eastern Siberia.

"Modern day dragon sightings are surprisingly common. In 2004 a doctor in Mongolia reported seeing a green dragon coiled up down a well. In the same year a man took a photograph from a plane that allegedly shows two dragons flying over a mountain in Tibet. There have been thousands of such sightings through history and all across the globe."

Some of the encounters sound like horror movies or scripts for Doctor Who, but they all supposedly happened well within living memory. They include.

Four teenage boys are dragged to their deaths by a reptilian monster that emerged from a fog-bound sea off the coast of Florida.

A shadowy cult in the northeast of England rumoured to have sacrificed human victims to a dragon-god well into the 20th Century.

Giant lizards in New Guinea, with huge teeth and claws that killed dozens of villagers and sent the natives into a panic.

An enraged dragon in West Africa that smashed a bridge, tipping people to their doom.

Richard tells of his own adventures and theories on the origin and nature of this not so legendary beast.

"The dragon is not content at being confined to storybooks and mythology", he says.

"There is something very real, very ancient, and very powerful behind these stories. When your parents told you there were no such thing as dragons, they lied."

"Dragons: More Than a Myth" is available from the Centre for Fortean Zoology website at www.cfz.org.uk

or from Amazon
http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/095128729X/qid%3D1131208270/026-5014435\ -5519649

Telephone Mark on 01237 431413 for further details or to arrange an interview with Richard Freeman.

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website, www.cfz.org.uk.
+ C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled `Monster Hunter` is his long awaited autobiography.
+ The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.
+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors
+ Pictures to accompany this story are available on request

07-10-2005 You are the weakest link - goodbye

2009-12-27T07:30:00.000-08:00

For Immediate Release
07 October 2005
YOU ARE THE WEAKEST LYNX - GOODBYE

Recent findings by archaeologhist Robert White confirm a hypothesis by the world's leading mystery animal research group that lynx lived wild in Britain far more recently than was otherwise thought.

In the most recent issue of `Animals & Men`, the journal of the Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ], zoologist Chris Moiser (author of several books on Britain's mystery cats, the latest of which "While the Cat's Away", is generating a lot of interest around the world), writes on the subject of the British lynx. He notes that :

"When the sightings of alleged Alien Big Cats in the United Kingdom are quantified, the short-tailed stocky-brown lynx type cat seems to come third after the black panther and puma type animals".

He presents a hypothesis that although "until the last ten years or so it was generally accepted that the lynx died out in the late stone age or bronze age", the evidence suggests that this creature - now found in northern Europe, and parts of North America - may have lived in the British Isles much more recently.

Carbon dating carried out on bones found in the Yorkshire Dales National Park have proved that these animals were alive and well as recently as 1,500 years ago - many years more recently than allowed by orthodox science.

This is the second time in recent years that claims by scientists from the Devon-based CFZ have been borne out by mainstream science. When director Jonathan Downes claimed in 1992 that the European green lizard (Lacerta viridis), could be living wild in small numbers on the South Coast, he was treated with derision. However, in 2002 a small colony of this lizard was found in southern Dorset.

Which of their claims will be proved right next?

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website, www.cfz.org.uk.
+ C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled `Monster Hunter` is his long awaited autobiography.
+ The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.
+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors
+ Pictures to accompany this story are available on request

07-10-2005 Monster hunters' snappy visit

2009-12-27T07:28:00.000-08:00

For Immediate Release
07 October 2005
MONSTER HUNTERS' SNAPPY VISIT

When a crocodile was reported in a Cornish pond this week representatives of the world's largest and fastest growing mystery animal research group hurried to the scene.

This week the news services were ablaze with reports that a "small crocodile" had been sighted in a pond at St Blazey in southern Cornwall. Stacey Clayton (20) said: "I noticed this big log in the water, but as I got closer I saw its eyes. I wasn't sure whether it was alive so I threw a stone near it. It lifted its head and looked straight at me. I saw its tail and a dozen teeth coming down from its top jaw. I went home and called the RSPCA. My dad said it was probably a caiman."

Chris Moiser and Richard Freeman from the Centre for Fortean Zoology went straight to the pond, unpacked a boat and nets and - together with a representative from Newquay Zoo - searched the area thoroughly. Richard Freeman has plenty of experience with crocodilians. He was head reptile keeper at Twycross Zoo for some years, and has recently written about giant crocodiles in his new book "Dragons:More than a Myth". Chris Moiser says: "It is possible that the lake could form a home for a small crocodilid for some months during the Summer. Because of the density of the undergrowth it is possible that the animal could have remained undiscovered for some time. Any crocodilid that is present will almost certainly die quickly, if not already dead, as a result of the cold. The size of the lake, and the sheltered nature of the streams that feed into and out of it are such that an illegal deposit of an animal would have been relatively easy".

This is the third time in recent years that the CFZ have been called in to investigate crocodile sightings. Reports from Staffordshire and Gloucestershire in 2003 can be found on their website.

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website, www.cfz.org.uk.
+ C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled `Monster Hunter` is his long awaited autobiography.
+ The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.
+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors
+ Pictures to accompany this story are available on request

01-10-2005 Calling all frogs!

2009-12-27T07:26:00.000-08:00

PRESS RELEASE:
CALLING ALL FROGS!

For immediate release:
October 1st 2005

Researchers at the world’s largest mystery animal research organisation hope that they will soon be able to solve one of the oldest puzzles of British zoology.

For the past two decades zoologists have noted that more and more colour variations of the British common frog (Rana temporaria) have been turning up in our garden ponds. They are often golden, or sunshine-yellow in colour. It has been suggested that these mutations are the result of global warming, pollution or other ecological stress factors. However, researchers at the Devon-based Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] are intrigued by an old Devon folk story which suggests that these yellow amphibians have been around for a lot longer than industrial pollution – some 700 years, in fact!

CFZ Director Jonathan Downes (46) takes up the story:

“There is a charming medieval folk story of a poor woodcutter who lived with his family in the woods near what is now Bovey Tracey. One bitterly cold night, during the middle of a wild thunderstorm his only child was dying of an unspecified illness when there was a knock at the door.

"A beautiful lady, dressed in white and surrounded by an unearthly radiance was standing on his doorstep. He invited her in, gave her the best seat by the fire and the few scraps of food that they had. He used their last few sticks of firewood to feed the fire for her, and he gave her his warm, winter cloak to make her comfortable through the night.

"The next morning when the family awoke the storm was over, the sun was shining, and their child was miraculously cured but their mysterious guest had vanished leaving a note, which told them that henceforth their luck would change and they would become happy and prosperous. In order to remind them of her visit she had magically created a well in which golden frogs were swimming.

"The books of folklore go on to suggest that this was a visitation from the Virgin Mary, and note that "to this day there is a Mary Street in Bovey Tracey". They were unable, however to explain either the golden frogs or the mysterious stream.

A couple of years ago we discovered a holy well, half forgotten in a wall in Mary Street opposite Bovey Tracey Hospital, and almost simultaneously we began to receive reports of bright yellow and golden frogs from across the westcountry”.

Now, with help from the newest member of the CFZ team, David Phillips (13), who works with the CFZ every weekend, they hope to solve the mystery. David – a keen amateur photographer – is working with CFZ Assistant Director Mark North on setting up photo tanks, and together they will be collating the pictures, and they hope to eventually publish a book detailing the results of the project.

“It’s very exciting. We already have one picture of a golden frog which was taken in my home village of Woolsery”, says David. “We are hoping to collect a library of pictures of different coloured frogs from across the region.”

But the team also want to take the project further: “When we find some healthy yellow or golden specimens, we want to see if they breed true, with none of the signs of malformed tadpoles and infertile eggs that one would expect from a harmful mutation,” says Jonathan, adding that no animals will be harmed and that all the frogs will be released back into the wild.

The CFZ are hoping for YOUR help. Have you got unusually coloured frogs in your garden? Contact the CFZ on 01237 431413 and ask for Jon, Mark or David. They will be overjoyed to hear from you.

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website www.cfz.org.uk.
+ C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled `Monster Hunter` is his long awaited autobiography.
+ The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.
+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors
+ Pictures to accompany this story are available on request

20-09-2005 Over 20 different UK big cat sightings in August alone

2009-12-27T07:22:00.000-08:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2005-09-20
Over twenty different UK big cat sightings in August alone

For many years now, big cats have been reported across the United Kingdom. Once sneered at by reputable scientists who saw them as being similar to reports of alien abductions or the theories of the Flat Earth Society, However, times have changed, and the burgeoning number of reports produced by mystery animal experts (cryptozoologists), present a compelling picture. The Centre for Fortean Zoology [CFZ] – the world’s largest and fastest growing cryptozoological research group – releases a free monthly newsletter covering big cat sightings across the UK. Chris Moiser, expert on British mystery cats, author of several books on the subject summarises the report:

“This report represents a considerable amount of evidence from a diversity of sources Typically these were from local newspapers, but it is pleasant to see that a number of reports were sent, by email to the British Big Cat Research Group (contact via www.scottishbigcats.co.uk) directly and others via regional representatives and groups.

"A simple summary is that a minimum of 28 eyewitnesses saw 17 black cats, 4 brown cats, 1 ginger cat, 1 grey cat and 2 large tabby type cats. In addition two people were roared at by an animal that they didn’t see; there were 4 alleged animal attacks (3 on sheep, and one, non-fatal, on a horse) and one police force gave a warning about the dangers of such animals. The police force, Dorset Police, also stated that they had contingency arrangements in force for dealing with big cats “if they appear”. Another interesting factor is that a number of people have claimed to have had more than one big cat sighting, often years apart.

"It is only possible to give a minimum number of witnesses because some of the reports refer to multiple sightings of cats in an area without specifying how many people actually saw it. Similarly one or two cats may have been seen more than once in more than one area”.

Chris, whose latest book `When the Cat’s Away` is published by CFZ Press is excited at some of the new evidence which is included in the report:

“Some photographs have also appeared, as has some video footage from the Cirencester area. The photographs are in the main probably of domestic cats, but there is a size reference in the video footage which suggests that the animal could be 4½ feet (1.33 metres) long.”

Jon Downes – Director of the CFZ – casts a note of warning, however. “There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that these animals exist. I have seen them myself on two occasions. However, an awful lot of nonsense is talked about them. There have been claims of attacks on human beings which –upon investigation – have proved to be entirely groundless. The number of sightings is often exaggerated, and we believe that claims of well over a hundred sightings in some British counties over an eighteen month period should be taken with a large pinch of sale.

"However with organisations like the Centre for Fortean Zoology www.cfz.org.uk and the British Big Cat Research Group in the field, I am confident that it will not be long before before there is definitive proof that Britain’s wildlife has gained a new and exciting species.”

For more details, to obtain a free copy of the report, to interview Chris or to find out more about the CFZ please feel free to contact Jon or Mark on 01237 431413

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website www.cfz.org.uk.
+ C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled `Monster Hunter` is his long awaited autobiography.
+ The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.
+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors

03-09-2005 Do you want to help the monster hunters?

2009-12-27T07:15:00.000-08:00

For Immediate Release
3rd September 2005
DO YOU WANT TO HELP THE MONSTER HUNTERS?

Even at the beginning of the 21st Century monsters still roam the remote, and sometimes not so remote, corners of our planet. Believe it or not, each year many new species of animal are discovered, and the world is not as well explored as many people like to think, but monsters?

The Centre for Fortean Zoology (CFZ) which was founded in 1992, is the world’s largest and fastest growing mystery animal research group in the world. Working on strict scientific principles, they have – within the last five years – mounted an impressive list of expeditions in search of bizarre, and often frightening new species of animal.

· Sumatra (2003, 2004). In search of an ape man known to the natives as ‘orang pendek’
· Mongolia (2005). In search of the mysterious Mongolian `Deathworm`
· Puerto Rico (2004). In search of the grotesque vampiric `Chupacabra`
· Thailand (2000). In search of a dragon called the `Naga`

The CFZ also produces an impressive range of publications; a quarterly journal, an annual `yearbook`, and approximately six other books a year. But they have a big problem…

“We are victims of our own success”, says Director, Jonathan Downes (46). “Because we are a registered non-profitmaking organisation, every penny we make goes back into our research. Apart from our office assistant, nobody is paid at all, and because we now have over four hundred members across the world, and because at any time many of the core members of the team are working in the field, the administration and office work is suffering”.

The CFZ are looking for volunteers who can help. Although their office is in rural North Devon, advances in technology mean that volunteers could be anywhere in the world. Are you computer literate and have some time to donate in a good cause? Email Jonathan on jon@eclipse.co.uk He will be delighted to hear from you.

FOR MORE DETAILS CONTACT JON OR GRAHAM ON +44 (0)1237 431413

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website www.cfz.org.uk.
+ C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled `Monster Hunter` is his long awaited autobiography.
+ The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.
+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors

24-07-2005 Are you ready for a Weird Weekend?

2009-12-27T07:13:00.000-08:00

For Immediate release
July 24th 2005
ARE YOU READY FOR A WEIRD WEEKEND?

For the sixth year running, devotees of the weird and wonderful, the strange and supernatural, and the downright odd will be converging onto an ancient grey stone pub on the outskirts of Exeter for what has become the biggest event of this type of the year.

The `Weird Weekend` was the brainchild of Jonathan Downes (45), Director of the Centre for Fortean Zoology – the world’s largest cryptozoological [mystery animal research] organisation.

“Because we receive no Government funding, we are thrown back onto our own resources to a certain extent,” he says. “Each year we finance research across the globe into looking for unknown animal species, and it gets expensive. So, six years ago, we decided to hire a pub for the weekend, invite some people to lecture on subjects that we found interesting, and see if the public were interested in coming along”.

It has grown from there really. Six years on, this year’s event features lectures from Dr Gail-Nina Anderson (fairies in art), Chris Moiser (the Cryptozoology of Sherlock Holmes), Peter Costello (Lake Monsters), Nick Redfern (what REALLY happened at Roswell), and Richard Freeman (The 2005 expedition in search of the Mongolian Deathworm).

All proceeds from this year’s event (tickets are £18 a head for the weekend by the way), go towards financing a second expedition to Mongolia in July 2005, in search of the fabled Mongolian deathworm – a 3-4 foot long snake like animal said to bedeadly poisonous and which is unknown to science.

Be there or be square.

FOR MORE DETAILS, PRESS PASSES AND INTERVIEWS PLEASE FEEL FREE TO RING JON OR RICHARD.

NOTES FOR EDITORS

+ The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website www.cfz.org.uk.
+ C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled `Monster Hunter` is his long awaited autobiography.
+The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.
+ The CFZ is looking for corporate and private sponsors

24-07-2005 The Bible and Big Cats launch Devon Book Company

2009-12-27T07:10:00.000-08:00

For Immediate release
July 24th 2005
THE BIBLE AND BIG CATS LAUNCH DEVON BOOK COMPANY

A new range of books specifically covering rural Devonshire is being launched.

CFZ Press was originally formed in 1995 as the publishing arm of the Centre for Fortean Zoology — the world's largest cryptozoological organisation. We are now the market leader in books and magazines on mystery animals, and in the Summer of 2005 to celebrate our tenth anniversary, we have launched a series of books specialising in Rural Devonshire.

The first two are released on Monday 25th July.

“Granfer’s Bible Stories” by John Downes

John Downes (80), a church-man all his life, is the author of A Dictionary of Devon Dialect (Tabb House, 1986). About seven years ago he began interpreting the Bible stories in the Devonshire vernacular, each story being told by an old Devon Grandfather - ‘Granfer’. These stories are now collected together in a remarkable book. `Granfer` treats the well-known biblical characters as if they were simple country folk living in the next village. Many of the stories are treated with a degree of bucolic humour and kindly irreverence, which not only gives the reader an opportunity to re-evaluate familiar tales in a new light, but do so in both an entertaining and a spiritually uplifting manner.

“While the Cat’s Away” by Chris Moiser

Over the past thirty years or so there have been numerous sightings of large exotic cats, including black leopards, pumas and lynx, in the South West of England. Former Rhodesian soldier Sam McCall moved to North Devon and became a farmer and pub owner when Rhodesia became Zimbabwe in 1980. Over the years despite many of his pub regulars having seen the “Beast of Exmoor” Sam wasn’t at all sure that it existed. Then a series of happenings made him change his mind. Chris Moiser, is a zoologist and a former lecturer at a College of Further Education. He has written several small books on the subject of British mystery cats, but this is his first novel. With a wry smile he admits that some of the events in this book actually took place, but he refuses to say which!

The book will be officially launched to the press on 4th August 2005, at a small reception in rural North Devon. You are invited to join us as we launch the first two titles of Devonshire books, as well as the first scientific book on dragons since 1884. Meet the authors in a relaxed rural setting

If you would like to attend please email Jon@eclipse.co.uk

23-07-2005 Amazing revelations for British Conference

2009-12-27T07:07:00.000-08:00

For Immediate Release:
23rd July 2005
AMAZING REVELATIONS FOR BRITISH CONFERENCE
EXCLUSIVE: THE GREATEST MYTH OF MODERN TIMES IS EXPLAINED

For nearly sixty years there have been rumours that a UFO crashed in the New Mexico desert near the little town of Roswell, and that wreckage and some tiny bodies were retrieved. Making his only scheduled public performance in the UK, best-selling author Nick Redfern, will reveal what ACTUALLY happened.

In his new book “Body Snatchers in the Desert: The horrible truth at the heart of the Roswell story”, Redfern reveals how American scientists had well after the war continued to carryout the horrific human experimentation started by the Nazis on hapless concentration camp inmates.

* He has the facts
* He has the figures
* He has the photographs

Now, through never-before-revealed testimony from military whistleblowers, eyewitness intelligence reports, and an astonishing body of corroborative evidence, Nick Redfern lays out a shockingly plausible new theory on the Roswell incident: that the crash-site discovery of prototype military aircraft would expose a damning secret -- a highly confidential, U.S. government-sanctioned program to conduct medical experiments on deformed, handicapped, disfigured, and diseased Japanese POWs, exploited as "expendable" victims by their captors. Nick will be the keynote speaker at the 6th Annual `Weird Weekend` in Exeter, Devon over the weekend of the 19-21 August 2005. Tickets are eighteen pounds per head for the whole weekend but they are selling out fast. Nick will not only be lecturing and signing copies of his book but will be showing pictures deemed too horrific to be included in the book, which will change your mind about many of the events of the past 60 years. The Truth is out there? Well, this time at least, it is!

For more details telephone Jon, Richard or Graham on 01237 431413. Or email: jon@cfz.org.uk

22-06-2005 The Horrible Truth at the Heart of the Roswell Story

2009-12-27T06:57:00.000-08:00

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
2005-06-22
The Horrible Truth at the Heart of the Roswell Story
Best Selling author to reveal all at British Conference.

In November 2003 I was staying with my good friend Nick Redfern at his home in Texas. While I was there he showed me some grotesque pictures of what appear to be deformed children suffering from radiation burns. He told me how he had discovered these whilst rersearching another matter entirely at the National Security Agency in Washington.

He told me that he believed that he had discovered the truth behind the story of the Roswell UFO crash; that the American Government had continued the revolting experiments on human beings that had been carried out by the Axis Powers during the war years. He showed me a body of evidence that I found compelling…..

….and then he swore me to secrecy.

For eighteen months I have not been able to say anything. But now his book "Body Snatchers in the Desert" has been published, and I am free to talk.

I am proud to be able to announce that Nick will be presenting this information to a British audience at the CFZ Annual Convention – `The Weird Weekend' in Exeter, Devon over the weekend of the 19th-21st August 2005. This is the only UK presentation that he is currently scheduled to give.

Such a subject is generally out of the purlieu of the Centre for Fortean Zoology – we are after all, an organisation whose main purpose is to investigate unknown animal species, but we feel that Nick's talk is of such grave – and indeed world-shattering – importance, that we have to provide him with a forum.

Weekend tickets costing £18 can be purchased online at http://www.cfz.org.uk/ww05.htm and are selling out fast. Please book your ticket NOW to avoid disappointment.

The story which Nick Redfern has to tell is frankly horrifying, but he paints a compelling picture. This is a chance for you to make up your OWN mind on the subject. I know I have.

Jonathan Downes (Director, CFZ)

BODYSNATCHERS IN THE DESERT
The Horrible Truth at the Heart of the Roswell Story
By Nick Redfern
Published by Paraview-Pocket,
a Division of Simon & Schuster,
New York $14.00
Published June 21, 2005

"RAAF captures flying saucer on ranch in Roswell region."

Ever since this provocative headline appeared on July 8, 1947, conspiracy theorists have sincerely believed that the US Government has maintained an extensive operation of cover-up and denial regarding its knowledge of alien life.

But what if there was a much darker secret surrounding the famous Roswell UFO crash – one that had nothing to do with aliens?

Now, in his new book, Body Snatchers in the Desert: The Horrible Truth at the Heart of the Roswell Story, and through never-before- revealed testimony from military whistleblowers, eyewitness intelligence reports, and an astonishing body of corroborative evidence, Nick Redfern lays out a controversial new theory on the Roswell mystery: that the crash-site discovery of prototype military aircraft would expose a damning secret – a highly confidential, US Government-sanctioned program to conduct post-World War Two medical experiments on deformed, disfigured and diseased Japanese people and prisoners of war, exploited as expendable by their captors.

An important account that forces us to take a closer look at both the Roswell story and post-war American history, Body Snatchers in the Desert casts a startling new light on the most infamous conspiracy of all.

Shocking whistle-blower testimony from Body Snatchers in the Desert:

"Those bodies—the Roswell bodies—they weren't aliens. The government could care less about stories about alien bodies found at Roswell, except to hide the truth. Those bodies were Japanese people. I should have spoken about this years ago. I should have said something."

"The Japanese and the Nazis had done unspeakable things to these people. Well, it was probably inevitable that someone is going to realize that there is a huge research value to looking at the way in which people and bodies have been used…in high-altitude experimentation, pressurization tests, injecting of plagues and viruses, chemicals, and—later, here—exposure to radiation."

"Word came down that this was to be a highly-classified project: `If it helps us get an edge on the Russians, do what you have to do with these people, but you keep it classified and you commit nothing to paper.' They knew, we all knew, that this was going to be damned and dirty. Everyone had their own pet projects with these people…and the desert was big enough for everyone to have their slice."

For more information on the `Weird Weekend` contact: Jonathan or Mark on 01237 431413

16-09-2003 Loch Ness monster video

2009-12-27T06:33:00.000-08:00

For immediate release:
2003-09-16

The Loch Ness monster is one of the most enduring mysteries of the
modern age. Certainly nothing else in contemporary zoology engenders
quite the amount of controversy as does the question of whether or not
there is a giant undiscovered creature lurking in the depths of
Scotland's largest lake.

Even amongst those of us who believe in Nessie there is controversy.
There are as many theories as there are experts. The Centre for Fortean
Zoology is the world's largest organisation dealing with mystery
animals and we all have different ideas as to the truth behind the
legends of the loch.

In April we were given a remarkable piece of footage. Although we have
spoken to the person who took it on a number of occasions and are
convinced of his veracity, he has asked to remain anonymous. We sent
copies of the film to various members of our board of consultants, and
sat back to await a verdict. We were not expecting every single person
who has seen this video to give a different explanation for it. It has
been described as a pair of otters, a waterbird of some kind, a giant
eel, men in diving suits and a pair of seals. Us? We have no idea what
it is! We are not even claiming that it shows the Loch Ness Monster.
However it is interesting enough to warrant us throwing it over to YOU
- the Great British Public.

Visit the website view the film and then vote in our online poll to
tell us - and the world - what you think it is.

http://www.forteanzoology.com/lochness/

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

· The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making
organisation, which was founded in 1992. We are the only full time
scientific organization dedicated to the study of mystery animals in
the world. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to
Central America, Thailand, Mexico, Sumatra, various parts of the United
States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further
information on the CFZ can be found on their website, www.cfz.org.uk.

· Stills from the film are available from the CFZ.

· C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on
the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled The Monster of the
Mere, recounts the 2002 expedition in the search of a giant fish in a
Lancashire lake. He is also the author of two highly acclaimed books on
Zooform Phenomena; The Owlman and Others and The Rising of the Moon.

· The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology
is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell
OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation
Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.

22-01-2003 "Expedition a great success", say monster hunters

2009-12-27T06:29:00.000-08:00

For immediate release:
2003-01-22
"Expedition a great success", say MONSTER HUNTERS

The four-man investigation team at from the Exeter-based Centre for Fortean Zoology have returned to base following a week-long expedition to rural Northumberland to investigate reports of a Yeti like creature seen roaming the woods around Bolam Lake.

"The expedition was a success far beyond our wildest dreams", said expedition leader Jonathan Downes, (43) " Not only did we conduct a thorough photographic and electromagnetic survey of the area, but we interviewed at all but one of the witnesses. However the most exciting thing to have happened during our sojourn at the lake was that five people - at the same time - saw the beast. I was one of those people."

Since the news broke on Monday, various reports, both in newspapers and on the Internet have published wildly inaccurate accounts of what happened. "What I actually saw was a dark, man shaped object approximately seven and a half feet tall. It had a barrel chest and thick muscular arms and legs." says Jonathan. "I had a very clear sighting, but despite reports in the press I saw no glowing eyes and was not able to tell whether or not it was covered in hair". The sighting took place at approximately 5:15pm on Saturday 18th January.

When asked whether the creature seen could have been an unknown species of giant ape similar to the Yeti of the Himalayas, expedition zoologist Richard Freeman, said: "It is completely impossible for an unknown species of higher primate to live undetected in these woods. It seems certain to me that what ever it is that it can these witnesses have seen - it is not a flesh-and-blood creature".

Over the years the Centre for Fortean Zoology have carried out a great deal of research into Zooform Phenomena. These are things, which appear to be animals but which upon investigation turn out to be nothing of the kind - and are not even animate in the true sense of the word. The term covers a wide range of different phenomena, which embrace the worlds of psychology, psychiatry, forensic medicine, sociology, history, and even what is broadly known as "the occult". This is only the beginning of a year-long investigation into similar things seen all over the United Kingdom. " Although our initial investigations have been very interesting" says Jonathan Downes, " it is far too early to make an attempt at a definitive conclusion!"

The Twilight Worlds paranormal research group based in South Tyneside have also been investigating the phenomenon and have collaborated with the team from the CFZ on some of the investigations. They have obtained photographs of what appear to be large naked footprints in the snow at Bolam woods.

NOTES FOR EDITORS:
· The giant ape is a legend found in many countries most famously the Yeti of Asia but few realise that our tiny, overcrowded island is home to such a tradition. In the dark ages such figures were referred to as trolls (via Norse influence) or Woodwoses (from Anglo-Saxon). They are found in folktales right across Europe. The Wildman was a familiar figure in the mumming plays of medieval times, but could these stories have some substance behind them?
a.. The idea of such creatures in the forests of sub-tropical Asia or even the woods of Canada is not too far fetched. Indeed some of the Asian man beasts have been backed up by hair, bone and scat samples. Many zoologists believe the creatures to be descendents of a species of giant ape, Gigantopithecus blackii, thought extinct since the last Ice Age. The fossils of this giant have been uncovered since then in China and India but are unknown in Europe. If such huge primates had ever lived in our country it would be likely that they would have been hunted to extinction along with the bear and the wolf.
· The CFZ team intend to follow up their investigations in a Northumberland with expeditions to Sussex and to Sherwood Forest to investigate other recent sightings of similar phenomena.
· The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website, www.cfz.org.uk. Full biographies of Expedition members together with their media CVs can be found on the site.
· Pictures of the expedition members are available.
· C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled The monster of the Mere, recounts the 2002 expedition in the search of a giant fish in a Lancashire lake. He is also the author of two highly acclaimed books on Zooform Phenomena; The Owlman and Others and The Rising of the Moon.
a.. The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
Please feel free to contact Richard or Jonathan

09-01-2003 Monster hunters in search of the Geordie yeti

2009-12-27T06:19:00.000-08:00

For immediate release:

2003-01-09
Monster hunters in search of the Geordie yeti

A motorist is driving through a remote rural area at night. He sees something move by the side of the road. A badger? Too large it must be a deer. But as he nears the object it becomes apparent it is like nothing he has ever seen before. Rearing up on two legs like a man, the thing is 8 feet tall and covered in shaggy hair. Its eyes burn red in the car's headlights as the startled driver floors the pedal.

You could be forgiven for thinking this was a report of the Sasquatch or Bigfoot in North America but it is not. It happened here, in Britain - and similar encounters are being reported up and down the country today. Such reports are normally few and far between, but over the last six weeks there has been a proliferation of them unparallelled in British history.

The creatures have been reported from a wood in Sussex, from Lancashire, from Sherwood Forest, from Scotland, and most notably from the vicinity of Bolam Lake in rural Northumberland. One of the first witnesses described how he saw "a dark figure", which "looked about 8ft tall, heavy built, its eyes, or what seemed to be its eyes, glowed in the darkness." There have been several other reports, which seem to be startlingly similar.

These accounts are so impressive that Britain's foremost team of professional monster hunters are travelling to Northumberland next week in order to investigate the phenomenon. The four-man team from the Centre for Fortean Zoology, based in Exeter, hit headlines all around the world last year when they successfully went in search of a monstrous creature that had been attacking swans at a Lancashire Nature Reserve. On that occasion the culprit turned out to be a giant catfish from Eastern Europe. What do they think it is going to be this time?

"Whereas there is very little doubt that creatures such as the yeti or the Orang Pendek of Sumatra are bona fide species of higher primate that have so far escaped detection by scientists, other man beasts from Australia, North America and Europe are far more problematical," says expedition leader Jonathan Downes (43), director of the Centre for Fortean Zoology.

"There simply isn't a suitable climate, habitat, or food source in Britain to support an unknown great ape," says expedition Zoologist Richard Freeman (33), "but then again I would love to be proved wrong". Richard, who studied Zoology at Leeds University and is also a qualified zoo-keeper has worked with all the great apes and will be playing recordings of known ape species and also sounds allegedly made by the North American Sasquatch in an attempt to attract the beast of Bolam Lake. During the week-long expedition the team will also be utilising hi-tech equipment in an attempt to solve this fascinating mystery.

"We are all very excited about this trip" says John Fuller, (40), the newest member of the CFZ Team. "After all how often does one get the chance to confront a medieval folk tale which seems to have come to life?"

NOTES FOR EDITORS:

• The giant ape is a legend found in many countries most famously the Yeti of Asia but few realise that our tiny, overcrowded island is home to such a tradition. In the dark ages such figures were referred to as trolls (via Norse influence) or Woodwoses (from Anglo-Saxon). They are found in folktales right across Europe. The Wildman was a familiar figure in the mumming plays of medieval times, but could these stories have some substance behind them?

a.. The idea of such creatures in the forests of sub-tropical Asia or even the woods of Canada is not too far fetched. Indeed some of the Asian man beasts have been backed up by hair, bone and scat samples. Many zoologists believe the creatures to be descendents of a species of giant ape, Gigantopithecus blackii, thought extinct since the last Ice Age. The fossils of this giant have been uncovered since then in China and India but are unknown in Europe. If such huge primates had ever lived in our country it would be likely that they would have been hunted to extinction along with the bear and the wolf.

• The CFZ team intend to follow up their investigations in a Northumberland with expeditions to Sussex and to Sherwood Forest to investigate other recent sightings of similar phenomena.

• The Centre for Fortean Zoology is a non profit-making organisation, which was founded in 1992. Over the last 11 years we have mounted expeditions to Central America, Thailand, Mexico, various parts of the United States, as well as numerous investigations in the UK. Further information on the CFZ can be found on their website, www.cfz.org.uk. Full biographies of expedition members together with their media CVs can be found on the site.

• Pictures of the expedition members are available.

• C F Z director Jonathan Downes has written numerous books on the subject of mystery animals. The latest, entitled The Monster of the Mere, recounts the 2002 expedition in the search of a giant fish in a Lancashire lake.

a.. The honorary life President of the Centre for Fortean Zoology is renowned explorer, author and soldier Colonel John Blashford-Snell OBE, best known for his pioneering Operation Drake and Operation Raleigh expeditions during the 1970s.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION

Please feel free to contact Richard or Jonathan.

This is a preliminary press release. When the itinerary for the expedition has been finalised another press release will be issued.