On the morning of February 23, Frederick Briggs, of Chambers Avenue, Romsey, Hampshire, U-K., a former Sergeant employed as a bricklayer at Broadlands, the estate of Lord Mountbatten, told two colleagues and the Lord a story explaining why he arrived late for work.
He told that at about 08:30 a.m. he was cycling to his work from Romsey, and when he was about half way between the Palmerston or Romley Lodge and the Broadlands house, just where the drive forks off to the Middlebridge Lodge, he suddenly saw a hovering flying saucer over a field.
He said the silent craft was shaped like a spinning top, between 20 and 30 feet in diameter, of dull aluminium color, with portholes all round the middle.
He turned off the drive at the fork, and rode over the grass some 100 meters, dismounted, held the bicycle in the right hand and watched the saucer hevring at some 100 meters away and 20 meters above the ground.
He said he saw a column about the thickness of a man descend from the center of the saucer and suddenly noticed on it, what appeared to be a man, presumably standing on a small platform on the end. The man did not appear to be holding on to anything, and seemed to be dressed in a dark suit or overall and was wearing a close-fitting hat or helmet.
As he stood there watching, he suddenly saw a curious bluish light, rather like a mercury vapour light, come on in one of the portholes. Although it was quite bright, it did not appear to be directed straight at him, nor did it dazzle him, but simultaneously with the light coming on, he suddenly seemed to be pulled over, fell down in the snow with the bicycle on top of him, and could not get up again, as if an unseen force was holding him down.
He then saw the tube withdrawn quickly into the saucer; which then rose vertically, disappeared in the clouds, quite "as fast as the fastest jet aircraft" he had seen, or faster, with a noise that was no louder than "that of an ordinary small rocket let of by a child at Guy Falkes's day."
As Briggs could move again, he went straight to Broadlands, told his story, was interviewed by Lord Moutnbatten who had a known interest for the subject of flying saucers and made him sign a statement. The Lord found him apparently sincere, and went on location, but found nothing to confirm or refute the story.
The following day, Briggs apparently had a new story to tell. again, as he was riding his bicyle to go to his work, in the same area, he encountered the man from the saucer, who made friendly gestures to stop him, took him by the hand, and by telepathy, invited him on board the saucer which hovered nearby.
Briggs tells that he sat down on a chair in the saucer, agreed to go on a trip, said that he would like to see pyramids of Egypt again; which was done, the round trip lasting only 10 minutes.
Nothing is known about how this new episode was received or circulated.
It seems that the rumour of the first encounter circulated, arriving at the ears of British ufologists, tardily, in the Sixties. Author Desmond Leslie, who wrote a book for the alleged "contactee" Adamski, told it in the Flying Saucer Review, but was obviously not really believed since later, the editors published that it was still uncofirmed rumors, soon confirmed when one of the editors ensured to have actually seen the written statement following the witness interview by Mountbatten, just as Desmond Leslie had written about.
It was also learned that Mountbatten and other personalities had met the alleged contactee Adamski, who was even invited to Broadlands, and who could be a mysterious visitor that Briggs told he met, a man who talked to him about space men who would firmly intervene if ever Mankind starts to use nuclear weapons.
The case later used much ink because of implication of Mountbatten, skeptikal authors accusing thet "the ufologists" had used Mountbatten's name dishonestly by claiming he believed Brigg's story.
It was only in 2004 that Lady Pamela Hicks, the daughter of Lord Mountbatten - who had been killed in a terrorist attack meanwhile - revealed that indeed the story was true, but Briggs had simply invented it as an excuse for being late at work, cleverly capitalizing on Mountbatten's interest for the flying saucers, an interest that was well-known of his personal. Briggs had clumsily added more far-fetched claims thereafter, when he had realized that he had become a center of interest.
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[Ref. fb1:] FREDERICK BRIGGS:
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Statement by Frederick Briggs, 8, Chambers Avenue, Romsey I am at present employed at Broadlands as a bricklayer and was cycling to my work from Romsey on the morning of Wednesday the 23rd February 1955. When I was about half way between the Palmerston or Romley Lodge and the house, just where the drive forks off to the Middlebridge Lodge, I suddenly saw an object stationary over the field between the end of the Middlebridge drive and just on the house side of the [?] The object was shaped like a child's huge humming top and half way between 20ft. or 30ft. in diameter. Its colour was like dull aluminium, rather like a kitchen saucepan. It was shaped like the sketch which I have endeavoured to make, and had portholes all round the middle, like a steamer has. The time was just after 8.30 a.m. with an (overcast) and light snow on the ground. I turned off the drive at the fork and rode over the grass for rather less than 100 yards. I then dismounted, and holding my bicycle in my right hand, watched. While I was watching a column, about the thickness of a man, descended from the centre of the Saucer and I suddenly noticed on it, what appeared to be a man, presumably standing on a small platform on the end. He did not appear to be holding on to anything. He seemed to be dressed in a dark suit or overall and was wearing a close-fitting hat or helmet. At the time the saucer was certainly less than 100 yards from me, and not more than [?]0 feet, over the level where I was standing, although the meadow has a steep bank at this point so that the saucer would have been about 80ft. over the meadow. As I stood there watching, I suddenly saw a curious light come on in one of the portholes. It was a bluish light, rather like a mercury vapour light. Although it was quite bright, it did not appear to be directed straight at me, nor did it dazzle me, but simultaneously with the light coming on I suddenly seemed to be pulled over, and I fell down in the snow with my bicycle on top of me. What is more, I could not get up again. Although the bicycle weighs only a few lbs. it seemed as though an unseen force was holding me down. Whilst lying on the ground I could see the tube withdrawn quickly into the saucer, which then rose vertically, quite as fast as the fastest Jet aircraft I have seen, or faster. There had been no noise whatever until the saucer started to move, and even then the noise was no louder than that of an ordinary small rocket let of by a child at Guy Falkes's day. It disappeared out of sight into the clouds instantaneously, and as it went, I found myself able to move and although I seemed to be lying a long time on the ground I think that, in reality, it was no more than a few seconds. I felt rather dizzy, and though I had received a near knockout blow on the point of the chin, but of course there was no physical hurt of any sort, merely a feeling of dizziness. I picked up my bicycle, mounted it and rode straight on to Broadlands where I met Heath standing by the garage. I was feeling very shaky and felt I must regain confidence by discussing what I had seen. I said to him, "Ron, have you known me long enough to know that I am sane and sober at this hour of the morning?" He laughed and made some remarks like, "Well, of course." Then I told him what I had seen. Heath and I went back along the road where I showed him the tracks of my bicycle. I then went back to work, saw my foreman, Mr. Hudson, and told him what I had seen. [Signed:] Frederick S. Briggs |
The following drawing made by Mr. Briggs is attached to his signed statement:
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Note: "Guy Fawkes" was a member of a group of Roman Catholic revolutionaries from England who planned to blow up the Houses of Parliament to kill Protestant King James I and the entire Protestant aristocracy, on 5 November 1605. The plot failed but since then a tradition exists in England, with celebrations in which kids blow small gunpowder fireworks.
[Ref. lm1:] LORD LOUIS MOUNTBATTEN:
Lord Mountbatten's statement attached to the witness statement indicates that the latter made his statement in the Lord's presence and Mr. Ron Heath's presence and that both attest that it is what the witness told them.
Mountbatten specified that he went back with Ron Heath at the place where the saucer was estimated to have been seen, that they searched the place and found no unusual signs. He noted that the snow at the bottom of the meadow had melted, but no more than at the top.
Mountbatten notes that Mr. Briggs was still dazed when they first met, and worried that no one would believe his story, that he had never believed in flying saucer stories before, that he was amazed at what he had seen. Mountbatten notes that Mr. Briggs did not hive him "the impression of being the sort of man to be subject to hallucinations or would in any way invent a story". He wrote: "I am sure from the sincere way he have the account that he, himself, is completely convinced of the truthfulness of his statement." He adds that Briggs offered to swear the truth of this statement "but I saw no point in asking him."
[Ref. gc1:] GORDON CREIGHTON:
Flying Saucer Review editor Gordon Creighton wrote an article with a paragraph headlined "The Alleged Landing on the Mountbatten Estate".
He told that after the murder of Lord Mountbatten by the IRA terrorists in 1979, FSR published an article by Desmond Leslie, giving the details of an extraordinary case the magazine had already heard as vague rumors over a good many past years. "A UFO, or UFOs, it seems, had landed briefly in the grounds of the Mountbatten estate, at Broadlands, in Hampshire, Southern England, one snowy day during the 1950s, and an occupant of the craft had spoken to an Army NCO, Sergeant Briggs, a member of the Admiral’s outdoor staff."
Creighton says that according to Desmond Leslie, when Mountbatten heard of the encounter, he at once sent for Sergeant Briggs and got him to make a full statement, of which seven copies were prepared. Briggs signed all seven copies, was permitted to keep one, and Mountbatten placed the other six copies in a drawer of his desk.
Creighton says that there was a conformation by Charles Gibbs-Smith: when the FSR Directors held their next board meeting, they were able to hear direct confirmation of this affair from their fellow director Charles Gibbs-Smith who reported that he had traced Sergeant Briggs and discussed the matter with him, and had seen the signed copy of the report Mountbatten had drawn up. Several FSR Directors asked Charles Gibbs-Smith to put this important piece of corroborative evidence down in writing at once, so that it might go on record in the magazine, but regrettably Gibbs-Smithz, who was already ill, died before he could.
[Ref. pe1:] "PEA RESEARCH":
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Feb. 23, 1955..Broadlands Archives Record: Sworn statement by Lord Mountbatten and Frederick Briggs describing a Saucer that landed on Lord Mountbattens property. It was shaped like a child's humming top, between 10 to 30 ft. diameter. Looked like kitchen saucepan. Had cylindrical column about the size of a man descending from the center. Had portholes all around the middle, like a steamer boat. I noticed a man standing on the end of the central column. He was dressed in a dark suit of overalls, and wearing a close fitting hat or helmet. As the Saucer powered up a bright blue light came from one of the portholes (like a mercury-vapor lamp). A force knocked me over. The Flying Saucer proceeded to rise and retract the central column. (see 08/23/52)(See movie "Earth vs. the F.S.") |
[Ref. js1:] JOHN SPENCER:
The author indicates that bricklayer Frederick Briggs, employee at the Mountbatten estate, reported a UFO landing and an entity sighting in February 1955 on Lord Mountbatten's Broadlands estate in Hampshire.
He indicates that because of this, Lord Mountbatten "turned into a UFO investigator", and examined the marks in the snow that confirmed the claims of the landing of the flying saucer.
He quotes Lord Mountbatten:
"He did not give the impression of being the sort of man who would be subject of hallucinations, or would in any way invent such a story. I am sure from the sincere way he gave his account that he, himself, is completely convinced of the truth of his own statements."
[Ref. tg1:] TIMOTHY GOOD:
Tim Good indicate that there is a number of cases in which the extraterrestrials go down from their craft on a platform, and guves as example an incident of 1955 on the property of Lord Mountbatten.
[Ref. ar1:] ALBERT ROSALES:
Albert Rosales indicates in his catalogue that in Broadlands, Hampshire, England, on February 23, 1955, at 08:30 a.m., the witness was cycling to work when he encountered a large hovering object over a nearby field. The object was silvery metallic and shaped like a huge top. It had a row of portholes around the middle. The witness approached the object and dismounted from his bicycle. As he watched, a shaft descended from the center of the object and with it a man that appeared to be standing on a platform. He wore a dark overall and a close fitting helmet. The witness then noticed a bluish flash from one of the portholes and he suddenly fell over, unable to move. The shaft then retracted into the object, which then rose silently away. The witness was then able to move again but felt quite dizzy afterwards.
Albert Rosales indicates that the source is Timothy Good, Above Top Secret The Worldwide UFO Cover-up.
Albert Rosales also indicates in his catalogue that in Broadlands, Hampshire, England, on February 24, 1955, in the morning, the witness was cycling along the same lane when he spotted the same "man" he saw onboard the object the day before, standing on the roadway. He wore a blue coverall and with a friendly expression signaled the witness to stop. He grabbed the witness by his hand and apparently using mental telepathy invited him onboard an object that hovered above a nearby, secluded field. Inside the witness sat on a chair in a small compartment that had a triangular shaped window. He was asked if he wanted to take a trip, he indicated that he would want to see the pyramids of Egypt again. A few moments later he looked out the triangular shaped window and was able to see them. He was then taken back to the same field and then he returned home.
Albert Rosales indicates that the source is Desmond Leslie, FSR Vol. 26, #5.
[Ref. cr1:] DAVID CLARKE AND ANDY ROBERTS:
The authors indicate that on February 23, 1955, bricklayer Briggs claimed to have encountered a saucer hovering in the grounds of Broadlands; which was Lord Mountbatten's Hampshire residence, making him late for work.
Mountbatten was his employer and was fascinated with UFOs, so Briggs was persuaded to provide a full account.
Briggs was "still dazed" when Mountbatten met him and was "worried no one would believe him." He claimed he had not believed in flying saucers before the morning, and in a signed statement, he claimed the UFO was shaped like a child's humming top and was 20 to 30 feet in diameter and aluminum in color, like a saucepan but with portholes in the side.
Briggs claimed he went down of his bicycle as the saucer hovered, and was amazed to see a tube descend from its centre, in which a platform containing a man appeared. The man was wearing a dark suit or overalls and a close-fitting helmet.
While watching, Briggs was suddenly overcome by an "unseen force" which caused him to stumble, the tube retracted into the flying saucer; which "suddenly" shot straight up into the sky and "disappeared."
Mountbatten interviewed Briggs, then visited the scene of the sighting with an electrician. They found marks in the snow consistent with Briggs' account of his movements, but there was no physical evidence of the flying saucer.
The authors indicate that Briggs was "either favoured by the aliens or, more likely, encouraged by the attention he received from his employer", so that he reported a second encounter later, with the occupant of the flying saucer, with whom he communicated via telepathy. He claimed he was invited on board the spacecraft and taken to see the Egyptian pyramids, a round trip of just ten minutes. He claimed the aliens told him: "If Lord Mountbatten met us he could change the world".
The authors not that "Mountbatten's role and belief in the Broadlands landing" were often misrepresented by UFO writers during the next few years, and he had to give information about it but refuse to endorse its credibility when the case seemed certain to reach the press.
Writer Margaret Church was invited to lunch with Mountbatten's secretary and the latter asked her to omit "certain details" from an article she intended to publish claiming both Mountbatten and his wife endorsed Briggs' story.
The authors conclude:
"By 1961, Mountbatten had begun to realize that nothing he could say would stop the UFOlogists from using his name to endorse Briggs' claims and the beliefs which they helped to support. However, in a letter to a persistent UFO enthusiast he stated: 'I did not express any belief whatever in the story, which remains completely unproven.'"
[Ref. dj1:] DONALD JOHNSON:
Donald Johnson indicates that on February 23, a 30-foot diameter top-shaped object with portholes was seen hovering over a field on the Lord Mountbatten estate in Broadlands, near Romsey, Hampshire, England by a cyclist at 08:30 in the morning. A shaft of light came from the center of the silver top, there was a man on a platform on the object, who wore dark colored overalls and a helmet. A blue flash shot from one of the portholes and the witness fell to the ground, paralyzed. Then the shaft of energy was retracted, the UFO rose silently away. When it was gone, the witness could move again but was still dizzy.
The sources are indicated as Albert S. Rosales, Humanoid Contact Database 1955, citing Timothy Good, Above Top Secret; Larry Hatch, U computer database, case 4301, citing FSR.
[Ref. cf1:] CHANNEL FIVE TV:
Channel Five, U-K, broadcast a UFO documentary, "The British UFO Files", on May 26, 2004.
In the documentary, Lady Pamela Hicks, Lord Louis Mountbatten's daughter, told how the alleged landing of a UFO at Broadlands in 1955 was apparently made up by a man who was late for work, and used the excuse of a UFO encounter to explain his absence, playing on Mountbatten's well-known interest in the subject.
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Lady Pamela Hicks told that Lord Mountbatten was very interested in UFOs although he never saw any himself. His interest was well-known, and a bricklayer who was very late for work invented that he saw a flying saucer as an excuse, knowing that Mountbatten's interest would save him sanctions.
[Ref. pb1:] NICK POPE AND GEORGINA BRUNI:
These ufologists indicate that on February 23, 1955 it is alleged that a UFO was sighted at Mountbatten's estate at Broadlands in Hampshire, by Frederick Briggs, a bricklayer employed at Broadlands.
Briggs said that the craft had been shaped like a spinning top, was metallic and about 20 or 30 feet in diameter, with portholes around the center. He said he watched it from a distance of less than 100 yards, and estimated that it was 80 feet above the ground.
He saw a humanoid figure dressed in what looked like overalls and a helmet descend from the craft on some sort of column with a platform at the bottom. He was then dazzled by a bright blue light from the craft, fell over, lay unable to move, as if held by a strange force. Then the craft flew off at high speed.
The authors indicate that Lord Mountbatten took a personal interest in the incident, interviewed Briggs and searched the area of the meadow over which the UFO had been seen, and subsequently prepared a statement detailing Briggs' claims, and this story was written-up by Desmond Leslie in 1980, in the Flying Saucer Review, Volume 26, Number 5.
The authors indicate that Lord Mountbatten's signed statement on the incident is with most of his other private papers at the Broadlands Archive.
[Ref. pb2:] NICK POPE AND GEORGINA BRUNI:
The authors indicate that the second visit of the US contactee Adamski in the U-K. took place in 1963. It was during this visit that he met Mountbatten and Dowding in London, before traveling to Mountbatten's Broadlands estate to see the site where Frederick Briggs, an employee of Mountbatten had seen a UFO in 1955. The authors say their source, veteran ufologist Emily Crewe, was present at a BBC interview Adamski gave, and at a gathering held at Desmond Leslie's house, before the trip to Broadlands.
The authors specify that they are "sceptical of many of Adamski's" and offer the above as an item of historical interest only, Adamski's significance being more in the way senior Establishment figures such Dowding and Mountbatten were prepared to meet with him, than the stories he told. They think that it does not mean that Adamaski's claimed were really believed by these Establishment figures.
[Ref. ik1:] "ISAAC KOI":
This ufologist indicates in his UFO and sETI events chronology that on February 23, 1955, in Britain, Briggs, a bricklayer, claimed to have an encounter with a flying saucer over the grounds of the Hampshire residence of Lord Mountbatten, "Broadlands."
He lists the following sources for their discussions of the story:
| Year | Discussion by: | No. of Pages |
|---|---|---|
| 2001 | Bennett, Colin in his "Looking for Orthon" (2001) at pages 162-163 (in Chapter 14) of the Paraview softcover edition. | 2 |
| 2002 | Clarke, David and Roberts, Andy in their "Out of the Shadows" (2002) at pages 59-66 (in Chapter 4) of the Piatkus hardback edition. | 8 |
| 1987 | Good, Timothy in his "Above Top Secret" (1987) at pages 37-41 (in Chapter 1), with the image of relevant contemporaneous documents at pages 447-450 (in the Appendix), of the Sidgwick & Jackson hardback edition (with the same page numbering in the Guild Publishing hardback edition and the Grafton paperback edition). | 9 |
| 1996 | Good, Timothy in his "Beyond Top Secret" (1996) at pages 14-19 (in Chapter 1), with the image of relevant contemporaneous document at page 18 (in Chapter 1), of the Sidgwick & Jackson hardback edition (with the same page numbering in the Pan paperback edition). | 7 |
| 2001 | Picknett, Lynn in her "The Mammoth Book of UFOs" (2001) at page 63 (in Chapter 2) of the Robinson softcover edition. | 1 |
| 1985 | Randles, Jenny in her "Beyond Explanation? : The Paranormal Experiences of Famous People" (1985) at page 66 (in Chapter 5) of the TLC hardback edition. | 1 |
| 1957 | Reeves, Bryant and Reeves, Helen in their "Flying Saucer Pilgrimmage" (1957) at page 32 (in Chapter 5) of the Amherst Press hardback edition (with the same page numbering in the Amherst Press softcover edition). | 1 |
| 1994 | Ritchie, David in his "UFO : The Definitive Guide" (1994) at page 34 (in an entry entitled "Broadlands incident, United Kingdom") of the MJF hardback edition. | 1 |
| 1991 | Spencer, John in his "The UFO Encyclopedia" (1991) at pages 54 (in an entry entitled "Broadlands"), 219 (in an entry entitled "Mountbatten, Earl Louis") of the Guild hardback edition (with the same page numbering in the Avon softcover edition) at pages 63, 257 of the Headline paperback edition. | 2 |
[Ref. ue1:] "UFO EXPERIENCE" BLOG:
THE STRANGE ALIEN VISITOR AT BROADLANDS PARK, HOME OF LORD LOUIS MOUNTBATTEN.By Daniel O'Hara. I was born in Winchester, Hants in September 1940, and my father (1903-1973) was a heating engineer who was employed by the Winchester firm, Dicks Limited, between the early 1930s and the late 1950s. His work took him all over the County of Hampshire and adjacent counties, and one job on which he was employed for some months circa 1954-5 was a major rebuilding at Broadlands, Romsey, some 9 miles from Winchester. This was the home of Lord Louis Mountbatten, sometime First Sea Lord, and uncle of HRH Prince Phillip, husband of HM Queen Elizabeth II. Apparently Lord Mountbatten decided to have one wing of the house demolished, and the ensuing work involved a major project for builders, electricians and heating engineers. My father was involved in the heating aspects of this on behalf of Dicks Limited. I well remember that he came home one day in early 1955 with a story about Fred Briggs, a local bricklayer also working at Broadlands at the time, who had seen a 'flying saucer' in Broadlands Park on his way to work. I was at the time a lad of 14, and while not a believer in UFOs, I was to take a keen interest in the extensive literature then being produced on the subject. I read books by George Adamski, about which I was quite skeptical, and also a more scientific study by Aime Michel: The Truth about Flying Saucers. At the time I was naturally intrigued by the story, and keen to hear the details from my father. A few years later, my father told me that Fred Briggs was coming to Winchester to play in a darts tournament at a local public house, and he arranged for me to interview Fred at the hostelry. The date of this interview was September 2, 1959, and the landlord kindly provided a private room for me (now age just 19) to talk to Fred for about half an hour before the darts tournament began. Some of the details he told me were already familiar to me from what my father had told me in 1955, but I was careful to make notes of the interview with Fred, whom I judged to be in his early to mid forties at the time. These are supplemented by clear and distinct memories. In what follows I rely on both my notes and my memories. I was guided, in drawing up a sort of questionnaire, before the meeting in September 1959, by the 'checklist' given in Aime Michel's book. The incident in question occurred at about 8:30 am on Ash Wednesday, February 23, 1955. This was a cold day and the ground was covered with snow. As was his wont, Fred was cycling to work from his home in Romsey through Broadlands Park to the big house. Part way through the large park he noticed a strange object hovering above the ground. He got off his bicycle, and left the drive, pushing his bike towards where the 'craft' was hovering. He described the weather as cold, with light snow cover; there was little cloud and visibility was good. The 'craft' he described as a 'dull metallic object, apparently aluminum' about 20 to 30 feet in diameter, and shaped like a large humming top. He approached within about 20 yards of the object, which was hovering about 20 yards above the ground. He held the object under observation for about 4 minutes. There were no lights on the craft, apart from a blue light which shone from a porthole and which paralyzed him, causing him and his bicycle to fall to the ground. While stationary, the object made no sound, but there was a 'whiz' when it suddenly took off at great speed. Fred, greatly shaken, was only now able to get up from the ground, but did not feel able to remount his bicycle, so he pushed it towards the House. When he arrived there, he was met by his foreman who said: "What's up, Fred? You look like you've seen a ghost!" Fred told him the story, and the foreman said "Get in the van," and drove him back to where the incident occurred. In the snow they could clearly see where Fred had dismounted and wheeled his bike across the grass. They could also see the patch where Fred and the bike had fallen to the ground; also below where the craft had been hovering the snow had clearly melted. Driving back to the House, Lord Mountbatten was soon informed of the incident, and he sent for and interviewed Fred at length, his secretary taking a statement which was later typed up and which Fred signed. Some days later, Mountbatten sent for Fed again and questioned him further. He then showed Fred some photographs of an object, and Fred recognized it as exactly like the one he had seen at Broadlands. Mountbatten told him that the photographs had been taken from a British Naval vessel in the English Channel close in time to the appearance at Broadlands. Mountbatten told him not to talk to the press about what he had seen, and quickly left for London. Fred Briggs then told me a story of a subsequent event. This occurred late on evening in November 1957. He was walking home in the dark, when a man of normal appearance materialized beside him. He told Fred about the event that he had witnessed on February 23, 1955, displaying detailed knowledge of what had happened. The man said: "If Lord Mountbatten had come with us then, for 6 months to a year, he could have ruled the world." The conversation then turned to the Hydrogen Bomb, and the stranger said: "If any country dares to drop the H-bomb, we will destroy them." Fred asked who "we" were but got no answer. The stranger disappeared, apparently into thin air, after they had been talking for about an hour. He said he had not told anyone else of this encounter. I found Fred Briggs to be a level headed man, normally-sighted, articulate, clearly sincere, but I did wonder about this supplementary incident: had it been devised to impress me? I never saw or heard of Fred Briggs again after this meet on September 21, 1959. I had recently completed my schooling and was about to leave home for college. Mr. O'Hara's account of Fred Briggs humanoid encounter is crucially important alongside the strange case of Mr. Janus, an alleged alien who also approached former Air Marshall Sir Peter Horsley a key aid to the Royal family in the 1950s. It is interesting to note the Royal Navy sighting on the day of the Broadlands even as reported by Briggs to O'Hara; was this perhaps a deliberate validation message to Mountbatten who had been First Sea Lord. Closer to home, it is purported among certain historical sources that a former editor of FSR, Waverney Girvan received an alien visitor in the weeks before his death in the mid-1960s. If these remarkable alien delegations had continued, the UFO enigma would have resolved very quickly into a straightforward diplomatic exchange. Something or someone put an end to this process, an external power struggle or coup-DE-tat is one possible answer. Finally, if we go by previous cases, Fred Briggs mysterious visitor responds with typical brutality to the prospect of human hegemony. In the brief snippet we have of the one hour conversation is markedly sinister in his notion of destroying nations and selecting rulers of the world. Surely this kind of sentiment was more suited to the Hitler youth than the ears of the monarchy of this great nation, who stood tall among the guardians of the free nations of the world during the terrible advance of world communist totalitarianism during this era. |
Note: The text has obviously two authors, Daniel O'Hara, then unknown commentators. The text is allotted to the Flying Saucer Review but I did not find it in the table of contentes of the magazine.
[Ref. tg2:] TIM GOOD:
The author indicates that as he reported in his book Above Top Secret, an unknown flying machine with occupants is said to have landed on Lord Mountbatten's estate near Romsey in Hampshire in February 1955. The witness was one of Mountbatten's workmen. Moutbatten investigated the landing site and interrogated him, and wrote in a signed statement that the workman "did not give me the impression of being the sort of man who would be subject to hallucination, or would in any way invent such a story."
[Ref. ud1:] "UFODNA" WEBSITE:
The website notes that in January 1955, in Romsey, Broadlands, U-K., by daytime, an ex-army sergeant on the Mountbatten estate saw a disc-shaped UFO of 40 to 60 feet diameter, was paralyzed by a green light, and the next day he met a being in the road, 5'6" tall, in blue coverall. There was telepathy, 10 minutes, a tour to Giza, Egypt and back.
The website concludes that an abduction of a witness was reported, that one disc about 80 feet across was observed in snowy weather by one experienced male witness at a lane for 30 minutes (Briggs), that a 5.5-foot-tall being wearing a blue coverall was seen.
The sources are indicates as: Webb, David HUMCAT: Catalogue of Humanoid Reports; FSR (formerly Flying Saucer Review) FSR, London, 1966; Bullard, Thomas E. UFO Abductions: The Measure of a Mystery. Volume 1: Comparative Study of Abduction Reports FUFOR, Bloomington, 1987.
This is not the only case in which someone invented that he met a flying saucer as an excuse for being late at work. The same happened for example a year earlier in France, the lie being discovered only much later.
The reason that the case was the subject of such an amount of discussions, is not the no-so credible story and additions by the witness enriching his story with far-fetched episodes, but to the fact that Lors Mountbatten was involved, that the story existed initially a long time as only a rumour, not very credible, or told by the less than credible Desmond Leslie, the author who helped the alleged "contactee" George Adamski to write one of his books.
| Id: | Topic: | Severity: | Date noted: | Raised by: | Noted by: | Description: | Proposal: | Status: |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| None | ||||||||
Invention, excuse for being late at work.
* = Source I checked.
? = Source I am told about but could not check yet. Help appreciated.
| Main Author: | Patrick Gross |
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| Contributors: | None |
| Reviewers: | None |
| Editor: | Patrick Gross |
| Version: | Created/Changed By: | Date: | Change Description: |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0.1 | Patrick Gross | February 7, 2008 | Creation, [fb1], [lm1], [gc1], [pe1], [js1], [tg1], [ar1], [cr1], [dj1], [cf1], [bp1], [bp2], [ik1], [ue1], [ud1]. |
| 1.0 | Patrick Gross | February 7, 2008 | First published. |
| 1.1 | Patrick Gross | July 5, 2008 | Addition, [tg2]. |
