Thanks, Eddie, that’s really interesting. It would be great to know what happened to the coffins.

I have visited the Time Machine several times. Upon examining the lock, it appears to have a key in it. But locked from the inside. How this was done I have no theory.

Wow, very interesting, thank you – the more you look into it, the more intriguing this labyrinthine story gets.

Rumour has it Hannah Peters Courtoy was a Morganatic wife of the House of Hanover, she appears to have owned a chest of Gold Louis D’Or coins, independantly of John Courtoy’s wealth (The genesis of which is closely linked with the Birth of ‘The British Empire’ via the British East India Company, in which he was a major shareholder), and possibly the two elder daughters interred with her may have issued from that relationship, and they (Despite being considerably more comely than their younger ‘half’ sister Susannah) may have been been forbidden to marry on pain of losing a royal stipend. This would help explain why the bulk of Courtoy’s wealth went straight to Susannah, while mother and elder sisters continued to live in independant royal style. Translation of the Hieroglyphs on the mausoleum possibly also supports this hypothesis. H.P.’s subsequent cohabitation with J.C. may have allowed her to maintain a semi-respectable position post parting ways with the House Hanover, on condition of bearing the aging J.C a child….

The key was not lost, but was returned to it’s rightful owner …;)

Some fascinating stories there, Jane. Brookwood Cemetery has a very interesting history – it was specifically designed to take corpses from London, shipped out by railway (it had its own railway station) in an attempt to ease overcrowding in the capital’s burial grounds. I’ll probably write a blogpost about it one of these days.

I was a firm unbeliever in anything “unnatural/supernatural/ etc) until I was sitting next to somebody eating breakfast, and she turned a whiter shade of pale…

The most disappointing aspect was, I saw nothing….

Yes, we were in an old house, built over the remains of a monastery, with a holy well in the cellar.

Yes, it was owned by a musician.

No, we were not on drugs…… it was 7am after all….

Anyway, she couldn’t speak and was severely shocked….. I took to putting a chair in front of my bedroom door after that… As if that would have helped…!

So, always open to ideas…

Ps… Their chauffeur used to sit in a barn clutching a scythe…. Really

Glad you enjoyed the article, Jane. I’m sure you’ll enjoy your visit. I think there’s quite a bit of interest in Brompton Cemetery in addition to the time-travelling Courtoy Mausoleum!

Many thanks, Gene, glad you enjoyed the tales of Brompton Cemetery’s very own Victorian-Egyptian time machine.