NEW scientific research which uses evidence from the world famous Enfield Poltergeist case has come a step closer to proving conclusively the existence of paranormal activity.

Research published in the Journal of the Society for Psychical Research has concluded that noises recorded during poltergeist activity at a house in Green Street in the late 1970s were unlikely to have been caused by normal human activity.

The recordings, made between 1977 and 1978, captured a variety of unexplained occurrences that plagued a mother and her children - including banging on walls and moving furniture.

During the year of disturbances, incidents of levitation and appearances of apparitions were also reported.

The events were witnessed by the family, along with local police officers, neighbours and journalists, receiving global media attention.

The recordings have for the first time been analysed in detail and the sounds of knocking on walls and furniture compared to the same sounds recreated under scientific conditions. The results showed the unexplained noises in Enfield did not produce normal sound wave patterns.

Guy Lyon Playfair - who spent two years investigating the case at the time, and went on to chronicle the events in a book, welcomed the research. He said: “This is absolutely the biggest step forward in the last 30 years, and it's easily reproducible as all scientific evidence should be.”

The author and investigator added: "In doing this research, scientific order has been brought into a very crazy area - poltergeist activity. I don't think it's been done before."

The research has been conducted by Dr Barrie Colvin who concludes that the noises recorded as unexplained incidents of “paranormal activity” can be clearly differentiated because of their abnormal acoustic properties – which are evident when they are analysed.

Dr Colvin said: “There are indications that the acoustic properties of the two classes of sounds are different and that this technique can be used to differentiate between normal and paranormal rapping sounds."

Asked whether he believed such activity could ever return to the Enfield house, Mr Playfair said: “It would be extremely unlikely. When the family went away on holiday I stayed in the house on my own, very much hoping something would happen - but not a squeak. I tried knocking and shouting at the thing, but nothing.”

The last activity at the house was reported in September 1978. But in the 32 years that have followed interest in the case has continued to be intense – especially as extensive audio recordings exist of the activity, including recorded speech. The case has been the subject of numerous television documentaries.

Mr Playfair added: “It’s been accepted as one of the classic cases, there were so many people involved and I think it was the first or second case when the investigators were there right at the start and stayed right until the end.”