In the early hours of April 21, 1997, a married couple in Tadworth, Surrey experienced a mysterious awakening that defies conventional explanation. Around 3 AM, the couple was roused from sleep by a fox barking outside their window, quickly followed by an intense rumbling noise directly above their house. One witness described it as sounding like "a giant boy on a giant skateboard" as it passed overhead for approximately 10-15 seconds.

The following morning revealed peculiar evidence of the nocturnal disturbance. Black silt that had previously filled their gutters was now scattered around their property. Strangely, the gutters themselves were completely clean, as if something had extracted the accumulated debris and dropped it around their home and garden. This pattern extended to a workshop about a hundred feet away, where similar unexplained cleaning and redistribution had occurred. Despite proximity to major airports, no aircraft movements were recorded in the area during the incident time.

Key Takeaways

A Surrey couple experienced unexplained sounds above their home accompanied by unusual air movement inside their closed bedroom.
Physical evidence included mysteriously cleaned gutters with contents scattered around the property grounds.
Similar unexplained encounters have been reported elsewhere, often featuring unusual entities or atmospheric disturbances.

Tadworth Surreal Encounter

Strange Awakening

On April 21, 1997, a couple in Tadworth, Surrey, England experienced an unusual nighttime disturbance that defied explanation. At approximately 3:00 AM, SC and her husband were suddenly awakened by the sound of a fox barking directly outside their bedroom window. This animal's distress call, however, was only the beginning of what would become a truly perplexing incident.

As they sat up in bed listening to the fox's cries, their attention was drawn to something far more unusual. A powerful rumbling noise emanated from directly above their home, which SC later described as sounding like "a giant boy on a giant skateboard."

Mysterious Vibrations

The powerful rumbling continued for approximately 10-15 seconds while the couple remained in bed, witnessing their curtains moving as though buffeted by strong winds—despite their window being firmly closed. The sound appeared to travel from south to north before gradually fading away.

When they finally ventured to look outside, neither the fox nor any visible source of the disturbance could be seen. Nothing unusual was visible in the immediate area. They spent some time discussing the strange occurrence before eventually returning to sleep.

Black Residue Evidence

The following morning revealed perhaps the most compelling evidence that something truly unusual had occurred. The couple discovered an unusual black silt scattered around the exterior of their house and throughout their garden. Upon closer inspection, they made a startling realization about its source.

Prior to this incident, their home's gutters had been heavily clogged with this same black, fermented silt—a substance that would have required significant effort to remove. Remarkably, all their gutters now appeared completely clean, as if the material had been extracted and then deposited around the property.

Even more puzzling, the same phenomenon had affected the husband's workshop located approximately 100 feet away at the garden's edge. Its gutters were similarly cleaned out, with the material scattered on the surrounding grass.

The case was later investigated by researcher Gloria Dixon, who confirmed the couple lived near both Gatwick and Heathrow airports but could establish no aircraft activity in the area during the time of the incident. The precise nature of what occurred that night remains unexplained.

Examining the Tadworth Occurrence

Airport Vicinity Analysis

The Tadworth incident occurred near both Gatwick and Heathrow airports in Surrey, England. This location detail is significant when analyzing potential conventional explanations for the April 21, 1997 event. Despite the proximity to these major transportation hubs, no aircraft activity was officially recorded in the immediate area during the 3 AM timeframe when the phenomenon occurred. This absence of documented air traffic creates an interesting gap in conventional explanations.

The location's proximity to these airports would typically suggest commercial aircraft as a likely cause for unusual nighttime disturbances. However, the official flight records for that night show no scheduled activity that would account for the described effects. This contradiction between expected air traffic and the actual events requires further investigation.

Possible Extraction Scenario

The evidence suggests something unusual may have happened beyond just a strange noise. The couple reported waking to a fox barking outside their window followed immediately by what they described as a "terrific rumbling" directly overhead. The rumbling sound - compared to "a giant boy on a giant skateboard" - lasted approximately 10-15 seconds before dissipating. Notably, curtains moved despite closed windows, indicating air pressure changes.

The most compelling physical evidence came the following morning. A mysterious black silt was found scattered around their property. This material appeared to have been:

Extracted from their home's gutters
Lifted from the husband's workshop gutters (located 100 feet away)
Deposited around both structures on the grass and garden areas

What makes this particularly strange is that the gutters had previously been full of this fermented black material, which would have required significant cleaning effort. After the incident, all gutters were inexplicably clean as though the material had been forcibly removed and scattered.

Alternative Interpretations and Unresolved Issues

Several questions remain unanswered about this event. The fox's barking may represent an animal's sensory reaction to an unusual presence. Animals often detect phenomena that humans cannot perceive directly. The timing at 3 AM aligns with numerous other reported unexplained incidents, creating a pattern worth noting.

The movement of the black silt presents particularly puzzling questions:

What force could extract material from gutters without human intervention?
Why would this material be deposited around the property rather than carried away?
Could the couple have experienced missing time or memory gaps?

The fact that both individuals woke simultaneously and shared the exact same experience rules out individual hallucination. The physical evidence of redistributed gutter material provides tangible proof that something unusual occurred. What remains unclear is whether the rumbling phenomenon and the material displacement were directly connected, or if they represent separate aspects of the same event.

Parallel Disturbing Accounts

R.S. Russo's Documentation of Strange Occurrences

In his compelling book "Odd and Chilling Encounters: True Stories of the Unknown," researcher R.S. Russo presents numerous unexplained phenomena reported by witnesses across different locations. Among these accounts is a particularly strange incident from Surrey, England that occurred on April 21, 1997.

A married couple in Tadworth was suddenly awakened around 3:00 AM by the sound of a fox barking outside their window. While this alone might seem unremarkable, they simultaneously noticed a powerful rumbling noise directly above their home. The wife described it as sounding like "a giant boy on a giant skateboard" passing overhead.

Although their windows were closed, the couple observed their curtains moving as if affected by strong wind. After approximately 10-15 seconds, the sound gradually faded away. When they looked outside, they found no trace of what had caused the disturbance—no fox, no lights, nothing unusual in sight.

The following morning revealed something truly bizarre: a black silt substance scattered around their property. Investigation showed this material appeared to have been lifted from their gutters and deposited around the exterior of their house. Even more strangely, their gutters—which had previously been filled with accumulated debris—were now completely clean, as was a workshop located about 100 feet away at the end of their garden.

P. Dixon's Unsettling Experience in New York

An undated but remarkable account comes from P. Dixon, who shared with Russo a deeply disturbing encounter from his younger years. Dixon and two friends, all in their twenties, decided to go hiking on the D-Bar Mountain Trail in New York for their first hiking adventure.

Approximately 30-40 minutes into their hike, the young men grew bored and unwisely chose to venture off the marked trail. After wandering through the forest for some time, they realized darkness would soon fall and decided to return to the main path.

During their return journey, all three heard what sounded like flapping wings. When they turned toward the noise, they observed something hovering about 30 feet in the air that defied explanation:

A disembodied human head with long, oily black hair
Hollow, pale eyes
Drooping skin reminiscent of horror films
Tube-like structures near the cheeks or ears
Small bat-like wings enabling flight

What struck Dixon as particularly odd was their reaction. Despite witnessing something terrifying, none of them screamed. Instead, they returned to the trail in near silence, got in their cars, and drove home without completing their hike. The event was so disturbing that they rarely discussed it afterward.

Mysterious Encounter by French Children

On July 13, 2009, in Vola Saint Claude, Jura, France, four boys aged 7-12 reported a bizarre encounter while playing in the forest. After hiking trails and following a stream near railroad tracks, they arrived at a clearing surrounded by tall trees.

The children noticed a gray metallic ladder positioned against one of the trees. Following the ladder upward with their eyes, they spotted an unusual entity:

Physical characteristics of the creature:

Approximately 3 feet tall
Smooth, dark green skin
Large, flattened head lacking facial features (no visible eyes, mouth, or ears)
No apparent hair
Slender body with thin legs ending in three claw-like protrusions
No visible arms
A dorsal ridge running from head to lower back
No clothing or visible reproductive organs

The entity appeared to be performing repetitive movements, climbing up and down the ladder while swinging its body rhythmically. When the children began screaming, the creature briefly paused as if acknowledging them before resuming its activity.

When one child threw pebbles toward the entity, the children suddenly heard rapid footsteps all around them. Leaves and twigs were swept away by a powerful air blast, accompanied by buzzing sounds like voices. Terrified, the children fled the area. Investigators Elaine Pascuto and Michelle Morel later documented this strange encounter.

Concluding Thoughts

UFO encounters often include peculiar details that defy conventional explanation. The 1997 Tadworth incident presents a particularly intriguing case where physical evidence remained after the event. A married couple awakened at 3 AM to a fox's unusual barking and a powerful rumbling noise directly above their home. The curtains moved despite closed windows, suggesting strong air displacement.

The most compelling aspect was the mysterious black silt found scattered around their property the following morning. Their previously clogged gutters had been completely cleaned, with the contents deposited on the ground around their house and workshop. This physical evidence suggests something with considerable force hovered above their home that night.

Similarly strange was the 2009 encounter in France where four young boys witnessed a small green humanoid creature. The entity, approximately three feet tall with smooth skin and a featureless head, methodically climbed up and down a metal ladder placed against a tree. When the children made noise, the being briefly acknowledged them before resuming its repetitive task.

The French incident escalated when the boys suddenly felt powerful air movements around them. Leaves and twigs were swept away by an invisible force, accompanied by buzzing sounds like distant voices. This created such fear that the children fled immediately.

The New York hiking incident represents perhaps the most bizarre sighting. Three young men venturing off-trail encountered what they described as a disembodied human head floating 30 feet in the air. The entity had pale, hollow eyes, drooping skin, and small bat-like wings. Most notable was the witnesses' reaction - complete silence rather than panic or excited discussion.

These accounts share common elements:

Unexplained air disturbances
Witnesses experiencing unusual silence or calm
Events occurring in ordinary locations
Physical evidence or multiple witnesses

What makes these encounters compelling is their mundane settings and unexpected physical evidence. While conventional explanations might exist, the specific details reported by multiple witnesses create enduring mysteries that continue to challenge our understanding of unexplained phenomena.

Unexplained Nocturnal Phenomenon: The Mysterious "Giant Skateboard" Incident of Surrey, 1997