Just my luck to arrive at Oxford Castle Unlocked in the midst of a paranormal investigation.

But such is my plight as I trample the steps down to the 11th century crypt.

At the bottom stand the cluster of people I am destined to join. Half look cynical and snooty. The other half, like me, seem petrified.

The room is dark and our tread on the cobbles is unsteady as we lift up anonymous looking metal rods. They‘ve been handed out by spook specialists Paul and Hazel.

Both work for Nottingham-based company Haunted Happenings. Hazel, who used to be a nurse at the JR, has travelled as far as Transylvania to communicate with the dead.

Oxford Castle forms a regular haunt for her and the company, holding monthly events here running from 8pm until 3am.

“I want to believe in ghosts,” Hazel says, “and how scary you’ll find this depends on how much you believe.”

She continues to tell me that they‘ve witnessed numerous poltergeists and that, in pitch darkness, the castle can be frightening.

But I’m frightened enough already. When Hazel tells the aforementioned metal rods to point towards any spirits in the room, my rod starts to shake involuntarily. I find my heart racing and my buttocks solidly clenched.

“If there are any spirits in the room please make yourself known,” intones Paul next, cramming us up against a Ouija board.

Hazel attempts to reassure me that there are ground rules. “One thing we won’t do today” she says comfortingly, “is summon up the Devil.”

I’ve already started to think about making a hasty exit as the cynical gang of non-believers rush to place their hands on the Ouija board.

Complicated equipment has been shoved everywhere – notably a K2 meter and something called a REM Pod. As Paul starts communicating with the spirit world around the Ouija board, the equipment starts to flash and beep unnervingly.

“Spirit spell out your name!” yells Paul in his non-nonsense Midlands drawl. “DHIS” spells the spirit. “Spirit, are you male?” Paul asks. The hands scrape across the board to an affirmative “yes.”

Hazel asks me if I want to have a go. I stare at my shoes and pretend not to hear her.

Next up is Table Turning. Within the next 45 minutes ghosts may start flinging furniture around the crypt. “Shouldn’t we be wearing hard hats?“ One man screams in the dark.

For anyone with an interest in the paranormal these events are a must. Paul and Hazel are expert hosts who had me scared stiff and fascinated in equal measure.

I have no doubt they really did converse with spirits. But then so did I – retreating to the nearby Wetherspoons to calm my nerves over a much-needed tumbler of brandy.