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48^th SPR INTERNATIONAL ANNUAL CONFERENCE 2025

Celebrating 143 years of the SPR

This year's conference will be held at Milton Hill House, Steventon, Abingdon, Oxford, OX13 6AF, United Kingdom

Saturday 18th October and Sunday 19th October 2025

Introduction

Welcome to the 48^th Annual International Conference of the Society for Psychical Research. This year, we are based in Oxfordshire, at Milton Hill House. As with our more recent shifts to hotel and conference-based facilities – having held such conferences in universities for many years – we hope you have an enjoyable and comfortable stay. You should have everything you need under one roof. A short walk from your rooms to the lecture room and registration table, areas to sit, read, chat, relax, gym and spa, and lovely grounds. Comfort, enjoyment, new learning, and networking are the key elements of this weekend.

         Notably, several past presidents of the SPR were, for a time, based in Oxford. These include: Lawrence [L.P.] Jacks (1860-1955) of Manchester College, Oxford; William McDougall (1871-1938) who had been made the Wilde Reader in mental health psychology at Oxford 1905 before going on to help establish the Parapsychology Laboratory at Duke University, NC; Eric Dodds, honorary fellow of University College, Oxford; and Sir Alister Hardy, professor of zoology and founder of the Religious Experience Research Unit at Manchester College, Oxford. In the late 1960s to 1970s, St. Hilda’s College, Oxford, had the Oxford University Society for Psychical Research, of which Professor Susan Blackmore stated in her autobiography that she eagerly joined in her undergraduate years, resulting in some of her early publications to the Journal of the SPR. Conversely, there was the Cambridge Union Society for Psychical Research, where the late Mr Tony Cornell joined in 1953 and later served as its president. Cornell is the subject of an invited panel for this conference on Sunday, which will discuss his life and work – sparked by the recent publication on his life and work Chasing the Dark by Ben Machell.

We had 28 abstract submissions this year – and in a very short space of time! It’s pleasing to see so many people wanting to share their work with the SPR and also reporting back on grants that supported their research. Alongside such submissions, there is the invited panel – as mentioned – and invited speakers for the dinner and Sunday. It is not possible to have all abstracts submitted as part of the programme; there simply isn’t space or time within two days. And therefore, it is no easy task selecting those abstracts that get accepted and grouping them into themes and break periods to make the whole weekend informative, enjoyable and digestible. I do hope those who submitted abstracts which have not made the final programme are not discouraged; your contribution is appreciated, and your attendance at the conference is welcome, as is anyone else's. Such events would not be possible without a collection of abstracts in the first place. Do consider working on such abstracts for next year, or for the SPR’s Journal or Magazine. In any case, welcome!

Thank you to the Conference Programme Committee for their time in rating the submissions, which helped in the final decisions for the programme and order. To the secretary, Mr Peter Johnson, I am thankful for his patience and quick turnaround in finding a venue for this year. We already have some plans for next year and hope to report on the location very soon for the 2026 conference. Everything that has made this conference and others is a team effort. Thank you to everyone who has offered to present, write conference reports, take photographs, provide tech support, or be a dedicated attendee or first timer at the SPR conference. I am grateful to you all for your support in making these events what they are and useful for knowledge sharing, networking and the advancement of psychical research.

I look forward to seeing you all, meeting new people and helping make lasting connections and a memorable experience happen. Once again, welcome to Oxford and the Society for Psychical Research conference. Enjoy!

Prof. Cal Cooper

Programme Chair
 

Provisional Programme

48^th International Annual SPR Conference

18^th to 19^th October 2025

All times are British Summer Time

Friday 17^th October

Saturday 18^th October

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Sunday 19^th October

Check out of the rooms is at 10:00

17.00        Closing Remarks (President)