It is with great sadness that I write to tell you that Australian parapsychologist Michael Thalbourne has passed away. I am glad to have known Michael and to have worked with him. I will miss him greatly. He was a creative and original thinker, not to mention highly intelligent and prolific in his output. He made major contributions to parapsychology and anomalistic psychology and his ideas have certainly had a major influence on my own thinking on these topics.
Some of you will be aware of the fact that Michael was a long-term sufferer from bipolar disorder and you may recall that on a previous occasion I sent out an email via the paranormal email network announcing his death by suicide. On that occasion, it transpired that I, along with dozens of others, had been the victim of a hoax and Michael was in fact still very much alive. The hoaxer was Michael himself, in one of his manic phases. I was, therefore, somewhat suspicious when I received an email a few days ago ostensibly from Bryan Thalbourne, Michael’s brother, informing me that Michael was in hospital in a coma having been found unconscious at his flat. Since then, I have been informed by Bryan of Michael’s death. On this occasion, I have taken steps to try to ensure that the emails are genuine (e.g., by contacting third parties) and I now believe that, unfortunately, they are.
Yours in sadness,
Chris.
