The Thunder & Lightning Man

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Profile	Posted by	Options	Post Date
Member Since: November 2011 Posts: 3,256 Send Message	Graham	Report	23 Aug 2015 15:00
	All these recent thunder storms have reminded me of a local character known as The Thunder & Lightning Man. Andrew Crosse was a scientist who lived at Fyne Court on the Quantock Hills; and is remembered for his experiments with electricity. Following one experiment he reported seeing insects. Journalists misunderstood what he meant and published a story claiming that he had created the insects in a Frankenstein style exercise. The story caused a storm of controversy. Everything that went wrong in the neighbourhood was blamed on Andrew Crosse and his act of blasphemy. What he actually referred to was the fact that his experiment was contaminated with insect larvae. Prehaps he needed a better cleaner (and a pr guru). Fyne Court burnt down in 1898 and the grounds are now owned by the National Trust. It's quite a nice place to visit when the sun's out. Now if only the weather would improve... :-)