Faith is probably the human race’s most endearing quality. Faith in God, faith in our children and even faith in our own ability. No matter how often our faith lets us down, we can always have faith that things can only get better.

Just look at Tony Blair, after his anus horribilis of 2006, here he is, two years on, picking up mega bucks for after dinner speaking gigs, and no doubt secretly gloating over how much better things were with him in power. He may be too humble to confirm whether any mutual praying went on with him and George Dubya, but he has always had incredible faith, in both himself and in his creator. I think he’s the Pope now.

Science one step behind

Science doesn’t deal in faith, it deals in facts. Verifiable, catalogued, corroborated facts. But science is always behind the pace. New techniques are developed every day, new theories superseding old ones, new reputations to forge in the media. 100 years ago the latest scientific process was photographing the eyes of murder victims as; the last thing they saw was their assailant. That was seen as cutting edge, until it failed to show any results, now it’s obviously bunkum. And less than 50 years ago Thalidomide was seen as a wonder drug that would stop pregnancy pains like no other medicine before, or so said the scientists who tested it.

Atomic clocks and quantum physics can only measure so many phenomenons. There are unquestionably forces beyond our understanding. Take identical twins, separate them and they will invariably choose the same clothes, hair do, musical taste (even if they’ve been apart all their lives). They can feel each others pain from the other side of the world and finish each others sentences. So, how can that be explained? Two bodies but only one soul? Telepathy? Jedi mind powers? One things for sure, science can only fudge a theory.

So then, if science can’t get to grips with anything that’s not a trillion years old or too small to see, "who you gonna call" if there’s a ghost? Certainly not a TV series where the hostess freaks at the mere creak of a door. Maybe you could get a team of paranormal investigators to stop train spotting for a night and set up their reel to reel tape machines. Is there evidence of paranormal apparitions? The jury’s out on that one, but police forces the world over employ psychics to solve crimes, as did the London underground after King Cross and 7/7. Key to investigation, or merely covering all bases, who knows?

Spirits

A popular explanation for restless spirits, strange voices and manifestations is, they’re a reflection of an event, frozen in time, like a recording. If that’s the case, then there’s no possible way we (the living) would be able to communication with our dear departed. It would be akin to watching the Christmas family movie favourite: ‘The Great Escape’ and having a conversation with Steve McQueen as he wiles away his time catching a baseball in the cooler, or talking to a photograph and it talking back.

So where does that leave Psychic Mediums who claim to be able to contact the afterlife. My contention is anyone who claims that ability has either a mental illness or they're filthy stinking liars who prey on people at their most emotionally vulnerable. This may sound harsh, but I’m prepared to put myself into serious debt and disappear from the media if I'm wrong! 20 years ago I spent a week recording 5 x hour long TV shows with James Randi, a world class illusionist, a magic historian and a debunker of all things psychic. In his time he’s fooled numerous scientific depts, been accused of having paranormal powers himself, and written books on Uri Geller as a fraud. He has been taken to court many times but has yet to pay out a single penny in judgments. At this point it only seems fair to wonder, can Uri really bend a spoon with his mind?? If it’s true, and that was my super power, I’d feel pretty short changed. Something that Mr Geller doesn’t suffer from, as multi nationals love paying him handsomely for his 'gift' in their prospecting. But he has paid out hundreds of thousands of dollars in his failed attempts to shut Mr Randi up.

I believe

It was during my time with James Randi it became obvious that, if there is a spirit world, they aint talking to us! He is so sure that for the past 45 years he has offered a million dollar challenge; open to all psychics, to prove they have the power. So far not a single medium, psychic or spoon bender has passed even the qualifying test. Now I’m no millionaire, in fact I'll have to get a loan out if I’m wrong, but I’m so confident the after life has nothing to say to us, that I would like to lay down my own challenge.

Any psychic who can contact my father (who died last year) and/or my sister (who died in 2000) and get them to answer one question each will get the cash and retire me from any and all media employment. For my part, I will provide their date of birth and death, photos of them throughout their life, as much personal information as required. For their part I require a simple answer that there would be no ambiguity to. I have faith not a single psychic, not even the ones who sell out concert halls and have their own cable TV series will even attempt to go for an easy ten grand for a few minutes work. But the challenge is on the table, or should that be the Ouija board.