Elliott O'Donnell
Elliott O'Donnell (1872–1965) was an English writer best known for his books about ghosts. He was born in Clifton, England, to Reverend Henry O'Donnell and Elizabeth Mousley, and had three older siblings. After Elliott’s birth, his father went to Abyssinia and was said to have been murdered. Elliott claimed descent from ancient Irish chiefs.
He went to Clifton College and later studied in Dublin. He said he began seeing ghosts as a child, including a yellow spirit in his bedroom at age five. As a young man he went to the United States, worked on a cattle range in Oregon, and even served as a policeman during the Chicago Railway Strike of 1894. He then returned to England, worked as a schoolmaster, and trained for theatre in London. In 1905 he married Ada O'Donnell. He served in the British army in World War I and later acted on stage and in films.
His first book, For Satan's Sake (1904), started his writing career. He wrote many novels, including The Sorcery Club (1912), but became famous for what he claimed were true ghost stories. He published widely in magazines and gave lectures and broadcasts about the paranormal in Britain and the United States. He said he investigated many hauntings and believed in ghosts, though he did not call himself a spiritualist.
Many of his books mix personal experience with fiction. He sometimes used actors to stage hauntings, and after his death there were questions about how much of his work was fact. He never worked with the Society for Psychical Research, though he once spent a night at St Nicholas Church, Brockley Combe with investigator Everard Feilding.
O'Donnell died on 8 May 1965 in Clevedon, North Somerset, at age 93. In his will he left £2,579.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 00:56 (CET).