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Unusual Phone Calls (Received; Incoming)

One night in the winter of 1991, my elderly next-door neighbour came to our door, asking for help. it was about 3am and she'd been getting phone calls from a girl with an English accent pleading with her to send help, as she had been out with friends getting drunk, and they'd kicked her out of the car in the middle of nowhere.

She was really shaken, and the girl was screaming down the phone to her and hanging up, so I went through and waited for the girl to call again - I knew it was a prank call instantly, as she said her name was Les Mahagow. :rolleyes: So I told her to stop calling, and that I was going to the police.

She screamed some obcenities at me and started laughing, some more voices in the background joined in the laughter, she hung up and the calls stopped.

The next night, my parents phone rang at the same time - 3am - and my Mum answered it - a girl was on the phone crying, saying that she had been with my Dad tonight, and he was lying in the hospital bleeding, but worse, she was carrying my Dad's child and wanted my Mum to know this - now, my Dad was on holiday from work, and hadn't left the house in three days - he was asleep in bed next to my Mum.

My Dad took the phone, and in no uncertain terms, told her to get lost. An hour later, the phone rang again, and I answered it - it was the girl, saying the same things again - the same girl from the previous night! I asked her name, and she started screaming into the phone. I told her that I had spoken to her last night, that I had called the police, and that they were checking the phone records to get her number. She started laughing and swearing at me, and hung up - to my knowledge, she never called back.

Now, the thing that bugs me is, how did she get my neighbour's number and my number to phone prank calls - I didn't know any English girls at the time, and it definitely wasn't someone imitating an English accent - the other voices in the background were English too.
 
Look you and your neighbour's address up in the Register of Electors (avalable at your local pubic library) and then find your numbers in the Phone directory.
 
Only one person knows my phone number, my ex. Even I don't know it unless I look for it on my mobile. And I'm ex-directory. Everyone calls me on my mobile.

So one day last week the phone rings when I'm in the bath. By the time I get to it, the caller has hung up. I dial 1471 to get the last callers number and apart from the second last digit being a 4 rather than a 5 its the same as my ex's number!

What are the chances of that? Or do I start to get paranoid?
 
I think I mentioned this on another thread, when we lived in Scotland we got a phone call at 2 am from an hysterical female wanting to speak to my brother (who at the time was getting divorced and we had no idea where he was living), she insisted that she was pregnant by him, and was at her wits end trying to contact him, she knew the names of all the family trying to prove that she wasn't lying ... whomever she was, she was drunk, she phoned back three times screaming the same rubbish at both of my parents - till I pulled the phone cord out of the socket. My mother nearly had a stroke about it ... we reckon it was his ex-wife's friend
 
The longer serving members of the MB may remember that when I first started here I was working for Directory Enquiries (when we still had gave out 98% correct numbers :hmph: ). The through night shift always turned up some jokers, some very sad people and (few) emergencies.

Now when you ring through to the operator (in the UK) the number you are calling from always appears on the screen (this will be denied by BT &c)

When we got the jokers we would keep them talking and get the duty manager to ring engineering (for the address) and the police. If the police had a slow night they would attend. As they drew up the phone would be replaced then we would call it about 30 seconds later and ask to speak to the police :D

The sad cases (usually senile dementia cases) we would get to know, would talk usually them through their terrors and often would ring social services in the area. The truly difficult ones were suicides (police, social services and the Salvation Army were of great help here, unfortunately the Samaritans cannot call out)

The emergencies were from people who "didn't want to bother the emergency operator" :confused:
 
intaglio said:
...The emergencies were from people who "didn't want to bother the emergency operator" :confused:
Click to expand...

There are some odd people out there who don't quite grasp the idea of "Emergency" services.
When I was in the Military Police, Monday was always slightly busy due to these confused individuals who "didn't realize you were 'open' on the weekends.":rolleyes: :confused:
 
The "Dial 9" Hoax

I had a conversation with someone at work regarding the "dial 9" hoax e-mail that's mentioned earlier in the thread - basically, she'd sent it to everyone in the company.

I sent her a polite mail with the link to the ICSTIS page giving details of the hoax & suggesting it might be a good idea not to forward it on any further - next thing, I get a really angry phone call.

her : "I know that this is real, I know people who've had this call"
me: "it's not likely to be real - the ICSTIS people haven't found a single verified case, and in any case the maximum tariff is set at £1.50"
her:"but I KNOW that it's real"
me : "do you have a phone bill or a letter from the phone company giving details ? ICSTIS would be keen to have it."
her: "I don't have PROOF. I don't need PROOF. I know people that have had it through word of mouth."

No matter what I said, I could NOT convince the lady in question that this was a hoax, even though I suggested paying the phone bill if she could find me a case. Obviously the e-mail had done the rounds & was circulating by word of mouth , too.

Kind of reminds me of the hostile audiences that skeptics face after demonstrating the tricks that psychics use. It just doesn't do to question someone's beliefs, even trivial urban legends like this one.
 
Slightly OT...

If its any consolation, Guru_saj, my sister-in-law insists
she actually received her coupon for $10 off a pair of
Reebok shoes for forwarding an email to 10 of her friends...

I gave her every chance to get out of it gracefully, but
she wouldn't budge. She also couldn't produce the coupon
or a pair of shoes... ;)

TVgeek
 
Not a Fortean experience, but a good coincidence. I had a phone number, 555-1234. I occasionally got calls "Is this Chris?" It didn't seem to be the same caller twice. It turned out they were trying to call 555-1235 and misdialed. Here's the coincidence. One day on the way home I needed to get to a restroom bad. I stop at a mall, go to their men's room, and on the wall it says "for a good time call Chris at 555-1235". What are the odds that I would see that, finally explaining the phone calls?
 
I always wondered if people actually phoned those numbers from the bathroom wall. :)
 
Were you using "555" in place of your own number as an example? Becuase "555" doesn't actually exist as a phone number. It's just for tv and the movies, isn't it?

-Fitz
 
Once I called one of those numbers etched on a payphone... said "Hello, did you know your number's written on a payphone?" and told them where it was. That was when calls were 10 cents.

I remember a fun night me and a friend had with an internet auto-dialer and a party line... called a whole bunch of people with a similar obscene name, had groups of people asking each other who had dialed... immature, but fun...
 
Fitz said:
Were you using "555" in place of your own number as an example? Becuase "555" doesn't actually exist as a phone number. It's just for tv and the movies, isn't it?
Click to expand...
I doubt 555-1234 was his real number, somehow :)
 
I've done some stupid things, but posting my real phone number isn't one of them. I was just indicating that Chris's number was 1 digit off from mine, so not suprisingly occasionally misdialed.
 
One of my old numbers was one digit off a local insurance office's fax number.
I'd get the phone ringing in the middle of the night, sometimes several times, and when I answered it, half asleep, I'd hear a piercing fax tone, like a ref's whistle. :eek: That woke me up!
 
An old work colleague of mine had a fairly elderly mum, who was receiving regular calls from a double glazing salesman. While he was visiting, after several calls from said company offering unneeded double flazing etc, my workmate decided to change tactics, got the salesman chatting, and asked for the office number to ring back when he had discussed the offers with his mother. Later on he called the office " This is Mr.xxx just calling to let you know we don't want XY orZ" An hour later, he called back " This is Mr.xxx just calling to let you know we STILL don't want XY orZ". After a few of these, a sincere appology and a promise not to call again was given. Nice!!!
 
Very few people have my cell phone number--just family and close friends. A few weeks ago, my phone rang while I was at work. No number came up. I answered it only to be met with a mocking female voice saying my name. :confused: It didn't sound like anyone I knew. (I've changed the number since)
 
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I had a strange phone call the other evening.
When I answered, there was a long pause, and a fairly faint Irish-sounding voice said "Hello? Can I speak to Mr X, please?"
So I replied, "Speaking - hello?"
This guy just said "Hello..." and then hung up!
I couldn't trace the call with 1471, and it sounded like he was calling from another country.
This guy got my name right (well, actually my name's not really Mr X), and I've no idea who he was.
I'm ex-directory, by the way.
 
Here in the US we have the Do Not Call List, similar no doubt to the UK's phone preferences. It has done wonders to keep the telemarketers off my line. We used to get a dozen or more autodialed calls a day. Now, none. We can go days without the phone ringing. We're also non-published, which means that our numbers doesn't appear in database. Also, our mail goes to a post office box, which is a dead end for people seeking personal info. Why do all this? Because I'm tired of rude, nasty telemarketers who don't accept a polite "no thanks, not interested."

Now for my telephonic nightmare:

About 10 years ago, a close friend died under very public, very tragic circumstances. The FBI was looking into what we did or did not know, and there was the usual complement of funny noises on the line. The worst thing however, was a bill collector. He called one day, asking my wife if she knew Joe Whoever. Sinced we'd been at his funeral the week before, she was rather upset by this. The man proceeded to ask her whether she knew if he had any assets, that sort of thing. She tried to tell him that the man he wanted was dead, but he ignored her. She finally hung up on him after getting his number. I got home from work, found her very upset, and called the man. The conversation was quite surreal. Are you sure he's dead? was one question. I managed to get control of the conversation. Repeated my number several times, made sure that he had it written down. Made sure I had his name, and his firm's name. Told him that if he called that number again, I would not only go to the police with charges of harrassment, but that I would sue him personally. Told him that if he didn't believe that Joe Whoever was dead, all he had to do was look up the obituary from the previous week, or the newspapers of the week he died. I even suggested that if he called the local TV stations, one might be able to provide him with footage of the man's dead body. Then I carefully laid down the handset in the cradle.
The dead man's brother was my neighbor, and he'd pretty much stopped responding to phone calls for a while. There were too many people who wanted SOMETHING, whether they were reporters, police, lawyers, or debt collectors. So this particular chunk of scum had gotten a city directory, and called the people next door, that was us.
 
I have an uncommon surname (rare even in Germany, where my parents are from) and always disliked being in the phone book for that reason. For the past couple of years, I've been living with my bf and the service is in his name, which for some obscure reason makes me feel a little better. (His last name isn't common either, but it stands out less than mine)
 
I have an uncommon surname... what bothers you about having it in the phone book?

Odd anecdote... I've never heard of anyone, outside my imediate family, with my last name... I go to college, and in building 7 what do I see but that name on a list of benefactors. Never did research that...
 
My surname is unique (it's mine and his, double-barrelled) so I've never had it in the 'phone book as we'd be easy to pick out. The ex is a high school teacher and they get crank calls. Anyway, why would anyone need to be in a phone book? If you want someone to have your number you can give it to them.
 
about 1/2 ago i had a call (reserve chages) from a guy called "mike". (thinking it was from some i knew, i excepted the call)

so after we exchanged hi's:-

mike:- this is mike

me:- who?

mike:- you know mike!

me:- sorry but who are you? and howd you get this number?

mike:- i got your number from "your wife" in the pub

me:- what pub? and when?

mike:- heh! i cant rember the name of the pub nor when i got your number

me:- and whats "my wifes" name?

mike:- dunno but i definatly got your number from your "wife"

me:- i dont have a "wife" i think you have the wrong number!

mike:- no its the right number, your "wife" defininately gave it to me

me:- nope you have the wrong number

mike rings off

now im wondering hope the hell this guy got my number?
cos its not listed, its withheld for outgoing calls, and ex-directory.

i had something like this before possibly from the same guy about a few months ago on the answering machine


:confused:
 
Last Monday when I got home from work I had a really nasty phone call from some nut job looking for the guy in the flat across the hall from me. First he dished out loads of real abuse to my girlfreind (Calling her a 'F**king Friutcake..) then when I talked to him and told him the guy didn't live in my flat he started calling us a pair of Junkies....before eventually hanging up with some more choice abuse.

Kinda worked out from what he was saying that he worked for a debt collection company. I tell you I don't even like the guy in the other flat that much but no way was I going to tell a mentalist like him where he was......

It really was the most horrible phone call I have ever had. Long shot is I'm going to make us Ex-directory and get call screening because between that and those irritating automated sales calls I don't really need the hassle any more.

If a Political party could come up with a manifesto that propsed banning phones they would get my vote in a shot. Nasty things...
 
I've just had a baffling call on my mobile from a young man asking for my daughter who's in Switzerland. He thought my number was hers as that's the phone she rang him on.

There was a lot of credit on my phone on my return from abroad which A Certain Teenager gleefully promised to 'cane'. That'll be it, then. :rolleyes:
 
Piscez said:
I have an uncommon surname... what bothers you about having it in the phone book?
Click to expand...

Because then people can find me. :D It's not like being able to hide in a herd of Smiths or Macdonalds.
 
i have an extremely unusual foreign surname, as far as i know the only other people in the country who share it are my relatives and a footballer (as it has a different ending for males and females *technically* only my mother shares it with me). as both my first and last name are common in greece, and greeks don't generally use middle names, there must be other greeks with my name, but nobody in the UK, surely?

a few years ago i got a call from somebody in america looking for somebody with the same full name as me. she said she knew me or someone with my name living in the UK, on the internet. now i don't often give out my full name on the internet, and i am fairly sure i didn't know this person.

the only things it could possibly be:
- it was someone i knew online who usually went under a pseudonym and had neglected to mention this (but wouldn't they tell me they'd called?)
- it was someone i had encountered on the internet to whom i'd happened to mention my full name, who was a complete weirdo with no understanding of boundaries or intrusion who felt like having an extremely expensive phone conversation with me. this one gets my vote.


the most irritating phone call i've ever had:
it's 10am. i'm in bed. nobody else is in the house.
ring ring ring ring ring ring ring.
i have to answer it.
"hello?!"
"is this the homeowner?"
"no"
"is the homeowner in?"
"no"
click.
argh! at least apologise for bothering me before you hang up so i can tell you what an arsehole you are for waking me up!
 
"Is this the homeowner?"
"If you don't know who you called, I don't want to talk to you." Click.

Always hang up first.

I always list my number because there's reasons why people you want to be able to find you won't have it - fellow gamers, people from work/school, etc. When I lived alone I used to get occasional harrassing phone calls from perverts, but a friend's mother taught me how to get them to hang up forever. "Would you like to talk to my son/boyfriend/dad?" They'd often hang up at the sound of the male direct object, but if you had a man handy - didn't matter who; a plumber once performed this service for me - putting him on the line resulted in the jackass hanging up and never calling back. My work study office at the university - almost exclusively female staffed - had the same problem until I passed this on. The next time we got such a call, the person who took it handed him off to a passing professor, who said "Hello," and that was the end of the phone calls. Obviously we had one big fan, not a pervert epidemic, and we'd spoiled his fun.

Which just goes to show, perverts are also Male Chauvinist Pigs. But we probably could have guessed that.
 
Peni said:
"Is this the homeowner?"
"If you don't know who you called, I don't want to talk to you." Click.

Always hang up first.
Click to expand...

no, i prefer to waste their time - time is money, and for every minute you can keep the bastards on the phone without buying something that's another minute they have to pay the phone bill for, another minute they have to pay the member of staff making the call for, and another minute they can't use to bother someone else. the best strategy is to pretend you are going to buy whatever it is they are selling, but obviously not actually buy it.

recently my nan has been getting phone calls from people - sometimes pretending to be from well-known companies - who realise that she is elderly and try to get her credit card or bank details, in the hope that she doesn't know that that gives them access to her money. she may be 84, but luckily she's not stupid and if she can get their phone number on the caller ID she reports them to trading standards or the police.

edited to add that i've never received a single call from a perv. i don't know what they think is wrong with me, although it's probably just that i've never lived alone and the phone number's always been under a male name.
 
Years ago I received a call from a fellow, I'll call him Jim. I lived with 4 other people at the time and the phone was not in my name. Jim calls up one night and asks for me. One of my housemates gets me to the phone. I don't know Jim and I asked him who he was. He said that he met me at Screwy Louie's on Friday night. I tell him that I have NEVER been to that bar and I was in a different city that night, with my boyfriend. I didn't even know anybody who would go into that establishment, yet alone falsely give out my name AND my phone number. I hadn't even been living in the area long enough to make an enemy. Plus, being painfully shy, I didn't associate with many people.

I got another strange call years after that. Somebody called my house looking for me, yet again, the phone was not in my name. He asked me if I went to X High School. I said yes and he hung up on me. Why would somebody go through the trouble of finding me 7 years after I graduated high school, and then never making contact?
 
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