Weird things that scared you as a child...

[user1491572121]

My DD is 12 and I was just absentmindedly singing "Frere Jacques" and she said "Oh that song! It used to give me nightmares!"

And I said why? I used to sing it to you all the time!

And she said YES! And it made me think of people drowning...

Apparently she used to hear it and envision a man in bed and then water would rush in and drown him!

What weird fears/thoughts did you or yours have?

I also still think someone will grab my leg if I put it out of the bed at night.

The Ghosts of Motley Hall! Remember them?

And this monstrosity. Anything to do with Wurzel really. I loved and hated it in equal measure.

Swimming pool drains, thought I was going to be sacked under. Also lifts, used to regularly have nightmares about them.
My 10 year old dd hates the closing tune for casulty, covers her ears and hides under the throw!

Worzel Gummage

I had an irrational fear of Micheal Jackson

The electricity pylons next to the motorway past Birmingham. They got bigger and scarier the further in you got.

Also spiders under the bed and the lavatory demon.

The Libyans in the camper van in Back to the Future.

Those big daisies that used to be called "dog daisies" around us. Still freak me out.

Volcanoes. In Kent

My tormentor of a brother thinks it would be great if a dinosaur driving a tractor came down our road.

I also used to get a feeling of dread from the 'bongs' on the News at Ten, but not from big Ben in any other context.
My wardrobe door used to look like it was slooooowly opening.
We had no central heating and a paraffin heater in winter. It used to make a loud pinging 'click, click' noise that used to give me the willies. It felt like it was moving a step closer with every click.

I have realised as an adult that I am creeped out by empty swimming pools, more specifically old ones. Also whilst snorkelling last year realised that seeing manmade things underwater (old pieces of metal, tyres, bottles) makes me feel uncomfortable and I don't like swimming over them or looking at them too much. I don't like swimming pool drains either! And I am both fascinated by and creeped out by abandoned places, water parks especially. I don't have a phobia of water but all of these things seem to (and always have) revolved around water

I have got better but also still dislike the pool drains. It used to be so bad that I had to circle a pool and check out the location of them so I could avoid!

Flexible bridges (usually noticeable on foot). I always get in my head the image of a road bridge twisting itself apart (i think it was on the news as a child). I have to all but run across and still actively avoid them.

Pylons.

Superted, Penny Crayon, the baddies from Noddy. 80s cartoons were dark and weird at times.

The Count from Sesame Street.

Thunder and lightning. Fascinated by stormy weather now.

The candyman story that got passed round schools. Terrifying!

Lifts, not overly fond of them now either, small spaces and the pitch dark it made me feel claustraphobic and think all fears connected as it was the fear of being stuck somewhere I couldent get out. I didnt like looking out windows at night as worried someone would be looking back in. I am also not fond of heights. My children its only really the dark that overly bothers them, we usually leave hall light on. My daughter doesnt like going downstairs on her own if she has left her cuddly toy down there at bed time despite any other time wouldent bother her

Dolphins. Creepy fuckers. I'm still not keen on them now.

Also the music for the Antiques Roadshow because it meant bed & school the next morning .

Also hate deep swimming pools. I am not fond of water and hated swimming. I was a very anxious child. I work very hard to not pass this on, have no idea where any of the fears orriginated

Balloons Just the stress and tension of them and the anticipation of them popping, I couldn't handle them at all (still can't tbh). Birthday parties were a nightmare.

Germans heard about the holocaust in very crass terms, very young and i used to sleep under the covers so I couldn't get taken away. I still can't sleep unless i'm completely under the covers! Similarly, in year three after watching the Prince of Egypt i became terrified i'd find a mark of red blood on my wall! I'm not even a boy, all i took from it was around this time of year the angel of death would mark houses arbitrarily and that was it, you had to die.

I was also terrified of Lady Tremaine from Cinderella and my mum had a picture of Malcolm X which i asked her to take down cos it scared me so much!!

The moving sacrificial stones on Dr Who. Daleks Schmaleks but moving obviously polystyrene standing stones?

I was scared of the film Mary Poppins - I hated that scene in the bank where all the adults were shouting at the children!