Terry Hooper [A very brief] Biography

Born in Bristol,England, 6^th June,1957,Terry became interested in nature and wildlife at around 5-6 years of age.  While attending Greenway Boys School, the interest in science and mysteries of nature increased resulting into several local investigations of mysterious (natural) phenomena.  At the same time, having accidentally picked up a copy of Brinsley le poer Trench's (later Lord Clancarty) “The Flying Saucer Story”, Terry began studying UFO reports and local sightings.

Between 1977-2007, Terry  acted as a wildlife consultant to UK police forces on exotic animals living in the UK.  Being a noted naturalist, he has also worked with other wildlife specialists and universities and his name is on several technical papers.  In 1974,Terry set up the Bristol UFO Investigation Team (BUFOIT), joined the British UFO Research Association (BUFORA), covering much of the West of England as an investigator and Regional Investigations Co-ordinator. 

Circa 1976,Terry joined the oldest UK UFO group, the British Flying Saucer Bureau (f.1952) and became an investigator, later Head of Research & Investigation and also editor of the UFO News Bulletin. 

In 1977,as an attempt to promote more scientific approach to UFO investigation, Terry set up UFO International (see Sachs, M., Encyclopaedia of UFOs).

Having established contact with Lord Clancarty and Air Vice Marshal Sir Victor Goddard (a former Head of RAF Intelligence and outspoken UFO believer), in 1977 Terry, along with late colleague Franklyn A. Davin-Wilson, visited London for a meeting with Clancarty, Goddard and others having submitted a document calling for a National Aerospace Commission (NaComm).  Terry was asked to mount an unofficial investigation into all aspects of the UFO phenomenon –a limited fund for travelling and living expenses was agreed upon.

In January,1978,the Anomalous Observational Phenomena Bureau (AOP B) began its work building up a data base on every aspect of UFOs –historical cases, trace, physio and psychological, animal disturbance, EM cases and much more. 

Original members of the AOP B were:~

Graham F.N.Knewstub              [deceased]

Dave Cowdy                              [deceased]

Franklyn A.Davin-Wilson         [deceased]

Terry Hooper

Between 1978-1984 there was much unofficial assistance given to the Bureau by professional astronomers (some publicly skeptical), former members of the Armed Forces, Air Ministry, Ministry of Defence as well as serving members of the Armed Forces and Police Forces.  A network of UFO investigation & research groups was set up including GUFOI&RG  (Gloucestershire), Wessex UFO I&R Group (Somerset), Wiltshire UFO I&R Team and so on.

Much of this cooperation continued well past the closing of the Bureau in 1995, though Governmental changes in policy since then have restricted any cooperation.

In 1984 a 2000 pages “British Report On Unidentified Flying Objects [UFOs]” was completed.  This was later reduced to 1500pp on editing.  Lord Clancarty, Sir Victor Goddard and others, including members of the House Of Lords UFO Study Group, stated that the Report was “…the closest thing the UK will ever have to a Project Blue Book”.

Although copies went to the Ministry of Defence and Sir Victor kindly passed copies on to former subordinates and ex-heads of RAF Intelligence, private UFO groups and Ufologists condemned The Report without even having seen the Summary offered.  The Report is currently being up-dated with more contemporary evidence being added.

Terry also edited the in-house AOP Bulletin.

Apart from this work Terry has specialized, since 1974, on Close Encounters of the Third Kind/Entity cases and provided the data for BUFORA to contribute to Ted Bloecher’s HUM-CAT.  He has also written many articles on Ball Lightning, meteorites, astronomy, CE-3Ks and Alien Entity cases as well as reporting on UFO incidents (of which he has investigated approx. 2000 since 1974).

Terry re-opened the AOP Bureau on 1^st January,2006 to continue the original work, aligned to no other groups or investigators.

Current study includes cases involving non-humanoid alien-entities associated with UFOs, video footage evidence and continued study of “spooklight” phenomena.

Back in the 1970s Terry was also a consultant for the Kentucky UFO Investigators League, a member of the Society for the Investigation of The Unexplained (SITU), of which he operated a UK branch –investigating the Dead Aquatic Creatures of Canvey Island and other incidents. 

Terry also maintained links with Bigfoot/Sasquatch researchers  such as The Bay Area Group (BAG), Bigfoot Investigation Team, Dmitri Bayanove, etc..  Terry maintains files on lake and sea creatures, ghosts and most other unexplained or explained phenomena he has looked into –these include ghosts and hauntings.

As of 2016, Terry has written three books on unsolved/solved mysteries –Some Things Strange & Sinister (2009), Some More Things Strange & Sinister (2011), Pursuing The Strange And Weird (2012) as well as one book on Canids including UK mystery canids and the history of foxes –Red Paper: Canids (2012).  He is currently working on a new book – From Beyond Time & Space.

From 2011 on, Terry has also published on the highly popular Anomalous Observational Phenomena blog.

Initial contact should be via email:

blacktowercg@hotmail.com