Doris Stokes facts for kids

Doris May Fisher Stokes (born Doris Sutton, 6 January 1920 – 8 May 1987) was a well-known British spiritualist and author. A spiritualist is someone who believes they can communicate with spirits of people who have died. Doris Stokes said she could talk to the dead.

She became very famous in Britain through her public shows, TV appearances, and books. Many people believed she had special psychic powers. However, after she passed away, some investigations showed that she might have used tricks. These tricks included "cold reading" (guessing things about people) and "hot reading" (using information gathered beforehand). Sometimes, she even had people in the audience help her.

Doris Stokes' Early Life

Doris Stokes was born in Grantham, Lincolnshire, England, in January 1920. In her books, she wrote that she began seeing spirits and hearing voices when she was a child. She said these abilities grew stronger after her baby son died. She then joined a local spiritualist church.

In 1949, she was recognized as a "clairaudient medium." This means she claimed to hear messages from spirits. In 1962, she stopped her work as a medium for a while. She trained to become a nurse who helps people with mental health. After five years, she had to stop nursing. She then went back to her work as a psychic. In 1975, she became the main medium at the Spiritualist Association of Great Britain.

Her Public Career and Fame

Doris Stokes first became widely known in 1978 during a visit to Australia. She appeared on a TV show called The Don Lane Show. After this, many people wanted to see her. She performed for three sold-out crowds at the famous Sydney Opera House.

She was also the first medium to perform at the London Palladium, a very famous theater. Tickets for her show there sold out in just two hours. People found her very believable because she was friendly and down-to-earth. Her shows felt almost like a normal phone call, not a spooky séance.

In 1980, her first autobiography, Voices in My Ear: The Autobiography of a Medium, was published. This made her even more famous in the UK. More than two million copies of her books were sold. Even in the 2000s, famous people like Eamonn Holmes and Dale Winton spoke positively about her.

The Church of England and other Christian groups did not approve of spirit communication. They believed it went against God's teachings. Doris Stokes replied that she believed her work was for God. She said it followed a Bible verse that tells people to "test the spirits."

Doris Stokes had poor health throughout her life. She had many operations for cancer. She passed away in Lewisham, London, on 8 May 1987. She was described as a very warm person by some. Others called her "the Gracie Fields of the psychic world." She continued to give free readings to people until a month before she died.

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