United Kingdom

The Palace of Westminster and the Big Ben

A Map of Europe with the UK in green

The **United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland**, more commonly known as the **United Kingdom**(UK), is a country located in Western Europe and is the main setting of the *Lockwood & Co.* series. Most of the story takes place in London, the country's capital, however there are some events outside the city, such as the case of Combe Carey Hall.

## Points of Interest

### City of London

*Main article: London*
London, as the largest and capital city of the United Kingdom, is also home to many of it's Institutions, such as the National Archives, the DEPRAC and Scotland Yard headquarters and representative houses from the major religions, as their abilities were of high concern from the state, given the problems nature. The Lockwood & Co.,Fittes and Rotwell Agencies were also based here.

#### 35 Portland Row

*Main article: 35 Portland Row*
35 Portland Row was a beautiful residential house that served as the Headquarters of Lockwood & Co.. It was based in the residential district of Marylebone in north-western London. From this base of Operation, the agency operated in many well-known cases.

#### Fittes Agency

*Main article: Fittes Agency*
The Fittes Agency was the most respected and oldest paranormal agency in the UK. Founded by Marissa Fittes, it has been a prominent figure in the fight against the problem and invaluable in categorizing ghosts. The headquarters of the agency, a major office complex with solid defenses against Visitors, were based in London.

#### Rotwell Agency

*Main article: Rotwell Agency*
The Rotwell Agency is the second-oldest and most widely hired paranormal agency in London. Founded by Tom Rotwell, it helped categorizing ghosts and building up defenses at the start of the Problem.

### North of England

#### Cheviot Hills

*Main article: Cheviot Hills*
Cheviot Hills is a small town in the North of England, and is the home to Lucy Carlyle, an esteemed Agent of the Lockwood & Co. Agency. Slightly north of the Town, the Wythburn Mill Incident took place.

### Combe Carey

#### Combe Carey Hall

*Main article: Combe Carey Hall*
Combe Carey Hall was a formerly haunted mansion that was owned by John Fairfax, owner of the Fairfax Iron Company. It was one of the most haunted places of the UK, housing an aggressive cluster and multiple other manifestation. It was declared free of Visitors after a very successful hunt by Lockwood & Co., which also saw the death of John Fairfax.

## The Problem

*Main article: The Problem*
Since approximately the mid-20th century, the United Kingdom has been beset by the Problem, an epidemic of hauntings of ghosts. The Problem has resulted in the stilting of the country's technological development, all research turned towards methods of combatting the ghost epidemic.

### History

The first years of the problem were scathed by disorder and panic. Without government institutions or private firms to combat the attacks and no information on how to fight ghosts, fear and panic marked the early days. This was, until the first successful removal of a ghost by Marissa Fittes and Tom Rotwell, who, after rising to fame due to their accomplishments, went on to found their respective agencies. These agencies went on to become forefronts in the fight against the problem. The government reacted with DEPRAC, the Department of Psychic Research and Control, which was founded to monitor the agencies and find new ways to control the Problem and monitor the agencies. In the following years, many breakthroughs lead to many more safety measures and large corporations rising to prominence.

### State Action

To defend against the problem, the UK Government issued many decrees and new laws, protecting the general population and controlling the new agencies and corporations. This lead to the installment of ghost-lamps, which are lanterns designed to keep ghosts away, and running water, at least in some busy areas. They also regulated agency training, requiring supervisors and degrees.

### DEPRAC

*Main article: DEPRAC*
DEPRAC, short for Department of Psychical Research and Control, is a department of the UK government tasked with tacking the problem and controlling the agencies.

## References

1. ↑ London on Wikipedia
2. ↑ Lockwood & Co. on Wikipedia
3. ↑ *The Screaming Staircase*, **IV: The Hall**, Ch. 18
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 *The Screaming Staircase*, **III: The Necklace**, Ch. 13
5. ↑ *[citation needed]*
6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 *The Screaming Staircase*, **II: Before**, Ch. 6
7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 *This Will Be Us*: 23:40
8. ↑ *The Screaming Staircase*, **II: Before**, Ch. 5
9. ↑ *The Screaming Staircase*, **IV: The Hall**
10. ↑ *The Screaming Staircase*, **I: The Ghost**, Ch. 2
11. ↑ *The Screaming Staircase*, Glossary