Derek Francis Johnson, known professionally as Derek Acorah, was a British spiritual medium.
23 Facts About Derek Acorah
2.
Derek Acorah was best known for his television work on Most Haunted, broadcast on Living TV.
3.
Derek Acorah lived in Scarisbrick near Southport, in North West England.
4.
Derek Acorah claimed that his first experience with spiritualism happened when he was six, when he said he saw his deceased grandfather in his grandmother's house.
5.
Derek Acorah attended secondary school at Warwick Bolam, and was a keen footballer in his youth, firstly playing for Bootle Boys and then, Wrexham's academy side when he was thirteen.
6.
Derek Acorah signed schoolboy terms with Liverpool, at the time managed by Bill Shankly.
7.
Derek Acorah often told of a story where he told Emlyn Hughes to be careful with his new car.
8.
Derek Acorah never made an appearance for the first team, and briefly turned out for the reserves, before being released by his hometown club.
9.
Derek Acorah returned to Wrexham, where he played for about a season, and had stints for Glentoran and Stockport County.
10.
Derek Acorah discussed the situation with his wife, and they made the move, where he played for USC Lion in the South Australian State League.
11.
Derek Acorah then began working as a medium, adopting the surname Acorah, which he claimed came from a Dutch ancestor.
12.
Derek Acorah appeared on Predictions which started out as a showcase for various studio guests but later became a vehicle for Acorah alone and renamed Predictions with Derek Acorah.
13.
In 2002, Derek Acorah featured in the television series Antiques Ghost Show, and in 2004 he was presented with the Variety Club of Great Britain's Multichannel TV Personality of the Year Award.
14.
In July 2001, Derek Acorah joined a new British television programme called Haunting Truths.
15.
Derek Acorah was parodied by Dawn French on an episode of French and Saunders, by Jon Culshaw on Dead Ringers and by Hugh Laurie on Saturday Night Live.
16.
In November 2009, Derek Acorah featured in Michael Jackson: The Live Seance, in which he was shown on live television attempting to contact the singer's spirit.
17.
Derek Acorah appeared in the 2015 television show The Past Hunters.
18.
Derek Acorah competed in the twentieth series of Celebrity Big Brother.
19.
Derek Acorah left the house on the final night in fourth place.
20.
Derek Acorah was firstly married to Joan Hughes from 1972 to 1982.
21.
Derek Acorah was later married to his wife Gwen from 1995, until his death in 2020.
22.
Derek Acorah had failed a roadside breath test but refused to give the required sample at a police station.
23.
Derek Acorah died on 4 January 2020, aged 69, following a short illness.