EV1983AST - Alfred Burtoo

Aldershot

In August 1983, 77-year-old Alfred Burtoo was fishing by the Basingstoke Canal in Aldershot, Hampshire, when he claimed he was approached by two small humanoid figures wearing green suits and visors. They gestured for him to follow, and he calmly accompanied them to a landed, metallic craft resting on two ski-like supports. Inside, he was asked to stand beneath an amber light. After a brief moment, a voice — described as sing-song, with a strange accent — informed him that he was too old and infirm for their purpose. He was told he could leave. The craft departed, and Burtoo resumed his fishing.

Unlike most abduction accounts, this encounter involved no examination, no telepathy, no missing time — only a deliberate invitation and a quiet rejection. The story stands out not only for its calm, matter-of-fact delivery but for what it implies: that some intelligences may be observing humanity with specific criteria, discarding those deemed unsuitable. Burtoo never changed his story, never sought publicity, and passed away in 1986. His story remains one of the most peculiar and quietly haunting UFO encounters in British history.