SCROLLING through TikTok, Michelle Holland paused on a video posted by a self-professed psychic medium and watched, rapt, as he discussed what happens to a person’s spirit when they die.
With more than 600,000 followers, a commanding screen presence and a profile boasting 30 years of supernatural experience, UK-based Jesse Hawkins – AKA @Theparanormalemporium, who also goes by the name Jesse King – appeared to be the real deal.
Hawkins’ musings on the afterlife made Michelle think of her daughter Bethany, who was struggling after losing her long-term partner Nathan, 36, to suicide 17 months earlier.
Navigating her grief while single-handedly raising their sons, aged 11 and 12, had left the 32 year old emotionally exhausted.
“Beth was having a particularly bad day and had rung me one morning last November, crying about Nathan. I was so distraught for her,” Michelle recalls.
“Later that day, I went on TikTok and a video from Hawkins popped up. He said he had a PhD in parapsychology [the study of alleged psychic phenomena] and had been a psychic medium for 30 years.”
Having previously found psychics beneficial herself – albeit in person, rather than online – Michelle, an aesthetics practitioner from Bolton, booked the reading for her daughter for six weeks’ time, paying £65 through PayPal.
She recalls: “It gave Beth a real boost. She told her boys she was hoping to receive a message from their dad in heaven.”
The time came and went for the scheduled FaceTime call – but Hawkins was a no-show, and Bethany later discovered he’d blocked her on social media.
“I was absolutely furious and my daughter was devastated,” Michelle says.
“It was so traumatic for her. Beth had been having such a difficult time and had been looking forward to this appointment for six weeks.
“Instead, she was left disappointed and even more upset than when we’d booked the reading. It was awful. Nobody is more vulnerable than when they are grieving.”
Their experience is just one of a number of alarming tales emerging from the murky world of “supernatural TikTok” – in which influencers who claim to connect with the spirit world rack up thousands of followers and charge for readings.
As many as a quarter of Brits have enlisted the help of a psychic or spiritual healer at some point in their lives.*
And, today, those seeking a reading needn’t leave their sofa – you can do it from your mobile phone.
Searching “clairvoyant” on TikTok brings up more than 18 million results, while the term “psychic” summons nearly 50 million.
With a few quick taps, users can access all manner of predictions and insights – from supposed intel on when they will meet The One to messages from deceased loved ones.
With no scrutiny or checks, anyone can claim to have supernatural abilities on the platform, which has more than 23 million users in the UK alone.
And with some of these accounts clocking up hundreds of thousands of followers, it can be lucrative.
The app’s livestream feature enables users to conduct so-called live readings, during which they answer followers’ questions and broadcast guidance.
Meanwhile, where accounts have large followings, viewers can send virtual gifts, purchased with TikTok coins that cost between 7p and £42. Content creators can later cash the gifts in.
A quick look on TikTok shows one alleged psychic who claims to “have a pathway to the angels”, but who merely shuffles and shows tarot cards with inspirational messages, such as: “You have been loved in this life,” during her 20-minute livestream.
Dozens of followers watch, with one commenting: “I’ve had a lot going on, including grieving for my granny,” and another asking: “Does Steve want to be with me?”
In another live stream on a different account, a “medium” is flooded with comments from bereaved followers who are hoping for a message from a lost loved one.
She signposts her contact details for a paid, private reading in response to one follower who says they are: “Desperately waiting for my [late] daughter.”
Many other self-proclaimed psychics use the app to make videos citing their abilities – and urge followers to contact them elsewhere for paid private readings via video call.
While it might seem like harmless fun, reports of bogus predictions, exploitation and scammers by TikTok clairvoyants are rife – and experts have warned that the trend also poses serious emotional risks.
“Many people who are seeking psychic readings will be doing so during periods of grief, uncertainty or emotional distress,” explains psychotherapist Kamalyn Kaur.
“During these times, people are often feeling lost, confused, and in need of guidance, which can make them susceptible to manipulation.”
After Hawkins failed to show up, Michelle WhatsApped him, but received no reply.
“Fifteen minutes passed – by which time our appointment was over. I went on to his Facebook page and sent a private message accusing him of scamming us,” she says.
“He replied immediately in the third person, saying he had been running late due to childcare issues, but now we obviously would not be going ahead with the reading. Then he blocked me straight away so I couldn’t get a refund.”
Michelle says she was furious – while Beth was heartbroken.
Numerous online testimonies report no-shows after booking private readings with Hawkins, and Michelle says she flagged the incident to PayPal, which refunded her £65.
She also reported Hawkins to Action Fraud, the UK’s reporting centre for fraud and cybercrime, and to TikTok, but he is still active on the platform.
Grace Forell, a Which? consumer expert, says people should be “really wary” about giving their money to a so-called clairvoyant on TikTok.
“Be prepared that they might not turn up to the reading, in which case, you’re unlikely to see that money again,” she cautions.
“The social media accounts indulging in this type of behaviour could be in breach of consumer protection and fraud laws,” she adds.
“TikTok should be removing any accounts that are reported to them that are clear examples of scams in order to protect their users.”
Mum-of-three Sarah Lloyd regularly receives unsolicited TikTok messages from self-styled psychics touting for business – some even insisting she has a “negative aura” or “bad energy” that could be helped via a paid-for reading.
One claimed that Sarah’s ancestors had summoned her to reach out.
“I openly support psychic mediums and spiritual business owners, and I think that’s why I get bombarded,” says Sarah, 46, who runs PR agency Indigo Soul.
“It’s exploitative – they prey on your insecurities and make you think they can help you,” she says.
“These are really dodgy selling techniques. They are trying to make money from vulnerable people.”
Sarah, from Farnborough, Hampshire, learned this only too well, after being scammed out of £200 in 2017, during a “crisis of faith” around the future of her business.
She says a psychic called Padre messaged her via Instagram, offering to predict her future for £50 a time.
Over the next month, Padre sent Sarah weekly ”readings” via email, encouraging her to focus on certain “symbols” to receive money and make her “dreams come true”.
“I got completely sucked in, but after a month of nothing happening, I realised it was completely made up,” she says.
Sarah then accused Padre of being a fake and demanded her money back, but was refused. “I felt violated,” she recalls.
“I didn’t report it, because I felt embarrassed, so for all I know they could still be operating today.”
Sarah, who herself reads tarot and still uses psychics, stresses that she has also had great experiences – but would never again respond to anyone who sends unsolicited messages.
As well as clairvoyants who claim to be able to pass on messages from loved ones and so-called psychics like Padre, who claim to predict the future, romance mediums – who advise on finding a “soulmate” – and fertility psychics, who suggest when or how to conceive, are hugely popular on the app.
One “fertility psychic” account with more than 100,000 followers features videos with tags such as “future baby”.
Some followers’ comments are deeply personal: one writes that she’s suffered a miscarriage and is “finding it hard to live” without her baby.
Others share prayer emojis, suggesting a longing to conceive.
In one video, the psychic responds to a follower who asks: “Do u see a pregnancy for me this year please?” by answering: “This is a very strong yes from spirit.”
Psychologist Louise Goddard-Crawley says: “While some may perceive benefits, such as emotional support, validation and temporary hope, the dangers are significant.
“Relying on unverified advice can lead to poor decision making and delay seeking legitimate help. The manipulation of vulnerable individuals can result in deeper emotional wounds and perpetuate a cycle of dependency and helplessness.”
Receiving fabricated predictions or being scammed can also “deepen emotional distress”, Louise says, particularly about sensitive topics such as fertility or deceased loved ones.
According to a TikTok spokeswoman, the accounts we flagged to them do not violate guidelines.
TikTok does not allow attempts to defraud or scam users, they said, pointing out that it cannot take action against services that take place away from the platform.
When approached for comment, Jesse Hawkins denied scamming anyone. He claimed a handful of people had “review bombed” him with false, negative testimonies.
He said he misses “minimal” appointments due to illness or childcare issues, but refunds and reschedules when this happens.
Hawkins claimed he is the subject of an “ongoing stalking and harassment campaign” – though did not provide any details of the alleged case.
He said that he has been “practising” for 14 years and has never had an issue until “the last couple of years, when TikTok and fake psychics came to light.”
He added: “Every genuine psychic is deeply offended by the state of the psychic community at this moment in time.”
Michelle says her experience has made her wary of supernatural social media, but that it has not put her off using clairvoyants altogether.
“I did find Bethany a superb psychic elsewhere – one who didn’t have access to social media and posted nothing on TikTok,” she says.
“I would urge anyone considering seeing a psychic – online or offline – to check reviews and not to book on impulse.
“TikTok can be a Wild West and the platform should be doing more to police these kinds of accounts.”
