Leigh had a reputation for being a great host at the property, taking guests on midnight walks around the grounds, while Olivier preferred to retire early.

This protected marine park has the island's best underwater scenery close to shore.

It's tempting to decry this loss of sporting innocence. But in another sense, perhaps it is a good thing. It's easy to point to a Pele, or a Zico or a Socrates, and hold them up as symbols of individual achievement, and Brazilian national pride. But did they really help shine the spotlight on the impoverished residents of Brazil's shanty towns, or did they help to unwittingly hide them from view?

But while belief in ghosts is rising, the study, conducted by polling company YouGov, suggests a fall in the numbers prepared to accept the existence of UFOs, from 52 per cent to 39 per cent, in 2008. The data also found that one in five claimed to have had some sort of paranormal experience.

The lunch was cooked in the school kitchen.