By Greg Frost

LONDON, April 23 (Reuter) - More than 1,000 occultists, parapsychologists and Ufologists gathered on Sunday to revel in news of the weird, the wacky and the wondrous.

The Fortean Times, Britain's journal of strange phenomena, was hosting its second ``Unconvention'' at the weekend. Topics for discussion included UFOs and the growing number of people who say they were abducted by aliens.

Now in its 22nd year, the Fortean Times is dedicated to the work of Charles Fort, a U.S. philosopher who believed mainstream science simply ignored things it could not explain.

``We provide a forum, a place for people to go with their strange stories,'' Bob Rickard, founder-editor of the Times, said about the magazine. ``There are lots of ways to interpret the world, and some of them are equally valid.''

A T-shirt worn at the conference summed up the Fortean attitude to everything from near-death experiences to strange crop circles in corn fields.

``As a Fortean,'' the shirt proclaims, ``I have no opinion.''

Items on sale at the conference held at a London university included books about Bigfoot, the mythical, ape-like creatures that native people believe in habit the wilds of North America, and videos on vampirism.

There was a seminar on the hundreds of cases of stigmata, the physical marks of Christ's crucifixion.

In a packed room, a professor re-enacted a Victorian seance -- complete with shaking tables and voices from beyond. U.S. and British UFO experts exchanged theories on government cover-ups of rumoured crashes of alien spacecraft.

Rickard, 50, said the popularity of UFOs was linked to a worldwide feeling of alienation.

``As we come up to the millenium, the natives are restless,'' Rickard said. ``People are far more suspicious of science now.''

Among the best-selling merchandise were black caps and sweatshirts featuring a glow-in-the-dark alien face, advertised as guaranteed to flash in the presence of any extraterrestrials.

What if aliens were to show up at the conference?

``I'd have no problems with that at all,'' Rickard said. ``I'd want to know what their intentions were first... before I actually take a trip.''

REUTER