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Car’s a dead good ride

Eve Dugdale
2/11/2005

EVEN at Halloween time, with ghoulish goings-on, it's unusual to see someone loading their shopping into the back of a hearse.

But for Monica Vaness it's an everyday occurrence... because her car is an 18ft American hearse.

From taking the dog to the vets to popping down to the corner shop for a loaf of bread, Monica goes just about everywhere in her funeral car.

"It was around April or May when we were looking on eBay for a new car and I joked to my husband, 'what about a hearse?' and he grabbed onto it. I was bemused and amused, I thought it was pretty cool.

"We have unusual lifestyles anyway so I thought, why not!" said Monica, 29, who is a pagan.

"So now it's my car for personal use. I go shopping in it. You don't see many people pulling up to Tesco in Glossop in an 18ft hearse. Most people just laugh and wave though.

"I've never really had any funny looks. Everybody in the area knows us anyway.

"I work a normal day to day job as a PA and help out in the bookshop."

Born in Canada, Monica came over to the UK in 1999 and married husband Gary Oke, 35. The couple live in Shirebrook Park with their dog Salem and own occult book shop New Aeon books as well as holistic therapy centre Holistika in Manchester city centre.

And the fact that her car has transported hundreds of dead bodies doesn't give Monica the spooks.

"They were dead, there's nothing to be frightened of. I feel lucky to say I've ridden in a hearse and I'm still alive!" she said.