It is so widespread that it has even featured on the television show The X Files.

It’s most famous occurrence was in Bristol in the 1970s when more than a thousand people complained of the consistent drone causing nosebleeds, sleeplessness and headaches.

It vanished as mysteriously as it arrived and was never explained.

Residents of Woodland, a community consisting of one main street surrounded by farmland, claims their version of “the hum” is constant from midnight until 4am every night and stops them sleeping.

There are no pylons, factories or abandoned mines nearby.

The noise started about two months ago and has been plaguing the isolated village every day since.

Marylin Grech, 57, a retired store detective, said: “In certain areas of the house you can hear it more loudly. It is definitely from outside, it’s in the air, all around, very faint.

“It vibrates through the house. We’ve turned all the electricity off in the house and we can still hear it, so it’s not that.

“Sometimes we’ll be in bed and it vibrates right through our bed, like a throbbing.

“It’s not tinnitus, that’s a high pitched sound and this is very low. If I put my fingers in my ears it stops, so I know it’s not in my head.

“At 4am it’s so clear, because we live in such an isolated place with no traffic, it’s heaven.

“But it leaves a buzzing in your head for the rest of the day.”

Gary Hutchinson, an environmental protection manager at Durham County Council, said: “I can confirm that we received a call regarding a humming sound in the Woodland area earlier on June 1 and we will now make further enquiries before deciding what action we will take.”