Britain’s most haunted places
Britain’s most haunted places
Spook yourself silly and visit these spots for Halloween
Would you stay in a haunted hotel, or join a ghost-hunting tour of a historic house? To tie in with Halloween, here’s a list of some of Britain’s most haunted places…
Whitby
Whitby Abbey famously inspired Bram Stoker to write Dracula, but vampires aside, the North Yorks’ ruin and seaside town, is also said to have plenty of ghosts – from a phantom coach to the Oyster Man of Whitby. There are Halloween events at Whitby Abbey and illuminations.
Hampton Court Palace
The ghost of beheaded Catherine Howard is said to haunt the corridors of grand Hampton Court Palace in Surrey, running along what is now called the Haunted Gallery, screaming for mercy. She’s joined in perpetuity by Jane Seymour, another of Henry VIII’s wives, who died in childbirth. There’s also the Grey Lady ghost. Read more here and take a ghost-hunting trail here.
Cawdor Castle
The Scottish castle in the Highlands, famous for its links to Macbeth, is also said to have a ghost or two. One is a Blue Lady, a woman in a blue velvet gown some say is heiress Muriel Calder, although stories differ. However, the medieval Cawdor Castle is full of stories – built around a holly tree, the private home is open for group visits.
Blickling Estate
The most famous of Henry VIII’s murdered wives, Anne Boleyn, is said to haunt the corridors of Blickling Estate in Norfolk, with her severed head. On May 19 ghost hunters gather at the gates of the North Norfolk house to see her arriving at her birthplace in a phantom carriage, pulled by headless horses. Now that would be a memorable mini-break.
Craig y Nos Castle
The most haunted castle in Wales, Craig y Nos Castle runs ghost tours through what was once a TB hospital, where guests reportedly still hear lots of bumps in the night in this gothic building in the Black Mountains, near Swansea.
Chillingham Castle
Another historic house proud to be one of Britain’s most haunted, is Chillingham Castle in Alnwick, Northumberland, where guests reportedly get chillinghams down their willinghams when they stay in a self-catering apartment within the castle. Boasting “some of the highest levels of paranormal activity in the country”, it runs ghost tours and sightings often include a woman in white in the pantry and spectral voices in the chapel.