Mysterious Britain & Ireland

Category: Hauntings

Apparitions / Hauntings / Witchcraft

The Cage, St Osyth

The following article by Sam Balls was published in the Essex Chronicle, 1 February 2016. It is entitled ‘Britain’s most haunted house and former medieval prison is up for sale in Essex for £180,000’

Ghost hunters can snap up Britain’s most haunted house after the Essex-based creepy cottage was put on the market for £180,000.

Apparitions / Hauntings

St Mary the Virgin Church, Ilmington

In ‘Haunted Churches’ (1939), Elliott O’Donnell (27 February 1872 – 8 May 1965) gives the following brief description of a haunting at the 12th century parish church of St Mary the Virgin. ‘THE parish church of Ilmington in Warwickshire was, and some say still, at times, is, haunted by the ghost of a parish clerk who died in 1793.

Apparitions / Hauntings / Road Ghosts

Headless Coachman, Norwich

The following extract is taken from ‘Notes on the Folk-lore of the Northern Counties of England and the Borders by William Henderson’ (1879). ‘The Headless Coach, or more correctly coach with headless coachman, appears again in Norfolk. Mr.

Apparitions / Hauntings

Swine Drawn Coach (1684)

In his ‘Memorials, or the memorable things that fell out within this island of Britain from 1638 – 1684’ (Published 1818), Robert Law quotes the diary of Jacob Bee of Durham, who refers to a strange experience that was deemed a portent of death. “John Borrow departed this life the 17th day of January being Satterday this yeare 1684 and twas reported y’he see a coa

Apparitions / Folklore / Folktales / Hauntings / Scottish Folktales

The Ladies Bow-Brig-Syke

The following story was published in ‘Notes on the Folk-lore of the Northern Counties of England and the Borders by William Henderson’ (1879). ‘About half-a mile to the east of Maxton, a small rivulet runs across the turnpike-road, at a spot called Bow-brig-syke.

Apparitions / Buried Treasure / English Folktales / Folklore / Folktales / Hauntings / Legends

Sexhow Ghost

According to ‘Notes on the Folk-lore of the Northern Counties of England and the Borders by William Henderson’ (1879). ‘Mr. G. M. Tweddell thus relates the history of an apparition which with fitting retributive justice haunted a certain Yorkshire farmer.

Hauntings

Awd Simmon Beeather

A Glossary of Words used in Holderness (1877) gives the following description for the word Simmon and mentions an associated ghost. ‘Simmon, pounded brick or tiles, used by brick-layers for colouring the mortar. Beating simmon was formerly the hard labour punishment in Beverley Borough Gaol.

Apparitions / Folklore / Hauntings

Fimber Crossroads

The following extract is taken from ‘History of Fimber. A treatise on Agricultural Improvements, Memories of Remarkable Events and Village Tales’ by T. Edmondson (1857), in which he describes local folklore concerning the haunting of the crossroads at Fimber.

Apparitions / Hauntings / Other Mysteries

The Living Apparition of Rev. Dr. Hugh Astley, Vicar of East Rudham

On 26 December 1908 an apparition was witnessed outside the vicarage in East Rudham. The apparition, witnessed by several people was identified as Rev. Dr. Hugh Astley, the Vicar of East Rudham. Astley had recently been in a railway accident, bt was not dead, so this was a strange experience involving the apparition of a living person, known all three witnesses.