Mysterious Britain & Ireland

Country and County: Cumbria

Fairies / Folklore

The Beetham Fairy Steps

The fairy steps, West of the church are steps cut into the limestone rock. If you can climb them without touching either side you will be granted a wish by the fairies.

Directions: Reached from a footpath through woodland to the South West of Beetham and South East of Storth.

Apparitions / Hauntings

Gosforth Hall Inn

Room 7 (formerly Room 11) of this old building dating back to 1658 is reputedly haunted by a figure some have described as resembling a friar. He sits by the entrance to the ‘priests hole’ which leads from this room to the bar fireplace in the bar below.

Ancient Sites / Early Christianity / English Fairies

Irton Cross and Church

There are two Celtic Crosses in Irton Churchyard, one is truly ancient and the other is a copy of the former incorporated into more modern grave. The ancient cross is thought to date from the early ninth century, before the Norsemen invaded the area.

Ancient Sites / Early Christianity

Gosforth Chapel

This must have been an important place of worship to the Norse invaders, and to later generations judging by the wealth of important early Christian relics here. The actual church has been renovated several times and much of the older structure has been destroyed.

UFOs

Burgh Marsh

24th May 1964, Jim Templeton (then 44) on an outing with his wife and two daughters, took a picture of his daughter holding a posy of wild flowers near a stretch of marshland by the Solway Firth. When this was developed it showed what appeared to be a white-suited entity wearing a black visor standing behind his daughter in a strange perspective.

Apparitions / Hauntings

Wasdale Corpse Road

As Wasdale had no church early in its history, the deceased had to be carried over the fells to Eskdale for internment, and this route became known as the corpse road. This is haunted by the ghost of a horse carrying the body of woman tied to it.

Apparitions / Hauntings

The Stainton Ghost

The Cumberland News, 30/06/1999 had an article by Ruth Berry and Gill Hands about the Stainton Ghost. According to the story, a church or abbey once stood near the village and human bones were found among the ruins. During the reformation the land upon which this holy building stood fell into the hands of a certain baron, now nameless.

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Cryptozoology / Legends

The Renwick Cockatrice

In 1733 a cockatrice terrorized Renwick when the church was being demolished. The beast was slayen by John Tallantire with a rowan branch. The creature was described as resembling a bat. Apparently the cockatrice was again reported as having been seen in 1959.