Halloween Special: Britain's Most Haunted Pubs
Does your favourite haunt feature in our list of Britain's spookiest pubs?
Since we started writing Mystery Guides, we have heard countless spooky stories from some of the UK’s favourite pubs. We’ve scoured the UK for the scariest place to have a pint and with Halloween just round the corner we ask - who deserves the crown of most haunted pub in the UK? Join the discussion and tell us – is there a pub in your town that should be haunting this list?!
The Last Drop, Edinburgh
The Last Drop overlooks Edinburgh’s historic Grassmarket, now a regular haunt of tourists, shoppers and street performers. But this picturesque scene would have been very different in the past, as Grassmarket was home to Edinburgh’s main gallows – and rumour has it that men would have their last meal in the pub as the gallows were being prepared across the road. As they left the pub, they were given one last whisky, referred to as ‘one for the road’. Despite the pub’s sinister past, it’s reportedly home to the playful spirit of a young girl, who often plays pranks on visitors and staff. Next time you visit – keep a tight hold of your drink, or she might spill your last drop!
Golden Fleece, York
The Golden Fleece is home to not one, not two but FIFTEEN resident ghosts! The pub dates back to the 16th century and overlooks York’s iconic Shambles. Its interior is quaintly shambolic, with crooked doors and uneven floors adding to both its charm, and its spooky atmosphere! The Golden Fleece’s most prolific ghost is Lady Alice Peckett, wife of the former Mayor of York and owner of the hotel. Guests have reported seeing her moving furniture around – maybe the former landlady is trying to recreate the ambiance of the inn in her day! Other spooky sightings include the ghost of a Canadian airman who fell to his death from one of the hotel’s windows during the Second World War, and One Eyed Jack, a former soldier who is often seen brandishing a pistol!
Jamaica Inn, Cornwall
Jamaica Inn, nestled on the desolate moorland between Bodmin and Launceston, was built as a coaching inn for weary travellers in the 18 th century. It also catered for some rather less respectable clientele – smugglers – who would hide their contraband at the inn. Legend has it that ‘wreckers’ also operated in the area – like the villain of Daphne du Maurier’s famous novel ‘Jamaica Inn’. Wreckers caused shipwrecks by enticing ships to the rocky shore with beacons, and looting them when they foundered on the rocks. It’s no wonder that with this dark history, Jamaica Inn is considered one of Britain’s most haunted pubs. Visitors have reported hearing ghostly hooves and carriage wheels in the courtyard, seeing a mysterious cloaked figure in the bar, and hearing disembodied voices speaking in Old Cornish.
The Old Salutation, Nottingham
One of the oldest – and most haunted – pubs in the country, The Old Salutation dates back to 1240, and it built on top of one of Nottingham’s many underground caves – if you ask nicely, the landlord may even let you go down and explore! Over the following centuries the caves provided a hiding place for people escaping religious persecution, a home for a colony of lepers, accommodation for the servants working in the alehouse, and a brewery. Now the pub is said to be home to at least six ghosts, including a young girl selling flowers, a highwayman, and a pirate who drowned after falling down a well whilst hiding in the caves. The pub is also said to be haunted by the ghost of a former landlord – who is a stickler for tidiness. He apparently slams doors and throws objects around if the pub gets messy!
The Llandoger Trow, Bristol
The Llandoger Trow dates back to 1664, and gets its name from the ships (trows) built in the nearby Welsh village of Llandogo – a former sailor who owned the pub came from there. It was a favourite haunt of the legendary pirate Blackbeard, and is also said to have inspired two of the all-time greatest adventure stories: Robert Louis Stevenson based the Admiral Benbow Inn in Treasure Island on this pub, and Daniel Defoe was inspired to write his famous novel Robinson Crusoe by a meeting here with the Scottish privateer Alexander Selkirk. Now this pub is home to several spirits, including a young boy with a limp whose footsteps can be heard on the upper floors. Whilst in Bristol make sure you check out the city’s oldest pub – the Hatchet Inn – which is said to hide a grisly secret. Underneath several layers of paint, the door is allegedly covered with the skin of an executed criminal!
The Spaniards Inn, Hampstead, London
Located on the edge of Hampstead Heath, this pub dates back to 1585 and has a rich literary history as a favourite watering hole of legendary writers such as Dickens, Byron and Keats. Keats is said to have written ‘Ode to a Nightingale’ in its garden, and the pub features in two classic novels – Dickens’ ‘The Pickwick Papers’ and Bram Stoker’s ‘Dracula’. The pub was also a favourite of local highwaymen, who would size up potential victims there as they travelled out of London! The most infamous highwaymen of all – Dick Turpin – was a regular, hardly surprising, since his father was the landlord! Dick’s ghost is said to haunt the pub, along with his horse. The Inn gets its name from the two Spanish brothers who once owned it. Legend has it they fell in love with the same woman, and fought a duel in its grounds. The ghost of Juan, one of the brothers, is said to haunt the pub, as well as a mysterious lady in white – could she be the beautiful lady who inspired the duel?
Over to you - tell us which pub in your town deserves a place on our spooky list!
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