Mysterious Britain & Ireland

Category: Hauntings

Black Dogs / Devil / Hauntings / Legends

The Church of Holy Trinity, Blythburgh

Holy Trinity Church in Blythburgh is a Grade I listed building dating from the 14th century, which is thought to be built on the site of a much early church built in 630AD. It was said to have been visited by Black Shuck in 1577.

Hauntings

Toby’s Walk

Toby’s Walk is so named after Tobias Gill, a negro drummer from the 4th Dragoons who was executed for the murder of Anne Blakemore on 14 September 1750. Anne’s body was found in this vicinity and stories have developed that the walk is haunted by Black Toby.

Anniversary Ghosts / Apparitions / Hauntings / Road Ghosts

Anne Blakemore & Tobias Gill (Black Toby)

On 24 June 1750, Anne Blakemore of Walberswick died. Her body was found on the Walks a mile west of Blythburgh and negro drummer named Tobias (Toby) Gill from the 4th Dragoons (Lieutenant General Sir Robert Rich’s Regiment of Dragoons) was accused of her murder. The Dragoons had been based in that area to combat smuggling and Toby had been drunk near where Anne’s body was discovered.

Apparitions / Haunted Pubs / Hauntings

The Bull and Butcher, Turville

Situated in Turville, a village well known for the filming of ’Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’ ‘Midsomer Murders’ and ‘The Vicar of Dibley’, the Bull and Butcher dates from 1550 and is a grade II listed building. In 1942 another film was shot here in Turville called ‘Went the Day Well‘, when the village was portrayed as being under German occupation.

Apparitions / Haunted Pubs / Hauntings

The Chough (Bill’s Salisbury Restaurant), Salisbury

Now Bill’s Salisbury restaurant, the pub at 36 Blue Boar Row prior to 2013 was The Chough. The following description of the haunting at The Chough dates from 24 October 2009 and was published in The Ocelot, an independent entertainment magazine for the Wiltshire, Berkshire and Oxfordshire area.

Apparitions / Civil War Hauntings / Haunted Pubs / Hauntings

The Old Cat, Wordsley

The Old Cat is certainly old and was originally converted from a row of cottages which would have been around at the time of the English Civil War. Cavalier figures from the war have been seen in other parts of Wordsley and it is indeed a Royalist soldier in full attire who has startled staff mainly around the cellar area.

Apparitions / Haunted Pubs / Hauntings

The Greyhound and Punchbowl, Bilston

The Greyhound and Punchbowl is an ancient pub which has the unusual feature of a tree trunk in the middle of the pub. A number of figures have been sighted here. A tall man in a black cloak and large black hat has been seen around the kitchen area. When staff go to investigate further of course there is no one there.

Apparitions / Haunted Pubs / Hauntings

The Crown, Sedgley

A previous landlord, known as Bob, allegedly haunts The Crown. He died in the cellar from a heart attack many years ago. Dogs are prone to behaving strangely when Bob is about and on one occasion a previous landlord found himself locked in his own bedroom even though he was on his own.

Apparitions / Haunted Pubs / Hauntings

The Old Stags Head, Wolverhampton

The Old Stags Head has a haunting associated with nearby St Bart’s Church. The story goes that one of the vicars knew the location of a tunnel leading to the pub cellar and would use it to enjoy regular pints of beer. His less than amused wife would follow him into the cellar and turn off the beer taps.

Haunted Pubs / Hauntings

The Old Mill, Gornal

The Old Mill is named after one of two windmills which existed in Gornal. The remains of one, Ruiton Windmill, can still be seen in nearby Vale Street. In common with many other Black Country pubs The Old Mill has a history of poltergeist type activity. Things get moved around when there is nobody in the pub and unexplained bumps and bangs are often heard.