Dandy of Gay Street

Designed in 1735 by John Wood, the Elder, (Born 1704 – Died 23 May 1754), Gay Street links The Circus with Queen Square. On 22 August 2001, the Daily Sport reported that the apparition of a well-dressed 17th Century Regency dandy, had been sighted by several American tourists on Gay Street in Bath. They went on to suggest that the ghost only appears to men.

THE GHOST OF GAY ST. He appears only to men. by Jack Pleasant (Reveille, 9 December 1977). There are odd goings-on in the fair city of Bath. An apparently gay male ghost with its hair tied back with a ribbon is haunting a gravel path there. Appropriately, it’s happening at the back of Gay Street. It has been seen on a number of occasions, but appears only to men. Even when women have been present, they’ve been unable to see it. One of the latest people the ghost seems to have taken a fancy to is the Deputy Mayor of Miami, Scott Harris.. He and his wife, on a visit from America, were on a tour of Bath with local ghost expert Elizabeth Royal. “As we walked along the path behind Gay Street, Mr Harris grew very agitated. He said the figure of a man was keeping pace with us,” said Mrs Royal, 61. “His wife and I could see nothing. Mr Harris’s description of a man with white hair tied back with a ribbon matched those given by other people who say they have seen the ghost.” When a party of 13-year-old schoolboys were on a tour one afternoon last year, one of them stood terrified at the foot of the steps leading up to the gravel path behind Gay Street. He said that a ghostly white-haired man was standing at the top. Steve Bransgrove, of Linley Close, who conducts tours of haunted places in Bath, had a more serious experience at Gay Street – again in daylight. “A middle-aged man in this tour party suddenly started babbling about this transparent white-haired man standing at the top of the steps,” said Steve. “He was so affected by it all that I called for an ambulance. He was taken to hospital to be treated for shock”.