A security guard at Chester Castle reported a terrifying encounter after his normally fearless dog refused to leave the car. The guard felt 'a hundred eyes' on him but found no intruder, though cameras captured a faceless figure walking near the main gates where the medieval gatehouse once stood.
English Heritage collected accounts of strange occurrences from staff at its historic properties, including abbeys, castles, stately homes and Roman ruins. The response was overwhelming, with reports of a disembodied hand at Belsay Hall in Northumberland, unexplained piano music at Bolsover Castle in Derbyshire, and soldiers disappearing into woods at Wrest Park in Bedfordshire.
Michael Carter, a curator of history at English Heritage, said the accounts continue a centuries-old tradition of supernatural stories associated with historic sites. 'This isn't just a collection of modern fabulations,' he said, noting that such tales date back to the 16th century and have evolved through the gothic period and beyond.
Louise Fountain, property manager at Bolsover Castle, said staff and visitors report experiences in a 'ghost book'. One staff member heard piano music, and visitors have felt a child's hand hold theirs or received unexplained shoves. At Houghton House in Bedfordshire, a woman reportedly visits weekly to see a ghostly figure in a window.
The reports coincide with English Heritage's Halloween half-term events, including ghost tours. Carter recalled his grandfather's story of Kirkstall Abbey's last abbot haunting the ruins, which made a lasting impression on him as a child.
