Haunted Britain and Ireland

by Derek Acorah

  The castle has its own resident ghost. One of the long-dead monks from the old foundation is said to find the ambience of the castle much more congenial and he has been seen wandering the darker corners of the banqueting room. He will also on occasion reveal future events, linked with the everyday business of the hotel, to members of staff – and the accuracy of the prophecies is said to astonish the owners!

  Kinnitty Castle, Kinnitty, County Offaly; Tel: +353 (0)57 913 7318/7284; Email: info@kinnitycastle.com; Website: www.kinnittycastle.com.

  DEREK’S TIP

  Before visiting a haunted location find out all you can about the history of the place. Newspaper cuttings, local history books, chatting to locals and the internet can all help you find folklore and facts about the site.

  Lake Hotel

  Located on the shores of the world famous lakes of Killarney in south-west Ireland, the Lake Hotel is a magical place with its castle, lakes and mountain views. Although the building looks modern on the outside, inside enough remains to remind you that it was once a nineteenth-century manor house. In the hotel grounds are the ruins of Castlelough Castle. The castle was built around 1210 and was once home to the hard-drinking and hard-fighting McCarthy Mors.

  One of the best-known Lake Hotel ghosts is Dan of the Feathers. During the reign of Elizabeth I, a soldier called Donal McCarthy acquired the nickname of Dan of the Feathers because of his habit of collecting the plumed helmets from fallen English troops as his trophies of war. His ghost is thought to drift towards the hotel across the lake in a spectral boat at midnight. Some say they have seen him in the Devil’s Punchbowl bar looking at the ruined castle with sadness, as if recalling its past days of glory.

  Staff and guests in the hotel also report sightings of the other resident ghost in the hotel, a young girl aged 12 to 15. She is often seen flitting down the hotel’s many dark corridors. When she appears, witnesses describe a chilly feeling and a sense of peace and calm. No one knows who she is or why she haunts the hotel but she is described as dressing in white in the style of the seventeenth century. Some members of staff believe she may be the daughter of Ellen McCarthy, sister to Dan of the Feathers, and they have called the ghost Ellen after her mother.

  Lake Hotel, Lake Shore, Muckross Road, Killarney, Co. Kerry; Tel:+353 (0)64 31035; Fax +353 (0)64 31035 1902; Email: info@lakehotel.com; Website: www.lakehotel.com

  DEREK’S TIP

  Don’t wear perfume or anything else with a strong smell on your visit. This is because spirits can use smells to attract your attention and you don’t want to get confused by your own scent.

  Leap Castle

  Built in the fourteenth century, Leap Castle was once the stronghold of the powerful and bloodthirsty O’Carroll family. Inter-clan bloodshed was a common occurrence for the O’Carrolls and a massacre once took place at a family reunion in the banqueting hall. Even the chapel wasn’t sacred. In 1532, a bitter dispute over succession arose and as siblings fought each other for leadership of the clan, one-eyed Teige O’Carroll is said to have slain his own brother, who was also a priest, as he celebrated Mass in the ‘Bloody Chapel’. In the seventeenth century the O’Carrolls lost possession of the castle to an English soldier named Captain Darby, who married into the family. In 1922 the castle was destroyed by fire and during its restoration a sinister room crammed with the remains of victims of Leap Castle’s bloody past was found.

  Over the next seventy years, the castle remained unoccupied, and because of its violent history it was shunned by locals, especially at night when ghosts were said to inhabit it. People from across the fields said they could see the window of the Bloody Chapel suddenly light up, as though hundreds of candles were flickering inside. Those brave enough to walk in the ruins reported sightings of a lady wearing a billowing red gown.

  In 1991 the castle was sold to Sean and Anne Ryan, and Sean set about converting it into a family home. Restoration was soon halted when a ladder Sean was using was inexplicably pushed away from the wall, leaving him with a fractured knee. Later another accident happened and this time he broke an ankle. ‘We began to think that we weren’t welcome here,’ Anne Ryan said at the time.

  However, today Sean and Anne seem to have been largely accepted by the spirits. For example, in May 2002 Sean and Anne found a ghostly old man sitting in a chair by a downstairs fireplace. Completely unfazed, the couple said ‘good day’ to the phantom and continued about their business. It seems that ghosts settling by the fireside has become part of life for those who inhabit, or visit, Leap Castle.

  Leap Castle, Clareen, Birr, Co. Offaly; Tel:+353 (0)57 913 1115; Mobile:+353 (0)87 234 4064.

  Open to visitors on request.

  Malahide Castle

  Located in the pretty seaside heritage town of Malahide, in North County Dublin, this stately castle is eight hundred years old and is surrounded by 250 acres of park land. Malahide Castle is very special in Ireland because the Talbot family managed to keep control of it from 1185 to 1976. The history of the Talbot family is recorded in the Great Hall, where portraits of generations of the family tell their own story of Ireland’s stormy history. The castle is now open to the public, and visitors can step back in time and meander down ancient corridors and winding stairways that lead into atmospheric rooms, rich with period furnishings, family portraits and interesting artefacts.

  It is thought that the castle is haunted by many unseen and unknown spirits whose presence can be felt in every room. One of the best-known ghosts is Puck the Phantom Jester. In the sixteenth century the Talbots always had a jester among their retinue of attendants. One of these jesters, Puck by name, fell in love with a kinswoman of Lady Elenora Fitzgerald, who was detained at the Castle by Henry VIII because of her rebel tendencies. On a snowy December night the jester was found close to the walls of the castle stabbed through the heart. Before he died he swore an oath that he would haunt the castle until a master reigned who chose a bride from the people.

  The last appearance of Puck was reported during a sale of the contents of the castle in May 1976. An auctioneer from London was busily compiling an inventory when he looked up from his work and saw the unmistakable figure of Puck standing by the tiny doorway, shaking his head in censure.

  Malahide Castle, Malahide, Co. Dublin; Tel:+353 (0)1 846 2184; Fax:+353 (0)1 846 2537.

  Open April–October Monday–Friday 10 a.m.–5 p.m., Saturday 11 a.m.– 6 p.m., Sunday 11:30 a.m.–6 p.m.; November–March Monday– Friday 10 a.m.–5 p.m., Saturday–Sunday 2 p.m.– 5 p.m.

  McCarthy’s Bar, Fethard

  McCarthy’s pub can be found in the medieval town of Fethard, in the south east of Ireland. Originally built in the 1840s, McCarthy’s soon became very popular in the local neighbourhood. Not only did it offer excellent food, drink and accommodation, the owner Richard McCarthy also provided a host of other services, including groceries, linen, glass, china, livery stables, hackney carriages and, quite bizarrely, undertaking services. Although the business has been scaled down today it is still run by the McCarthy family and looks very much the same as it did the day it was opened. Along the walls are yellowed newspapers, faded photographs and peeling paint, while an ornate wood-burning stove dominates the pub’s forward section. Musical composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, whose castle is situated nearby, is one of many enthusiastic supporters of this eccentric pub where time really has stood still.

  According to local lore when a member of the McCarthy family is close to death, a picture falls from the wall without any reason, and three very loud knocks at the front door will be heard. Many guests have said they have suddenly felt cold spots and others have seen fleeting glimpses of apparitions appear and disappear before their eyes.

  A visit to McCarthy’s is an unforgettable experience; however, be sure to take a good look at the person sitting across from you in case he or she suddenly vanishes!

  McCarthy’s Bar, Main Street, Fethard, Co. Tipperary; Tel:+353 (0)5 231 149

  DEREK’S TIP

&nb
sp; Almost any electrical appliance can be affected by a spirit. For example, a TV/radio stereo could turn on and off without living influence. Lights may also turn on and off without the switch being flipped. Perfectly healthy appliances can also short cut but do remember that some battery-operated toys and appliances can operate on their own.

  Renvyle House Hotel

  Renvyle House can be found in the wild splendour of Connemara, amid the magical beauty of sea, lake and mountains. Over several centuries, Renvyle House has been built, pulled down, rebuilt, burned to ashes and rebuilt once again. It was also the home of Oliver St John Gogarty (Buck Mulligan of James Joyce’s Ulysses) and, since becoming a country house hotel in 1883, has played host to many famous people such as Augustus John, W.B.Yeats and Winston Churchill.

  Several ghosts are thought to roam the sea-sprayed house. When Dublin surgeon, poet and wit Oliver St John Gogarty purchased the property in 1917 he got more than he bargained for! No servant dared sleep in a north-facing upstairs room, with heavy bars across its windows for fear of the ‘presence’ that could be felt there. One particular night an evil force moved a heavy linen chest across the door, barring outside access. Gogarty himself was woken another night by slow plodding footsteps. Lighting a candle to investigate the corridor they seemed to be coming from, he was plunged into darkness as the candle suddenly went out. Alone in the dark he felt heavy and tired ‘as if I were exercising with rubber ropes’, as he later described it.

  The poet W.B. Yeats was a close friend of Gogarty and when he came to stay with his wife, Georgia, the paranormal activity increased significantly. Yeats held a séance and, using automatic writing, the spirit indicated that it objected to the presence of strangers in the house but would reveal its identity to his wife. Georgia Yeats was a celebrated medium of her day and she later alleged she saw a vapoury mist appear by the fireside, which took the shape of a red-haired, tragic-looking, pale-faced boy.

  Today guests continue to complain of invisible presences in their room. Several women have seen the reflection of a man in their mirror as they apply their make-up but when they turn around the room is cold and empty.

  Renvyle House Hotel, Renvyle, Connemara, Co. Galway; Tel: +353 (0)95 43511; Fax +353 (0)95 43515; Email: info@renvyle.com; Website: www.renvyle.com.

  St Michan’s Church

  Named after a Danish bishop, St Michan’s Church in Dublin is one of the most unusual visitor attractions in the whole of Ireland. Founded around 1095 by the Danish colony in Oxmanstown and located near the Four Courts, the present building dates from about 1685. The church is thought to be constructed above burial vaults built upon the site of an ancient oak forest. The main appeal of the church lies in these vaults – and for good reason!

  In the vaults of St Michan’s you will find one of the most atmospheric and macabre locations in Ireland. Once you descend down a steep flight of stairs to the vault the air is strangely fresh and not stale as you might expect in a place where the only living creatures are spiders. In many of the chambers coffins have been stacked on top of one another. In some places the weight of the dead is so strong that the coffins have collapsed into each other causing limbs and even heads to stick out as if posing for some ghastly sculpture. Even more incredible is that although some of the corpses have lain there for five hundred years they have not disintegrated but have been preserved like mummies.

  There are open coffins on display revealing the remarkable preservation of people who died hundreds of years ago. Some of them look as if they have just fallen asleep with hair and even nails intact. Experts believe the remarkable preservation is the result of chemicals impregnated by the remains of the oak forest that stood on the site in ancient times and as long as there is no moisture in the vaults decay stops. Not surprisingly, many visitors to the vaults have heard mysterious disembodied voices and others have felt ice-cold fingers run down their neck as they bend to inspect the corpses.

  St. Michan’s Church, Church Street, Dublin 7; Tel:+353 (0)1 872 4154; Fax: +353 (0)1 878 2615.

  Open November–February Monday–Friday 12.30 p.m.–2.30 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m.–1 p.m.; March–October Monday–Friday 10 a.m.–12.45 p.m. and 2 p.m.–4:45 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m.–1 p.m.

  Guided tour available.

  Thoor Ballylee

  Thoor Ballylee in County Gort, Galway is a sixteenth-century Norman stone tower complete with narrow staircases worn down by the passage of time. It stands four storeys high and its original windows still survive in the upper part of the building. The castle was originally part of the huge estates of the Earls of Clanrickarde and was known as Islandmore Castle. The castle was almost in ruins when it was bought and restored by W.B.Yeats, who lived there from 1921 to 1929. His residence there is commemorated by a stone tablet with some lines of verse written by him. The castle now contains a museum with mementos of the poet, including the first edition of his works.

  Yeats was a firm believer in the afterlife and was convinced that the tower was haunted by the ghost of an Anglo-Norman soldier. Several years later a curate was also convinced that an apparition wafted up and down the tower stairway, and was afraid to use the stairs at night. The curator’s pet dog seemed to share this fear as it would cringe as if seeing something terrifying in the downstairs rooms. One summer’s afternoon in 1989 David Blinkthorne and his family arrived at Thoor Ballylee just as it was closing. They asked if they could photograph Yeats’s sitting room and the curator obliged and reopened the shutters of the room so that they could take their picture and explore the building.

  When Mr Blinkthorne developed his prints the ghostly figure of a young boy could be seen in front of the camera. It has been suggested that the presence may have been Yeats’s son but to this day the boy’s identity remains unknown.

  Thoor Ballylee, Nr Gort, Co Galway; Tel:+353 (0)91 631436.

  Open daily May to September 10 a.m.–6 p.m.

  DEREK’S TIP

  And, finally, the most important tip of all: respect the dead.

  acknowledgements

  I would like to thank everybody at HarperElement and LIVINGtv and all the people who have helped over the past 12 months.

  Index of Places

  The pagination of this electronic edition does not match the edition from which it was created. To locate a specific passage, please use the search feature of your e-book reader.

  A

  Abbey Pumping Station, Leicester 122

  ABC Cinema, the, Plymouth 156

  Adelphi Theatre, the, London 58

  Alexandra Theatre, the, Birmingham 124

  Amen Court, London 60

  Angel Hotel, the, Lymington 158

  B

  Baldoon Castle, Dumfries and Galloway 278

  Ballygally Castle Hotel, Co. Antrim 310

  Barmouth, Gwynedd 208

  Barrock Fell, Cumbria 82

  Baskerville Hall Hotel, the, Hay-on-Wye 210

  Battle Abbey, East Sussex 160

  Battle of Naseby Battlefield, the, Northamptonshire 33

  Black Swan, the, York 83

  Blisworth Tunnel, Northamptonshire 20

  Bonamargy Friary, Co. Antrim 312

  Brodick Castle, Isle of Arran 280

  Brownsover Hall Hotel, Warwickshire 125

  Brushmaker’s Arms, the, Hampshire 162

  C

  Carew Castle, Pembrokeshire 211

  Carlton Mitre Hotel, the, London 62

  Carrickfergus Castle, Co. Antrim 314

  Castle Hotel, the, Castleton 127

  Caxton Gibbet, the, Cambridgeshire 22

  Charles Fort, Co. Cork 338

  Charleville Forest Castle, Co. Offaly 340

  Civic Theatre, the, Darlington 85

  Cleopatra’s Needle, London 64

  Clifford’s Tower, York 87

  Coach and Horses Hotel, the, Chester 89

  Comlongon Castle, Dumfries 282

  Corfe Castle, Dorset 163

  Crathes Castle, Banchory 246

&nb
sp; Culloden Moor, Inverness 249

  D

  Dalmarnock Road Bridge, Glasgow 285

  Dimbola Lodge Museum, Isle of Wight 165

  Dobbin’s Inn Hotel, Carrickfergus 315

  Dozmary Pool, Bodmin Moor 168

  Dryburgh Abbey Country House Hotel, St Boswells 287

  Dun an Oir (or Fort Del Oro), Co. Kerry 342

  Dunrobin Castle, Golspie 251

  Dunstanburgh Castle, Northumberland 91

  Dunster Castle, Somerset 170

  Dunvegan Castle, Skye 253

  Dunwich Heath, Suffolk 24

  E

  East Riddlesden Hall, Yorkshire 93

  Eden Court Theatre, Inverness 255

  Edgehill Battlefield, Warwickshire 129

  Edwards No. 8 Rock Club, Birmingham 131

  Eilean Donan Castle, Loch Duich 256