The ghosts of Hampstead and Highgate

From jilted lovers to bricked up corpses, many of the spectral sightings in north London revolve around the area's famous pubs. But there are also ghoulish goings-on in centuries-old streets like Church Row, Pond Square and of course Highgate's famous burial ground. We round up the haunted hot-spots.

The ghost of a Mrs Wyatt is said to haunt the cellar while the figure of a young girl in white has been spotted at an upper window. (Image: Archant)

The King William IV pub Hampstead High Street

Dating back nearly 200 years, the Grade II listed pub's colourful history includes a visit from paranormal 'psychic' Derek Acorah who advised the publican not to venture into the cellar. The ghost of a Mrs Wyatt, who was murdered and bricked up by her doctor husband, is said to haunt the watering hole's basement. Others have reported a girl in a white dress who gazes through the pub windows with a forlorn expression and is reputedly the victim of a botched visit to a local dentist.

Does the figure of a red-haired maid carrying her grisly carpet bag haunt this historic Hampstead street? (Image: Archant)

Church Row Hampstead

With its period streetlamps, and proximity to Hampstead Parish Church, this atmospheric thoroughfare is the first stop on any ghost tour. Several claim to have seen the ghost of a red haired servant girl, who supposedly murdered and chopped up a child before placing her in a carpet bag to smuggle her remains out of the house. The murderer was quickly caught and handed a death sentence, but not given a Christian burial. Residents have heard her footsteps, or even spotted her, carrying her grisly bag towards the church at sunrise, before mysteriously disappear­ing as she reaches the gates.

In August 1909 The Time Machine, and War of the Worlds author H.G. Wells moved into Number 17 with his family. Their five years there was marred by marital strife and the author's affairs, and it's said that Wells still walks between the walls of his former home.

The pub dates back to 1585 but Dick Turpin, his horse Black Bess and a former landlord killed in a duel are all said to haunt it

The Spaniard's Inn, Spaniard's Road, Hampstead

There are all manner of ghost stories attached to this ancient coaching inn dating back to 1585. The ghostly sounds of neighs and horses' hooves in the car park have been frequently reported, a woman in white has been spotted in the garden, and one witness saw her dog taking bites at an invisible presence inside the pub. Could it have been the ghost of Black Dick, who was killed by a horse and cart and has been known to pull on drinkers' sleeves? The upper rooms are reputedly haunted by the highwayman Dick Turpin whose father was once landlord of the pub. As a fugitive he spent time either hiding or watching out for coaches to rob and his horse Black Bess has been spotted nearby.

The inn is also said to be haunted by a previous landlord Juan Porero, who fought a fatal duel with his brother Francesco after falling in love with the same woman. Juan is buried near the pub, which he haunts to this day.

Renovations during the 1980s at The Old Bull and Bush turned up a Victorian skeleton bricked behind a wall but could there be a connection to Jack the Ripper? (Image: Google Maps)

Old Bull and Bush, North End Way

The Heath-side pub is known for hair-raising bumps, bangs and footsteps which have been heard by staff over the years. A Victorian figure has been seen patrolling the grounds or in the bar, thought to be linked to a skeleton discovered during refurbishment in the 1980s behind a cellar wall. It was found with old surgical equipment, sparking rumours of a link to Jack the Ripper. Despite reburying the skeleton, the gentleman continues to appear.

The figure of a cavalier is said to haunt the main bar of this Highgate watering hole and the strange experiences in the cellar bar could relate to the suicide of a jilted bar maid (Image: Archant)

The Flask, Highgate

The ghost a man dressed as a cavalier has been spotted in the bar of this Grade II listed pub which has stood on the site since at least the 1660s. He is said to suddenly appear and look out of the window as if watching for someone. He then turns and vanishes through a pillar in the middle of the room. Another story tells of a Spanish barmaid who hanged herself in the pub’s cellar when her romance with the landlord ended. Modern day punters sitting down there have reported feeling someone blowing down their neck, glasses moving mysteriously, lights swaying and the temperature freakishly dropping.

The ghostly sound of a horse and carriage have been heard around Pond Square but it's the bizarre sight of a half plucked chicken running in circles that has been reported most often (Image: Archant)

The Pond Square chicken

Perhaps the oddest ghost story in Highgate is the phantom frozen chicken that dates back to the bitterly cold spring of April 1626 when Sir Francis Bacon was driving through Pond Square in a carriage with his friend Dr Witherbone. Discussing alternative methods of food preservation, Sir Francis suggested refrigeration and decided to test his theory by obtaining a bird from a farm, killing it and packing it with snow in a large sack. Sadly Sir Francis caught a chill from his exploits, and died of pneumonia, but it is not his ghost that haunts Pond Square but a semi-plucked chicken running in circles that then vanishes into thin air. Air raid wardens during World War II often spotted the fowl and even tried to chase it. Others have heard the invisible sound of a coach and horses on the spot.

Sightings of a tall dark figure with glaring eyes and a top hat sparked a frenzy of 'vampire hunters' vandals, and occultists in Highgate Cemetery in the 1970s (Image: Archant)

The Highgate Vampire, Highgate Cemetery

The most controversial of the area's ghosts sprang from reports of a tall dark figure with glaring eyes who stalked the burial ground and surprised a dog walker in Swain's Lane. Muswell Hill local David Farrant described a grey figure he had glimpsed on Christmas Eve 1969 in the letters pages of the Ham&High and asked whether others had spotted anything similar. It spawned a rash of reports including a spectral cyclist, a woman in white, and a figure wading into a pond. When a self proclaimed exorcist said the figure was a vampire, it sparked a media frenzy with TV crews descending, and occultists and 'vampire hunters' scaling the Cemetery's locked gates at night. A spate of vandalism and grave desecrations followed included a corpse being dragged from a tomb and decapitated. Farrant himself was arrested while carrying out an after hours seance with a stake and a crucifix. In 1974 he was convicted for grave desecration, and in 1978 by now President of the British Psychic and Occult Society, he stood in Hornsey for the Wicca Workers Party on a ticket of nudity, free sex, the restoration of the Wiccan creed, the establishment of state brothels, and leaving the EU.

The Holly Bush in Hampstead is haunted by a ghostly waitress (Image: Archant)

The Holly Bush in Holly Bush Vale

This Hampstead boozer is said to be haunted by a phantom waitress who takes people's orders before they discover that a girl matching her description has never worked there. A short glide away at The Flask in Flask Walk, it's said that Monty the former landlord finds it hard to quit his beloved pub. In the 1990s he was spotted rearranging tables and chairs in annoyance following a refurbishment.