Thetford Ghosts, Folklore and Forteana
Bear
Location: Thetford - A1066 at Snare Hill
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: June 1979
Further Comments: Several witnesses reported seeing a bear on the outskirts of the nearby forest.
Gamekeeper
Location: Thetford - A11, dual part of the road
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 20 November 2006, between 23:45h - 00:15h
Further Comments: Driving to pick someone up, this witness claimed to have seen a ghostly figure on his car bonnet. The figure wore a light thorn coloured suit with a thin red pinstripe and had dark hair. The figure was said to be smiling. The driver turned to his passenger who was asleep, and when he turned back the ghost had gone.
1930s Motor
Location: Thetford - A11, slip road from Thetford
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 2006
Further Comments: A driver and their passenger were stopped at temporary traffic lights. Both spotted a man wearing googles and hat in what they thought was a classic vehicle from the 1930s. As the witnesses drove away, they noticed the old car had disappeared.
Chieftain
Location: Thetford - Barrow known as Thet Hill, alongside the River Thet
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This redheaded warrior or chieftain reportedly stands near the barrow that may contain his remains.
Concealed House
Location: Thetford - Castle Hill
Type: Legend - Old Nick
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A local story states that a mansion lies buried under the hill, filled with wealth beyond dreams. Another story says that the hill was created by the Devil, created by mud falling from his shoe. Walking around the hill seven times at midnight is said to summon him.
Leper with Two Dimensional Face Gibbering Horribly
Location: Thetford - Countryside near Thetford Warren
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Mostly unknown, faceless man in July 2011
Further Comments: Once the location of a leper hospital, this area is now reported to be the haunt of a figure with a strange, gibbering, unreal face, who terrifies witnesses. The tower house along the Brandon Road is supposed to once have been a leper house; one of the occupants has been seen in the area. A strange face has also been reported looking out from the first floor window of the warrner's house, though internally there are no floors. In July 2011 there was a report of a man observed wearing blue and cream coloured clothing, although he had no face, just black holes for eyes and a hole for a mouth.
A Quick Drink
Location: Thetford - Devil's Punchbowl (mere)
Type: Legend - Old Nick
Date / Time: Still present
Further Comments: This mere has an erratic water level; perhaps previous generations attributed the sudden disappearance of water to the Devil having a quick drink while passing by.
The Devil's Holes
Location: Thetford - Grime's Graves, prehistoric flint mine
Type: Legend - Old Nick
Date / Time: Still present
Further Comments: The name 'Grime's Graves' is thought to have come about in the sixteenth century, Grime being a corruption of Grim, a pagan god that Christians associated with the devil.
Singing Monks
Location: Thetford - Site of the Priory of the Canons of the Holy Sepulchre
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1937 (singing), monk seen in the summer of 1992, around 21:00h
Further Comments: The monks could be heard singing in Latin, in the ruins of the building, followed by a single reading from an unknown text. In 1992 a group of nine teenagers walking through the grounds heard the jangling of chains or keys as they walked through the area. A few moments later a monk wearing sandals and a chain belt ran past them. The teenagers screamed and ran back towards town.
Disappearing Headlights
Location: Thetford - Snare Hill
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 2010
Further Comments: A motorist reported seeing car headlights around a hundred metres ahead approaching him, although the lights disappeared after he briefly lost visual contact with them. There was nowhere for the car to have turned off, and it did not pass him.
Little George
Location: Thetford - St George's Nunnery - Nun's bridges
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Sixteenth century?
Further Comments: The seven year old George fell from a wooden horse in May 1559, cracking his skull on the wall of the bridge and dying from his injury. The young ghost haunted the area for many years (riding around on a headless wooded horse) before being exorcised.
Landlady Betty Radcliffe
Location: Thetford - The Bell Hotel
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Nineteenth century onwards
Further Comments: Killed in 1750 by her lover, Betty now walks the corridors at night checking guests comfortable; guests may hear her heavy skirt swishing as she passes the doors and spot a flickering light like that of a candle. Other ghosts reported here include a young girl seen looking from the windows of the staff quarters, a dog lying in front of what would have been the original fireplace in the bar, jangling keys, a pair of old fashioned suede boots coming through the ceiling, and a monk.
White Rabbit with Flaming Eyes
Location: Thetford - The Thetford Warren (connected to golf course)
Type: Unknown Ghost Type
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: While sounding like a Monty Python sketch, the white rabbit that has been seen running around the area has large flaming eyes and brings disaster to all that see it.
Eric
Location: Thetford - Thetford Forest
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: August 2005
Further Comments: The spectre of an elderly gentleman is said to wander around the picnic site in the forest - it is reported that people have spoken to him before he vanishes into thin air.
Black Cat with Glowing Eyes
Location: Thetford - Wooded areas
Type: ABC
Date / Time: April 1985
Further Comments: A large cat with eyes that glowed red was reported in the forest.
Records 1 - 15 of 15
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