The Paranormal Database

An old sketch of a skull (public domain).

Reappearing Skulls

Location: Lake Windermere (Cumbria) - Calgarth Hall
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Sixteenth century?
Further Comments: Belonging to a married farming couple, the skulls came back to haunt the person who framed them for a crime that resulted in their execution. No matter how they were destroyed, the grinning skulls always returned to the hall, until the death of the man they cursed.

Luck of Eden

Location: Langwathby (Cumbria) - Eden Hall (aka Edenhall) - demolished 1934
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Still present (but in the Victoria and Albert museum)
Further Comments: Stolen from fairies by a former butler, the fifteen centimetre tall cup was locked away deep within the house, before being moved to the V&A - a curse placed by the little folk in retaliation for the theft states that if the beaker breaks, so does the Eden Hall's luck. The hall was also reputedly haunted by an elderly lady, who may have been a maid, who had a habit of appearing as a reflection in a mirror.

Falling Branches

Location: Littlecote (Wiltshire) - Elm tree near the Manor House - current state unknown
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Marks a death in the Popham family
Further Comments: When a branch falls from a certain old elm tree near the manor house, a member of the Popham family (former owners of the house) is said to die. If the entire tree falls, a huge tragic event is believed to befall Littlecote.

Returned Rock

Location: Llandrindod (Powys) - Cwmhir Abbey
Type: Curse
Date / Time: 2017
Further Comments: A small piece of rock was returned by an Australian tourist to the abbey, with the man claiming he had suffered a run of bad luck since removing it.

Cursing Well

Location: Llanelian-yn-Rhos (Clwyd) - St Ellian's Well (no longer present)
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Late Nineteenth century
Further Comments: Destroyed by the local clergy, the well which once stood here was used to curse one's enemies. The hex could be reversed if the pebble dropped into waters by the giver of the curse could be found and removed from the well.

Cursed Stairwell

Location: Loch Nell (Argyll and Bute) - Loch Nell Castle
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Still present?
Further Comments: The staircase was made from a tree considered holy, and a series of disasters befell all those who were involved in cutting it down and moving to the building. The castle is also home to phantom music.

Mr Anderton

Location: Lostock (Lancashire) - Lostock Hall
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: An unscrupulous landowner, Anderton refused to take rent money owing to him so he could reclaim some land he wanted, at the cost of a family living there - he was cursed to haunt that area for his sins.

Unlucky Tree

Location: Lowther (Cumbria) - Parkland
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Still present
Further Comments: A tree is this park has its branches propped up - a legend says that if the branches ever touch the ground, ill fortune will befall the Lowther family.

Papillon Hall (public domain).

Brocade Shoes

Location: Lubenham (Leicestershire) - Papillon Hall (demolished 1950)
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Twentieth century
Further Comments: The remains of a woman found within the walls of this house were speculated to belong to the Spanish mistress of David Papillon. The woman died around 1715, but declared if anyone touched her brocade shoes, misfortune would descend. In 1903, Sir Frank Bellville removed the shoes; shortly after he fell and broke his skull. The shoes were returned to the hall, although after the building's destruction, were moved to Harborough Museum.

Webb's Portrait

Location: Ludgershall (Wiltshire) - Biddesden House
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Still present
Further Comments: A portrait of General Webb was at one time thought to be cursed, with ill luck befalling anyone who removed it.

Workman

Location: Luton (Bedfordshire) - The Alma cinema (no longer standing)
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Pre-1960s
Further Comments: The Alma was thought to be cursed by locals who were forced to move from their homes so they could be demolished for the construction of the cinema. A construction worker fell to his death during the building work, and many felt that it was his ghostly presence that haunted The Alma.

Francis Downes

Location: Manchester (Greater Manchester) - Wardley Hall
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This building is reported to have had a skull bricked up within its walls, to prevent it from accidentally being removed and condemning the house's occupiers to misfortune or death. The macabre relic is thought to belong to Edward Barlow, a Catholic executed by Protestants in 1640.

John Fothergill

Location: Market Harborough (Leicestershire) - Three Swans Hotel
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The portrait of John Fothergill that hangs above the bar is no longer touched - if removed from its spot a disaster befalls the handler or hotel.

Lady Montague

Location: Midhurst (Sussex) - Ruins of Cowdray House & Park
Type: Curse
Date / Time: 1994 (Lady Montague), 10 August 2021 (male figure)
Further Comments: Lady Montague's wraith walks the gardens surrounding what is left of this once great house. The fortune of the building fell after it was cursed by a prioress after the owner ransacked the local priory. In 2021 two witnesses spotted a very tall, black clad figure gliding away from the ruins across the causeway. The figure appeared to be larger than a normal human and moved quicker than is possible.

Moreton Corbet Castle, copyright 2006 Lawson Clout.

Cursed Castle

Location: Moreton Corbet (Shropshire) - Moreton Corbet Castle
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Fifteenth century
Further Comments: During its construction, the owner of this building was cursed by a neighbour for being uncaring, and the castle was never finished. It is also said to be haunted by an aging man and a younger gentleman, who were caught on camera in 2003. (Image copyright 2006 Lawson Clout)

Cursed Chest

Location: Morwenstow (Cornwall) - Stanbury Manor
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Still present?
Further Comments: The chest is supposed to contain an evil presence that moves furniture around. Two old women who owned the chest prior to its delivery at the Stanbury are said to have been struck deaf when they first opened it and released the spirit hidden inside.

An old postcard of Naworth Castle.

White Lady

Location: Naworth (Cumbria) - Naworth Castle
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Falling in love and becoming pregnant by the lord of the castle, a local girl committed suicide after being shunned by him after their love affair. Though her mother then cursed the evil lord (resulting in his death, and that of the estate's future heir), the young lass still returns to the site.

Voices

Location: Nottingham (Nottinghamshire) - Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem public house
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Twentieth century
Further Comments: Probably the oldest public house in England, the building is home to spectral voices and other phantom noises. A model galleon, thick with dust, hangs from the ceiling and is said to be cursed - anyone who touches it dies within twelve months.

Cursed Lock

Location: Odstock (Wiltshire) - Church
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A young gypsy lad buried in the churchyard was hanged for stealing a horse - a crime his relatives claimed he did not commit. To stop their protests, the church door was locked to prevent them from visiting, but their leader cursed anyone who ever locked the door again. After several deaths occurring to people who performed this action, the key was thrown into the nearby river.

Mother Ivey's Curse

Location: Padstow (Cornwall) - Field near the Hellyer's farmhouse, Harlyn Bay
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Sixteenth century
Further Comments: Mother Ivey (or Ivy), a local wise woman, cursed this land after pilchards that could have been used to feed starving villagers were used to fertilise the field. She reportedly said if the soil were broken, death would soon follow. Whoever digs up any of the field is reputed to suffer soon afterwards. The story was carried by the popular UK press once it emerged that Conservative leader David Cameron had booked a holiday on the 'cursed' land.

Young Horseman

Location: Penicuik (Lothian) - General area
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Often heard and sometimes even seen, the horseman is thought to have been a young lad who stole a horse from his master to speed up the journey to meet his secret lover. In his haste, he galloped past the scene of an accident involving a cart - he could have saved the life of the driver who was trapped underneath, but lust took priority and the rider left the site without offering assistance. The victim of the accident later died but managed to curse the lad who rode on by; hence, the boy's ghost now roams.

Cursed Wall

Location: Port Talbot (West Glamorgan) - Wall on the site of Tata Steel
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Still present
Further Comments: Back in the sixteenth century, as the last monks were removed from their land, one brother cursed a nearby farmhouse. The brother said that if the building ever fell, the local community would fall with it. Work has been carried out to ensure the remaining wall of the ruined farmhouse has remained upright. A ghostly monk in white is also said to lurk in the area.

Portland, Dorset.

Underground Mutton

Location: Portland (Dorset) - General area
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Still occurring
Further Comments: The death of a nineteenth century quarry crane operator, blamed on a collapsing rabbit warren, gave birth to the belief that rabbits were unlucky. Even mentioning the word rabbit could bring frightful consequences; the creatures were referred to as 'underground mutton', 'furry things' or just 'bunnies'. Some employers would send their labourers back home if a rabbit had been seen en route to work.

Maud Toogood

Location: Ramsbury (Wiltshire) - Elm tree in village (now replaced with an oak)
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Oak still present
Further Comments: A hollow elm tree which was killed off by Dutch elm disease was replaced with an oak. One of the reasons for the replacement was that the shade of a local witch had taken up residence in the tree, and locals were worried that she may curse the area if the elm was fell.

The face of a ghostly white lady, a sketch by Wayne Lowden.

White Lady

Location: Randalstown (County Antrim) - Shane's Castle
Type: Curse
Date / Time: 1966
Further Comments: This pallid female wraith cursed the family with everlasting sorrow and misfortune. She is said to be quite tall and slender, with blue eyes and blonde hair. The figure was last seen in 1966, where the entity was said to be on her knees, crying, bathed in bluish-white light.