Road Ghosts, Folklore and Forteana
Phantom Coach
Location: Oxnead (Norfolk) - Oxnead Bridge
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 19 May (reoccurring)
Further Comments: A ghostly coach and four passes over this bridge once a year. It is said to be driven by a headless Sir Thomas Boleyn and is one of eleven bridges that he passes over on the night of his daughter Anne's execution.
Grey Lady
Location: Oxney Bottom (Kent) - Road between town and Dover
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1973?
Further Comments: This figure in a dark grey cloak is said to look so real that people have tried to speak to her, not realising what she is. The entity has also been blamed for causing several accidents as she drifts in front of incoming traffic. A bus conductor once saw her climb on board his vehicle and walk up the stairs - when he went up to collect the fare, she had vanished.
White Woman
Location: Passage West (County Cork) - Road towards Cork, and other roads through village
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Early twentieth century?
Further Comments: Not much is known about the phantom woman who was said to haunt the road to Cork. A phantom coach and horses haunted other roads in the area, the noise of its passing causing household furnishings to shake.
White Lady
Location: Pawlett (Somerset) - A370 road towards Weston Super Mere
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Circa 1988, between 23:00h - 02:00h
Further Comments: A driver had to bring his vehicle to a stop after hitting a white female figure on the road - the figure had disappeared without trace.
Coach
Location: Pawlett (Somerset) - Roads in the village
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The ghostly team of horses pulling a coach travel aimlessly in the neighbourhood.
Black Dog with Drooping Ears
Location: Peldon (Essex) - Wigborough Road between Guisnes Court and Sacott crossroads
Type: Shuck
Date / Time: 1930s?
Further Comments: While with a friend driving a horse and trap, a man reported being followed by a dog the size of a calf, with drooping ears and eyes that glowed like bicycle lamps.
Lad on Horseback
Location: Pencoed (Mid Glamorgan) - Roads in the area
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Circa 1902
Further Comments: The lad was said to resemble a 'farmers son' and would ride his horse through the village around midnight. Man and steed would gallop through the area completely silently.
Modern Woman
Location: Penmorfa (Dyfed) - Road climbing towards village
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 11 April 2025, 10:30h - 11:00h
Further Comments: A driver and their passenger were startled to see an older woman standing in the road. The woman wore wearing modern black clothing and stared at the oncoming vehicle. The driver swerved to avoid the woman and when checking the rear-view mirror, realised the figure had vanished.
Clark
Location: Penn (Buckinghamshire) - Roads in the area, and area near Penn Church
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1880
Further Comments: Four farmers on horseback are said to have pursued the phantoms of a man named Clark and his mare. They managed to keep up with Clark until he reached the church - both ghosts evaporated into grey mist, and the farmers' mounts bolted with fear.
Unsuitable Villager
Location: Penshurst (Kent) - Vicarage, and road leading there
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 25 April 2004
Further Comments: This ghostly figure re-enacts the journey he took during life to rendezvous with his secret love, the vicar's daughter. A small group of people reported seeing a shade in this area in 2004, dressed in black and holding what appeared to be a bag or case.
Man in the Road
Location: Pentreuchaf (Gwynedd) - Road in the area
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Winter (reoccurring)
Further Comments: Both young and smart in appearance, this male walks along the middle of the road, causing oncoming traffic to stop before he vanishes into thin air.
Dashing Woman
Location: Peterborough (Cambridgeshire) - A1 north of Peterborough, 2 - 4 miles outside of city
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1995
Further Comments: During a clear day, a driver and his wife overtaking a lorry at 70mph watched a woman in 1950s clothing, carrying a bag, dash in front of their car to the central reservation. The driver had no time to slow down but did not hit the woman.
Horse and Carriage
Location: Peterborough (Cambridgeshire) - Sutton Heath Road
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Circa 2007
Further Comments: While travelling along the Sutton Heath road, one man watched a figure driving a horse and carriage emerge from a bush on the right hand side and cross the road ahead of him. The driver stopped, not believing what he had witnessed.
Figure Flagging Down Traffic
Location: Petersfield (Hampshire) - A3 heading towards the town, near the Sheet Service Station
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: December 1991
Further Comments: A lorry driver reported running down a figure which stood in the middle of the road, looking as if he was trying to signal for help. The upset driver phoned the police who searched the area but were unable to find a body or any evidence that the driver had hit anything.
Headless Horseman
Location: Pettistree (Suffolk) - High Street?
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1990s
Further Comments: Witnessed by at least two different people since 1990, a headless horseman has been seen trotting down the high street during the early hours.
Old Car
Location: Pillaton (Cornwall) - Lane leading to the Weary Friar
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1978
Further Comments: Four people driving towards the Weary Friar pub encountered a 1900s car heading towards them. Two of the witnesses shouted a warning to the driver of the old car, but the vehicle vanished in front of them.
Dog that is not There
Location: Pimperne (Dorset) - Road between village and Letton Hill
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Circa 1970s
Further Comments: Heard dragging chains as it ran, this phantom hound is said to be invisible, though it has been touched by witnesses as it passes them. A similar story is told in Stourpaine, Dorset.
Death Bogle
Location: Pitlochry (Perth and Kinross) - Crossroads in the town
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This misty white entity lurks at a crossroads waiting for a passerby. As the unfortunate traveller approaches, the bogle tries to grab them - if successful, the passerby dies within a year.
Murdered Girl
Location: Pittington (Durham) - Lady Peace Lane
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Late twentieth century
Further Comments: The daughter from the local manor house was murdered along this lane, and now she has returned, her screams can be heard from the nearby village.
Headmaster
Location: Pluckley (Kent) - Dicky Buss's Lane
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1965
Further Comments: Taking his own life in the 1800's, the phantom headmaster was observed by an author in the mid-twentieth century; the entity wore stripy trousers and an old coat.
Dog Walkers
Location: Pluckley (Kent) - Station Road, area around Greystones House
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Couple unknown, monk reported seen in 1971
Further Comments: Victims of the all-too-common love triangle that ends in suicide, this couple and their little dog can be heard walking and chatting down this area of the road. Greystones itself is reputedly home to a phantom monk.
Horses & Carriage
Location: Pluckley (Kent) - The main village street
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Seen trotting down the main street, the history of the carriage pulled by two horses (or four, depending on the source) is unknown.
Taxi Fare
Location: Pluckley (Kent) - Unnamed road in village
Type: Unknown Ghost Type
Date / Time: Late twentieth century
Further Comments: A taxi driver reported seeing a man on the roadside who flagged the taxi down. The fare climbed into the back of the cab, but when the driver turned around to ask his passenger where he was heading, he found the car empty.
Toplis
Location: Plumpton (Cumbria) - A6 close to the village
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Twentieth century
Further Comments: A known accident black spot, some blame the ghost of a murderer named Toplis - he was shot and killed by police as he tried to escape justice.
Horse and Coach
Location: Polstead (Suffolk) - Near the village green
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Summer, 1990s, around 16:00h
Further Comments: Mrs Hackford was driving her car at around 4pm when a horse and carriage carrying an old lady and two men in Victorian clothing rode past her in the opposite direction. Because of the weirdness of the situation, the witness looked behind her, only to realise the coach was no longer there.
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