The Paranormal Database

Examining folkloric, paranormal & cryptozoological locations in the UK and beyond

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Suffolk Ghosts, Folklore and Forteana

Running Man

Location: Ixworth - Just after the bridge near Stow Road
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: April 2016
Further Comments: A driver and passenger watched a ghostly man form and run across the road. The passenger stated that until that moment, they did not believe in ghosts.

Source: User Submission
First added: 2017-08-19 | Last updated: 2017-08-19 | ID #12568

Triangle

Location: Ixworth - Road between Diss and Bury St Edmunds
Type: UFO
Date / Time: June 2000, dusk
Further Comments: Two witnesses in a car spotted a triangular craft, around the size of a house, hovering above a field. Soft lights were visible under the ufo. The witnesses also noticed other road vehicles were slowing down to look at the object.

Source: User Submission
First added: 2010-12-31 | Last updated: 2010-12-31 | ID #10086


The Gypsy Boy's grave, on the roadside to Bury St Edmunds.

Strange Force from The Boy's Grave

Location: Kentford - 1.5 miles beyond Kentford, at a crossroads on the main road to Bury St Edmunds
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1800s onwards
Further Comments: The gypsy boy buried here was falsely accused of sheep stealing and committed suicide rather than go to jail. Flowers and other items of respect are left here by people; some for luck, some to avoid suffering an accident in the area. Several cyclists have reported coming off their bikes along this stretch of road, for reasons unexplained.

Source: Historical Record, Published Media
First added: 2000-08-17 | Last updated: 2000-08-17 | ID #775


The roadside grave at Dobbs Lane, Kesgrave.

Dobbs

Location: Kesgrave - Dobbs Lane
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1960s
Further Comments: Haunted by the ghost of a suicide, the crossroads here is where Dobbs is buried; a young shepherd who took his life after losing a sheep. Youths out for some fun in the 1960's started to dig up the grave, only to be scared off by 'something'.

Source: Folklore / Tradition
First added: 2001-09-07 | Last updated: 2001-09-07 | ID #369

ABC

Location: Kesgrave - Exact location not known
Type: ABC
Date / Time: 1996
Further Comments: Part of a rash of sightings of ABCs in and around the Ipswich area during 1996.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2000-08-27 | Last updated: 2000-08-27 | ID #269


The sea off Kessingland, Suffolk.

Long Beast

Location: Kessingland - Off coast
Type: Cryptozoology
Date / Time: July 1912, and 1978
Further Comments: A sea monster, sixty feet in length with thirty 'blobs' running along its back, has been seen three times during the twentieth century. The first sighting was documented by the daughter of author H. Rider Haggard, which she described in a letter to her father on 20 July 1912. The most recent sighting occurred in 1978. It has been speculated that the creature was a procession of seals leaping in and out of the sea.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2000-08-17 | Last updated: 2022-01-23 | ID #58

Old Bill

Location: Kirton - Village public house
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 2004?
Further Comments: The ghost nicknamed Old Bill was once a regular at this public house. He believed that drinking ruined his life so returned to the building which he now haunts.

Source: User Submission
First added: 2005-02-03 | Last updated: 2005-02-03 | ID #5830

Shadowy Figure

Location: Knodishall - Church ruins
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This figure emerges from the church and crosses the road to a pond.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2026-04-04 | Last updated: 2026-04-04 | ID #16486

Steeltoes

Location: Lakenheath - Area between Sedge Sheaf Inn (no longer standing) and Farthing Drove
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Mid twentieth century?
Further Comments: The ghostly cyclist known as Steeltoes (or Old Steel Toes) glows a deathly green as it pedals along the road at midnight, and kills anyone who steps out in front of him. The deaths of two people have been attributed to this entity, the last in 1950.

Source: Historical Record
First added: 2004-11-14 | Last updated: 2023-10-07 | ID #5566

Smoking RAF Pilot

Location: Lakenheath - Lakenheath Air Force Base, perimeter road
Type: Post-Mortem Manifestation
Date / Time: Spring 1951
Further Comments: A phantom hitchhiker was seen along the road, dressed as a RAF pilot. An American policeman picked him up, only to find that the pilot had disappeared a few minutes later.

Source: Published Media, User Submission
First added: 2001-09-06 | Last updated: 2001-09-06 | ID #317

Australian Pilot

Location: Lakenheath - Near Brandon Road
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1945 onwards
Further Comments: Seen walking across the airfield on bright moonlit nights, the ghost here is believed to be that of an Australian pilot who died when his bomber crashed during the Second World War.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2000-08-17 | Last updated: 2000-08-17 | ID #59

Becky

Location: Lavenham - De Vere House (aka the Harry Potter House)
Type: Poltergeist
Date / Time: 2010s
Further Comments: Becky the poltergeist is blamed when small valuable items are taken, although if you ask nicely, she is said to return them. The non-threatening spook is also said to turn the radio and television on and off.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2019-12-04 | Last updated: 2019-12-04 | ID #13434

That Voodoo that You Do

Location: Lavenham - Private residence off High Street
Type: Poltergeist
Date / Time: 1972 - 1974
Further Comments: Mrs Clake claimed a poltergeist outbreak which caused items to disappear and a neighbour to fall over was due to a wooden 'voodoo devil' that her daughter had given her. Rev Ian Davidson blessed the house, but the entity returned a week later to drink Clarke's sherry and sabotage her knitting.

Source: Historical Record
First added: 2025-08-25 | Last updated: 2025-08-25 | ID #16047

Under Housekeeper

Location: Lavenham - Swan Hotel, Room 15
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1991
Further Comments: The ghost of this housekeeper, a suicide victim, was said to haunt Room 15 with such intensity that no staff would go near the room after nightfall. A secret tunnel connected the building to the priory, with another tunnel leading along the street.

Source: Published Media, User Submission
First added: 2000-09-02 | Last updated: 2026-04-04 | ID #823

Mrs Goodhew

Location: Lavenham - The Angel public house
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Late twentieth century
Further Comments: The ghost of an early landlady, Mrs Goodhew, has been seen standing around the building, smiling at any witness before vanishing.

Source: Needs Review
First added: 2005-05-30 | Last updated: 2005-05-30 | ID #6286

Blonde

Location: Lavenham - Tickled Pink tearoom, Tickle Manor
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 2008
Further Comments: A blonde woman has been observed shrouded in mist at the base of the stairs, and children have been heard singing Greensleeves. The sound of church bells has also been heard, even though the nearby church has been silent.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2009-05-25 | Last updated: 2009-05-25 | ID #9345

Glowing Gravestone

Location: Lawshall - Churchyard
Type: Unknown Ghost Type
Date / Time: Late twentieth century
Further Comments: Two men reportedly saw a glowing gravestone whilst returning from the pub one evening, though when they returned the following day, they could find no trace of any gravestone that resembled the stone that they had seen.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2000-09-02 | Last updated: 2000-09-02 | ID #820

Feeling Pushed

Location: Layham - Village Hall
Type: Unknown Ghost Type
Date / Time: 2006
Further Comments: Suffolk and Norfolk Paranormal Investigations (SNPI) were asked to investigate this village hall after one resident experienced the feeling of being pushed while on the site. One member of the SNPI reported experiencing the same sensation, although the chairman of the parish council was unaware of any previous paranormal activity related to the site.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2012-05-06 | Last updated: 2012-05-06 | ID #10859

Giant Pumpkin Smelling of Acid Drops

Location: Leiston - Beach north of Leiston, in the skies
Type: UFO
Date / Time: 1980s
Further Comments: This strange UFO was reported over the sea.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2000-08-17 | Last updated: 2000-08-17 | ID #487


Leiston Abbey

Shuck Skeleton?

Location: Leiston - Leiston Abbey
Type: Shuck
Date / Time: 2013
Further Comments: In 2013, the remains of a hound, initially reported to be two metres long, were unearthed on the abbey grounds. Because of the proximity to the village of Bungay, some media outlets claimed the remains belonged to the Black Shuck; an old local legend says the area was home to the large phantom dog. A propagated descendant from the Holy Thorn at Glastonbury was said to grow here, and treasure rumoured to exist on the site - it is worth noting that 321 11th century silver coins (nicknamed The Pasty) were discovered at the nearby Sizewell C construction site in 2025. Finally, a network of secret tunnels were rumoured to connect the abbey to Dunwich's Greyfriars and Framlingham Castle, which would have been an amazing feat of engineering.

Source: Historical Record, Published Media, User Submission
First added: 2014-05-18 | Last updated: 2026-04-06 | ID #11543


Leiston Churchyard, Suffolk.

Gallytrot Leaping over Wall

Location: Leiston - Near Churchyard
Type: Shuck
Date / Time: Early twentieth century
Further Comments: Seen by Lady Rendlesham and Lady Walsingham, the shuck appeared at midnight, leapt over the low churchyard wall, and disappeared towards the sand hills.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2000-08-17 | Last updated: 2000-08-17 | ID #30


A beam of sunlight shines down on the sea close to Leiston.

Large Yellowish & Greenish Ball

Location: Leiston - Off coast near Sizewell
Type: UFO
Date / Time: 1980s
Further Comments: Observing the power station here (or maybe formed by it?), the unnatural ball only hung around briefly before leaving the scene.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2000-08-17 | Last updated: 2000-08-17 | ID #488


Sizewell A power station, Suffolk.

Fallen Worker

Location: Leiston - Sizewell A power station
Type: Post-Mortem Manifestation
Date / Time: 1950s?
Further Comments: During the construction of the station, one worker fell to his death from a crane. Less than twenty four hours later, another worker reported that a voice had called for him from the base of a deep pit, and that he would have fallen into it if a close friend had not called him back. The worker identified the luring voice as that of the dead man and was convinced that the deceased had tried to kill him.

Source: Needs Review
First added: 2003-06-29 | Last updated: 2003-06-29 | ID #4402

Leaping Bottles

Location: Leiston - White House Inn
Type: Poltergeist
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: An exorcist was called to dispatch this entity which caused bottles and glasses to leap from shelves and doors to open and close on their own accord.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2006-09-10 | Last updated: 2006-09-10 | ID #6968

John Bullard Hanging from Beam

Location: Letheringham - Watermill
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1994
Further Comments: Seventeenth century miller John Bullard and his son were murdered by hired helper Jonah Snell, who hung their bodies from the rafters. Though the original building has been replaced, it is believed the restless shades of the victims can still be seen hanging (as was the case in 1994).

Source: Published Media
First added: 2000-08-27 | Last updated: 2000-08-27 | ID #815

Records 276 - 300 of 357

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