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Bedford
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General
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A brief note about the area
Unearthly music and the sound of disembodied voices A phantom monk who may haunt two different locations A haunted cinema, Screen 4, and a haunted toilet The ghosts of a man and a woman The sound of creaking gallows The ghost of a suicide and rattling doors Thirty bodies and a phantom cat Scratching noises and footsteps on the haunted stairs More ghosts than we care to mention A phantom monk who may haunt two different locations A ghost that throws buckets A ghost that likes to slam doors Footsteps and phantom knocks on the door A ghost that walks through a wall A dark figure seen haunting the pool room area A ghostly nun who passes through a solid wall A World War One soldier, or at least his spirit Moving objects and writing on the window The ghost of Black Tom |
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Bedford originated during the sixth and seventh centuries when it developed as a crossing point over the river Great Ouse. It is thought that the name derives from that of a Saxon Chief, Beda, who settled there with his followers. Alfred the Great’s son and successor, King Edward the Elder, came to Bedford and ordered the construction of the King’s Ditch as a defence against the Danes. The ditch lay to the south of the river and the eastern half remains visible to this day.
It is said that if you enter the girls’ toilets in Abbey Middle School the doors will close and you will be able to hear the sounds of music and voices. These sounds are not made by anything earthly.
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In 1979 near to the Midland Bank (HSBC) in Allhallows Bedford shoppers were surprised to see a mediaeval friar in his hooded gown. He was calmly walking down the street meditating on his rosary. It seems likely, from the direction in which he was walking, that he had come from Greyfriars which used to be the site of a priory.
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In the Aspects Leisure Complex (UGC Cinema) in Newnham Avenue in Bedford there appears to be both a haunted cinema and, inconveniently, a haunted toilet. Strange happenings have been observed numerous times in Screen 4, including doors violently opening of their own accord, even though the catch was on. Customers have complained of hearing scratching noises coming from above their heads and the feeling of ‘phantom’ hands on their legs. Seat 8 in row ‘A’ refuses to stay upright. No matter how many times it is put up, the next instant it is down again, but not straight away, only when no one is watching. Jingling chains have also been heard and that particular theatre is always a lot cooler than any other, never rising above five degrees centigrade even in the summer.
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It was reported in ‘The Bedfordshire Journal’ that a house in Battison Street was haunted by a ghostly couple. Mary Dorney had lived at number seven for less than a year but she had seen the ghost several times. The man appeared to be dressed in plus fours and the woman wore a floral night-dress. The ghosts would be seen strolling around the back room of the house at night. During the hours of daylight it is suspected that they were responsible for turning off the television set when no one was in the room. Friends and neighbours who entered the room commented on how cold and clammy the atmosphere was.
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In 1224 Bedford Castle was captured by Henry III after a long siege and eighty of the defenders were hung on the castle mound. It is said that, to this day, if you stand on the mound at night you can still hear the creaking of the gallows.
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The South Wing of Bedford Hospital has seen several instances of a supernatural nature. A nurse in the autumn of 1972 was working as a trainee on Russell Ward getting the night medicines ready. As she worked she saw a young girl come up the stairs and enter the corridor. The nurse described her as being very pretty with short brown hair and rosy cheeks, wearing a long dress and long white coat. She also noted that the girl was above average height and that she was slim. The staff nurse who was just unlocking the medicine trolley also saw the girl and they both watched as she went into the toilet. They waited but she did not come out and when the trainee went to investigate she found no one there, just a very cold spot. No members of the medical or surgical staff were on duty that night and the staff nurse recalled that the figure appeared to be gliding. Later it was found out that the ghost was that of a young girl who had worked in the pathology department and who had committed suicide, at the age of twenty three, three years previously. If the doors of Russell Ward were locked at night they would rattle as though someone was trying to enter, but when the doors were unlocked there was never anyone there.
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The Bullnose Bat (now refurbished and called ‘The Square’) in St Paul’s Square, Bedford, was the site of a gruesome discovery five years ago. At that time the pub was undergoing a major refurbishment when thirty bodies were dug up. The assistant manager remembers seeing a bottle fly across the bar of its own volition and fall into a waste bin; the event was also witnessed by the barman. The same barman also reported a phantom cat, which kept appearing in his bedroom even though the door and window were closed. A previous manager’s puppy would not go near an area by the exit door where customers have reported a cold spot.
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Number 36 Cavendish Street was once occupied by a drayman and his family, and by something less corporeal. The house was a new one, built about twenty years ago by the local council, on top of the foundations of a much older building. The haunted area seemed to be the top of the stairs and the stairs themselves. On numerous occasions scratching noises were heard coming from the area. At one time the sound of someone running upstairs was heard, but it could not have been a family member. The children of the family are also reported to have seen faces at the top of the stairs.
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The instances of paranormal happenings at the Cecil Higgins Museum in Bedford are almost beyond count. The most unusual place for a haunting must be the ladies’ toilet. Jenny Clarke, the secretary to the Cecil Higgins Art Gallery and Museum, was washing her hands in the toilet when the door behind her suddenly slid shut. The door is a heavy one and difficult to close at the best of times and could, certainly, not have closed by itself. When you enter that particular room the air seems to grow distinctly colder.
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Danny Ward had an unusual experience outside what used to be the Greyfriars public house in Bedford. Back in the 1970’s he told reporters “I saw a monk with sandals on, wearing a habit with the hood up so that you could not see his face; there was a chain around his neck and a large cross, he seemed to be looking down at the cross and meditating”. The street was not empty at the time but the other people present did not seem to see the monk as they walked past him. Later Mr. Ward remembered that a girl assistant who worked at Carousel Records and others had seen a phantom friar when they were working late.
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In the King’s Arms public house in St Mary’s Street in Bedford there are two ghosts. In 1994 there was a sighting of the ghost in the cellar by an employee of the brewery. The ghost was described as a fairly old man wearing a short-sleeved white shirt. The ghost has a habit of throwing buckets around and has the ability to strip down the beer taps. After they have been cleaned and left to dry the ghost will take them apart, this according to the landlord “is no mean feat”.
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The Magistrates Court on St Paul’s Square is haunted by a ghost that is also believed to haunt the Clerk’s Offices in Mill Street. It is thought to be a former Clerk to the Court who died suddenly when on duty. The ghost is rarely seen but he does have a habit of slamming doors, moving around noisily upstairs and making other noises all around the building.
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Mill Street is said to be one of the most haunted sites in Bedford. Mr. T. B. Porter was brought up at number 38 Mill Street (later a Citizens Advice Bureau) and wrote about his experiences there to the ‘Bedford Record’. Many times as a child he had heard the sound of footsteps coming from upstairs when there was no one up there. One time his mother called both himself and his brother down for dinner thinking they were upstairs, having heard the sound of footsteps, but they never responded. She found out why a little while later when they both came in from outside. The sounds she had heard upstairs were not made by them. Both his mother and the servant had been convinced that they had come inside earlier.
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In the middle of the twentieth century at the Priory Methodist Church in Newnham Avenue a witness saw a man who appeared as if he was creeping along the back of the church. The witness was suspicious as to what the man was doing, so he continued to watch him. To his surprise the man then walked through a wall, leaving a thin wisp of smoke behind him. The witness described the man as wearing a tweed jacket and trousers looking like something from the 1920s.
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The Bedford Branch Headquarters of the RAF Association in Ashburnham Road is said to be haunted, by a dark figure. Numerous people have seen the ghost, which seems to haunt an area lying between the toilets, which lie to the southeast of the building, and the snooker room, which lies at the front of the building in the southwest. The ghost had been haunting the building for a number of years, but stopped about three to four years ago. At that time the building was undergoing some restructuring work upstairs and it is almost as if this had ended the haunting, which is unusual as building work is quite often the start of a haunting.
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Sisters House is a former nunnery located on St Peters Street right next to St Luke’s church. Now it is a listed building owned by the Pilgrims Housing Association and is used as accommodation for people with chronic mental health problems. Some years ago staff would occasionally stay overnight while the unit was being set up. On one particular evening in 1997 one of the staff was asleep in one of the rooms when he suddenly awoke to find a heavy weight on the bottom of the bed. When he switched on the light he saw the figure of a nun who slowly drifted down the room and passed through a wall. Other members of the staff said that things would go missing but when they mentally said “Oh! Stop being silly and give it back” the items would usually reappear.
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St Peter’s Street in Bedford seems to be haunted by the ghost of a World War One soldier. Keith Paull and his wife were driving down St Peter’s Street in 2001 and were waiting at a red light opposite to the Alphonse Sandwich bar. As they pulled away from the lights they were surprised to see the aforementioned soldier just a few yards ahead crossing the road from the pavement to their left. He managed to cross the road without once looking to either side then faded into thin air. When he was seen he was hatless and had short hair.
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A flat in Tavistock Street, number 121B, has been owned by Charles Wells brewery for a number of years, and used as accommodation by draymen. It seems that employees of the brewery have not been the only occupants, as the flat is haunted. Furniture has been known to move around and there has even been writing found on the windows of the flat. One drayman, who lived there twenty years ago, said that he would return home from work to find records playing on his record player, but there was no one there to have put them on. Numerous people, including friends of the aforementioned drayman, have stayed in the flat and reported strange feelings and happenings.
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In Union Street approximately one hundred metres from Bedford Prison a dark figure has been seen. This area contains a car park so is very popular with shoppers visiting the town centre but two hundred years ago it was the site of a gallows. Here in 1607 a highwayman known as ‘Black Tom’ was hanged and now his ghost haunts the area. He was called Black Tom because of his swarthy skin and greasy coal black hair. His body was buried at the point where Tavistock Street, Union Street and Clapham Road meet and to ensure he didn’t return a stake was driven through his heart. Soon after he was buried his ghost, accompanied by another unidentified ghost, began to haunt the area. In the 1840’s both ghosts were seen several times and it got so bad that nervous people would not venture out at night. Occasionally drivers have seen a dark shape ‘lurking’ in the corner of the car park as they collect their cars. One witness described the figure as that of “a drunk, with his head lolling about”.
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