For the record, I don’t believe in ghosts. But I do believe my eyes and ears — and I’ll admit, things get a little spooky around here sometimes. We’ve even set up a little board where guests and staff can jot down their experiences. By popular demand, here are a few of the favourites.

Our most frequent visitor is the Woman in Blue. She wanders quietly through the restaurant and is known for resting a gentle hand on an unsuspecting diner’s shoulder. We’re fairly sure we know who she was — a local lady, well-loved and much missed.

Then there’s the old tale of Church Hill, said to be haunted for generations. Local children still race up it after dark, which is quite the feat when you see how steep it is. One of our more dramatic encounters involved a highwayman who followed a guest up that very hill, through the inn, and right up to her room. Being a no-nonsense New Yorker, she spun round to confront him — and watched him vanish before her eyes. Later, over a drink (naturally), she shrugged and said, “Oh honey, the dead are nothing to worry about. It’s the living that’ll get you.”

Guests often report hearing children laughing and running in the corridors upstairs. During lockdown, while I was decorating, I’d hear little footsteps and doors slamming when no one was about. A few guests have even woken to find smiling children sitting at the ends of their beds — and strangely enough, nearly everyone describes it as peaceful, even comforting. (Except for one poor soul who checked out early and gave us a 1/10 on Booking.com for featuring “an apparition in the room.”)

Of course, the usual bumps and bangs happen too. Barrels shift in the cellar, pictures leap off the stone walls, and vases occasionally make themselves known in a more… explosive manner.

They say extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence. Maybe you don’t believe in ghosts either — but why not stay a night and see what your senses tell you? And if you do have an encounter, don’t forget to add it to the board. We’d love to hear your story.