Another entrant in Uncanny UK editor Richard Holland’s chart of his choice of the most haunted places in Britain.
36. NEWSTEAD ABBEY: Ravenshead, Nottinghamshire
Developed on the site of a medieval abbey, it’s no wonder this grand mansion is known for its ghostly monks, including the ‘Black Friar’ and ‘Goblin Friar’. There is also a traditional White Lady. She patrols the White Lady Walk in the grounds and is believed to be the ghost of a deaf and dumb woman, Sophie Hyatt, who lived near Newstead.
Newstead Abbey is most famous for being the former home of Lord Byron. However, it is not the ‘mad, bad’ poet but one of his ancestors who haunts the place. ‘Little Sir John’ Byron died in the 17th century but has been known to appear sitting by the fireplace quietly smoking a pipe. Lord Byron did have a spooky experience in the house, though: one night a shapeless shadowy mass sat on his bed and glared at him with red eyes. His dog, Boatswain, is also said to haunt the grounds.
[SOURCE: Haunted Houses by Charles Harper; Haunted Britain by A. Hippisley Coxe; ‘My Top Ten Haunted Houses’ by Janet Bord, Paranormal Magazine issue 34]
