They’re the pubs that put the boo into London’s boozers – five of the UK capital’s spookiest inns.
And I’ve bravely visited each one to find out which is the most chilling.
London has dozens of supposedly haunted pubs – but this quintet of eerie inns have built up renown as being particularly hair-raising hotbeds of paranormal activity.
I enter a world of ghost cams, hanging nooses, stalking grounds for Jack the Ripper’s victims and hear about a ghost said to have awoken barmaids by ripping off their bedsheets.
Read on for my spook-factor scores. Would YOU be brave enough to follow in my footsteps?
The Prospect of Whitby – Wapping
The Prospect of Whitby (above) sits on the banks of the Thames in a Grade II listed building and has a history so disturbing it was once called The Devil’s Tavern
Pictured is a noose that swings at the back of The Prospect of Whitby as a homage to ‘the hanging judge’
The Prospect of Whitby claims to be London’s oldest riverside pub, dating back to 1520. Inside, there’s an original flagstone floor, a pewter top bar and old barrels and ship masts built into the ceiling. It sits on the banks of the Thames in a Grade II listed building and has a history so disturbing it was once called The Devil’s Tavern.
Cut-throats, pirates, smugglers and thieves all chose to drink here, as did Judge George Jeffreys – a 17th-century judge who is said to have sentenced hundreds of people to death by hanging.
His ghost is rumoured to haunt the pub, along with several others, including Mary Frith, a notorious pickpocket, also known as Moll Cutpurse.
Now, I discover it’s frequented by American tourists who flock there for its £16 steak and ale pie, and its atmosphere is more soothing than sinister. Reminders of its history, however, are plastered throughout, from models of ships to informative plaques. But perhaps its most hair-raising memento is the noose, which swings out back as a homage to ‘the hanging judge’.
Spook-factor: 2/5
The Viaduct Tavern – Holborn
The Viaduct Tavern sits opposite the Old Bailey and is built on the site of Newgate Prison. The pub retains many Victorian features, including an ornate beaten copper ceiling, cast iron pillars and an old ticket booth station
Pictured above are the ‘cells’ located in the Viaduct Tavern’s basement. Inside the dark space is a hanging noose and rusty metal cages
The Viaduct Tavern, opposite the Old Bailey, has spooky pub credentials by the coffin load.
In the main bar area, the Victorian drinking hole features cast iron pillars, an ornate beaten copper ceiling and an old ticket booth.
So far, so mildly eerie.
Venture below, though, and matters get seriously spine-chilling very quickly.
The pub is built on the site of Newgate Prison and downstairs are old ‘cells’ where prisoners are said to have been kept.
These cells are free for customers to explore, and minutes after finishing my drink, I reluctantly follow the barmaid down a set of creaky, steep stairs to a small brick room. Inside the dark, damp space is a hanging noose and rusty metal cages – terrifying enough to make me want to go upstairs in seconds.
Staff are reportedly apprehensive about going down alone. Understandably so, as in 1996, the landlord allegedly found himself locked in the cellar after the door slammed shut for no apparent reason.
Spook-factor – 4/5
The Rising Sun – Smithfield
Inside The Rising Sun in Smithfield there’s a ‘dated wooden interior’ and an ‘absence of TVs and music’, Jess writes – as well as a ‘pervy’ ghost
This pub, next to St Bartholomew’s Hospital, was thought to be the playground of body-snatching gangs back in the early 19th century. These criminals supposedly drugged and murdered punters before selling their bodies to the hospital for medical research.
Unsurprisingly, paranormal activity has since been reported.
One notable case is the so-called ‘pervy’ ghost. A former landlady reported being interrupted by a presence while in the shower – it pulled back the shower curtain and placed an icy hand on her back.
Barmaids who lived upstairs would wake to find a spirit sitting on the end of their bed, slowly tugging their bedcovers off.
Whether it’s the mixture of these horrifying tales, the dated wooden interior or the eerie silence due to the absence of TVs and music, I find the atmosphere of this pub somewhat unsettling.
As I walk to the upstairs loo, I notice the cold temperature and creaky floorboards. On my way back down, a fire alarm suddenly blares, and the doors slowly close. A ghostly presence or just pure coincidence? Either way, I leave the pub in a flash, feeling shaken.
Visit risingsunfarringdon.co.uk.
Spook-factor – 5/5
Morpeth Arms – Millbank
Underneath Morpeth Arms are cells leftover from the former Millbank Prison. The pub is supposedly haunted by a former prisoner who died underground
A live stream of Morpeth Arms’ cells is displayed on a TV next to the bar (pictured)
At first glance, this 19th-century tap house seems bright, airy and not at all spooky.
However, lurking beneath the surface are tunnels and cells left over from the former Millbank Prison, which opened in 1816 and closed in 1890.
The tunnels served as the ‘final walk’ for prisoners before being deported to Australia. One convict is said to have died in a tunnel beneath the pub while trying to escape – and now haunts the pub, according to local legend.
Reminders of the pub’s history are scattered everywhere, from framed photographs of criminals to a sign above the bar, that reads ‘some of our spirits you can’t see’. There’s even a live stream of the cells, displayed on a TV next to the bar.
While the cells were unavailable to view on my visit, the pub welcomes customers downstairs ‘from time to time’.
Although rich in history, the upstairs area appears incredibly modern, and if it weren’t for the historical knick-knacks and creepy ghost cam footage, there’s a fairly light and un-spooky atmosphere.
Visit www.morpetharms.com.
Spook-factor: 1.5/5
The Ten Bells – Spitalfields
The Ten Bells (pictured) is renowned for its connection to London’s most notorious serial killer, Jack The Ripper and is said to be haunted by one of his victims
Follow the hoards of tour groups to East End pub The Ten Bells, renowned for its connection to London’s most notorious serial killer: Jack The Ripper.
The pub is associated with two of Jack the Ripper’s victims. Unconfirmed reports claim Annie Chapman was drinking at the pub before being killed. Her mutilated body was found on nearby Hanbury Street.
Mary Kelly – the Ripper’s final victim – is linked to the pub as the street outside is allegedly where she picked up her clients. Rumour has it that Chapman’s ghost still haunts the pub, alongside several other ghoulish figures.
Staff are said to have encountered the ghost of a past landlord named George Roberts, who was reportedly murdered with an axe. There are also gruesome tales of the murder of a baby in one of the rooms upstairs, with psychic mediums apparently too terrified to enter it.
Despite its entanglement with such a grizzly past, the pub’s atmosphere is surprisingly lively. Small, but vibrant, the pub draws in a young crowd. However, if it was less crowded, I would be apprehensive to visit alone.
Spook-factor: 3/5
