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Cinema Ghosts, Folklore and Forteana

Fred

Location: Barnstaple (Devon) - Cinema
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 2000s
Further Comments: The spirit at work within this building could be that of a worker who fell from the roof during repair work in 1931 - he died a week after the accident.

The Thin Man

Location: Beaconsfield (Buckinghamshire) - Chiltern Cinema (no longer operational)
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1980s
Further Comments: The thin, grey haired wraith reported here was named as a former manager. The entity was said to be annoying rather than frightening and was frequently seen on stage by staff after all members of the public had left.

Monk

Location: Bedford (Bedfordshire) - Cineworld
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 2000s
Further Comments: Both Screen 4 and the toilet area are reputed to be haunted by a hooded figure. Cold spots and strange sounds have also been reported. The cinema stands on the former site of Newnham priory.

Coach Driver

Location: Blackpool (Lancashire) - Royal Pavilion Cinema
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1971
Further Comments: This shade claimed to be a 1920s coach driver when contacted by a medium, which was called in after evening workers reported flickering lights and cold spots in the building.


The old ABC Cinema in Brighton.

Steam

Location: Brighton (Sussex) - Former ABC Cinema, King's Road
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This cinema operated from the site of an old Turkish bathhouse. Cinema staff would report the sound of running water and clouds of steam which appeared from nowhere.


Brighton's Odeon Cinema, West Street.

George

Location: Brighton (Sussex) - Odeon Cinema, West Street
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1970s onwards
Further Comments: Local legend says George was killed during the construction of the cinema and now makes his presence felt. He was once seen standing on the top of a flight of stairs by a manager and has a habit of tapping customers on their shoulder.

Suicide

Location: Bristol (Somerset) - Kings Cinema (currently the base for the City Council's Housing Department)
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: One of the rest rooms is said to be particularly cold - the area is haunted by the ghost of someone who took their life by leaping from the balcony.

Shadowy Figures

Location: Bristol (Somerset) - Odeon cinema, Broadmead
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Late twentieth century
Further Comments: Several members of staff have reported seeing people milling about the auditorium, disappearing if approached. A seat in the third row of screen three is said to be home to a shadowy apparition.

Figures

Location: Carmarthen (Dyfed) - Lyric Theatre, King Street
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1940s onwards?
Further Comments: Several figures, both male and female, are reported to haunt this building. One former member of staff claimed that the phantoms have been making themselves known since the 1940s, while in 1996 a tall man in a suit was spotted in the projection room.

Footsteps

Location: Cheam (Surrey) - Century Cinema (no longer standing)
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Twentieth century
Further Comments: The phantom footfalls have been heard moving across the stage area, several previous managers mistaking the sounds for that of intruders.

Projectionist

Location: Colwyn Bay (Clwyd) - Princess Cinema (no longer operational)
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This cinema was said to have been haunted by a projectionist who died in a flash fire in the booth.

Weighty Footsteps

Location: Devizes (Wiltshire) - Old Cinema
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: These eerie footsteps have been heard pacing in empty rooms on the first floor.

Footsteps

Location: Dundee (Angus) - Unidentified cinema
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: February 1951
Further Comments: A projectionist heard footsteps walking around the cinema, even though he was alone in the locked building. The projectionist mentioned the event to the building's manager a week later, who said that they had also previously heard the sounds.

Mr Christopher

Location: East Grinstead (Sussex) - Old Cinema along King Street
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: February 1970
Further Comments: A former manager, this spirit has been seen in full evening dress in various parts of the building.

Unknown

Location: Hemel Hempstead (Hertfordshire) - Jarman Park cinema
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Twenty-first century
Further Comments: Objects have been reportedly flung by unseen hands in one room in this cinema. Moaning is also heard from the same area.


Ipswich Film Theatre, Suffolk.

Figure

Location: Ipswich (Suffolk) - Ipswich Film Theatre (Cinema), Town Hall
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Late twentieth century
Further Comments: Several staff at this building reported a shadowy figure walking around the rear corridors near the protection booths.

Actress

Location: Keighley (Yorkshire) - Keighley Picture House cinema
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1996 onwards
Further Comments: After opening in 1913, an actress is said to have committed suicide in this theatre by throwing herself from a balcony. She may have been seen in the early 2000s by members of the public who complained that a woman had opened a fire door (one witness said she was wearing old fashioned clothing). When staff investigated, the door was secure. Staff report that screen one has a bad feeling, while the second projector room has a warm inviting feel.

Screen Six Shadows

Location: Luton (Bedfordshire) - Cineworld cinema
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 2003
Further Comments: Strange sounds, darting shadows and icy cold patches of air have all been blamed on the presence that may haunt cinema screen 6.

Workman

Location: Luton (Bedfordshire) - The Alma cinema (no longer standing)
Type: Curse
Date / Time: Pre-1960s
Further Comments: The Alma was thought to be cursed by locals who were forced to move from their homes so they could be demolished for the construction of the cinema. A construction worker fell to his death during the building work, and many felt that it was his ghostly presence that haunted The Alma.

Oscar

Location: Motherwell (Lanarkshire) - Rex Cinema (was originally the New Century Theatre, but is no longer operational; currently a snooker club?)
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Mid twentieth century
Further Comments: Though Oscar is no longer reported, during his stay here he had a reputation of scaring away usherettes who worked the late shifts.

Woman

Location: Newcastle Under Lyme (Staffordshire) - Rex and Rio Cinema (demolished 1970s)
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Late 1960s
Further Comments: A male member of staff locking up at night after everyone had left watched a woman walk past him towards the toilets. The man shouted after the lady to be quick; she appeared to ignore him and disappeared into the restroom. After several minutes of waiting, the man knocked on the door. After receiving no reply, he entered the room to see if the woman needed assistance - it was empty.

Pale Man

Location: Nottingham (Nottinghamshire) - Lenton Abbey, Classic Cinema
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1970s
Further Comments: Built on the site of a former priory, this cinema is haunted by a figure that could be a monk, though it appears to dress in 'normal' clothing.

Spooky Areas

Location: Oxford (Oxfordshire) - Gala Bingo (was Regal cinema), no longer operating
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1990s
Further Comments: This site was said to be haunted, although details are fleeting.

Woman in White

Location: Plymouth (Devon) - Reel Cinema
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: It is not known why this phantom woman in white chose to haunt the cinema, in particular Screen Two.

Floater

Location: SE15 (Greater London) - Tower Cinema, Peckham (now demolished, a car park built on top)
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1950s
Further Comments: Several staff and workers at the cinema encountered a ghostly figure which walked 3.3 metres off the ground. Research showed that a chapel had once stood on the site, its floor 3.3 metres higher than the cinema's. It is said that during the demolition process, several workmen fled the area after encountering figures passing through walls.

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