The Paranormal Database

Mother

Location: Brighton - Bedford Tavern
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The inn is reputedly haunted by a woman who died in the cellar where she was locked up by her abusive husband, or after childbirth, or both, or neither.

Escaping Extinguishers

Location: Brighton - Belgrave Hotel (now renamed)
Type: Poltergeist
Date / Time: 1990s
Further Comments: One story says that certain fire extinguishers in this hotel would be moved around unaided at night, although it is possible that they were moved by a mortal practical joker.

Belle Vue Field, Brighton.

Betsy Bedlam

Location: Brighton - Belle Vue Field, Regency Square
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Eighteenth century
Further Comments: This female phantom is said to have acquired her name from her expression, not too dissimilar to inmates of Bethlem Hospital in London.

The Black Lion pub in Brighton.

Deryck Carver

Location: Brighton - Black Lion public house
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1940s onwards
Further Comments: Deryck Carver was burnt in a barrel of Tar in 1555 and is believed to have been the first brewer in Brighton and the first Protestant martyr in England to be put to death. Since the 1940s it has been claimed his ghost haunts the cellar, and in 2006 the manager of the building claimed to have felt an unnerving presence in that area on several occasions. A builder in the upper part of the building spotted a shadowy figure in 1995.

Christine Holford

Location: Brighton - Blue Gardenia Club
Type: Poltergeist
Date / Time: April 1963
Further Comments: Club owner Harvey Holford was found guilty of manslaughter after shooting and killing his wife. Shortly after Holford's conviction, lights in the building would turn themselves on and off and kitchen utensils moved themselves around the room. The poltergeist was said to have left after a medium visited the club, although there are other reports that it may have lingered longer.

The Brighton Dome Theatre.

White Lady

Location: Brighton - Brighton Dome (theatre), New Road
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Twentieth century?
Further Comments: Seen by actors as they rehearse, the phantom lady is described as wearing a long white dress with bouffant hair. A soldier dressed in a red tunic, the sound of disembodied footsteps and the rattling of chains also haunt the building.

The Brighton Rocks pub, formally known as the Battle of Waterloo.

Coach Driver

Location: Brighton - Brighton Rocks public house (formerly Battle of Waterloo), Rock Place
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1996, 2000s
Further Comments: This figure, complete with cloak, was seen in the 1990s drifting around the front door and the gentlemen's toilets. He was said to be the driver of a local mayor who was murdered by a highwayman shortly after leaving the pub. More recently, cupboards held shut by bricks have flung themselves open, heavy filing cabinets have fallen over, and a dog is either terrified of nothing or plays with something invisible.

Brighton's Town Hall.

Henry Solomon

Location: Brighton - Brighton Town Hall
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Twentieth century?
Further Comments: Solomon (the first Chief Constable of Brighton) was killed around the middle of the eighteenth century, after being hit around the head with a red hot poker during the attempted escape of a prisoner in the cells. The former officer's ghost reportedly haunts the basement, while the upper parts of the building are haunted by a monk; a remnant from when a monastery stood on the site.

Flashing Lights

Location: Brighton - Bugel Inn, St Martins Street
Type: Poltergeist
Date / Time: 1965
Further Comments: This public house was once plunged into chaos by a poltergeist - it played with door locks, moved furniture around, and would flick the lights on and off at speed.

The Bugle Inn in Brighton.

Charlie

Location: Brighton - Bugle Inn, St Martins Street
Type: Poltergeist
Date / Time: 1965
Further Comments: Locals christened this entity 'Charlie', and blamed him for moving furnishings, flicking lights on and off, locking and unlocking doors, and generating other minor mischief.

The Caroline of Brunswick pub in Brighton.

Name Calling

Location: Brighton - Caroline Of Brunswick public house, Ditchling Road
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Twenty-first century
Further Comments: An unknown phantom in this pub reputedly calls out to staff using their first name.

Screams

Location: Brighton - Clayton tunnel
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Since a tragic train crash in 1862, there have been reports of screams, cries, and the sound of crunching metal emanating from this tunnel.

Brighton's Horse and Groom pub.

Fred

Location: Brighton - Horse and Groom public house, Islingword Road
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1990s
Further Comments: A former customer, the ghost of Fred was said to take up residence in his favourite chair. A glass of beer was also seen to move unaided across a shelf before falling on the floor.

Location of the shop 'John Beal and Son' before it closed, in Brighton.

Dark Cowled Figure

Location: Brighton - John Beal and Son (no longer trading), East Street
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1950
Further Comments: This figure, most likely to be a monk, appears after dark and is said to lack a face.

Cheetah

Location: Brighton - Junction of Mill Road and Dyke Road
Type: ABC
Date / Time: 23 December 1982, 22:00h
Further Comments: Driving home, Douglas Owen encountered a large cat resembling a cheetah lying on a grassy bank. After watching it for a short while, the cat ran off towards nearby houses.

Brighton's Upper Rock Gardens.

Naked Woman

Location: Brighton - Junk Shop, Upper Rock Gardens (no longer exists)
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1950s
Further Comments: This naked, disfigured female phantom was said to have been murdered in the building's basement by her insane husband. A private house in the same area is home to the benign presence of an elderly woman.

The King & Queen Pub in Brighton.

Shouting

Location: Brighton - King & Queen Public House, Marlborough Place
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 1980s-2000s
Further Comments: Windows have been known to open themselves and shouting has been heard coming from an empty bar.

Kipling Gardens in Brighton.

Eric

Location: Brighton - Kipling Gardens, Rottingdean
Type: Unknown Ghost Type
Date / Time: 1990s
Further Comments: The child of a visiting American ghost hunter claimed to have seen a phantom man named Eric in the public convenience close to here.

Sounds

Location: Brighton - Lanes End House, Prince Albert Street
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 2000s onwards
Further Comments: A maintenance man refused to work on the top floor after dark, having heard strange sounds which followed him around. Footsteps would also be heard in the basement and the reception area is reputed to have a strange feeling at night.

Scratches

Location: Brighton - Lord Nelson public house, Trafalgar Street
Type: Poltergeist
Date / Time: October 2015
Further Comments: Glasses are said to have been seen flying off shelves, while one customer developed red scratches on his arm. A previous landlord had had the pub exorcised.

Brighton's Lover's Walk.

Celia Holloway

Location: Brighton - Lover's Walk
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Celia Holloway was murdered by her husband John, who moved her body using a wheelbarrow and buried the remains along Lover's Walk. He was caught and executed, although Celia is said to still appear along the lane.

The Mariner pub, in Brighton.

Moving Crates

Location: Brighton - Mariner public house
Type: Poltergeist
Date / Time: 2000s
Further Comments: The sound of beer crates being kicked in the cellar has been reported, while the doors leading down to the level open and close unaided.

The Brighton pub and theatre Marlborough Tavern.

Pale Woman

Location: Brighton - Marlborough Tavern (theatre), Princes Street
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: 2007
Further Comments: The phantom woman observed in this tavern is thought to be the murdered wife of a former landlord - he tried to kill her by pushing the woman down the stairs, and when that failed, left her in the cellar mortally wounded. When last seen, the woman was floating across the stage area.

The Mash Tun pub in Brighton.

Martha

Location: Brighton - Mash Tun public house
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Early twentieth century onwards
Further Comments: This pub is said to be haunted by the landlady who managed the site during the First World War. Her footsteps have been reported from the building, and a former landlord watched several articles of clothing being thrown down the staircase by an unseen force. Glasses have been observed moving across a table and falling to the floor.

Meeting House Lane, Brighton.

Monk

Location: Brighton - Meeting House Lane
Type: Haunting Manifestation
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Killed for having a love affair with a local lass, this medieval monk has been observed vanishing though a brick wall.