Nottingham is a city in the East Midlands of England, sometimes described as one of the most haunted cities in the country, with reported activity concentrated around its castle, ancient pub network, and extensive system of man-made sandstone caves. It is the birthplace of paranormal investigator Phil Whyman.
Nottingham Castle and Mortimer's Hole
Nottingham Castle is closely associated with the legend of Roger Mortimer, Earl of March, who used a subterranean passage beneath the castle — now known as "Mortimer's Hole" — to launch a raid capturing him in 1330 on the orders of the young King Edward III, following Mortimer's affair with Edward's mother, Queen Isabella. Mortimer was executed shortly afterward, and his ghost is said to still pace the castle grounds, alongside the sound of Isabella's voice reportedly heard pleading for his life.
A well-documented 1921 case centred on Standard Hill, near the castle, where local tenants reported a shadowy figure and phantom footsteps strongly enough that police were stationed at the entrance to Mortimer's Hole to manage the crowds of visitors it attracted. The legend persists today and has since extended to the nearby pub Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem.
Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem
Reputedly dating to 1189 and carved directly into the rock beneath Nottingham Castle, Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem is often described as one of the oldest pubs in England. It is associated with the ghosts of crusaders, former landlords, and unexplained shadowy figures, and displays a cursed antique chair said to bring death to anyone who sits in it.
The City of Caves
Nottingham's extensive network of more than 500 man-made sandstone caves — used over the centuries as dwellings, a tannery, and a Second World War air raid shelter — is associated with reports of disembodied voices, misty apparitions, dark shadows, and a woman in Victorian dress heard crying. Visitors have also reported hearing what sound like explosions and being showered with loose stones, echoing the caves' wartime use as a shelter.
Wollaton Hall
This Elizabethan mansion, home to the Willoughby family until 1925, is said to be haunted by Lady Middleton, who was paralysed following a fall and is now reported roaming the rear of the property, particularly around Room 19, alongside reports of being watched, distant screaming, and being grabbed by ice-cold hands.
The National Justice Museum
Housed in Nottingham's former courthouse and jail, and including an execution site, the museum is regularly cited as the city's most haunted single location, with staff and visitors reporting apparitions, ghostly screams, and phantom footsteps attributed to former condemned prisoners, judges, and hangmen.
Notable people
Paranormal investigator Phil Whyman was born in Nottingham.