Haunted Wiltshire - an introduction

The Concise Oxford Dictionary for the 1990s defines a ghost as ‘the supposed apparition of a dead person or animal; a disembodied spirit.’ With that in mind, do I believe ghosts are just that; the spirit manifestation of dead people - unlikely. Do I consider the possibility that ghosts are recordings of past events indelibly etched into the fabric of their immediate surroundings - possibly. Do I believe you need to be psychically aware or sensitive or mediumistic to see ghosts - most certainly not. 

I have met with many people over the years who claim to have seen ghosts, the majority of whom do not consider themselves remotely psychic, sensitive or possess any mediumistic abilities, they just happened to be in the right place at the right time, or the wrong place at the wrong time depending on how you look at it. In nearly all cases, these individuals were busying themselves with their day-to-day lives (more often than not in broad daylight as it turned out) when they saw ghosts.

There is a growing weight of evidence which would suggest ghosts do not appear to those individuals who claim to possess certain 'abilities' as some would have you believe. On the contrary, the ghost phenomena is spontaneous by its very nature and has a habit of manifesting itself in the presence of folk who you would lease expect to see them, specifically those who have not actively gone out of their way looking for them. By their own admission, many of the individuals I have spoken to over the years, were of the opinion that ghosts were nothing more than figments of an overactive imagination, a trick of the light, etcetera, that was until their brief and sudden episode of frisson caused them to re-evaluate their scepticism.

This blog catalogues locations I have visited which are reputedly haunted. Where possible I have selected locations accessible to the public. I have included first hand accounts from people who claim to have encountered ghosts plus anecdotal tales passed down over the years.

I hope you enjoy the blog. Please feel free to contact me with your opinions and stories via the email link in the side bar.

I remain as always, an open-minded sceptic.

~Willow~

Pig Lane Horton

Pig Lane, Horton near Devizes is said to be haunted by a giant wild boar and a phantom motorcar, the latter I may have experienced myself, more about that later. The lane runs adjacent to a organic dairy farm, which also happens to house one or two pigs. 

The story of this one particular swine is a little vague. Over the years several folk have reported being scared half to death by a huge pig which has given chase in the dead of night. Now it has to be said that at night the lane is in total darkness, so there is every chance these reports may be slightly exaggerated. I can however vouch for being chased on my mountain bike in board daylight by a disgruntled pig on one of the farm tracks, an episode I don't wish to repeat.

Now as for the motorcar. T'was a warm sunny afternoon in June 2025 when I decide to jump on my bike and go for a ride along the lane. Several minutes into my ride I became aware of a motorcar behind me. Not any motorcar but one that sounded distinctly vintage. You know the the type, clatter, pop pop. Anyway, I glanced back briefly to see what I thought was a vintage motorcar. You can imagine my surprise to find the lane completely empty with no motorcar. Did I imagine the whole thing, surely not. The lane is flanked by many trees, is that what I heard, the breeze through the trees. The lane is generally very quiet, predominately used by farm vehicles, which were not in use at that time. So it remains an unknown folks. 

BBC Nightwatch

 

Not too sure what the BBC were trying to achieve with Nightwatch; perhaps someone can enlighten me. It's billed as a comedy on I-Player but to be honest and don't get me wrong, I like a good laugh, this failed to raise; in the immortal words of Frankie Howerd - a titter. Is it to showcase two siblings reminiscing about their childhood which failed to pique my interest. Or is it about haunted locations, which appeared secondary to the inane waffle I had to endure. I couldn't help wondering if Daisy May was there to make up the numbers; often appearing bored stiff.

Having struggle through two episodes and thought to myself I'm never going to get these sixty minutes back, I resigned myself to leaving it there and started reading the phone book. It would appear I'm not alone in my observations as the ratings for the show are, shall we say less than encouraging. 

If the BBC were hoping for a show about ghostly locations then sadly in my opinion it failed. Stick with the Uncanny I say! At a time when the BBC are struggling with claims of political bias and scandal and the licence fee once again being challenged. I'd have thought the revenue could be better spent elsewhere.

I strongly suggest Charlie Cooper Leave sis at home and continue with his Myth Country which was much better; sorry Daisy. 

BBC 2 Uncanny

 

How refreshing to watch a programme devoted to the paranormal that is not clearly staged or faked like some shows that have gone before and thankfully have disappeared into obscurity. 

Danny Robins, probably best known for his popular podcasts, resident skeptic Ciaran O'Keeffe and paranormal psychologist Evelyn Hollow, examine claims of paranormal activity. Each investigation is covered objectively leaving the viewer to make up their own minds as to the validity of each case. 

Well done BBC, hopefully we will see more. A welcome change from endless depressing soaps, cop shows and reality drivel. 

 

The Lamb Inn Devizes

You'd be forgiven if you'd missed this unassuming little pub, tucked away in St John's Street. You may also be surprised to learn that it's supposedly one of Devizes most haunted pubs (there are many).

Landlady of some 15 years - Sally King agreed to show us around and impart some of her ghostly tales. 

Originally called The Scribblings Horse, a name taken from the frame where cloth was stretched for scribbling and cleaning - not sure the connection to the building though.

The inn, or some parts of it date from around 1453. It is likely the front of the inn was refurbished using materials sourced from the old Wool Hall opposite which had been demolished.

During the civil war the Roundheads were billeted at the inn. Much later, James Wolfe - a British army officer, stayed at the inn during a recruitment drive before leaving to fight the French in Canada during 1759.

Ghostly encounters include; a glass levitating from under the bar and smashing on the floor, witnessed by Sally and one or two customers. A discussion by regulars about where a picture should hang, should it be placed to the left, or to the right? This debate went on for a few minutes until the picture suddenly fell off the wall and shattered. On closer inspection, regulars were surprised to see the glass fragments were arranged in such a way they pointed left. Suffice to say the picture was placed as directed.

One evening as Sally was about to lock up and everyone had left except a couple of bar staff. They all heard footsteps in the corridor which lead from outside to the inner bar door. They waited to see who is was, expecting someone had forgotten something. When nobody entered they went to investigate but found the corridor empty. What was even stranger it had started raining and there were wet footprints leading to the bar door but none leaving. Footsteps from private rooms above are also not uncommon. All the rooms are carpeted but the footsteps sound as if they are making contact with wooden floorboards.

To close, many pubs have ornate horse brasses hanging either side of inglenook fireplaces, The Lamb has a display of used ancient coffin handles hanging from a ceiling beam. Sally is not quite sure how they got there but it is thought local grave diggers may have given them to undertakers who frequented the pub many years ago and would leave them for the  proprietor as a bit of a talking point.