By Nick Enoch
Welcome to Britain’s most haunted B&B – where terrified guests have been left so scared they have even jumped out of the windows.
The Ancient Ram Inn, in the village of Wotton-under-Edge, Gloucestershire, is believed to be riddled with up to 20 spectres who torment the paying punters of the 12th century home.
Built on an ancient pagan burial ground – and also believed to be the scene of child sacrifices and devil worship – the Cotswolds cottage is haunted by the likes of a murdered young girl called Rosie, a high priestess, and even a male sex demon, known as an incubus.
The Ancient Ram Inn, in the village of Wotton-under-Edge, Gloucestershire, is believed to be riddled with up to 20 spectres who torment the paying punters of the 12th century home. Above, owner Caroline Humphries
Is that a ghost on the staircase? The Ram Inn, built in 1145, has long been home to a variety of spooks
While renovating the property, Ms Humphries’ father, John, discovered small bones and daggers under the earth – and believes that children had been sacrificed there to pagan gods years ago
The strange goings on include a blood-curdling child’s scream, ‘electrified’ wooden beams, and even the touch of an invisible force.
Caroline Humphries, whose family has lived in the Ram Inn for nearly 50 years, said: ‘My father won’t go anywhere without his Bible.’
But despite its ghoulish reputation, Ms Humphries is inundated with visitors who are desperate to spend a night in Britain’s spookiest lodgings, which were built in 1145 and costs between £25 and £30 per night.
Past guests have fled from the house in the middle of the night after claiming to have seen furniture flying around the bedrooms, visions of a little girl wandering the hallways, and have even been pushed down onto a bed by a randy incubus.
Spooky: This unedited picture captures a ghostly figure moving in the Bishop’s room in Britain’s most haunted B&B
Apparition: A mysterious haze appears in one of the rooms in the Ancient Ram Inn, in Gloucester, in this unedited photograph
Sleep tight… The Bishop’s room is said to be the most haunted place at the inn
The Ancient Ram Inn is haunted by the likes of a murdered young girl called Rosie, a high priestess – and even a male sex demon, known as an incubus
Ms Humphries said she used to hear the ghosts of murdered children crying in one of the bedrooms. Since filling it with toys, they seem to have calmed down
SIGNS YOUR B&B MIGHT BE HAUNTED – AND ALL THE BELOW APPLY TO THE ANCIENT RAM INN…
- It’s built on the site of an ancient burial ground.
- … which was also the scene of child sacrifice and devil worship.
- Built on the intersection of two ley lines – known for their spiritual energy.
- A woman lodged in the rooms in the 1500s before she was labelled a witch and burned at the stake.
Some have leapt from first-floor windows at the back of the property onto a grass slope from a height of a few feet – but no one has been injured as a result.
Now, it is packed out with ghost hunters and horror writers – who are queueing up to spend a night with the demons.
One ghost investigator who visited the house was spooked when a presence pushed up against his back – and felt the wooden beams of the medieval house vibrate and tremble when he grabbed onto them in fear.
A mysterious child’s scream was even captured on video – seconds after a man’s voice is heard to shout: ‘Get out!’
Ms Humphries, 51, said: ‘When I was a child, I was so scared of the house I used to sleep in a caravan outside.
‘It was normal for us to see people running out of the house, screaming in terror.
‘Once, I woke up and found a chest of drawers hovering over my bed – before it crashed down the staircase.
Ms Humphries, 51, said: ‘When I was a child, I was so scared of the house I used to sleep in a caravan outside. It was normal for us to see people running out of the house, screaming in terror’
Past guests have fled from the house in the middle of the night after claiming to have seen furniture flying around the bedrooms, visions of a little girl wandering the hallways, and have even been pushed down onto a bed by the randy incubus
‘People have told us they’ve seen a high priestess sitting in one of the bedrooms, objects move and spin, and we used to hear the ghosts of murdered children screaming and crying in one of the bedrooms.
‘We put some children’s toys in the room for them to play with and they don’t cry as much any more.
‘The whole house is absolutely terrifying.’
Ms Humphries father, John, 85, was pulled from his bed by a spirit on the first night the family moved into the home – and after researching the history of the house, he was horrified to discover an ancient burial ground lay beneath.
John Humphries, 85, was pulled from his bed by a spirit on the first night the family moved into the home. Above the barn that used to be blocked off to keep the spirits in
Ms Humphries is seen conducting a seance. Her father never goes anywhere without a Bible
And years later, while renovating the home, he discovered small bones and daggers under the earth – and believes that children had been sacrificed there to pagan gods years ago.
Ms Humphries added: ‘Once we had disturbed one grave, we didn’t want to go digging any further, and we’ve left the house exactly as it stands.
‘Paranormal experts love staying here, but we couldn’t carry on running the house as a normal bed and breakfast – it’s just too haunted.
‘I don’t think we’ll ever be able to sell the house – no one in their right mind would buy it.
‘But after nearly 50 years here, I’ve accepted that we have to live with some unwanted house guests.’
‘After nearly 50 years here, I’ve accepted that we have to live with some unwanted house guests,’ said Ms HumphriesSource