Strange Tales of Ely

HAUNTED ELY

Ely has its fair share of ghosts including monks, old soldiers, large dogs and the ghost of Oliver Cromwell and Nell Gwynne among others. You can find out more about these ghosts by reading “Haunted Ely” by Vivienne Doughty & Margaret Haynes (see book cover left) published by S.B. Publications (ISBN 1 85770 110 0), or by going on The Ely Ghost Walk – a one and a half hour guided tour around the streets and paths of this ancient city. Your guide will tell you stories of the sightings, tragedies and mysteries in one of Europe`s most haunted small cities. Contact the Tourist Information Centre for more information.

The King’s School Ghosts
The King’s School also has ghosts – Jon Ayers of the King’s School explains: “We have a ghost called Lillie Mayle and she is often seen in the window of the old manastic barn. It may interest you to know that the King’s School has many other reported ghosts. The school has been in existence since the 7th Century so it is little wonder that some of the old Monks and Abbesses still hang around the place. Still they are all very friendly. PS. Unlike the “other Ghosts” Lillie actually works for us but she loves to fool around! She wears a purple uniform and she is now in her 70’s having worked for the School for over 30 years.”

Do you have a ghostly story to tell? If so, contact us here and tell us your story.

We have received the following ghostly stories:

Received July 2017:

“A year or so ago I called into the minster tavern for a beer after work, I stood there at the bar with my colleague, the bar area was not busy just me and my friend on one side of the bar and two other people standing on the other side of the bar near the coffee machine! I stood at the bar with my arms on the counter as was my friend….I felt a brush of air pass me and then had a physical feeling of someone touching the back of my work trousers so much so that I was sure that someone was trying to get my wallet from my back pocket, I grasped my pocket where my wallet was and spun around………NOTHING….NO ONE….my friend noticed my sharp movements and commented ‘whats up with you!’…..I told him my exact experience …..he confirmed no one had passed us or had stood by us!! It’s was a physical touch from something that simply was not there!!! It really freaked me out…. something that you can’t see or hear touch me physically to the point I felt my pocket of my trousers to be slightly pulled or more of a tug!!!!” – Dean Konopka

Older Stories:

“My wife used to work part-time in the shop Jumpers in the High Street. Being in part of the Cathedral building the shop always used to be quite cold. On a number of occasions when the shop was being opened up first thing in the morning some of the jumpers would be laying on the floor. Nothing was ever missing like there had been a burglary, just jumpers pulled off shelves and thrown around. The security alarms never went off and there was definitely no break in. When she stopped working there about 2 years ago this was still happening and probably still is. Cheers.” – Ian Rose

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“True story- It all started upstairs in the hall. Alan and I were going outside. My sister and her friend Tab yelled at us. We didn’t know why. We asked them why they were yelling at us. My sister said that we wrote on the sign the she had on the door. The sign said girls only, but someone wrote “And Boys.” We kept saying it was not us, but they wouldn’t believe us. Then it was late at night, and I was reading a book, and Alan was resting on the bed. While I was reading, I was listening to a tape that had the speaker on the floor. When I stopped reading, I saw the speaker on the desk. That was the scariest night I ever been in.” – Jeremy