Paranormal Discovery

Questionnaires have been sent out to various locations such as hotels, pubs, museums, privately owned castles and other historical buildings.  These were sent out to places with historical significance rather than to locations which are widely thought to be home to paranormal activity.

The Paranormal Discovery team would like to thank all of the property owners/managers who have taken the time to complete and return our paranormal questionnaires. 

The results as of April 25th, 2008 are as follows:

 The Auld Hoose Public House, Tayport, Fife

The Auld Hoose is situated in one of the oldest parts of Tayport on Whitenhill and has always been a public house.  It dates from the early nineteenth century and stands right next to the graveyard of the Old Kirk.  Parts of this church were built as early as 1607 and most of the graves are those of shipmasters - Tayport's harbour was a very busy one in those days.  The graveyard wall sits right next to the garage built onto the side of the pub and, as a result, the graves behind this wall will most likely be at eye level to those in the bar of the Auld Hoose.

Although a detailed history of this building seems to be difficult to find, the owners say that ghostly events have been reported throughout the years - some of which they have experienced themselves, some from previous owners and also from the customers who have frequented there recently and in the past.  Examples of paranormal activity are:

• a mist seen in the lounge area
• two members of staff at the same time sensing someone rush past them near the bar, but were unable to see anybody
• the sound of pool balls moving on their own, when nobody in that room
• two sets of doors being opened and shut in the small bar area and the posters on the wall of the hallway lifting up as if by a gust of wind from someone rushing past - customers present witnessed the doors being flung open as if someone had walked through
• a loud noise as if something had been thrown in the small bar was heard by a member of staff who was in the other bar - nobody was in the small bar at the time.  Upon investigation, a pack of playing cards that had last been seen sitting in it's cardboard box on the actual bar was found thrown on the floor by the seating area a few feet away.  The cards were out of the box and had been arranged in a semi-circle with just the jokers facing upwards
• glasses have been seen flying off the shelf of the bar for no apparent reason.
  

Castle Menzies, Weem, Perthshire


Castle Menzies is open to the public and visitors are allowed to take photos inside. Click here for opening times and history of the castle.

Situated just outside the village of Weem in Perthshire, Castle Menzies is an imposing building that has been carefully restored to its present condition.  Paranormal activity is ongoing and is frequently reported by visitors to the castle.  While the curator does not want to divulge the full details of these events to ensure that potential investigators are not influenced by them, here are some of the known occurrences:

• children's voices and laughter have been reported in various parts of the castle
• the smell of perfume has been noticed in one particular room on several occasions
• a door in one room has been known to close of its own accord
• unpleasant odours have been smelled by visitors in a certain area on the ground floor
• many visitors have refused to enter the castle due to the foreboding feeling they experience
• one little girl in recent years saw something in one of the ground floor rooms that was so terrible that she refused to cross the threshold into that room and had to be taken out of the castle immediately
• footsteps have been heard frequently in one room coming from the room above when no one could have been there
• trigger objects set up by a previous investigation team were found moved out of position in one room.

The Dreel Tavern, Anstruther, Fife

The Dreel Tavern is situated in Anstruther Wester.  It is a charming stonebuilt 16th century property and former coaching inn.  The building has links with King James V of Scotland and there is a plaque outside commemorating his visit to the town.  The details on the plaque are said to be a watered down version of the story for tourists.  James was supposedly carried over the Dreel burn by a local beggar maid.  The promiscuous James paid her for her services, which probably included a bit more than keeping his feet dry, with a gold coin.  The woman's greeting or benison "May Prick nor Purse never fail you" inspired the name of the first sexclub in Scotland.  The Beggar's Benison club was founded in Anstruther in 1732.  Perhaps it is not surprising, then, that a previous psychic had the impression that the upstairs of the Dreel Tavern was once used as a brothel in times gone by.

Paranormal activity reported by staff includes:

• a man has been seen on more than one occasion sitting in the armchair in the guest bedroom.  He was said to look like a pirate
• the shelf in the guest bedroom was witnessed by several people turning round but the ornaments on top of it did not fall off
• the bed in the guest bedroom is said to have moved during the night while the occupant was asleep in it
• the bed upstairs in the office is also said to have moved during the night while being slept in (both beds are situated under windoes with window seats and which look out over the front of the building)
• movement and shadows have been seen by staff after closing the bars
• doors have been heard opening and closing by staff after closing time in the area near the toilets
• brass plates have fallen from the wall in the pub without any obvious reason for doing so
• a commotion/voices were heard at 3am by the occupant of the bed in the office.  She thought it sounded like children playing
• footsteps have been heard coming from the top floor of the building when nobody was there to account for them

The Forest Hills Hotel, Auchtermuchty, Fife

The Forest Hills Hotel, is a charming building situated  in the oldest part of Auchtermuchty. The hotel, formerly known as the Boar's Head Inn, was once a coaching inn and dates back to 1738, making it one of the oldest buildings in the town.
Details of the hotel can be found here.

The present owners of the hotel state that paranormal activity does appear to be ongoing in the property but have not witnessed any of it themselves. Staff, relatives and guests, however have  had  unexplained experiences while at the hotel :

• a dark shadow-like figure was seen in the function room doorway by a member of staff afterclosing time. This caused him to swiftly lock-up and leave but was left with a horrible sensation of dread which lasted with him till he got home.
• glasses have been mysteriously thrown from the shelf behind the bar in the function room with 2 witnesses to this event
• a woman in old-fashioned clothes (possibly Victorian)  has been seen in the back bar area.
• a male spirit in uniform has been seen regularly in the kitchen by a member of staff
• a loud noise has been heard by a guest. The noise appeared to be coming from the landing outside her room and sounded like something heavy being dragged along the floor. No other guests were staying in the hotel at the time.
• people have also reported feelings of being touched.

HMS Frigate Unicorn, Victoria Dock, Dundee

HMS Frigate Unicorn is the oldest British warship afloat. The frigate is very well preserved, being 95% original. The ship was surplus to requirement and has never actually seen active service at war. However, this lack of bloodshed does not mean that the vessel has any shortage of alleged paranormal activity.


Reports from staff and visitors include :

• footsteps from the upper deck when nobody else was on board to account for them
• the figure of a man in naval uniform seen walking across the upper deck in daylight hours (seen by the manager himself)
• a small bookcase being overturned and tipped onto the floor when the ship was empty
• people being touched and having hair lightly pulled
• trigger objects left out by another paranormal team on the gun deck being moved
• items being thrown at tv presenters during filming of Living TV's Most Haunted

Lathones Inn, Largoward, Fife

St Michael's Inn, near Leuchars, Fife

For address and booking information click here.

St Michael's Inn was built in 1799 and served as a coaching in and drop-off point for the Dundee Penny Post.  It is situated at a crossroads called Carrick Junction which is nowadays known as St Mike's.  This crossroads is where the roads from St Andrews, Cupar, Tayport and Newport all meet.  The surrounding area used to be forest but, of course, as with other areas of the British countryside, this has changed over time.

Paranormal activity at the inn has been reported by guests and staff and is still ongoing.  The staff feel that there is nothing malevolent at the inn and feel that the guest bedrooms are welcoming and homely.  Reports include:

• A guest telling staff that he had been speaking to a little girl on the stairs one morning only to be told that no children were staying at or visiting the inn
• Several guests reporting at different times that someone was trying to open the bedroom door during the night (no other guests staying at the time)
• A female figure has been seen from outside standing at the window of room 6
• Feeling of someone rushing past felt by staff when in the back cellar
• Cold spots and cobweb sensation felt in the function room by staff
• A baby has been heard crying throughout the night on several occasions and reported by guests but no babies had been staying in the inn.  This has been heard while guests were in room 2 and was thought to come from room 3
• The window of room 6 seems to open by itself and the bedclothes on the middle bed are disturbed frequently as if someone has been sitting on the bed.  This has been reported by domestic staff 
• Lights mysteriously turning on and off in the function room - these lights had not worked for several years! 

The Post Office Bar, Broughty Ferry

The Scottish Fisheries Museum, Anstruther, Fife

For opening times and information about the museum click here

The museum was opened in 1969 and is comprised of several historical buildings, two of which are 'A' listed buildings: a 16th century Abbot's lodging and a Merchant's house dating from 1724.  Parts of the museum are also on the site of an earlier chapel, cooper's yard, and tavern.  The site itself has historical links to Balmerino Abbey. Paranormal activity at the museum has been reported by staff and visitors alike.  Reports include:

• A dark figure has been seen crouching down by a boat in the boatyard
• Footsteps have been heard after closing by staff standing in the engine room (the steps appeared to be from above in the Days of Steam room)
• The door to the Cottage has been difficult to open and felt as if someone was pushing on it from the other side
• A general feeling of unease and of being watched in the Zulu gallery
• A child reporting that a 'spirit person' had been with the group as they went around the museum on torchlight tour during a themed night
• Poltergeist type activity was experienced in the Days of Sail room when a certain pair of boots were moved into that room from their original place.  The activity ceased when the boots were returned to the loft of the Cottage where they had been originally.

Both parts of this former Methodist Church are home to paranormal activity : the Church itself now known as Starz and the adjoining building which was once a Sunday School and flat and is now Deacon Brodie's bar. The church was opened in 1867 and could hold a congregation of up to 700. This church was built on the site of an earlier church.Staff report feeling very uneasy when in either building alone and 'ghost' sightings are numerous. The following experiences have been reported :

• The figure of a man dressed in black has been seen several times standing next to the pillar by the bar in Deacon Brodies
• Glasses have fallen from a shelf behind the bar, moved by unseen hands (the glasses which fell had come form the back of the shelf and were behind other glasses)
•  A little girl has been seen on the back stairwell between the two bars
• A little boy has been seen on the balcony area in Starz
• Sensations of being pushed
• Voices and other noises being heard when the buildings are empty