Given its long and varied history, it should come as no surprise that Brighton is haunted by more than its fair share of ghosts. Although there are far too many manifestations to list them all, here are just a few of the supernatural apparitions that have materialised among the local citizens . . .
Returning from Constantinople in the 12th Century, the good ship Nicholas sunk with all hands on board. However, she is still occasionally seen on the horizon.
Burned at the stake in 1555, Deryck Carver is thought to have been the first brewer in Brighton. Since the
1940s, his ghost is said to have haunted the cellar of The Black Lion public house (shown left).
Brighton Town Hall's basement is reputed to be haunted by Henry Soloman, who was hit around the head with
a red-hot poker during the attempted escape of a prisoner in the cells in the mid-18th Century. The upper
parts of the building are apparently haunted by a monk, dating from when a monastery stood upon the site.
Ever since a tragic train wreck in 1862, Brighton's Clayton Tunnel has been haunted by the screams and cries of the injured and the sound of the crash.
The Cricketers Inn pub is apparently not only haunted by the figure of a pale man wearing a long black cloak, but also by a nun that haunts The Lanes just outside the inn.
A hooded figure is glimpsed from the corner of the eye at The Druid's Head public house in Market Street, while an apparition of a woman in a red dress was seen in the vicinity of the bar.
A phantom white dog, reportedly the size of a small horse, will follow lonely walkers on the beach for short periods before vanishing.
A cloaked figure has been seen drifting around the front door of the Gentleman's toilet in the Battle of Waterloo pub, Rock Place. He is believed to be the coach driver of a local mayor who was murdered by a highwayman.
And last, but by no means least, the bowler-hatted apparition of Sir Harry Preston himself has been seen haunting the hallways of The Royal Albion Hotel, especially around the area of the function room (our Dealers' Room) that bears his name. Here visitors have experienced sudden and inexplicable drafts of cold air, or witnessed doors opening and closing of their own volition – even when those doors have been wedged open. The hotel's lift is also said to have moved up and down for no apparent reason. Staff have observed that these incidents almost always occur on a Sunday evening.