Norwich is known for having a church for every Sunday and a pub for every other day (in the 1880s, the city is actually reported to have had over 600 pubs). While this isn’t true anymore – many of the churches have been deconsecrated and the pubs shut down and repurposed – there are still a lot of churches and pubs in Norwich.
In fact, within Greater Norwich, there are still well over 52 churches, and probably closer to having one pub for every other day of the week.
So yeah, Norwich is full of pubs, and for the most part, a lot of them are pretty decent. There are challenging quiz pubs (our fave is the Rumsey Wells), pubs with comedy nights and poetry readings (looking at you, Birdcage), and even pubs with food that I, who kind of hates standard British pub food, deem to be edible and not terrible (for which I am partial to the Rushcutter Arms as they typically have mint ice cream to wash the flavour away).
And, of course, like any self-respecting British city, Norwich has its fair share of haunted pubs. Since we had so much fun writing and researching our post on London pubs with haunting histories, we thought we’d do the same for Norwich.
Oh, we also have Prince of Wales road, which is one of the most dangerous drinking spots in the UK. I’ve seen so many fights on this road while walking home from the cinema late at night.
Adam & Eve
If you’re planning on visiting any pubs in Norwich – haunted or otherwise – you can’t miss the Adam & Eve. Believed to be the oldest pub in Norwich, mentions of the pub date back as far as 1249.
Fastforward 300 years to the Kett’s Rebellion, when fighters from both sides had descended upon the city. The Adam & Eve pub – seemingly at the time both an inn and a brewhouse – wound up being the final resting place for one of the fighters.
Edmund Sheffield, 1st Baron of Sheffield, more commonly referred to as Lord Sheffield, was fighting for the crown to quash the rebellion. Sadly, he was fatally stabbed in the stomach – supposedly by a butcher.
He was brought to the nearby inn, located on the site of the modern day Adam & Eve pub, where he died. It is believed that his ghost still haunts the pub. However, due to the kindness he was shown in his dying moments, he is not a malicious spirit, and instead is said to look out for the pub. The main way he does this is by ringing the pub’s bell when it isn’t busy in hopes of brining in more customers.
Location: 7 Bishopgate, Norwich NR3 1RZ
Opening Hours: Monday – Thursday 12:00 to 23:00; Friday & Saturday 12:00 to 00:00; Sunday 12:00 to 22:30
The Last Pub Standing
Although technically one of the newer pubs in Norwich, the Last Pub Standing is a rebranded old pub – one of the oldest in the city still around. In fact, it’s been around for over 300 years!
For quite some time, pubs lined Norwich’s King Street. There were 58 pubs on King Street at its peak. However, by 2014, Kings pub (formerly called The Nags Head, for 175 years) was, quite literally, the last pub standing before it, too, shut down. Now, it has reopened and rebranded as the Last Pub Standing in honour of this.
Given that the Last Pub Standing is one of the oldest in the city, it has accumulated its share of ghosts. (It’s honestly amazing that the Adam & Eve pub doesn’t have more!)
There are eight ghosts that haunt the Last Pub Standing. Eight! I think that’s more than anywhere else we’ve heard of.
However, so that we don’t just wind up making this post about ONE pub in Norwich, here are two of the pub’s most popular ghosts:
Mr Harris: Mr Harris is the ghost of a former Drayman (one who delivers beer to a brewery) to the pub. These days, he keeps to himself and is often spotted in a corner of the pub smoking a pipe and drinking a pint. He typically appears around the time he would have finished his Drayman shift and is identifiable by his flat cap and short stature (and his pipe, since it’s illegal to smoke indoors anywhere in the UK).
The Victorian Lady: Apparently she’s quite the gossip. Not that she actually chimes in on any conversations, but she is overly interested in hearing what’s going on. She is in her 60s, keeps her hair in a bun and wears a burgundy dress.
Location: 27 – 29 King Street, Norwich, NR1 1PD
Opening Hours: Tuesday – Thursday 12:00 to 23:00; Friday & Saturday 12:00 to 00:00 (ish); Sunday 12:00 to 22:00
Related: Dark and Historical Things to do in Norwich
Murderers Pub/Gardeners Arms
Yes, we have a pub in Norwich called the Murderers and yes, it is haunted. Also, it’s not a typo, the pub does have two names. If one is walking up Timber Hill, they will see the name as the Murderers, whereas if one is walking down the hill, it appears to still be the Gardeners Arms.
The pub still trades under the name Gardeners Arms, but next to no one calls it that these days. In fact, the pub has gone by its nickname for over a century following a grisly murder.
In January 1895, John Wilby, the publican at the time, died in the pub of a heart attack. As his wife, Maria, was struggling to cope with John’s death and keeping the pub afloat, their 21 year old daughter Millie moved in.
During this time she met, married and separated from Frank Miles, a calvary man.
One evening in June 1895, Frank happened to see Millie heading into the pub with another man. And his “totally normal reaction” was to beat her to death with a hammer.
What’s worse is that although Frank was convicted and sentenced to hang, his sentence was commuted to life in prison. Why, you ask? Because most people believed it was an act of “extreme provocation” on account of the fact that Millie was likely working as a prostitute. There was an actual public outcry that Frank’s sentence was too harsh.
Understandably, Millie still haunts the pub. And you know what, I hope she haunted the hell out of some of those douchebags who thought she deserved to be beaten to death with a hammer.
Today the pub is kind of cool as parts of it are covered with newspaper clippings, particularly those about the murder and the trial. Sadly, we just don’t get on with the Murderers pub ‘cause it’s predominantly a sports bar, and well, we’re just not sports bar people.
Location: 2 – 8 Timber Hill, Norwich NR1 3LB
Opening Hours: Monday – Wednesday 10:00 to 23:00; Thursday 10:00 to 23:30; Friday & Saturday 10:00 to 00:00; Sunday 11:00 to 22:30
Lamb Inn
According to their website, the Lamb Inn is haunted by no less than three ghosts. However, I’ve only ever heard of one ghost associated with the Lamb, and was unable to find info on any more while researching.
John Aggas was the former landlord of the pub in the 1700s (then known as the Rat and Parrot).
One evening he tried to break up a fight between his sister and her husband, Timothy Hardy. Aggas’ brother-in-law was a rather violent and unpleasant fellow who beat on Aggas’ sister frequently.
Hardy viciously attacked Aggas by stabbing him through the heart with a knife. Not surprisingly, he died soon after.
Aggas’ ghost still haunts the pub today. He is said to be a friendly and amiable ghost. He occasionally hangs out in the pub and drinks with the patrons. But he is most frequently reported to be seen by children staying in the inn, who claim he regales them with bedtime ghost stories.
Location: Lamb Yard, Norwich NR1 3RU
Opening Hours: Sunday – Thursday 10:00 to 23:00; Friday & Saturday 10:00 to 01:00
The Maid’s Head Hotel
You might recognise the Maid’s Head Hotel from our article about haunted places in Norwich. But, since one of the ghosts predominantly haunts the hotel bar, I thought it was worth the mention here, as well.
There are two ghosts that haunt the hotel. However, the Maid’s Head Hotel bar area is haunted by only one of them; a ghost who appears to be a former hotel maid. Although, there are no records of any maids ever dying on site at the hotel.
She is often referred to as The Grey Maid due to her grey uniform – one no longer used by staff today.
Although sightings of the The Grey Maid have been reported throughout the hotel, she predominantly haunts the bar. She is a benign spirit, who rarely interacts with guests. Instead, she is much more focused on cleaning and straightening up. Apparently she appears frequently behind the bar to help wash up.
At the end of the day, she walks behind the bar towards the basement and vanishes.
I do have to say, as much as I love a good ghost story, I often feel that the name of this hotel and its convenient “ghost maid” story seems a tad too on the nose.
Location: 20 Tombland, Norwich NR3 1LB
Opening Hours: Open everyday 10:00 to 23:00
Lollard’s Pit
Of all the pubs in Norwich, I think Lollard’s Pit might have the most gruesome history. And the hint is all in the name!
Lollardy was a pre-Protestant Christian religious movement that began in the 14th century. Lollards opposed a lot of Catholic church practices of the day and demanded reformations. The Catholic church didn’t appreciate the feedback, and by the 15th century, lollards were being burned at the stake for heresy.
Lollard’s Pit was initially intended to be a church. Instead, the foundations of the church (today the pub’s cellar) soon became holding cells for “heretics” and “witches”.
Prisoners were kept in the cells overnight before their execution. In the morning, they were forced to walk across Bishops Bridge (still just across the street from Lollard’s Pit) amidst cheering crowds which lined the bridge and nearby streets.
On the other side of the bridge was a burning pyre where they were to be executed.
Afterwards, their charred remains were taken back across the bridge and tossed into a pit next to the cells. Today, that pit lies beneath the garden of Lollard’s Pit pub house.
The executions continued well throughout the 16th century, but by the 1600s, this barbaric practice ceased and the land was covered up. The pub that stands today (formerly the Kings Arms) was built somewhere between 1620 and 1670. In 2012 it changed names to reflect this dark part of its history.
Location: 69-71 Riverside Rd, Norwich NR1 1SR
Opening Hours: Sunday – Thursday 12:00 to 23:00; Friday 12:00 – 00:00; Saturday 12:00 to 01:00
Related: A Brief History of Witchcraft in Norwich and East Anglia
The Coachmakers Arms
Rumour has it that this Norwich pub was built on a former mental asylum, and as we all know, that apparently means it must be haunted!
The Coachmakers Arms has two ghosts and although one is apparently sketchy and the other a bit of a dick, neither really seems to qualify as mentally ill. But hey, I didn’t make the rules.
Ghost one is believed to be a highwayman. He has even been described as bearing a similar appearance to infamous highwayman Dick Turpin, who haunts the Spaniards Inn in London. He is said to be a bit brash and uncouth, and is often confused for a real patron. Supposedly his spirit identity is often not discovered until one goes to take his order and he vanishes. I’ve also heard versions where he actually orders drinks, but disappears before he can pay.
The second ghost is of a woman in black. Witnesses say that she often appears just as glasses and bottles fall off of shelves. Some say she even delights in pushing stuff off of shelves and tables.
Honestly, they both might just be an excuse for some of the staff to break things and accidentally forget to charge for drinks.
Location: 9 St Stephens Rd, Norwich NR1 3SP
Opening Hours: Monday – Saturday 11:00 to 23:00; Sunday 12:00 to 22:30
The Wild Man
This pub is probably named after Peter the Wild Boy. Peter was a young boy found naked in the forest near Hanover, Germany in 1725 (some accounts say 1724). He was approximately 11 years old. He couldn’t talk, he couldn’t walk, and he was feral. It is now believed that he suffered from Pitt-Hopkins Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that can cause delays in development, seizures and epilepsy, as well as breathing difficulties. More than likely his parents abandoned him when one or more of these symptoms became too difficult to manage.
Peter was brought to England by King George I, who was part of the party that found him in the forest. He handed Peter over to the care of his daughter-in-law, Caroline of Ansbach, the Princess of Wales. He was an absolute sensation in Georgian London.
By all accounts Peter was well treated and looked after during his time in London. However, he has also been referred to as a “human pet” which seems contradictory.
Regardless, interest in him died down, and eventually Peter was brought to Broadway Farm in Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire. It’s not clear when he was brought to the farm, but it was sometime between George I’s death in 1727 and 1751. In the summer of 1751, Peter went missing and somehow wound up in Norwich.
In Norwich, he was arrested as a homeless beggar due to his scruffy appearance and lack of speech. He was locked up in the Bridewell Prison until October 1751 when a fire forced authorities to evacuate the prison. Peter was then recognised and sent back to Berkhamsted with a special collar with his name on it, in case he went missing again. He died at the farm in 1785.
Another theory for the pub’s name relates directly to the pub’s ghost. In the 1800s, the building was used to hold prisoners when the castle and the Bridewell became too full.
During this time, a young boy of 16 was sentenced to hang after stealing a handkerchief from his master. He tried to escape by burning down the doors to the cellar, but was trapped inside and burned to death.
His spirit is said to still haunt the cellar of the pub. Cold spots are reported throughout by both staff and patrons. More bizarrely, heavy beer barrels are said to move of their own accord when no one else is around.
Location: 29 Bedford St, Norwich NR2 1AG
Opening Hours: Monday – Tuesday 13:00 to 22:00; Wednesdy 11:30 to 22:30; Thursday 11:30 to 00:30; Friday & Sunday 11:30 to 01:30; Sunday 13:00 to 21:00
The White Lion
It is pretty damn difficult to find much information on this haunting. But here’s what I know:
One of the former landlords of the pub killed a prostitute. He was convicted and executed for his crime. Apparently the pub now suffers from “poltergeist activity” believed to be caused by him.
I’ll be honest, I didn’t really know what difference was between a ghost and a poltergeist (I’m still not sure). But apparently poltergeists can make things disappear and levitate, cause odd smells, create electrical disturbances. However, the main way they seem to differ from ghosts is that they can physically attack you.
I’ve been to the White Lion a fair few times as I used to live around the corner, and I definitely wasn’t attacked by any unknown entities. I can say it’s a pleasant enough pub, though. They have some boardgames, which is always a plus.
The White Lion is also the only Norwich pub where you can pay in Bitcoin, if you’re lucky enough to have any!
Location: 73 Oak St, Norwich NR3 3AQ
Opening Hours: Monday – Thursday 12:00 to 23:00; Friday & Sunday 12:00 to 23:30; Sunday 12:00 to 22:30
Have you been to any of these spooky pubs in Norwich? Did you see any of these ghosts? Any other haunted pubs we’ve missed?
