Birmingham is a youthful city, but it’s full of history too. Which, if you know your paranormal stuff, can only mean one thing: Ghosts. Whether it’s Halloween or not, you’ll hear countless bloodcurdling tales and bone-chilling stories in this city of those trying to reach out from the other side! Particularly keep an eye on the region’s old buildings and ancient woodlands. If scaring yourself half to death is on the Ouija board, discover the most haunted places in Birmingham below.
1. Smethwick Baths
These baths in Sandwell were once used as a music venue for big-name bands such as the Beatles and Rolling Stones but also have a spooky history. The baths have a series of underground tunnels and cellars which were once used as air raid shelters during World War II.
The tunnels have a creepy and disorienting feel and are said to be haunted. One of the rooms which was used as a morgue is now claimed to host the spirit of a man with long hair and a beard. Staff members have also found unexplainable stacks of stones built into pyramids on the floors throughout the tunnels.
2. Alexandra Theatre
Built back in 1901, the Alexandra Theatre is bound to come with a ghost story or two and therefore makes this list of haunted places. More than five ghosts are said to haunt the Alexandra Theatre, including former manager Leon Salberg, who took over the venue in 1911 and was found dead in his office in 1937.
Other spirits include the former master of the wardrobe department, a military man in a top hat, a former stage manager who can be heard jangling keys, and a Grey Lady. In addition, power from electrical devices in the theatre is often inexplicably drained, while knocking and tapping noises are often heard, as well as doors mysteriously opening and closing.
3. Cannock Chase
The black-eyed child of Cannock Chase is a popular local folk tale in the West Midlands. After last being spotted over 30 years ago, the young child was seen to have returned with a vengeance in 2018. These recent descriptions of a spooky girl, who has coal-black holes for eye sockets, are eerily identical to those from the early 1980s.
Multiple sightings describe a young girl crying, but when those who see her catch up to the creepy figure, she turns around to show her black eyes and runs away. Sightings have sparked international interest, with some paranormal experts taking part in a ghost hunt across the Chase.
4. Dudley Castle
Dudley Castle dates back to the Norman conquest and is often called one of the most haunted castles in the Midlands. If its ruinous appearance wasn’t spooky enough, The Grey Lady often haunts the grounds – and has even been captured by photograph! She is said to be the spirit of Dorothy Beaumont, who after her infant daughter died during the English Civil War, was struck with grief and later died herself.
5. The Court Oak
Birmingham’s most haunted pub was built on a 17th-century hanging ground. But the ghost of The Court Oak Pub in Harborne is more peculiar than that. Corky, as he’s affectionately known, is a bit of a wine snob – and is known to smash up any cheap bottles in the cellar. Described as an old man, Corky particularly likes to make his presence known around Halloween!
6. New Street Station
It’s scary enough trying to weave through Birmingham New Street, but did you know the station is haunted too? When building the station in 1848, a Jewish cemetery was dug up in the process. If you’ve seen the films Poltergeist and The Amityville Horror you will know that building on burial grounds disturbs the spirits of the dead.
Meanwhile, there have also been several suicides on Platform Four, which is said to be one of the station’s most haunted sites. Many passengers have reported a strange unseen presence and the two spooky spirits we’re aware of are Walter Hartles – a retired engine driver who shot himself with a revolver after separating from his wife – and a gentleman called Claude, who is seen wearing Victorian clothing and is said to have died after poisoning himself.
And it gets spookier than that! There have also been some tales of supernatural activity linked to a fatal train crash at New Street Station in 1921. Two passenger trains collided at 4.25pm on November 26, on the London & North Western Railway, with three people killed and 24 injured.
7. Warwick Castle
Sir Fulke Greville was granted the 1,000-year-old castle in 1604 by King James I. However, he was later stabbed by one of his most trustworthy servants. Guilty of what he had done, the servant slit his own throat and can reportedly still be heard moaning for help throughout the halls of Warwick Castle.
Another famous ghost is a large black dog with red eyes and a foaming mouth. Supposedly it is the essence of a curse placed on the castle by servant Moll Bloxham, who was tortured and killed after being caught stealing. For more spooky castles near Birmingham head here…
8. Birmingham Town Hall
Can anyone write a more distinguished ghost story than Charles Dickens? The famed author gave his first reading of A Christmas Carol at Birmingham Town Hall on Boxing Day 1853. It’s said a Victorian man, thought to be Dickens himself, can still be seen sitting in the empty hall, in the gallery or strolling the corridors. The figure was once approached by a member of staff only to vanish before their eyes.
The other resident spooks are a pair of stonemasons who died during the construction of the building on January 26, 1833. John Heap and William Badger were working on the external carved pillars when a huge block of masonry fell and crushed them. They were buried at Birmingham Cathedral and staff working at night in the Town Hall claim to have heard the two men still chiselling away at the pillars.
9. Aston Hall
This 17th-century Jacobean house is one of Birmingham’s oldest buildings, therefore it is one of the haunted places that is bound to have a tale or two in those old walls. The creepy and creaking corridors are enough to spook most people out. Aston Hall has been named one of the most haunted buildings in Birmingham and is inhabited by a spirit named the White Lady.
She is Mary Ashford and was locked in her room in the Hall by her father when she tried to elope with her lover, rather than marry the suitor he had chosen. Sounds like a spooky version of Downton Abbey. Mary went mad and died after 16 years of imprisonment, and her spirit is now a shimmering figure, gliding around the upper floors.
10. Warstone Lane Cemetery
We could never forget a great cemetery such as this one on Warstone Lane as part of our list of haunted places. The two tiers of catacombs in this cemetery were sealed off in 1846 but there is still plenty of spiritual activity throughout the graveyard, as many of the bodies in the cemetery have been dug up and reburied throughout the years.
A woman dressed in 1930s attire has been seen walking through walls and parked cars in recent years, before quickly disappearing. Another cemetery visitor claimed to have seen a young man dressed in army gear near the catacombs, and when the witness looked again, the man was gone.
11. Birmingham Council House
The spirit of the late former mayor Joseph Chamberlain, who died in July 1914, has reportedly been seen in the grounds of the council house. Employees claim to have seen his ghost, dressed in his usual velvet coat, monocle and red tie, sitting at the Mayor’s desk. Sightings are often accompanied by the smell of fresh-cut flowers, which Chamberlain always kept in his office.
12. Haden Hill House
Haden Hill House looks exactly as it would have in the Victorian era. But the Black Country house in Cradley Heath more than feels old. It’s full of paranormal activity too. So much so that it was featured on Most Haunted, highlighting the many ‘lost souls’ contained within its wall. The most famous story is of a miller’s daughter who falls in love with a monk from Halesowen Abbey. After their relationship was discovered, they were bricked up alive inside the cellars of Haden Hall – both still haunt the building.
13. The Three Tuns
The Three Tuns in Sutton Coldfield is said to be the home of the spirit of a drummer boy from the Civil War. Between 1955 and 1978 the ghost had been seen 19 times. That’s quite a few times! The Royalist drummer boy was supposedly captured and beaten by Parliamentarian troops who then left his body in the Three Tuns cellar.
He has been described as a teenage boy with long black hair, wearing a blue velvet suit and black patent shoes with buckles. So if you do make a visit to this pub and feel an unusual presence, we can’t be held accountable for you running and leaving your pint or downing it super fast. This is your warning. Visit at your own risk.