More on KentOnline
Home Canterbury News Article
The landlord of one of the oldest pubs in Kent fears a guest room could be haunted after a series of unexplained incidents.
Jeremy Stirling, 62, has described how one woman was left "freaked out" when a glass reportedly launched itself at a wall at the Maidens Head pub in Wincheap, Canterbury.
A cleaner has also complained of one of the rooms feeling cold, and other guests have reported their car keys going missing - despite the door being locked.
The landlord transformed the upper floors of the historic pub into the Maidens Chambers about four years ago, when he discovered 600-year-old wooden beams still standing strong.
"When the builders were up there, there were a couple of times one of the guys said to me, ‘I’m not comfortable up here, there’s something that doesn’t feel right’," he said.
"I said, ‘yeah, yeah - just get on with it would you?’
"But since then, we have had a few episodes in one room, which is Room 4.
"Two sets of car keys have gone missing off the face of the earth and we have no idea where they have gone.
"They came down to me saying someone had taken their keys and they had been in their rooms.
"I said they hadn’t because the doors are locked."
Mr Stirling said the first set of keys went missing before Christmas and the second set disappeared at Easter this year in the guest room.
But these aren't the only unexplained incidents which have happened in the same room.
"We’ve had two glasses break in there," Mr Stirling added.
"One of the women said the glass exploded in front of her, which does happen with glass.
"But with the other one, the woman said she saw it fly across the room and into the wall.
"Sometimes you get a glass exploding in the pub, like in the room, but the other woman said the glass flew off into the wall, and she was pretty freaked out."
And one of his staff members is also convinced there is something eerie about the room.
"My cleaner who goes in there doesn’t like that room," he said.
"She says there is something strange about it.
"It has been a nice, hot day and she has gone in and it is freezing cold. It happens quite often.
"I can’t explain it. I have never believed in ghosts and seeing is believing."
The Maidens Head is thought to be the oldest pub in Canterbury, and is understood to be about 700 years old.
Mr Stirling added: "Something is not right but I haven’t experienced it.
"If I do, I will probably sell the place quite quickly."