The Most Haunted House In London - 50 Berkeley Square.
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- Опубликовано: 20 июн 2024
- With the countdown to Halloween now under way, I want to begin October with a chiller of a ghostly tale.
Number 50 Berkeley Square has long held the reputation as “the most haunted house in London”, and a legion of terrifying tales come marching out of its dark and sinister past.
But how true are the ghost stories associated with it?
In this video we trace the history of the hauntings from the early 19th century through to the present day.
You will hear of a certain something that has reportedly caused the deaths from fright of anybody who has had the misfortune to encounter it in the darker recesses of the property.
You will read newspaper reports on the house’s reputation, which used to draw curious crowds from locals and visitors to London alike.
And you will gain a full understanding of how these chilling tales evolved over the years, combining fact with fiction, until the two became so blurred as to be indistinguishable.
CHAPTERS
00:00:00 - Opening Titles
00:00:12 - Introduction To 50 Berkeley Square
00:01:23 - The Most Haunted House In London
00:03:16 - Edward Bulwer-Lytton’s “The Haunted And The Haunters”
00:04:22 - Rhoda Broughton’s “Tales For Christmas Eve”
00:08:39 - The Maid Driven Mad By The Ghost
00:11:26 - Ralph Gordon Battles The Ghost
00:14:17 - The Death Of Ralph Gordon (Spoiler Alert!)
00:15:50 - Rumours That The House Was Haunted Circulating In The 1870s
00:16:21 - John Smith Arrested For Trying To Find Out About The Ghost
00:17:36 - An 1876 Account Of The Hauntings
00:19:20 - A Man Spends A Night In The Haunted Room
00:20:22 - The Eccentric And Reclusive Mr. Myers Moves In
00:22:44 - The House's Supernatural Credentials - 1879
00:24:16 - The Ghost And The Maid Servant
00:25:01 - Death Of The Man In The Haunted Room
00:26:30 - The Caretakers And The Mysterious Owner
00:27:40 - Victorian Ghost Stories Of 50 Berkeley Square
00:31:50 - Lord And Lady Selkirk Move In
00:33:06 - Edwardian Ghost Stories About The House
00:34:04 - Dr. Merrick And His Friend Hunt The Ghost
00:37:59 - Elliot O’Donnell spends a night At 50 Berkeley Square
00:41:49 - Jessie Adelaide Middleton’s “Great Ghost Book”
00:44:58 - Two Sailors Encounter The Ghost
00:47:51 - Mid 20th Century Ghost Stories About 50 Berkeley Square
00:48:37 - No Records Of Inquests Into Any Of The Deaths
00:49:43 - What Maggs Bros Say About The Ghosts
00:51:08 - 50 Berkeley Square Today
00:51:55 - Conclusion
00:52:30 - Closing Credits
And a poltergeist shrieked in Berkeley square
Ooh, I wish I'd thought of that one!
It's amazing how such a short sentence can so so poetic on it's own 🙂🙃🙂.
@@JackTheRipperTours 🦘🇦🇺🦘🤍 you done beautifully regardless 😊😃👍.
😂
@@JackTheRipperToursme too it was a damned good one lol
I never put much store in ghosts and always saw them as a bit of fun. Then years ago I visited Chillingham Castle in Northumberland. It was a beautiful sunny day but from the moment I parked up and my girlfriend and I got out the car, I got a really bad feeling about it. There is a little way to walk to get to the castle and it is horrible. There were these creepy statues of bulls along the walk to the castle. The sun was largely blocked out by the trees making the day seem grey and we kept hearing sounds as if something was crashing through the trees and thumping on the ground, yet there was nothing there. Coming to the clearing where the castle is, I caught a movement in my peripheral vision and looked round only to see a man standing by one of the trees smiling at me. It was not a friendly smile. I pointed him out but he disappeared behind the tree. I walked over to see what he was doing but there was no one there. Freaked me out.
Chillingham Castle seems to have a most appropriate name…. It does sound as if you had a genuinely supernatural experience though. The older I get, the more I have come to believe Shakespeare’s assertion, that there are more things in heaven and earth than are dreamt of in our philosophy. God bless you.
I am very glad you included a sighting in your tale. Bothing makes me more skeptical than having someone providing "I constantly felt like I was being watched" as their only evidence of a haunting. You can get that "feeling" anywhere.
I’m not surprised given its dreadful past of torturing people and killing prisoners children several centuries ago.
That sounds like the unnerving experience we had at Chingle Hall, Preston. There were guided tours so everyone queued up on the bridge over the moat.
The atmosphere was completely silent and eerie and everyone was jittery. Then a goose honked and several people including myself screamed. I was absolutely terrified although I like ghost accounts and would have loved to have seen a ghost.
When we all stood silently in the Mad Girl's Room the atmosphere was horrendous, even though the guide was speaking. Suddenly my 17 year old daughter standing next to me poked me with her elbow and when I turned to her she pointed at her hair. She had very long hair and a section of it was standing out sideways as though someone had hold of it and was raising it up and inspecting it. We looked at eachother in horror and she batted it back down in panic.
Once home we told my sister about it and she and her boyfriend, 39, who was mad on photography and would develop his own photos, visited Chingle the next week. The boyfriend took two of his best cameras. When they got inside the cameras wouldn't work. Completely dead. Once outside they worked perfectly, apparently lots of swearing ensued from the boyfriend.
Would love to go again but it's a private residence now I think.
My late wife and i lived in many haunted homes from 1966 onwards this flat we moved into early 1988 was and is haunted.
I remember reading this as a child, in an old ghost book, it had a wood cut silhouette of something misshapen and it fascinated me for years
Thanks for this
I was there for a book-launch when it was still leased by Maggs & Co. Their regretted departure was immanent, and they had already started packing books into boxes.The place struck me as agreeably and cosily antiquated: no cold atmosphere or malevolent entities were apparent!
That was really interesting. You should do a London haunted pub next. My local is haunted; it has a headless pint.
Ah, the infamous headless pint! I've been to a few pubs that have that ghost! I'm doing two haunted pubs this month. No headless pints, but plenty of spirits!
Classic Britwit. Love it.
😂
Haha, you cheeky chopper!
And pints that mysteriously get drunk when you come back from the toilet
I remember reading about Berkeley Square as a schoolboy. It scared me, so I handed it to my best friend and (without warning) he read it. Some 30 years later, I still remember the look of terror on his face! Brilliant work Rich!
Wonderful video. I was fascinated and terrified when I first heard about the Berkley Square Haunting as a child and saw a television drama about it. But as I got older and more cynical I began to read that the evidence was not there to support the claims. But I never knew about that lady's book. Amazing video, really enjoyed it and will advise people to watch.
"A more or less popular novelist of years ago" nothing can be more scathing than that 😂😂
I particularly enjoyed Mr O'Donnell's account where (at timestamp 40mins) he states "...and eyes which defy description" and then proceeds to describe the eyes ! 😃
Now that you mention it I wish I'd spotted it and put it in the video. I didn't think of that. I was trying to supress some childish giggles at his references to the cat!
I feel sad about the cat, shitty guy for forcing an animal to that.
Anyone who doesnt beleive in ghosts should visit chingle hall in lancashire.On a school trip in the 1980s we took polaroids there for fun,but on one of them is an extra semi visible hand on someones shoulder.Creeped us all out,even our teachers!
What a super documentary. I love the dry humour. of your delivery. I am familiar with the story of 50 Berkeley Square so rather expected to be a bit bored, but not at all..
I almost regretted listening to this at bedtime last night. That is a testament to your storytelling skills! So atmospheric.
Can I request a Halloween episode, please, if you have any more tales of London's supernatural past?
Sorry for disturbing your slumbers! Glad you found it atmospheric. Yes, I'm going to be working on Halloween episodes up to the 31st October.
Loved this!. You have such a perfect voice for narration. I've been absolutely obsessed with ghosts since I found the supernatural section in my local library at about 8 years old. 44 now and still obsessed 😅
Same here. I also started around eight, although I'm a lot older than you. My school had a small supernatural section in addition to the public library. I used to buy ghost-themed comic books. Anything with ghosts in it, I was there. I was obsessed. Good times.
I always wanted the ghost or monster on Scooby Doo to be real...
What a fascinating account, you have a great voice for ghost storytelling!
Thank you, Patricia, that is very kind of you.
The only ghosts you'd want haunting any place are polite ones who only spook when spooken to! LOL😁
😊
From 1859 to 1874, a man named Thomas Myers lived at the house. Soon after moving in, he had been jilted by his fiancée on their wedding day. He became a recluse who slept during days and led a solitary existence at nights wandering the house where he had planned to live in happy matrimony. When he died, aged seventy-six, in 1874, the property had fallen into severe disrepair and lay empty for overy fifty years.
In the 1920s, a woman attending a new year's eve party in a house at the rear of number 50 saw a pale, elderly man wearing Victorian clothing staring sadly through one of the upper windows. She didn't think he was a ghost because she had never heard of the property's reputation, and she assumed he had returned from a fancy dress ball.
I visited 50 Berkeley Square when it was an antique bookstore. I happened to ask the staff, and owner about the stories, and this is what they told me. "They are just stories, created for the tourists in the Victorian era". "There have been no ghosts or supernatural activity during our occupation of the bookstore, which was from the early 1930s. What you need to think about is if there were deaths at the property as alleged in the stories, there would be reports in the newspapers at the time, there were none, police investigations none can be found, if a crime or incident had taken place at the location, you can guarantee the police would have been involved. Bodies impaled on railings, and nothing documented? In closing, if you would like to visit a real haunted house in London, I would recommend Ham House in Richmond, which has sixteen resident ghosts and is active to this day, apparently. ^^
I have been fascinated by this house since I first heard of it as a boy. I have actively sought out to find any information I could regarding the house. This is by far the most comprehensive and informative account that I have come across. Very well researched. Thank you.
My pleasure. I'm pleased that you enjoyed it, and thank you for your kind words.
I read a story about the haunting of Berkeley Square when I was nine or ten. It was an account that included the two sailors. All these years later, it remains one of the most terrifying things I've ever read.
Yeah I read that as well 1 died when he fell down the stairs and the other one ran off leaving his mate there I think that’s what happened
I read a version as well, where there were two sailors, one shot a gun at something Inky and black like an octopus and was found with a smoking gun in his hand and incoherent and a bullet hole in a wall, whilst the other sailor was found impaled on the railings outside. I think there's been a lot of embellishments to this story since it first came out.
The very story I just related terrified me glad you read it to❤❤❤
@@benconway9010the story I read one was Impaled on the railings outside.
A animal which has deep fear of something will never just settle. It'll be extremely hard to force an animal which will kick, scratch and even bite in order to escape what it fears. This is why I found it very hard to believe both the cat and dog, especially being able to tie a cat down which will seriously hurt you and run off while you recoil in pain.
What a lovely voice and beautiful pronunciation. Funny story which I read about as a teenager in France studying English. I hope the house is family home, full of laughter and the patter of little feet now. As I nurse in the 1990ies I got kicked out of a post in Dalkeith/ Newtongrange for being a disbeliever: the knocker. Yes I used to open the back kitchen window to enquire about the man knocking on the window around 4.30/5am. Persuaded someone was going around terrifying my superstitious patient, and would have called the police to complain too if let alone. I was determine some morning to have a good row with the culprit. Until one day I was told no you can't disbelieve like this....
I went into the bookstore on my very first visit to London after reading it was the most haunted address. Fascinating place. Absolutely no Spirit energy at all! I am very sensitive to this and have experienced paranormal activity in England when visiting, though not here.
Sir I Love your voice and could listen to you narrate for hours 😊 Your English accent has me smiling as I walk to work and I look forward to more of your videos 👍🙂
Wow! I love your stories Richard!🥂👍💋
Thank you, Brenda.
I am interested in buying a great book on London's stories of the Victorian era, could you tell me of one such book? I would appreciate it.
Hi Brenda. I would suggest The Victorians by A.N. Wilson.
The house of Dr Dee is l would say the best ghost story set in London. The author also wrote a book on [underground] London saying it's history lies underneath it.
This is the most extensively researched account of how the house gained it's reputation I have ever read - it's almost overwhelming in it's detail. Thank you for this. It is interesting to note that 'the Illustrated Police News' article (timestamp 17:55) seems to have been the catalyst for other articles and opinions that established the residence as a haunted house. My one critique would be that it is hard to keep track of where each account is coming from. It would be nice to take a breather from each account and give your own opinion on the credibility of these stories. That aside, this made for great listening!
I heard about this house on bedtime stories it's good to hear it from you 👍👻
I really enjoy your story telling and mainly your fabulous research there's no one better than you keep up the good work Pal 👻👍🇮🇪
That's really kind of you, Darren. I'm pleased you enjoyed it.
Obviously the amount of Energy flowing in, around and through this house it must have been built on an Energy Vortex where numerous Ley Lines Meet. This effects the minds of the occupants and permits Interdimensional Portals to open and close from time to time allowing Entities to Enter and Exit from this House.
Obviously.
16:05 … find the ghostly shoe!
Yah! Bedtime listening.
Funny you should say that
Yep me also
That was entertaining, thanks Richard, maybe changing the sheets should come with a health warning 😄.
It was nerve racking as I was changing them, Sue!
I have heard stories about this place for years. Thanks for reminding me of this 😀👍
Any time!
A poltergeist broke my freezer😮😢
A forgotten gem. I remember reading about this property in an old book i used to have. The chapter was called the shapeless evil. Scared the b geezers outta me. I dont think id stay on that floor even today. Ive heard noises are still heard.
This was an absolutely wonderful video! I'd heard some of the later stories about 50 Berkely Square on another channel, but your linking back to earlier sources adds so much to the overall story. As sad as I usually am to learn that these things aren't true, knowing the reality of where it all came from is fascinating. Thanks!
Well in this case mate they probably are true
thank you for taking the time to make this documentary..also perfect voice and tone...cuppa tea now and dark outside..yep...mood is set...
Fascinating report. Just found your channel and I love it! Your reporting is more in depth than other videos on London's history (inc haunted). TY ❤
I applaud your latest broadening coverage, many thanks very interesting
So nice of you, Bob.
Well done Richard and Happy Halloween . I may be right, I may be wrong
But I'm perfectly willing to swear
That when you turned and smiled at me
A nightingale sang in Berkeley Square
I was so tempted to end the video with the sound of a nightingales song, John.
A superbly researched video. Thanks
If I ever visit London I will be sure to pay 50 Berkley square a visit!
The reclusive Mr Myers, who "wouldn't be seen by anyone" really ought to have got some curtains.
He probably invented reality television.
This made me chuckle 😂
These Georgian houses are so lovely.
loved this
I remember this story from yrs ago and was intrigued by the ending and was hooked on paranormal since
Wonderful story telling, I really enjoyed it.
I love your disclaimer at the end 😂 Great video. Thank you.
Great video. Love how in depth this is going.
Fun video! I enjoyed watching it.
Glad you enjoyed it!
man i love a good ghost story. well done!
Thank you.
I was so obsessed with this story when I first heard it 30 years ago and many times parking our car in that square too and really wanted to go in and see what it's like..but never have the courage to😅😅
That song, and this story, is stuck in my head now. This was delicious! Happy haunting from Virginia to all.
I worked in Charles Street many years ago, I never knew about 50 Berkeley Square, I would have been intrigued
Very well done. Thank you.
Great stuff! Many thanks :)
Glad you liked it!
I can see the stories of the house at 50 Berkeley Square influencing the story that you mentioned. I wonder if anyone has done research into old articles from the early Victorian period to see if the stories first popped up in that period. It would be a good starting point to do a search. If the London newspapers reported about Spring-Heeled Jack then it’s likely they talked about it even back then. But that’s just my thought process.
I've never heard about this.😮
Thank you!
You have a lovely voice; I reminds me of the audio book versions of M.R. James stories that Michael Hordern read.
This is so fun! Thank you!
Love this story so much! Whenever I go to London, I visit Berkeley Sq but has anyone actually been inside no 50?
Oooo that intro beat. I need it.
Awesome Richard I love it 😘
A great listen on wild dark wintry night. Thankyou.
I love the old film about that house ❤🇬🇧👍
"I'm just off to change the bedsheets, wish me well" lol
Just playing 1 of my fav songs 🎵 A Nightingale sang in Berkeley Square , Nat King Cole (Natty). Original by Vera Lynn of course 👌
Well, that was extremely entertaining.
By far, my fave podcast/ video etc on this topic. Loved it
£13,000/month to rent. Very impressive home in Mayfair.
You are born to read ghost stories 😄 Excellent research and detail indeed 👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👍👍 One question…Your first story was about Nr. 32….was the house renumbered from 32 to 50 Berkeley Square?
Bloody House Elves!
I loved the last paragraph very amusing 😂
Has the top floor of number 50 been demolished or has it always been smaller than the houses next to it?
Rhoda Broughton was related to Sir Jock Delves Broughton of Doddington Hall, Cheshire who was accused - and later acquitted - for the murder the Earl of Errol in Kenya.
How did it switch from the house numbered 32 to number 50?
It just seems that the story set at 32 was "acquired" by number 50!
Liked and SUBBED!
Thank you.
Hi Richard! I have just discovered that White Chapple is in EAST London! I dont know why but i have always envisioned it in the WEST! Even though I've constantly hesrd and read EAST London, my feeble brain somehow interpreted it as WEST. How disappointing 😮💨
love the humor
50 Berkeley Square. may or may not be home of the "nameless horror"
I visited the place in the 1990's to make a delivery, and having read the tale of the stranded sailors when I was young, mentioned the story to the receptionist. She smiled dismissively and claimed to know nothing of the hauntings. It would probably fetch £50 million today if put up for sale...
🤣 you probably scared the shit out of her 🤣 poor girl 🤣
The haunted and haunter is one of the best.
Never mind Nameless Things and maids going mad and sailors being killed. What happened to the bloody cat?🐈
The poor cat was left to do battle with the thing. I can't bear to think of the result. Methinks it didn't go well for the cat.
@@JackTheRipperTours I've always liked Elliott O'Donnell, but whether this episode is true or not he has gone down a couple of notches in my estimation. Of course if true I'm more inclined to think it was the Nameless Thing that had to go to Emergency with bad facial lacerations.
@@JackTheRipperTours I don't know- have you ever tried to get a cat to do anything it didn't want to do? You'll die of blood loss from the million little scratches pretty quickly. Now imagine a frightened cat defending itself... yikes LOL Cats are sharp at so many ends.
My compliments on the magnificent storytelling, Mr. Jones. Your talents for these endeavors is most enjoyable. I would note one concern, however.
If I am not mistaken, your disclaimer about persons of various descriptions having not been harmed in the making of this video seems to have omitted any reference to sailors. Just saying.
I was hoping nobody would notice. The truth is a sailor was harmed in the making of the video!
As a security guard for nigh on 30 years working in haunted buildings and the odd church i can confirm ghosts are complete bollocks.
I worked in an old gaol.m8 some guys worked their 10 years when I arrived to work they never saw any thing .me on the on.the other hand have been attacked felt like I had been stabbed in the neck and choked not a pleasant experience then I was giving it large in b wing me being a big mouth never again felt like I had 10.bells kicked out of me and I have loads of other stories
Properties have urban ledgends attached to them.Fear drives people to see and hear things.This was very well presented and beautifully narrated. Thankyou so much .I remain an unbeliever .During the course of my life i have lived in and visited many so called haunted properties .So far i have never encountered a ghost .Who knows what tomorrow will bring .!
Most of my experiences have been when I have been least expecting it like walking into cobwebs a common theme with me no cobwebs present 😮😮if you keep your mind open you never know what will.occur if you show fear they will.jump.all over you
I read a book when I was a kid in the 70s called ghosts of London. Apparently 2 sailors broke into a house in Berkley Square in one room they were confronted by a terrible sight one of them got away ran into the arms of a police man the other saillor was found on the spiked railings outside a terrified look on his face .was this the house I wonder may be number 50???
yes it was
I worked in a house in upper Berkeley Street that was definitely haunted
I wonder if there was a gas leak in the room and that's what killed them.
Or carbon monoxide
😂I’m also finding it mad that looking down the comment section that a lot of other people have also read the probably the same book when they were at school just like me 😂
Tbh i wouldn't mind a few pesky ghosts if it meant i could live on berkeley square.
The fact the police never got involved and the house is still standing and people kept moving in knowing of its history kind of screams to my skepticism lol
I’m never ringing a bell again lol.
Do you have any informatiion on lord Berkeley did he live there
I remember hearing a radio drama about Berkeley Square, it ended with one of two sailors being thrown from the top window, onto the spiked railings below. The two sailors, out for a laugh, break into the house. There's a whore from the local tavern with them, she flees in terror. A great drama it was.
Other stories related to pistol shots in the dawn light in hyde park .long lost duals .and one morning a fella was walking london bridge and past a guy dressed in victoroan clothes the guy said good morning and he replied then he thought strange clothes when he turned around the guy had gone
I hope every single cat Mr O'Donnell owned afterwards peed on his shoes to avenge their fallen brother 😅
the only stories i have heard are those sailors and that lord who stayed there also a story of warboys death from fear.
That's the worst horror I have ever heard of, that takes number 1
And I really wonder if H.P. Lovecraft found some little inspiration from these tales- they struck me as extremely 'Lovecraftian'.
😊❤🎉