Leeds is quite renowned for its haunted buildings, often attracting ghost hunters and paranormal investigators to the sites to look into possible apparitions.
Across the city and surrounding areas, there are a number of high profile sites where people have reported seeing ghostly goings-on.
Within the city itself, there are a few well-known places which have been the subject of amateur investigations. We've covered them before however there is a very famous building in Leeds with a dark history. Leeds Town Hall, arguably one of the most iconic landmarks in the city has something spooky down below. In the basement, there are cells where people have reported a ghostly spirit walking the floors.
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Designed by architect Cuthbert Broderick, Leeds Town Hall was once the tallest building in the city, before losing its title to the Park Plaza Hotel. Originally there were plans for more rooms in the building but these were relocated to the Civic Hall on Millenium Square.
However, underneath the Town Hall is where the spooky history lies. In the basement, there are Bridewell Cells, an area to keep prisoners, where one particular historical figure is thought to still exist in spirit form. Charlie Peace, a burglar and murderer from Leeds who was tried in the court of the Town Hall before being put in the cells to await execution at Armley Prison.
The grade I-listed building is often the site of ghosthunting experiences, especially during Halloween. Other reports have suggested sightings of a woman floating through the hallways and you can find out if those rumours are true by booking a ghost hunting experience online.
LeedsLive spoke to Rob Pyke, who runs Veritas Paranormal, a charitable cause that takes people on investigations all over the UK. He spoke of the idea of the paranormal and how even some sceptics still get the chills during his ghost tours.
Rob and his team investigate rumoured haunted sites in the country, with many of his group walks taking place in Leeds city centre, such as Thackray Medical Museum, Armley Mills and Temple Newsham. Using a wide range of old and new technology he and his group try to explain away potential apparitions.
He said: “I will never prove the paranormal to anyone because at the end of the day there is no truth, but we have sceptics come along,
“We always look objectively at any evidence we find and not everything is paranormal, it can be easily explained away,
“We’ve got the equipment to hopefully capture it but the best kit we have is our own eyes or ears.”
Rob uses equipment dating back to the early Roman times alongside some much more modern technology. His toolkit includes black mirrors, divination rods, and Ouija boards.
He also has a special set of cameras and energy meters to pick up lost energy from potential spirits who have died. He was honest and said most of his events are explainable, and out of the hundreds he has done, there are probably half where they have to go away and really investigate the evidence.
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