The Old Bell Inn Hotel at Derby is a 17th century grade II listed building built around 1680 and steeped in history. The Bell Inn Hotel was originally a coaching inn, it retaining many of its original features. The Old Bell is listed as one of the most haunted Hotels in the UK, many of Derby famous Ghost walks either start or finish at the Inn. TV's most haunted team has visited the Old Bell Inn and found plenty of evidence of paranormal activity at the location.
The Bell Inn Hotel is believed to be haunted by several ghosts, a poltergeist in the downstairs dining room has been known to throw items around, and a barmaid was once hit on the back of her head by a wooden coat hanger when no one else was present.
The pubs most famous ghost is that of a former employee, Mabel a linen maid at the time when the Old Bell was still a coaching Inn. Her job was to strip the beds then take the sheets away to be washed, replacing them with fresh ones. One day some passing solders on a recruitment drive were buying drinks for the young men in the bar, and Mabel's lover got drunk and took the Kings shilling. He was taken away to fight in some war and was killed soon after. Mabel found that she was pregnant with her lover's child when she heard of his death she committed suicide, hanging herself in room six.
Mabel's ghost has been seen in the area of the bar and in room 6, one of the waitresses was laying out the cutlery, napkins, china etc. in the restaurant on the first floor, she left the room for a moment and when she returned she found that every thing on the tables had been moved into a different order. There is only one door in and out of the restaurant, and she swore that no one had entered the room as they would have had to have passed her.
Guests that have booked in for the night have found their clothes neatly folded at the bottom of their bed, thinking that someone had been in their room when they were asleep, would complain to the landlord only to be told that the staff were a lazy lot, and if any body was in their room in the dead of night that they were supernatural.
Recently a member of staff has captured Mabel's ghost on camera after finishing there shift at the pub. Before locking up the employee took some photos with their camera phone, one photo captured the image of a woman, you can click on the picture to the right to see for yourself.
One of the upstairs rooms in the Bell is haunted by the ghost of a serving girl who has been seen on many occasions, dressed in 18th century clothing with a white cap. It was thought that she was murdered by the Jacobites in 1745, but this has yet to not been confirmed. The serving girl's ghost usually appears when children are present and two instances are recorded at the Inn.
During the 1930s, the landlord at the time had a son who suffered from asthma. One afternoon he heard him coughing and choking in his bedroom and so he ran upstairs and burst into the bedroom, only to find a lady dressed in 18th century costume bending his son over and patting him on the back. As the boy's father took over, the mysterious figure simply vanished before his eyes.
In the 1950s and this same room was being used as a nursery. The landlady was in the process of changing her baby here one day and she had to turn away to get some nappy pins and cotton wool. As she turned back, she saw a figure in 18th Century costume standing over the baby, stooping as if to pick the child up. The mother rushed to pick her child up and as she did, the ghostly figure completely faded away.
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