Wells After Dark: A Ghost Tour of England's Smallest City

Wells is a city that keeps its darkest stories close. On this walking tour, you'll uncover the ghosts, crimes, and hauntings that lurk behind the cathedral city's serene medieval façade.

The tour starts at a bronze plaque in the marketplace, marking where 94 rebels stood trial during the Bloody Assizes of 1685, sentenced to death by the notorious Judge Jeffreys. From there, you'll pass through the Bishop's Eye and Penniless Porch – twin medieval gateways built around 1450 – before reaching Wells Cathedral, where a spectral procession of monks has been spotted crossing the green at night, and an adult and child have been seen appearing and vanishing on the Chapter House steps.

You'll explore Vicars' Close, believed to be the oldest continuously inhabited residential street in Europe, where a little girl is said to wander at dusk before disappearing into an impossible doorway. Along the High Street, the Crown Hotel harbours a poltergeist prone to launching coffee cups off the counter, while the City Arms – a former gaol where the gallows, pillory, and ducking stool were once stored – is said to be watched over by a shadowy hangman who never left his post. The tour ends at Bubwith's Almshouses beside St Cuthbert's Church, where paranormal investigators report unexplained EMF spikes near an ancient yew tree.

On this 90-minute tour, you'll have a chance to:

• Hear the story of Susannah Bruford, a 19-year-old poisoner burned at the stake in 1753
• Discover the ghost known as Charlie, a smiling Cavalier whose appearances turned sinister for one unlucky family
• Visit the Swan Hotel, a 1422 inn that once sheltered Henry VII, the Duke of Monmouth, and Judge Jeffreys
• Learn how Bishop Beckynton used the Chain Bridge to keep his vicars away from the town's temptations
• Explore the site of the King Charles' Parlour, where a BBC film crew's lighting equipment repeatedly failed during an investigation
• Hear about Dean Walter Raleigh, murdered in his own home in 1646 by a shoemaker with a sword

If you've ever wondered what Wells is hiding after dark, this tour will tell you.