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Save the Wine!

The Old Bell Hotel is a black and white 17th Century coaching inn that was built around 1680 by the Meynell family.

The Old Bell Hotel. Ale and Ghosts

100 years later in 1780 John Campion acquired the freehold and added a fine ballroom. During the floods of 1842, the nine-year-old grandson of John Campion II was 'launched in a wash-tub in the cellars'. His mission was to save some vintage bottles of wine that had been placed there by his great-grandfather.

Spirits of the Non-Alcoholic Kind

But the Bell is another historical place in Derby that has its share of ghosts.

• A Victorian lady in blue stands in one of the downstairs bars and vaporises in front of mortals (staff and customers).

• A poltergeist in another downstairs room has been known to throw items around – a barmaid was once hit on the back of her head by a wooden coat hanger, but close inspection of the room revealed no one else present

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 mob cap. It was thought that she was murdered by the Jacobites in 1745, but this has yet to be confirmed. She does seem to appear though when children are present and two instances are recorded.

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.

Fast forward another 20 odd years to 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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County:  Derbyshire

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