One of Hampstead’s oldest and most storied pubs has been named among the most haunted in Britain, with at least three resident ghosts and a spectral horse said to roam the road outside.
The Spaniards Inn, which dates back to 1585, claimed fifth place in a national ranking of the country’s spookiest watering holes, compiled by card machine provider Dojo from Reddit threads, online reviews and reports from pub landlords.
But for Hampstead locals, the news will come as no surprise. With its low beamed ceilings, crackling open fires and dark wood panelling, the Spaniards has long had an atmosphere that feels steeped in history — and perhaps something more.
The pub’s ghostly residents are said to include Juan, one of the building’s early owners, who is believed to haunt his former inn after fighting a duel with his brother over a love interest. Legend has it he ended up buried in the garden.
The origins of the pub’s name are themselves shrouded in mystery. It is said to derive either from the Spanish Ambassador to the court of James I, or from early owners Francisco and Juan Porero.
The Grade II listed building once served as a tollgate and boundary marker for the Bishop of London’s land. Coaches slowing to pass through made easy targets for highwaymen — and the most notorious of them all is linked to the inn.
Dick Turpin, the legendary highwayman, is said to have used the pub as a hideout and a lookout point from which to ambush wealthy travellers leaving London. His father was reputedly the landlord.
A ghostly figure seen outside the pub is said to be the restless spirit of Turpin himself, who was hanged in York in 1739 for horse theft, highway robbery and murder.
Inside, the hauntings continue. A mysterious “lady in white” is reported to appear in the beer garden, while drinkers in the bar have described feeling an unseen hand tugging at their clothes.
And then there is the spectral horse, said to be heard on the road outside — perhaps an echo of the highwaymen who once stalked the route.
The Spaniards Inn has no shortage of history to draw on. Charles Dickens was a patron — he spent a summer living not far away in Highgate — and set a scene from The Pickwick Papers at the inn.
The poet John Keats, along with artists John Constable and William Blake, were also known to frequent the pub, adding to its remarkable literary and artistic heritage.
Some believe the inn’s eerie atmosphere may even have inspired Bram Stoker, the author of Dracula, who is said to have featured the pub in his famous novel.
The building also played its part in one of London’s most turbulent episodes. During the Gordon Riots of 1780, the landlord reportedly kept a rioting mob at bay with free alcohol until military reinforcements arrived to protect nearby Kenwood House.
Dojo’s research placed the Spaniards just behind pubs in Yorkshire, Wiltshire and Nottingham in its ranking of the UK’s most haunted venues.
With Halloween just weeks away, the timing could hardly be better for those seeking a spooky night out. A Dojo spokesperson said a trip to one of the country’s most haunted pubs was the perfect way to embrace the season — with a pint, and perhaps a ghostly encounter.
The Spaniards is not the only historic London pub with a story to tell. In Plumstead, the 150-year-old Fox & Hounds has just welcomed new landlords with big plans for its future, while the historic Tigers Head in Chislehurst has been approved for a major revamp.
But few can match the Spaniards for sheer atmosphere. Whether you believe in ghosts or not, there is something undeniably special about settling into a corner of a pub that has been serving drinkers for more than four centuries — and keeping an eye out for the lady in white.
