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SPOOKY STUFF
We live on the UK’s most ‘HAUNTED’ beach with ‘unruly ghosts roaming the shore’ – but it’s hiding a secret
LOCALS living near what's been dubbed the UK's most "haunted" beach have opened up about the tales of ghosts roaming the shore.
The Yorkshire bay is rumoured to be a haven for ghouls, with many able to tell stories of the spirits said to haunt the sandy coastline.
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But, residents in Scarborough's South Bay village have shared the real spooky secret.
Ghost hunters say the seaside town could be the UK's most-haunted holiday hotspot.
Not only has the sandy bay been used as a set and inspiration for horror films, but the Scarborough Castle towers over it.
South Bay influenced the iconic 1983 gothic horror novel Woman in Black, and then was used as a backdrop to cult British horror movie St Maud.
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Spirits like the headless spectre of Piers Gaveston, a 14th century Earl, the "pink lady" who carries a baby in her arms, and an "unnamed" witch are rumoured to be some if the few.
Plus there is said to be ghostly activity from victims of the 50,000 shipwrecks that line the North Yorkshire coast.
Mark Riley, author of Haunted Scarborough, said the area was known for its "genuine haunts".
He told The Sun Online: "Piers Gaveston is probably the most well-known but there is also the pink lady who has been seen several times, holding a baby.
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"Locals say a woman threw her child to its death."
"There have been several accounts of how she appears in an almost transparent apparition and her dress is more like that a nightgown which a pink tinge.
"She holds the baby in her left arm cuddled across her chest. And the child is covered in a white shawl."
Mark said there is also a footpath where some steps are thought to be watched over by a "witch".
He said: "No-one knows her name but she wears a dishevelled blackish long coat with the hood partly covering her unkempt grey hair. Apparently she has a sinister cackle."
Scarborough Castle sits above the town's seafront and was used a prison during the English Civil War.
It is claimed that the dead wander the area around the 3500-year-old castle - down to the beaches.
Artist and poet Graham Rhodes used to run a twice-weekly ghost ship tours for tourists.
He said: "There's meant to be the ghost of a woman who threw herself to death off the cliffs because she was going out with a soldier who left her for someone else.
"She's said to roam the South Bay beach at night.
"Piers Gaveston is said to walk up and down the battlements of Scarborough Castle.
"And if you check the maritime maps, there are tonnes of shipwrecks in this bay, and obviously bodies have washed up."
However, Graham added: "There are loads of ghost stories but I can't say I've seen anything myself."
And other locals - and regular holidaymakers - agree.
At the Terror Towers attraction - where thrill-seekers walk through sets of 13 chiller horror movies, owner Daniel Best, 46, said: "I've never seen anything untoward.
"The scariest thing about Scarborough is our giant seagulls. Especially if they spot some chips."
Holidaymaker Kevin McKinley, 50, said the area was the opposite of haunted.
He said: "I come to Scarborough all the time to sit on the beach. I've never noticed anything spooky.
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"In fact I find it really calm and relaxing."
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