Norfolk’s Most Haunted Pub – Discover the Ghosts of North Walsham
Step inside The Black Swan, North Walsham’s legendary haunted pub, where the past never truly rests…
Nestled in the heart of North Walsham, Norfolk, The Black Swan is no ordinary public house. With a rich and dramatic history dating back to 1794 (and with roots as a coaching inn even earlier) this atmospheric pub has long been a hotspot for ghost sightings, unexplained events, and eerie encounters. Over the centuries, landlords, travellers, locals, and performers have all passed through The Black Swan. Some may have never left…
A Ghostly Legacy in North Walsham
North Walsham is steeped in chilling folklore and ghost stories, and The Black Swan is at the centre of the paranormal. From shadowy figures seen wandering the pub’s corridors, to whispers in the theatre and phantom footsteps in the stable block—our haunted pub is alive with supernatural tales. Since taking over in October 2023, we’ve experienced our own share of unexplainable activity:
Ghostly apparitions caught out of the corner of the eyeMysterious disappearances (and reappearances) of personal itemsSudden cold spots and strange sounds echoing through the night
Visitors often report feeling watched, or catching glimpses of something… or someone… just beyond sight.
Dare to Discover More?
Join us if you’re brave enough. We regularly host North Walsham Ghost Walks, delving deep into the town’s haunted history, and of course, the secrets of The Black Swan itself. Click here to learn more about our ghost walks.
Whether you’re a believer in the paranormal or just curious about Norfolk’s haunted pubs, The Black Swan is a must-visit destination for ghost hunters, history lovers and thrill seekers alike.Have you got a story about the pub or a ghostly tale to tell?
Let us know via our contact page here.
More history about the place
Black Swan Theatre
The theatre has had many used in the past. It was originally built as a stable (conveniently next to the site of the cattle market) and since then it has been a beer store, a public store room, a public toilet, a dance hall, a function room for the pub, a pop-up theatre and event a mechanic’s garage! You can even see where the pit used to be when it was a garage, looking at the floor in front of the theatre bar. Recent findings have shown that horses were kept in the stable around the time of Mr Robert Palmer (landlord of the pub 1851-1883) including the town hearse (a carriage), and the stable was also used as a morgue to store the dead.
The Stable
The stable is at the end of the pub, opposite our car park. It’s a lovely example of an 18th Century stable, with the hayloft, original iron fittings and draining floors intact.
Black Swan Pub
The pub itself if made up of a few buildings joined together. The original inn (front of the building with a redeveloped frontage around the 1850s), Black Swan Cottage and Black Swan House. The stable is joined at the end.
Established 1794: reinvented 2023
New Stages took over the lease of the pub in October 2023. 60 volunteers helped transform the pub and 40 volunteers helped turn the defunct function room into a permanent theatre and community space.
New Stages 