Pendle pub’s psychic night

One such pub is the Old Stone Trough at Kelbrook. The spirit which both staff and locals believe resides there is a middle-aged woman who they called “Mary”.

Now manager Jenny Garside wants to find out once and for all whether Mary really exists and is hosting a psychic evening at the pub next weekend.

Jenny said: “We even started to call her ‘Scary Mary’ after some of the sightings. We called in a medium some years ago who confirmed there was a middle-aged woman in one of the bedrooms.

“But she told us not to call her ‘Scary’. The medium said she was a friendly spirit who didn’t want to leave the pub because she’s happy here. She also thought the woman was at the pub to meet her lover.”

The oldest part of the Old Stone Trough dates back to the 1840s. The building has always been a pub but Jenny believes there was a farm on the site before that.

The psychic evening is being held in conjunction with “A Haunting Experience”, run by Clitheroe man Frank Watson who also specialises in helping people trace their ancestors.

“We’ll have not one but two expert mediums at the evening and it’s hoped they will give us the definitive answer whether Mary exists or not,” said Frank.

Jenny said locals and guests at the pub have also reported other sightings and strange occurrences over the years.

“One guest said there was a soldier carrying some sort of early rifle. He described in detail the bayonet on the gun. Then there was a really unusual smell just outside one of the bedrooms. We cleaned the carpet just in case but it remained for weeks before suddenly disappearing.”

The evening will have ghost stories by TV’s Simon Entwistle and in addition to the two mediums, there will also be two Tarot card readers.

“I was delighted when asked to host the evening,” said Jenny. “It will be fascinating -- but I just want an answer, does Mary exist or not? I hope she does because I’ve sort of got used to having a friendly spirit in the building.”

Full details about the evening, on Saturday, August 13th, can be found on www.ahauntingexperience.co.uk.

For further details, contact Frank Watson on 07543 326215 or email [email protected].