12 Creepy Places in Leeds

Temple Newsam is an attractive Tudor-Jacobean house dating back to 1500. It has around 40 rooms displaying extensive collections of fine and decorative arts, including furniture, textiles, silver, and ceramics.

The stately home of Lord Darcy also holds many dark stories, making it one of the most haunted places in Leeds. It's said that 2 prominent ghosts lurk in its halls. The Blue Lady of Temple Newsam is believed to be Lady Mary Ingram, the granddaughter to Sir Arthur Ingram, who owned the estate until 1922. The ghost of a murdered nursemaid also haunts the house. Phoebe Gray was brutally murdered by a servant named William Collinson, supposedly under the control of evil spirits.

The Thackray Medical Museum on Beckett Street is a fascinating place, telling the often gruesome story of the development of medical technology around the world. The building was once a workhouse that became part of the neighbouring hospital, so it’s fair to say that there are probably quite a few ghosts around. In fact, it’s said to be one of the most haunted buildings in Leeds, which you might get to see during one of the special evening openings.

It's worth mentioning that some of the exhibits are quite harrowing. The genuine Victorian-era operating theatre can be a bit too much for some, especially when the guide starts explaining what operations at that time were like.

Armley Mills is a Grade II-listed building in Armley, about 3 miles west of Leeds. Once the largest wool mill in the world, the structure was destroyed in a fire back in 1805. It’s now home to the Leeds Industrial Museum, which displays vintage textile machinery and railway equipment.

Locals believe that Armley Mills to be haunted by the spirits of mistreated workers, many of whom were young women and children as young as 6 years old. Over the years, past visitors have heard disembodied footsteps and crying, as well as catching glimpses of a woman in a black Victorian-era dress.

Kirkstall Abbey is a monument to West Yorkshire's rich history, located on the north bank of the River Aire. Built in 1152, these well-preserved Cistercian ruins are among the oldest in all of England. They are so picturesque that famous painters such as Thomas Girtin and John Sell Cotman have used them as their subject.

You're free to explore this official Scheduled Ancient Monument – the nearby visitor centre makes the journey easier than ever. The best part is that access is completely free. You can even enjoy guided tours for free occasionally. There's a donation box available if you're feeling generous and want to help support the maintenance of this striking location.

Leeds Town Hall is one of Yorkshire’s premier ceremony venues, as well as the city’s conference and concert halls. The centrepiece of Leeds dates back to 1858 and was designated a Grade I-listed building in 1951. You can join a guided tour to explore some of its historic sections, including the old borough courtroom, bridewells, and clocktower.

It’s also said that Leeds Town Hall is haunted by Charlie Peace, a notorious burglar and murderer who was executed in 1879. There are also sightings of a woman in white floating through the hallways. If you want to see if the rumours are true, Leeds Town Hall often hosts ghosthunting experiences, especially around Halloween.

The Abbey Inn is a lively pub that offers live music, real ales and homecooked dishes with a casual setting. It has seen its fair share of paranormal activity throughout the years, mostly because it used to be a mortuary.

Bodies of suicide victims were often pulled from the nearby Leeds-Liverpool Canal and Aire River and sent to The Abbey Inn between the 1800s and 1950s. Ghost sightings include a cloaked apparition, a lady in grey, and a man resembling Guy Fawkes.

City Varieties Music Hall in Swan Street is a Victorian-era concert venue dating back to the 1860s. It regularly hosts stand-up comedy and music concerts – Harry Houdini, Eartha Kitt, Charlie Chaplin and Marie Lloyd are among those who have performed here.

There have also been many unexplainable incidents throughout the years, including the sound of a piano playing late at night and sightings of a woman patrolling the concert venue during popular performances. Some have even seen an apparition dressed in World War I-era clothes.

The Cardigan Arms is a restored Victorian pub on Kirkstall Road, about 2.8 miles west of Central Leeds. The original structure dates back to the 1800s, with an adjoining brewhouse and stables. While it’s an excellent place to enjoy local beers and pub grub, many paranormal activities have taken place over the years here.

An elderly, white-haired lady supposedly stalks the pub’s female toilets – a woman even claimed to have seen her reflection in the mirror. Patrons have also heard footsteps and the sounds of children’s laughter, and seen coats being thrown off their hooks.

Thwaite Watermill is a working water-powered mill and industrial museum dating back to the 1820s. You can join guided tours of the mill building, which contains plenty of vintage machinery, and watch live demonstrations in the engineer’s workshop. While it offers plenty of things to see and do, the watermill is also one of the most haunted places in Leeds.

Over the years, many people have encountered paranormal goings-on at Thwaite Watermill. Reports of hearing disembodied footsteps and feelings of being watched are very common – some have even seen the mysterious figures of a woman and young child walking around the premise.

The Leeds Library has been around since 1768, making it the UK’s oldest surviving subscription library. There are around 140,000 books within this 3-storey Grade-II Greek revivalist building, from the latest bestsellers to Victorian-era novels.

Ghost stories at the Leeds Library date back as far as 1884, when chief librarian John McAllister encountered an apparition of his predecessor, Thomas Sternberg. Over the years, library staff have reported hearing sounds of moving furniture and books falling off the shelves. A paranormal investigator even managed to record a video of a ladder moving on its own.

The Headingley Campus of Leeds Beckett University has many old buildings, some of which date back to 1908. Spanning 100 acres of parkland, it also has modern sport science laboratories, animation and music studios, computing labs, and sports facilities. Besides serving as an important education hub in Leeds, Headingley Campus is quite famous for its haunted history.

One of the oldest sections on campus is The Grange, where resides the ghost of a butler who took his own life by jumping off a 3-storey spiral staircase. Many people have also heard strange noises coming from the corridors of the James Graham Building, which was a hospital during World War I.