Notoriously haunted
Each issue we investigate the most ghostly buildings in Britain. Here we take a look at in Neath Port Talbot, Wales
They are two of the spookiest buildings in Wales. Grand stately home Margam Castle and the ruins of Margam Abbey stand just a stone’s throw from each other in a country park in Margam, Neath Port Talbot.
With two intensely haunted places in such close proximity, the paranormal activity comes thick and fast, with reports of spectral monks, a murdered gamekeeper – and a few curses thrown in for good measure.
The area was once sacred to an ancient Iron Age tribe who buried their dead on the hills surrounding what is now Margam Country Park.
Then in 1147, Cistercian monastery Margam Abbey was founded by Robert, Earl of Gloucester, Henry I’s illegitimate son. After the abbey was closed in 1536 during Henry VIII’s dissolution of the monasteries, its land was bought by the wealthy Mansel family. Between 1830 and 1840 an extravagant mansion, Margam Castle, was built in the abbey grounds for industrialist and politician Christopher Rice Mansel Talbot.
But lead from the abbey’s roof and stone from its walls was used to build the house, and local legend has it this caused a curse to fall on the Mansel family, as Christopher’s son and heir Theodore was killed falling from his horse.
When Christopher passed away, the house was inherited by his daughter Emily.
During World War II, troops were housed at Margam Castle. One soldier described a ghostly visitation at night, when the room turned icy cold, and an eerie glow appeared. He and his mates were so freaked out they fled to another room.
After Margam Castle was badly damaged in a fire in 1977, a restoration programme began and the Grade I listed home and the abbey are now run by the local council.
Both buildings have earned reputations for spooky activity that continues to this day.
Geraint Hopkins, from paranormal investigation team Ghost Watch Wales, has held numerous ghost tours and investigations at the site.
He says: ‘We were holding a séance in Emily’s bedroom in the castle. We put a photo of her father on a table and asked when he died. We clearly heard a voice say 1890 – the year he passed away. Then an oldfashioned penny dropped out of the air. When I looked at the date on it I saw it was 1890!’
Emily’s spirit has been spotted sitting in a chair next to the window in her bedroom and some people have seen her dressed in white, gliding down the grand staircase.
Other spirits haunting the castle include children heard giggling and playing in the dining room. And according to Geraint, there’s also a spooky presence in the room that was once Christopher’s study.
‘My wife Yolande felt something leaning over her,’ Geraint explains. ‘She looked up and a dark shadow of a man was looming above her, then it disappeared.’
Spectres of cowled monks are also regularly seen in the grounds of the ruined abbey’s 12-sided chapter house, where monks once held meetings.
‘During another investigation in the castle we heard the sound of monks chanting coming from the direction of the chapter house,’ recalls Geraint.
‘The four of us sat under a tree listening to the chanting. Then suddenly one of my team said, “Look at that!”. He swore he could see the apparition of a monk in a white robe.’
Other ghosts in the grounds are the spirit of a blacksmith, often seen by garden staff, and gamekeeper Robert Scott, who died after being shot by a poacher. His angry, disembodied face has also been spotted on the castle staircase. Furious at having his life so violently torn away, he is a threatening presence, hurling objects and slamming doors.
The team at ghost event company Dusk Till Dawn Events have also witnessed numerous hair-raising incidents at Margam Castle.
Robert Brelsforth says: ‘In the nursery, we heard loud deep growling noises, and some of the guests felt like they were being pushed and pulled. Then as our vigil continued stones were thrown from behind us.
‘In the library, spirit lights were seen and loud, heavybooted footsteps were heard.
‘And many of our guests said they saw a strange, swirling mist in the grounds, making them feel really uneasy and anxious.’
An episode of programme Paranormal Lockdown UK filmed at the castle and abbey was aired on TV in 2018.
While presenters Nick Groff and Katrina Weidman were in the abbey grounds, a paranormal investigation device appeared to record a spirit saying: ‘You shouldn’t be here.’ Walking back to the castle in the dark, the pair spotted an eerie light glowing in the window of Emily’s bedroom, where Katrina saw the figure of a woman, thought to be Emily. They also heard phantom footsteps and a shadowy figure was caught on camera lurking on the staircase.
Like so many others, visit Margam Castle and Margam Abbey and you may end up with twice the terrifying tales to tell!
A curse, also called a jinx, hex or the evil eye, is a supernatural bringing of misfortune or harm to others. Belief in curses has endured through the centuries, all over the world and in many cultures.
Perhaps the most famous is the Curse of the Pharaohs, said to fall on anyone who disturbs an ancient Egyptian ruler’s tomb. The most notorious case took place after several members of a team led by archaeologist Howard Carter, died in unusual circumstances after opening Tutankhamun’s tomb in 1923.
Many people think objects can be cursed, causing adversity or even death to their owner. All over the world there are objects including paintings and jewellery that are thought to be cursed and appear to cause harm to their owner when they change hands.
You can buy supposedly cursed objects online. But I would urge anyone who thinks they own a cursed item to use the utmost care. I would go on my gut instinct about whether an object had good or bad energy, and take proper precautions when dealing with it.
Someone can lay down a curse by expressing the wish that hurt or evil falls on another person or people.
But I believe only someone with very strong supernatural powers can do this – for most people it wouldn’t work!
The good news is that this kind of curse can be removed, but only by the person who imposed it in the first place, or by someone with equal or even greater spiritual powers.