Richard Evered

The most prominent ghost at The Bull Hotel is Richard Evered, a former landlord who met a violent end in 1648 during England’s turbulent Second English Civil War. This period, which ran from February to August 1648, saw widespread conflict between Royalist and Parliamentarian forces across England, with Suffolk experiencing particular upheaval as various factions vied for control.

Historical Context

Long Melford, with its wealthy wool merchants and established gentry, found itself caught between opposing sides during this chaotic period. The village’s strategic position and prosperous inns like The Bull made them natural stopping points for travelling soldiers and messengers. Parish records from the time document various incidents of violence and unrest, reflecting the broader national turmoil that characterised 1648.

The Murder

On that fateful day in 1648, Richard Evered, a yeoman farmer and landlord of The Bull Inn, found himself embroiled in a heated political argument with another man, Roger Greene. The confrontation, which began as a discussion about the ongoing Civil War, quickly escalated beyond mere words. As tensions reached breaking point, Evered, perhaps recognising the danger, attempted to withdraw from the altercation by walking towards a doorway in the entrance hall.

However, Greene’s fury had not yet been spent. In a moment of blind rage, he pursued Evered and struck him down with a knife, stabbing the landlord fatally in the back as he stood in the doorway. Witnesses to this brutal act described how Evered likely died almost instantly, collapsing to the floor of his own inn. The murder shocked those present, who immediately laid Richard’s body out in the hall whilst they ran to fetch help and alert the authorities.

Roger Greene was swiftly apprehended, tried, and executed by hanging for his crime—a swift justice typical of the period. However, the story took an even more mysterious turn when Evered’s family arrived to collect his body for burial. To their horror and bewilderment, the corpse had completely vanished. Despite thorough searches of the premises and questioning of all present, Richard Evered’s body was never found, leaving behind one of Suffolk’s most enduring mysteries.

The Haunting

Evered’s restless spirit is said to manifest primarily in Room 4 and the upper corridor now known as “The Ghost Corridor.” Witnesses consistently describe encounters with a man in 17th-century attire, sometimes bearing what appear to be bloodstains on his clothing. His presence is typically accompanied by heavy, booted footsteps echoing through the upper floors, unexplained drops in temperature, and an overwhelming sense of being watched.

Guests staying in Room 4 have reported various phenomena: the sensation of someone sitting on the bed, knocking sounds at the door with no one present, and sightings of a figure standing at the foot of the bed or glaring from the doorway before vanishing. The apparition is generally described as having a stern, angry expression, suggesting an unresolved grievance from his violent death.

Roger Greene: The Murderer’s Return

Remarkably, it appears that Richard Evered is not the only spirit from that tragic day to remain earthbound. According to local lore and witness accounts, Roger Greene—the man who ended Evered’s life—also haunts The Bull Hotel, perhaps bound to the scene of his crime by guilt or the circumstances of his own execution.

In 2016, during a paranormal dinner at the hotel, a guest captured a photograph that paranormal experts believe shows the spirit of Roger Greene. The image depicts a figure wearing period clothing, notably a large white collar characteristic of 17th-century attire. The appearance matches historical descriptions of men from Greene’s era, lending credence to the theory that both victim and perpetrator remain trapped within the inn’s ancient walls.

The presence of both spirits creates a unique supernatural dynamic at The Bull Hotel. While Evered’s manifestations are typically characterised by anger and unrest—understandable given his violent end—reports suggest that Greene’s presence carries a different energy, possibly tinged with remorse or the torment of a guilty conscience.

Paranormal Investigations

The Bull’s reputation for paranormal activity has attracted numerous ghost hunters and paranormal investigation groups over the decades. The property has been featured on television programmes including “Ghost Hunters International,” and various teams have reported capturing electronic voice phenomena (EVP) and unexplained electromagnetic field (EMF) readings, particularly concentrated around Room 4 and the adjacent corridor areas.

Professional paranormal investigators have documented a range of phenomena during their stays. Temperature drops of several degrees have been recorded in specific locations, often preceding visual manifestations. Motion sensors placed in empty corridors have been triggered without apparent cause, whilst digital recording equipment has captured unexplained sounds—footsteps, door creaks, and what some interpret as voices from the past.

One particularly compelling investigation involved a team who spent several nights in Room 4, documenting consistent EMF spikes at the same location where witnesses typically report seeing Evered’s apparition. Their recordings captured what appeared to be responses to direct questions, suggesting an intelligent haunting rather than mere residual energy.

The hotel’s connection to renowned ghost hunter Harry Price adds another layer of credibility to its paranormal reputation. Price, famous for his investigations of Borley Rectory—dubbed “England’s most haunted house”—used The Bull as his operational base during his nearby investigations. Price’s presence and endorsement of the hotel’s supernatural activity has drawn serious paranormal researchers to the location for decades.

Witness Testimonies and Modern Encounters

Contemporary accounts from guests and staff members paint a consistent picture of ongoing paranormal activity. Hotel employees, who might be expected to downplay such incidents for commercial reasons, instead openly discuss their encounters with both Evered and Greene’s spirits. Night shift workers report feeling watched during quiet hours, hearing footsteps in empty corridors, and occasionally glimpsing figures in period dress.

Guests frequently leave testimonials describing their experiences. Many mention the oppressive atmosphere in Room 4, particularly during the early hours of the morning. Some report awakening to find the sensation of someone sitting on their bed, only to discover they are alone. Others describe seeing shadows moving across the walls or feeling an inexplicable chill despite adequate heating.

The hotel maintains an informal guest log where visitors can record their experiences. Entries spanning several years show remarkable consistency in the types of phenomena reported, the locations where they occur, and even the appearance of the apparitions witnessed.

The Poltergeist Activity

Beyond the spirits of Evered and Greene, The Bull has also experienced poltergeist phenomena. Renowned paranormal investigator Peter Underwood studied outbreaks of poltergeist activity at the hotel during the late 20th century. These incidents involved objects moving without explanation, glasses being pushed from bars by unseen hands, and sudden temperature fluctuations.

The poltergeist activity appeared to centre around a young female employee, which aligns with typical poltergeist cases where the phenomena focus on a particular individual. However, unlike most poltergeist cases that eventually fade, some level of inexplicable physical phenomena has continued at The Bull, suggesting a complex layering of different types of supernatural activity.

A Living Museum of the Supernatural

The Bull Hotel represents more than just another haunted location; it serves as a tangible link to England’s turbulent past. The spirits of Richard Evered and Roger Greene embody the political and social tensions that tore the country apart during the Civil War period. Their continued presence suggests that some traumatic events leave such profound impressions that they transcend death itself.

Moody’s Bar, the snug bar area, has also yielded reports of unexplained activity, though to a lesser extent than the upper floors where Evered’s presence appears most concentrated. The bar area occasionally experiences the sounds of glasses moving, footsteps, and the general sense of invisible patrons going about their eternal business.

The consistency of witness accounts spanning several decades, combined with the documented historical basis for both Evered’s violent death and Greene’s execution, has established The Bull as one of Suffolk’s most credible historical hauntings. Unlike many ghost stories based on folklore or legend, the paranormal activity at The Bull is rooted in genuine historical trauma—a murder, an execution, and a mysteriously vanished corpse that continues to perplex historians and paranormal researchers alike.