The Royal Victoria & Bull Hotel is home to three distinct supernatural residents, each with well-documented histories spanning decades of witness accounts. Winifred, described as a 'petulant' eight-year-old girl who died of tuberculosis at the inn during the mid-1800s, is the hotel's most famous ghost. She's known for smashing glasses when displeased with changes to the hotel, hiding guests' belongings, and tugging at clothing. Her portrait hangs in what was once her room (now part of the restaurant) as a 'peace offering' installed in the 1980s. The Smoking Cavalier, whose presence is heralded by the distinctive aroma of expensive cigar or pipe tobacco, appears as either a 17th-century Cavalier or Georgian gentleman - possibly the spirit of Richard Trevithick, who died at the inn in 1833. Sightings increased during 1960s modernisation work. The Phantom Black Dog provides a benevolent presence, described as 'helpfully warming the feet of guests' and brushing against their legs in corridors, representing the friendly coaching inn dogs of earlier eras.
Known Ghosts:
Winifred (Child Spirit, Poltergeist), Cigar-smoking Cavalier/Gentleman (Apparition), Phantom Black Dog (Apparition).
Winifred’s story is central to the hotel's ghost lore. A portrait, purportedly of her, hangs in the hotel as a memorial. Staff claim her spirit can be 'peevish' and will smash glasses if she doesn't get her way. During a recent refurbishment, numerous glasses inexplicably shattered in the bar, an event attributed to Winifred’s displeasure. Guests have reported hearing childish giggles one moment and wails the next, especially from empty corners of the dining room. Winifred’s ghost is also said to playfully tug at ladies' skirts or move small belongings, like hiding keys. In addition to Winifred, a cigar-smoking Cavalier apparition is occasionally smelled before being seen – the distinct scent of cigar smoke drifting through hallways where smoking is banned. A few guests have glimpsed a man in 17th-century attire in their peripheral vision. Lastly, there's the phantom black dog, a ghostly canine that brushes against people's legs or is felt jumping onto the foot of a bed, providing a momentary, ghostly warm weight. Some connect this dog to an old inn legend of a faithful hound that died awaiting its master.
