Diss in Norfolk has ghostly inns, strange tales surrounding its ancient mere and a close connection to the famous Scole Experiment. Here are five haunted places in Diss you won’t want to miss
Diss sits close to the Norfolk-Suffolk border, a handsome old market town built around its famous mere. Its medieval church, old inns and historic streets have also accumulated their share of ghost stories and local legends.
Just a few miles away is Scole, home to both a reputedly haunted coaching inn and the Scole Experiment, one of the most controversial investigations into physical mediumship of modern times.
Here are five haunted places to visit in and around Diss.
The Scole Inn
Norwich Road, Scole, Diss, Norfolk IP21 4DR
A couple of miles south of Diss stands the historic Scole Inn, one of the best-known haunted inns in this part of East Anglia.
Its most famous ghost is the White Lady, said to be the spirit of a young woman murdered by her jealous husband. Guests and staff have reported seeing a woman in white moving through the corridors before disappearing.
Other stories associated with the inn include unexplained footsteps, doors apparently slamming by themselves, sudden cold spots and voices heard when nobody is there.
The Scole Inn has appeared in ghost books and attracted paranormal investigators over the years, making it an obvious first stop on a haunted tour of the Diss area.
Diss Mere
Mere Street, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4AD
Diss Mere covers around six acres and is one of the town’s defining features. It has also inspired strange stories for generations.
Local folklore tells of mysterious lights seen moving across the water, particularly on misty evenings, and shadowy figures glimpsed around the shoreline before disappearing.
Older tales claimed the mere was bottomless. It isn’t, but with its unusually deep water and long history, it is easy to see how the story arose.
Today the mere sits right in the centre of Diss, surrounded by shops, streets and houses, but its old legends remain part of the town’s folklore.
St Mary’s Church
Church Street, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4DD
St Mary’s Church has stood above the centre of Diss for centuries, although much of the present building dates from the 14th and 15th centuries.
Ghost stories attached to the church include unexplained lights, fleeting figures and footsteps reportedly heard when nobody else appears to be inside.
The churchyard has its own atmosphere, with old gravestones surrounding a building that has witnessed generations of baptisms, marriages and funerals.
Whatever the explanation for the stories, St Mary’s is one of the oldest surviving buildings in Diss and an essential stop when exploring the historic centre.
The Greyhound Hotel
9 St Nicholas Street, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4LB
The Greyhound is one of Diss’s old coaching inns and has stood in the historic centre for centuries. Tradition even links an earlier inn on the site with a visit by King James I.
Not surprisingly for a building of its age, the Greyhound has also acquired ghost stories.
Accounts include unexplained noises, uneasy sensations and shadowy figures reportedly glimpsed in the older parts of the building. Its hauntings may not be as famous as those of the Scole Inn, but the Greyhound has earned a place among Diss’s local ghost lore.
Fair Green
Fair Green, Diss, Norfolk IP22 4HL
Fair Green has been part of Diss life for centuries and is surrounded by some of the town’s older buildings.
Over the years, stories have circulated of ghostly figures seen crossing the green after dark and footsteps heard when nobody is nearby. Some accounts describe figures appearing briefly before seemingly vanishing.
These stories are difficult to pin down and belong more to local oral tradition than documented paranormal investigation. But after centuries of markets, travellers, residents and visitors passing through Fair Green, it has inevitably gathered a few ghosts along the way.
Bonus: The Scole Experiment
Scole, near Diss – private property and not open to visitors
No account of the paranormal history of the Diss area would be complete without the Scole Experiment.
Between 1993 and 1998, a small group of physical mediums known as the Scole Group held séances at a private house in the nearby village of Scole.
They reported extraordinary phenomena including unexplained lights, voices, photographs, objects apparently appearing from nowhere and other manifestations.
The experiments attracted considerable attention from psychical researchers. Investigators connected with the Society for Psychical Research attended sessions, and the resulting claims continue to be debated.
Supporters regard Scole as important evidence for physical mediumship. Critics have questioned the experimental controls and whether the conditions were sufficient to rule out more conventional explanations.
The property where the sessions took place is a private home and should not be visited. The Scole Experiment itself, however, remains one of the most famous episodes in modern British psychical research.
Read more about The Scole Experiment on Spooky Isles.
Visiting Diss
Diss is compact enough to explore on foot, with the mere, St Mary’s Church, Fair Green and the historic town centre all close together.
Scole is a couple of miles away, so the Scole Inn can easily be added to the same trip. Between the old inns, churchyard, stories surrounding the mere and the extraordinary claims made at Scole, there is plenty here for anyone interested in the ghosts and paranormal history of Norfolk.
