Ghosts, Myths and Oddities of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

Jonathan Farley gathers reported hauntings, local legends and historical oddities associated with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, drawing on accounts from staff, visitors and archival material. The collection ranges beyond familiar ghost stories to include folklore linked with the gardens’ buildings, paths and wooded areas.

Among the tales are a phantom carriage said to have thundered through Kew during the 19th century, an aeroplane heard overhead when fog settles on the Broad Walk, and a black dog reportedly seen along Holly Walk. Farley also recounts stories of Elizabethan boots walking without a visible wearer, the child-protecting Fairy Mimosa, phantom highwaymen near Brentford Eyot and other traditions attached to Kew’s historic landscape.