With a dark history stretching back nearly 1000 years, Oxford Castle is a terrifying location, even for the most hardened investigators.

Regarded by many as of the most haunted buildings in the UK, Oxford Castle has had its share of dark and ominous history stretching back almost 1000 years. People have been put to death here, and it’s served as a royal residence for a time and a county jail.

A ghost hunt at this foreboding location in the dead of night will test your nerves to the limit.

With almost an entire millennia of history, it’s little wonder many spirits have been witnessed here.

Perhaps the most terrifying report comes from one of the security guards on his nightly patrol. The security guards have long been very wary of the location and have experienced several things before, such as unexplained sounds, bangs, and the usual phenomena.

However, one night, one of the guards was coming to the end of his patrol when his dog stopped and shuffled quickly backwards, growling at something in front of him.

It was then two large shadow figures appeared before him. As anyone would do, he ran as fast as he could in the opposite direction. A few days later, his dog died suddenly, believing he had been frightened to death!

Other reports include:

• The ghostly figure of a woman has been seen walking the Castle Mound. The murderer Mary Blandy was executed at the castle in 1752, and it’s her ghost that people have believed to have seen in the area where she would have been hanged.
• Sometime in the 1970s, a group carried out a seance in one of the cells when poltergeist activity suddenly erupted. Things got so bad that a priest had to be called to exorcise whatever they had awoken.
• A white mist has often been reported rising a flight of stairs only to disappear once it reaches the top.
• Disembodied footsteps are often heard around the prison wing corridor.

This Norman Medieval Castle on the west edge of Oxford is believed to have been built shortly after the Norman Conquest of England in 1066.

Originally the castle was a moated wooden motte and bailey castle built to dominate the town, which had taken considerable damage during the Norman Conquest. It was replaced with stone towards the end of the 11th century and later an integral part of the conflict of the Anarchy.

During the 14th century, the castle lost its value as a military stronghold and became the location for all county administration dealings and detaining prisoners.

A vast majority of the castle was damaged during the English Civil War. Later, in the 18th century, the castle was again used to detain prisoners, but this time prisoners were only local, not from across the county.

In 1785 a new prison complex was built on the castle’s grounds, which was expanded upon in 1876 and later became HM Prison Oxford. The prison was closed in 1996 and was later redeveloped as a hotel, now known as Malmaison Oxford.

On a ghost hunt at Oxford Castle, you will participate in a host of group vigils and experiments as we try to make contact with the active spirits attached to this historic building.

You will join our friendly, experienced team taking part in various experiments and seances and have complete access to our range of paranormal equipment throughout the evening.

We keep our groups small, so you have a much more personable experience, with little chance of being interrupted by other groups or suffering noise contamination.

Your evening at Oxford Castle is a real paranormal investigation. We leave out the fluff, we do not have actors, and we don’t fake activity.

Do you have what it takes to participate in a lone vigil in the dungeons?

Our team can’t wait to welcome you to this incredible location and to share a night of ghost hunting that you’ll remember forever.

Spots will fill up quickly for this one, so hurry and book now!

Deposits are available for just £20.

What's Included

For just £75 per person you’ll enjoy the following:

• Entire night investigating with the Haunted Rooms team,
• Group Vigils
• Lone Vigils
• Séance
• Use of Paranormal Equipment
• Psychic Medium (*We strive to have them at every event, however, availability isn’t always guaranteed),
• Snacks and Hot and Cold Drinks are Included,

Access & Parking

Event Location: 44-46 Oxford Castle, Oxford OX1 1AY

Time: 10:00 PM – 3:00 AM (Arrive from earliest 9:45 PM)

Parking: Street parking and local car parks. There are several pay and display car parks nearby. The closest would be Worcester Street. It’s priced at £4.00-£4.50 from 8pm – 8am.

Accessibility: Unfortunately, due to the historic nature of the venue, the location is not suitable for those with mobility issues.

Please Note: All guests must be 18 years or older. Not suitable for those who are heavily pregnant. Guests are strongly advised to wear comfortable shoes and warm layered clothing on colder nights.

What to Bring

You’re welcome to bring your own equipment, though we will be providing paranormal equipment to use.

The investigation will be in darkness so please bring a torch with you.

Although snacks and drinks are provided, you’re welcome to bring your own. There are also facilities to make both hot and cold drinks, which are provided also.

And of course, bring your phone/camera with you, the more pictures we have the better chance we have of capturing something!

Other than that, just yourself and an open mind!

What to Expect

On your ghost hunt with Haunted Rooms, you will have full exclusive access to the most haunted areas of this historic location. Together with our friendly team of investigators, you will join others on structured vigils, where you’ll have the chance to use some paranormal equipment and join in on group vigils such as Ouija board sessions and seance.

Our event starts at 10.00 pm, but you can arrive at the earliest 9.45 pm. Structured investigations will end around 2 am. At this point, you will have the opportunity to investigate this location on your own using the techniques and information you have been provided with.

You will have the chance to look around the building before the event to familiarise yourself with its layout. Shortly before the event kicks off, we’ll run you through a quick induction and safety briefing, followed by a short talk and introduction from our team. You’ll then split into smaller groups with your family and/or friends if you’ve come together, and we’ll begin our vigils for the night!

If you have your own paranormal equipment, we encourage you to bring it, if not, we can provide them free of charge. Snacks, refreshments, and treats will be provided at intervals throughout the night, and we’ll have facilities to make hot and cold drinks too.

We do endeavour to have mediums and sensitives with us for every event, although circumstances out of our control can sometimes prevent this. Anybody with sensitive abilities, we encourage you to come forward, as it only increases the energy and enjoyment for all in attendance.

To get the most from the evening, we encourage you to try your hand at as many things as you can. If you’re feeling particularly brave, you should give a lone vigil a try, as well as join in with our table tipping experiments as we try to commune with the spirits and ghosts of the building.

Please dress weather appropriately, with extra layers of clothing if it’s cold, plus comfortable shoes and a torch if you need one.