Gatekeepers Paranormal invite you to join us at one of the UK's most haunted hotels.

The full price is £45pp

THIS HELM TICKET IS YOUR £20 DEPOSIT (+£1.80 BOOKING FEE). THE REMAINING BALANCE IS DUE EITHER BEFORE, OR ON THE NIGHT ITSELF

(£25 of this payment will be donated to the mental health awareness charity - MIND. The remaining £20 is a negotiated, reduced location fee).

The Ghosts of The Leopard Inn

Watch out for flying glasses! As these have been reported by many. A tall sinister man is said to roam the now decrepit corridors, perhaps searching for his next victim. For this man with his goatee beard and sideburns was in life a known murderer of woman, and was known to of carried out his crimes within this very building. The spirits of the Leopards former owners are said to be seen moving between rooms, both Mary and James Norris are said to remain at their once proud establishment. James is particularly known to be uppity and likes to show you his position of power.

Local legend tells of a local Witch named Molly Leigh, who kept a pet black bird on her shoulder for company. Poor Molly was blamed for many of the villager’s troubles and was often taunted for her ugly appearance. Molly frequented this establishment until her death in 1746, and was buried in Burslem churchyard, but there were claims that her ghost haunted the town, including the Leopard Inn. Rev Spencer—exhumed her body, opened the coffin, and threw in the still-living blackbird that had been her companion and said to of been continuing the town’s curse at her call, even after her death. They then reburied Molly in a north to south direction, at a right angle to all the other graves in the churchyard. Is Molly the spirit of the ugly woman named “Margaret” said to still haunted the cellars of the Leopard Inn, seen to be minus her legs?

People have reported violent encounters in the abandoned rooms of the Leopard, where it is said they to of been held tightly against walls by unseen hands at their throats, a threatening action that will be sure to see you leaving in a hurry.

Legend also tells of two underground rivers that cross below the Leopard, a spot where many have come and made a pact with the devil! Children have also been seen in the cellars, perhaps from one of the local workhouses coming to wash their clothes in these streams.

The History of The Leopard Inn

Once known as the “Ritz of the North” The Leopard Hotel as it was known lost its reputation of grandeur and become more of a den of iniquity, teeming with un-savoury characters and scoundrels, calling upon the services of ladies of the night. Murder, torment, this location bared witness to it all.

The Leopard Inn started life in around 1640, when a couple of cottages where knocked together to make one larger structure. In 1765, Helen Wedgwood turned the Leopard into a public house - one of many in the town.

Since then It has had many different owners and began its decline in the 1800’s until a new owner Mary took over. It was then sold on again in 1872 to the very rich James Norris. In 1878 he extended the pub to include a hotel, consisting of 57 bedrooms. Under James the hotel had a wonderful reputation not only as a hotel but also a place to do business by many of the towns local entrepreneurs of the day, including James Brindley and Josiah Wedgwood. It continued to pass on to different owners and the hotel declined rapidly, becoming a hotel of disrepute, were you would only visit if you were in desperate need of a bed.

The hotel part ceased operation in 1956 and was sealed off and forgotten. In 2007 a landlord discovered the blocked off hotel rooms with plans to restore them, but these plans never came to pass and so these room lie in ruin an ill-loved.