Given its well-lit interior and cozy wood-panelled walls, guests might be surprised to learn that The Spaniards Inn is home to a whopping four ghosts: three human, one horse.
As the staff explained, the Inn was once run by the father of famed highwayman Dick Turpin, who spent much of his time here scoping out (and robbing) passing coaches. His ghost now haunts the upstairs rooms and his horse, Black Bess, is the one that's said to clank around the car park at odd hours. The second ghost is also named Dick (Black Dick, to be specific) — who, in an unfortunate twist of fate, was allegedly run over and killed by a horse outside the pub. And finally, the ghost of Juan Porero: he and his brother Francesco owned the Inn for a time as well, and after falling in love with the same woman, decided to settle matters with a duel. Juan was killed in the altercation, but has chosen to stick around, in ghost form, for several centuries.
As mentioned, the pub feels more homey than haunted, but I did notice some flickering lights in the rooms upstairs . . . Three out of five skulls for The Spaniards Inn.
The Spaniards Inn, Spaniards Road, Hampstead, London, Greater London, NW3 7JJ