UNINVITED GUESTS

The Oldest hotel in Brighton is thought to be the Old Ship, its original structure, in what is now Ship Street, was said to have been built from ships’ timbers and was first mentioned in 1665.

The hotel has a rich and varied history, most notably for its one-time proprietor, Nicholas Tettersall, the Captain of a coal brig, who aided Charles II escape to France in October 1651.

Brighton grew in popularity, due mainly to the patronage of George, Prince of Wales, who first visited Brighton in 1783. When George became Prince Regent in 1811, his influence marked the beginning of a prosperous new era and Brighton began to grow in size and popularity amongst the upper classes, being seen as a fashionable place to be visit.

The Old Ship Hotel grew in size with the assembly rooms and ballroom being added in 1767. Further extensions to the building were carried out in 1794, and again in 1835. In its heyday many distinguished guests stayed at the hotel including, Charles Dickens, Henry Irvin, William Makepeace Thackeray, and even Winston Churchill. The famous Italian violin virtuoso, Niccolò Paganini, played at the venue in 1831.The prince himself seemed to harbour a great fondness for the hotel, frequently attending many of the dances and grand functions held there.

However, the hotel has also had it fair share of unwanted guests. Some years ago, a young chambermaid, while working in the west wing of the building, claimed she had witnessed two apparitions. On entering one of the bedrooms which she had believed to have been empty, was startled to see a man and woman sitting on the bed. Feeling somewhat embarrassed by her intrusion she hastily apologised, whereupon the two figures quickly faded away.

Other employees at the hotel have also experienced unexplained visitations. In 1986 a night porter was busily cleaning the stage area when he was startled to see a vague, misty figure glide, rather than walk, along the wall to his left. It appeared to take on human form, but he was unable to distinguish whether it had been that of a man or a woman.

A more disturbing apparition appeared to two other porters the following year. Both men were chatting in the main foyer when they became aware of strange mist emanate around the lower part of the stairs. The mist then began to billow to a height of some three feet. The men were then astounded to see the form of a small child appear from within the coiling vapour. The child looked bedraggled and forlorn and was softly weeping. Within a matter of seconds the curious mist faded and the pitiful apparition vanished.

A further unexplained incident occurred when the head porter was carrying out a night check of the ground floor. As he entered the dimly lit ballroom, and was making his way to the kitchen area, he felt a sudden hefty blow across his left shoulder. On turning around he found no one there or anything that could have caused the blow.

However, do not let my tale deter you from visiting this delightful, seafront hotel, with its many fascinating features, including its ancient cellars that now house a restaurant and wine bar.