MARGAM CASTLE

DORSET PARANORMAL

MARGAM CASTLE

Margam Castle is a Tudor Gothic mansion which was built between 1830 and 1840. It is a Grade I listed building of exceptional quality mostly due to its outstanding features such as the grand stone staircase and the exquisite gothic architecture. This amazing building was built by Christopher Rice Mansel Talbot as a replacement for the previous Margam Mansion which was demolished by Thomas Mansel Talbot somewhere between 1786 – 1793.

The Castle was inhabited until it was bought from the Talbot family in 1941 by a three man syndicate, from there it was offered to various organisations but sadly due to the predicted cost of expensive adaptations these offers where declined. This resulted in Margam falling into a gradual state of decay helped along over the years by thieves, vandals and variable weather conditions.

In August 1977 a great fire swept through the remains of Margam Castle, causing untold damage to an already unloved building. The structure was severely damaged and despite a massive restoration project some areas of the Castle remain unsafe to this day. The main areas that have been refurbished are the north wing and outbuildings. Further work took place to the entrance hall and great staircase which has been open to the public since the spring of 1992.

In 1995 following work to the South and West Wings and the completion of the final phase of the re-roofing and structural repairs, the Castle could at last be seen as watertight. On the 1st March 1996 a service was held by the Bishop of Llandaff to commemorate the restoration work to date, and a plaque unveiled on the half-landing of the great staircase.

Ghosts of Margam Castle

The Gothic architecture of Margam Castle certainly gives it a spooky look which matches its haunted reputation. Robert Scott has been identified as possibly being one of the ghosts that haunt Margam. Scott was a gamekeeper that worked on the estate and was killed by a poacher. He is supposed to haunt the grounds of Margam and has been reputedly seen on the main staircase leading to the house. Some of the estate workers are also supposed to have seen the ghost of a blacksmith in the grounds and the sound of somebody running has been heard.

Within the house itself the sounds of giggling children have been heard in the corridors and some of the rooms. Apparitions of children in Victorian clothing have supposedly been seen going in and out of some of the room doorways.

OUR VISIT

On arrival to Margam Castle in Port Talbot you are greeted to a mass of splendid grounds which are well maintained to a high standard , as you drive up the long driveway you slowly catch the sight of a gothic like mansion which is of course Margam Castle .We arrived at dusk and were greeted to Deers grazing in the open fields of the grounds

We were given a tour at first of the mansion ,some of Margam you are unable to enter but even so there are plenty of rooms available to investigate , there have been many stories and accounts of paranormal activity Most Haunted have also visited and reported activity .

I have to say that for me the evening was very quiet in terms of activity , during the night many of the group were involved in table tipping and ouji board which did seem to get some positive results but for me the most interesting part of the evening was the time I spent on the great staircase.

At approx 1 am , I was standing on my own at the top of the staircase taking photo's with my camera , I began to walk down the stairs , as I got halfway down I heard a gasp in my ear just as if someone was shocked or struggling for breath , I immediately took a photo of where I thought the noise was coming from. I mentioned what I had heard to one other person and then put it to the back of mind .

Later on in the investigation the whole group and our medium met at the staircase to try and use our collective energy to try and connect with any spirits that may have been willing to make contact with us .After a short time our medium apparently connected with a man , it seemed that the spirit had been involved in a struggle at the top of the stairs , many years ago a lady had fallen from the top of the stairs and over the rail during an altercation with this spirit and was killed , did this lady accidently fall ? or maybe she was pushed ?

So does this explain the noise I had earlier heard on the stairs ? I guess I will never know but it certainly made this part of the evening the most interesting for me ,the fact I had no knowledge of Margam Castle before the night of the investigation and also not sharing what I had heard with the rest of the group until after the evening had closed has made this part of the evening a rather credible piece of paranormal activity.

(I have added my photo's of the staircase at Margam castle to the photos page )

Thank you to all at Margam Castle , I would love to investigate further , although next time I will not make the mistake of forgetting my flask of tea as refreshments were not available.