Historic event review: Hampton Court Palace ghost tours
Hampton Court Palace, East Molesey, Surrey, KT8 9AU
Hampton Court Palace – map
Tour date: Friday 10 January 2014
Review by: Alexa Williamson
Rating: **** (out of 5)
Nutshell review:
Hampton Court Palace as many know is one of the most famous buildings – and complex of buildings – in the UK. Originally built in 1529 for Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, but then, instead, occupied by King Henry VIII (plus Henry VIII’s wives including Anne Boleyn and Jane Seymour to name just a couple of them) and other royals to follow including Queen Mary (ie Bloody Mary) and William and Mary .
The ghost tour is approximately 1.5 hours long and is led by a tour guide in a period costume. On this tour that starts after dark you get to see the palace by torchlight and candlelight, which is fun, and also you hear many different stories – from the various centuries – about the different ghosts and hauntings that have happened at Hampton Court Palace. From ladies in white to a stopped clock in the courtyard to heavy fire doors blowing open with no explanation to a policeman, who at the beginning of the 20th century, saw many period-dressed figures parading up and down the front gardens. A lot has gone on here and still does! You will visit the chapel, wine cellars, various royal apartments and best of all you will get to walk, by yourself or with your friend, through thsilent, candlelit, haunted gallery – which is long and eerily charming at night. You then, finally, end up in King Henry VIII’s beautiful dining hall with ‘eavesdroppers’ carved into the ceiling. It is all amazing.
This is, generally, a fun tour and a good way to explore the palace at night. The content of this tour, unlike the Salacious Gossip tours, which took place during the ‘Secrets of the Bedchamber’ exhibition in 2013 is not as focussed and you are jumping around from century to century when you hear the stories. If not for the beauty of Henry VIII’s dining hall and the candlelit haunted gallery walk this tour would get only three stars at most. But, because the solo walk through the haunted hall and the dining room are so unique the tour gets a higher rating. At £27.50 this is an expensive evening out so, also, you’d expect a more well-focussed presentation for that money. Who ever wrote the ‘scripts’ shouldn’t have jumped around so frequently. To put things in a sequential historic order, like during the Salacious Gossip Tours would have been more enriching.
History and ghost lovers will still likely still love the evening. And yet despite everything, I am glad also that Hampton Court Palace wants to arrange such fun, out-of-hours events.
Further information:
Hampton Court Palace (official site)
The Glorious Georges – George I exhibition 2014 review (The London Reviewer)
Hampton Court Palace (Wikipedia)
The London Reviewer 