I first heard about the Colchester Ghost Walk from a friend who attended a short taster session and really enjoyed it so I recommended it to the Dancing Giraffe Team for our Christmas jolly. The team seemed suitably impressed so I approached Derek Wray, ‘The Colchester Story Teller’ and told him we had heard about his tours and were looking for something different to do. I explained that we would have certain access requirements as a group. Derek was not at all fazed by this and would build a walk to suit us so we confirmed the evening of Friday 6th January.

The week running up to our event was filled with rain, hailstones and gale-force winds. However, by Friday they had blown themselves out and we faced a dry if somewhat bitter evening. We met up at the George Hotel, High Street for a drink at 6.30pm and found that Derek was there waiting for us. He immediately looked the part in a splendid costume which included a top hat, waistcoat and pocket-watch and was very exuberant in his manner. He put everybody at ease and explained how the night would pan out. We started promptly at 7pm with a story about the George Hotel and then crossed the High Street to the Red Lion Hotel - the home of some very ghostly goings on and Derek had plenty of spooky tales to tell. I was particularly impressed that he knew a great deal about the history of the building and buildings in Colchester town centre, even about the way that they had been built and restored. He opened my eyes to many things that I haven’t noticed before even though most of my life has been spent living in Colchester.

We then moved across town to just outside the Roman Wall where Derek explained that we were now in the brothel and bordello district with its colourful characters. Next we moved up to Scheregate Steps where we heard about some ghoulish events and finished off at Headgate, so named because it was the main entrance into medieval Colchester. It was, by this time, getting very chilly so Derek suggested that we have our last few stories in warmth and comfort in one of the oldest drinking establishments in Colchester that has changed its name frequently but is now known as The Fox and Fiddler on St. John’s Street. This had been the favourite haunt of thieves and cut-throats for centuries. I was also impressed because Derek didn’t seem to mind us asking questions and was honest (and creative) if he didn’t know the answers. Derek was true to his word and got us to our restaurant venue as arranged for 9pm so that we could finish our evening off with a lovely Italian dinner. I have had some very good feedback about the entire evening and would recommend it to anyone by suggesting that they looked at Derek’s website.

Cost - £7.50/Head