Lancaster Castle

This was the highlight of our lovely weekend away to Lancaster. The tour guide was exceptionally knowledgeable and had everyone totally absorbed with his historical tales. My wife really enjoyed hearing about the Pendle witches and how it was basically a misunderstanding which turned in to a political move. She is currently engrossed in a book now all about the witches, so i'm sure i will be hearing all about it. I found the conditions that they kept people prisoner in many years previously to be the most incredible part of the tour. It really is a great insight into history, with lots of things to look at and enjoy.

What a brilliant, informative tour.

The castle itself is incredibly interesting, with different parts of it relating to different parts of history, and the guide who took us round clearly loved his job, loved history, and loved Lancaster castle. Because of his own fascination with the castle, it just totally hooked us in – we all loved it.

I particularly enjoyed the little bits of information about the Pendle Witches (being a Wiccan myself I love that kind of stuff), and all of us loved being shut in the cells of the dungeon! Sure we saw something……

Great tour, and not just for history buffs – a genuinely fascinating insight into one of Lancaster’s most iconic landmarks.

Apparently this is the world’s oldest working prison. It was a bit strange to be walking around right next door to the prison. It is just a pity that we couldn’t see into that part of the building. The Guide who showed us around was very knowledgable and made the tour very entertaining. The thought of being locked in the old cells is terrifying. Some Americans on our tour reckoned that their ancestors had actually been imprisoned here - fascinating The hang man’s room was also very eerie. Entering the Crown Court was really interesting and hearing the sort of cases which were tried here and still are. It is definitely worth a visit. We visited on a wet Sunday as there was nothing else to do but I thoroughly enjoyed it. There is a small gift shop but not much in it.

True tales of witchcraft, murder, madness and ‘justice’ await you within the wall of the UK’s oldest working prison.

The castle became a prison in 1196, and still houses male prisoners to this day, although of course, the guided tour does not take you in to the parts of the building which are still a working prison, which is a shame as some of the most interesting rooms in the stories you will hear, including the dungeons, are within the walls.

Nevertheless, a guided tour of the castle is a great experience, for everyone. The tour guides are some of the most knowledgeable I have ever come across, painting vivid pictures of the horror and suffereing endured by so many within the walls.

The most fascinating story for me is of the Pendle Witch Trials, but throughout the tour the guide recounts tales from the inception of the prison, right up to recent famous trials which were heard in the Crown Court.

The ‘Drop Room’ and ‘Old Cells’ are also fascinating, and being locked in the pitch black cells the first time scared me so much I accidentally grabbed on to a strange man’s hand for comfort instead of my boyfriend! Interesting experience!

The castle welcomes touring music and theatre events throughout the year, but if you like ghost stories, book onto the Hallowe’en ghost tours. They are terrifying and book up really fast!