Leeds

You can go on a midnight ghost hunt inside this haunted old Leeds hospital

Would you dare?

Georgina Pellant - 9th October 2023

Up in Harehills, Leeds is a haunted old hospital building that's attracted ghost hunters for years.

If you're fascinated by the ethereal and fancy hunting ghosts in the dead of night, this overnight ghost hunt at this old haunted Leeds hospital should be just the ticket.

Now home to the Thackray Medical Museum, its dark and murky history stretches back decades - with the building having also been a workhouse, an infirmary, and a museum in its 163-year history.

Reportedly one of Leeds' most haunted buildings, it's thought to be home to many trapped spirits.

First built in 1858, in the buildings' workhouse days over 700 people toiled away here in miserable conditions - surviving on little more than bread and gruel in the bleakest hours of the industrial revolution.

The set-up for the workhouse's residents was really closer to prison, with forced labour, meagre meals, and many heartbreaking stories told by residents with nowhere else to go - bringing much despair.

Later on, when needs had changed, the workhouse was discontinued and the building became an infirmary instead. In the early days of modern medicine, this often meant operations were conducted with no anesthetic, and as a result survival rates were often low for patients who came in for treatment.

It continued to be used as a hospital during the First World War, renamed to East Leeds War Hospital to recognise that staff here were looking after armed services personnel. Now, it's home to the Thackray Medical Museum.

By day, the museum reenacts Victorian life and educates on the development of medicine through history. But at night is when it really gets interesting.

Those who feel brave enough can now explore the terrifying Thackray Medical Museum in the dead of night, an imposing old Victorian workhouse that has a particularly grim and grisly history that spans centuries.

Ghost hunts run from 8 pm to 2 am, giving those fascinated with the spectral world the chance to see the building's eerie happenings in the flesh - so to speak.

Haunted Happenings, who organise the hunts, have warned that they're not for the faint-hearted and we're happy to take their word for it.

Given the building's history, we're sure a terrifying night is in store for those who dare attend.

"The Thackray Medical Museum in Leeds sits in the old Union Workhouse building designed to house nearly 800 of the poorest people, who worked their short lives in harsh and terrible conditions," say organisers.

"An overnight ghost hunt at The Thackray Medical Museum will no doubt reveal some of the many spirits that still reside here, in its many dark corridors and rooms."

Tickets are on sale now from £65, with dates available in October 2023, January 2024 and the option to sign up to the waitlist for future events too.

Find out more here.

Read more: You can go on a midnight ghost hunt inside the haunted Leeds City Museum

Feature image - Haunted Happenings