Ostrich Inn

42
High St
Colnbrook
Slough
Berkshire
SL3 0JZ

Tel: 01753 682628

History

The village of Colnbrook near Heathrow is home to one of the oldest pubs in Great Britain, The Ostrich Inn. The building dates back to the 15th century and stands on the site of an earlier Inn, in which King John is said to have quaffed ale on his way to sign the Magna Carta in 1215. It is believed to be the third oldest hostelry in England hiding a grisly past behind its white painted walls. Iis said the landlord, a gentleman by the name of Jarman, and his wife murdered 60 wealthy, lone guests in their most luxurious suite, the Blue Room. A tilting bed, when activated by a lever, would hurl sleeping travellers through a trap door while they were sleeping. There they would land into a cauldron of boiling liquid in the brewing room below, scalding and drowning them. After disposing of the bodies in a nearby river, the couple would remove the travellers' horses to fool people into thinking their guest had left during the night. Their dark deeds caught up with them when the horse of a guest called Thomas Cole was found wandering the village. A flimsy alibi was given by the Jarmans as reason for his disappearance and when his body was later found in the stream the Jarmans were arrested. They were both hanged for their crimes, and admitted murdering about 60 people. The local stream Coln brook is said to have been named after 'Cole in the brook'.

Paranormal Activity

There have been recent reports of poltergeist activity at the inn such as wooden shutters moving by themselves and strange noises. A black figure has been seen as well as a woman in full Victorian dress standing in the ladies lavatory.

The Hobgoblin Public House

34 High Street
Maidenhead Berkshire

History

Paranormal Activity

The pub is associated with a poltergeist nicknamed Bob, he makes his presence felt by phantom footsteps.