Lizzie O’Farrell’s (formerly The Castle Bar) is reputedly haunted by the ghost of a young woman that was hired out as a prostitute against her will many, many years ago.

The story recounts that she was actually hired as a servant in the busy tavern, but the owner had a sideline business – he was running a brothel upstairs, a place for visiting sailors to avail of female company while in port.

The servant girl reportedly caught the eye of one of the sailors. Money was handed over to the landlord and without her knowing anything of the transaction or the man’s intention, the young woman was locked in a room to await the sailor’s arrival. When the sailor arrived and made his advance, the young woman resisted and started to scream. Desperate to silence her, the drunken man struck her with a lamp rendering her unconscious. The panicked landlord rushed to the room and hid the woman in a cupboard before facilitating the sailor’s departure on the next boat out. When he returned, he retrieved the now lifeless body from the cupboard and buried it beneath the floorboards. The other ladies were suspicious, and asked about the screaming they had heard but were fobbed off. However, when mysterious noises were heard emanating from the empty room, they began to leave.

The tavern was eventually sold. The new owner had heard rumours of what had taken place there and decided to investigate. When he ripped up the floorboards, he surely discovered the young woman’s body. A Christian burial was arranged but it would appear that this did not give her soul peace.

The ghost of a young woman in period clothing has been spotted in that room and on the stairs on a few occasions over the years. Staff working at the pub have heard a sad woman sighing in the space, while another encountered an intense cold feeling followed by the sensation of cold arms being wrapped around him in the room. Needless to say, he left.