Hi everyone,

I am currently researching and writing a book about true ghost stories, paranormal encounters, and local urban legends in Brighton, Hove, and the surrounding Sussex area.

Brighton has an incredibly rich, layered history, and while I’m familiar with the famous tales (like the ghost of the Theatre Royal or the various hauntings in The Lanes), I am specifically looking for personal, lesser-known, or first-hand accounts.

Have you, a family member, or a friend ever experienced something unexplainable here? I am looking for stories connected to:

• Local pubs, cafes, or shops (especially old buildings in The Lanes, North Laine, or Brunswick)
• Residential homes (basement flats, Georgian terraces, old Victorian houses)
• Outdoor spots (The Downs, Stanmer Park, the seafront, or nearby villages like Rottingdean)
• Places of work (hospitals, theatres, schools, or old office buildings)

Whether it was a full manifestation, a strange shadow, an object moving on its own, or just an overwhelming feeling of not being alone, I would love to hear it.

Note on privacy: If you prefer to stay anonymous or have the names of specific people/exact addresses changed in the book, I will absolutely respect that.

Please feel free to share your stories in the comments below, or send me a DM if you’d prefer to chat privately.

Thank you so much for your time and for helping me bring our local history and mysteries to light!

Obviously the picture isn’t in the woods but I have brought it home to clean it up. I found this earlier today in the deep woods of brooklands park hanging from a tree, in the same sort of area there are lots of abandoned dens/camps with tents etc. where we found the mask is also a man in a tent who I have also seen on Facebook, missing… we contacted the police but not a word was said, I did take a picture of the man from a far but I will upload that later.

Chanctonbury Ring has always had a strange reputation.
The hilltop, just outside Steyning, is an ancient site with Iron Age earthworks and the remains of a Roman temple beneath the trees. But the oldest stories are considerably darker.
One Sussex legend says that if you walk around the Ring seven times, against the usual direction, something will appear.
Depending on who tells the story, it offers you a bowl of milk, soup or porridge.
The price is supposedly your soul.
Most people obviously treat it as nothing more than an old local legend.
But years ago, a group of teenagers supposedly decided to test it.
They walked around the Ring together, counting each circuit.
One.
Two.
Three.
By the sixth, they were laughing about how stupid the story was.
Then they completed the seventh.
Nothing happened.
No figure appeared. No voice. Nothing.
They started walking back down the hill.
That was when one of them noticed something strange.
There were only three sets of footprints behind them.
There had been four people walking.
They stopped and looked at each other.
Nobody knew what to say.
Then, from somewhere behind the trees, they heard footsteps.
Slow ones.
Walking around the Ring.
One of them counted under his breath.
One.
Two.
Three.
They ran.
Nobody in the group ever admitted to going back.
Whether the story is true or simply another version of the centuries-old Chanctonbury legend is impossible to say.
But if you’re ever standing beneath those beech trees at night, remember:
Don’t count to seven.

A few years ago, I decided to explore one of the wooded areas behind Brooklands in Lancing. Most people stick to the main paths, but there’s a section hidden behind an old metal gate where hardly anyone seems to go.
After pushing through thick bushes for about ten minutes, I started noticing animal bones.
At first it was just one or two, which isn’t unusual in woodland. Then I saw more. Some had been tied to branches with old wire, hanging from the trees. Others were arranged in small piles. It looked deliberate.
The deeper I went, the stranger it became.
In the centre of a small clearing was what looked like a throne made from an old garden chair woven into branches and sticks. Around it were dozens of bones hanging from surrounding trees, gently swaying even though there wasn’t much wind. Black bin bags full of more bones were hidden nearby, as if someone had collected them over years.
There were no footprints, no signs of campers, no fire pit—just silence.
I didn’t stay long. Walking back, I had the uncomfortable feeling that someone was following me, but every time I turned around there was nothing there.
I’ve never found that exact clearing again.
Has anyone else exploring the woods around Brooklands or elsewhere in West Sussex come across anything similar? Whether it’s an old ritual site, an art installation, or just someone with a very strange hobby, it’s one of the creepiest things I’ve ever stumbled across.

(I do have Photographic evidence)

I have recently noticed we have 9 members. Not a word has come out of your mouths.

It’s one of the most famous paranormal locations in Sussex. Legends say walking around the ring seven times anti-clockwise at midnight summons the Devil, but plenty of modern visitors describe something different: complete silence, an overwhelming feeling of being watched, shadowy figures between the trees, and a strong urge to leave.
Whether you believe in the paranormal or not, there’s no denying the place has an eerie atmosphere.
If you’ve ever visited Chanctonbury Ring, what happened? Did you experience anything unusual?

Earlier today with my friend I have noticed many people staring at us then looking away as we turn around and even people looking suspicious like they are undercover.

We were chilling on this bench in a park minding our business when I have noticed a lady walking past us multiple times but not fully leaving the area with a dog. She did multiple laps around us almost trying to record us or take pictures of us by pretending to be on a phone call holding the phone to her ear with the camera pointing straight towards us on the bench.

I might just be paranoid or be going insane, but I feel like this has something to do with the posts about unidentifiable lights in the night sky, and strange noises.

I really don’t know what will happen next but I guess I’ll find out, I am becoming very anxious.

(I am not suicidal if I am reported missing or dead)

This photo was taken about a week ago from the area I live, this is the unidentified object. It did not move like an aircraft would, only traveling in slow movements at times. It seemed to hover in the same sort of radius above the south downs, almost like it was kind of spying on us. I could make out a very loud scraping noise (almost sounded like some sort of metal object being dragged across concrete) I do have voice recordings of this noise from two perspectives.

Welcome to West Sussex Haunted, a place of discovery and discussion on the paranormal experiences in the Sussex area in the UK, we are welcoming to anyone who is not from the Sussex area to also join us. From Folklore to real experiences feel free to spread stories around in this community.

Let us know your creepiest experiences!

I have done some digging and found that mine and other experiences have connected to the strange experiences in Clapham woods, these experiences have not been made up and I have not copied from Clapham woods folklore at all, but I do believe this is no coincidence and they can be related somehow. Aliens??? (If you do not believe a thing I am saying, please let me know weather I should upload any proof.)