Spooky tales about the London Underground Inspired my Entry, Dotty’s Duty, for Twisted50 Book 4

The inspiration for my entry into the Twisted50 book four, came from a conversation I had a year or two ago, with a friend from a local writing group. She told me that she planned to travel to London with her partner on Halloween, to visit the stations that were reputed to be haunted on the underground.

 I’ve always been fascinated by the supernatural, and I subsequently sprang into investigative action. I discovered that there are quite a few documentaries about ghostly sightings on the London tube, as well as books written about the subject. I found out that at least 11 stations are reputed to be haunted, including Covent Garden, South Kensington, Farringdon, Liverpool Street, Kennington Loop, Bank, Bethnal Green, Elephant & Castle, King’s Cross, British Museum (an abandoned station), and Aldgate. Some of the stations have been built on top of cemeteries, so this is not at all surprising.

One of the spookiest sections of the underground network is rumoured to be the Kennington Loop. This is a stretch of the Northern Line that loops back onto itself, allowing trains to turn around. Numerous stories have emerged from drivers and guards while their trains have been sitting in the loop, of doors opening by themselves, and inexplicable noises, giving this area an eerie reputation.

Aldgate East is reputed to be the most haunted station, and it is rumoured that it was built on top of an old plague pit full of bodies. There have been reports of overnight staff hearing phantom footsteps, and seeing ghostly apparitions of people dressed in rags.

It was during my visit to London in February 2025, on the way to the Twisted50 Awards Ceremony at the Phoenix Arts Centre, that I discussed these supernatural stories with a taxi driver. He was equally intrigued by them, and told me that he intended to find out more about this topic.

My entry for Twisted50 Book four, Back from the Dead, Dotty’s Duty, although entirely fictional, was inspired by research into stories of the haunted London Tube, which I find both chilling, and interesting. Perhaps the dead really do return to that great labyrinth of tunnels under the city of London?