The Wright’s Arms on Marple Road in Offerton is one of Stockport’s oldest pubs, with records placing a building on the site as far back as the 16th century. It served coaches travelling the busy road through Offerton for several hundred years before becoming a neighbourhood local, and closed in 2010 after a long and eventful history.
The building acquired a reputation for haunting across several tenancies. When Robert and Mary Higginbotham took over in 1968, they began hearing tapping noises and footsteps through the building after closing, floorboards creaking in empty rooms, and doors opening and closing on their own. Their Alsatian dog, Meg, was notably affected, becoming quieter and more unsettled during the disturbances, and consistently refusing to go upstairs. Robert was sceptical but honest about it: “I do think there is something here, but I’d like to see it with my own eyes before I believe it.”
