John Rylands Library, Manchester

The John Rylands Library on Deansgate, a neo-Gothic masterpiece built by Enriqueta Rylands in memory of her husband, is said to harbour a ghostly presence. Staff have reported footsteps echoing through the galleries, doors slamming shut, and unseen hands tugging at clothing or resting on shoulders. A silent female figure has been seen in both the upper gallery and the basement. Visitors’ bags have even swung on their own, and the apparition once seemed to warn of danger when an elderly woman fell on the staircase. Sightings continued until the late 1990s.