TAKE a wrong turn down Corpse Road, Noose Lane and Coffin Close with the UK's spookiest Halloween road trip.
Britain is a land steeped in myth and superstition – and that's reflected in some of the foreboding street and road names dotted across the UK.
From Howling Lane, located near Alnwick, Northumberland, in the north, all the way down to Betty Haunt Lane on the southern shores of the Isle of Wight, these are locations to send a chill down the spine. And this list of the most haunting highways – compiled by leading automotive supplier Select Car Leasing - gives you the chance to drive a devilish route straight through the heart of them.
Company director Mark Tongue said: “Some of the road names listed here have very literal – and often frightening - meanings, dating back through history.
“Corpse Road in North Yorkshire gets its moniker from the fact that it used to serve as a path where dead bodies were transported from the remote local community to a nearby cemetery with official burying rights.
“According to local legend, Alnwick's 'Howling Lane' was a route in which deceased plague victims were carted, following a service at nearby St Thomas Farm Chapel, before being buried in a pit.
“Meanwhile other road names have more prosaic roots.
“Lincolnshire's Vampire Road isn't named after a blood sucking creature of the night – houses were built to service RAF personnel and 'Vampire' comes from the de Havilland Vampire jet planes stationed there.
“One thing's for certain, though, you probably wouldn't want to linger there too long... just in case!”
Here Mark and the selectcarleasing.co.uk team reveal their pick of the most blood-curdling destinations to punch into your sat nav.
Starting from the furthest north and leading ever further south, you could even turn the list into a terrifying weekend road trip:
Howling Lane, Alnwick, Northumberland - Located just west of historic Alnwick Castle. It was a route in which deceased plague victims were transported.
Headless Cross, Grange Over Sands, Cumbria - Simply means a 'Cross without a Head' and was also famously the name of the Black Sabbath album.
Corpse Road, Northallerton, North Yorkshire - Just east of the A1 road near Leeming Bar, which is also a notoriously haunted stretch of highway.
Skull House Lane, Appley Bridge, Lancs - Gets its name from a 'cursed skull' once housed in a cottage down the lane called known as Skull House. It’s said many locals tried to destroy this skull, only to suffer a terrible fate themselves…
Mortuary Road, Wallasey, Wirral – Once the location for a mortuary chapel, and no stranger to a cadaver.
Vampire Road – Manby, Lincs – Named after the 'Vampire' jets housed at a nearby RAF base.
Pain Lane, Old Leake, Lincs – According to the website Paranormal, Old Leake is the location for terrifying haunting, logged in 2004, in which the ghost of an 'airman in officer uniform' was seen staring at a homeowner.
Hell Lane, Sharlston, West Yorks – Hell Lane has an ominous name and is also something of an accident blackspot. In May this year a young BMW driver tragically died after losing control of his vehicle on his way to nearby Wakefield.
Ghost House Lane, Beeston, Notts – At the end of Ghost House Lane once sat an old cottage called the Ash Flat House – which was at the centre of a poltergeist flap in the early 1800s, in which a family were terrorised by terrible groans and objects moving of their own accord. The house was demolished in 1952.
Noose Lane, Willenhall, West Mids – Noose lane straddles the boundary between the parishes of Willenhall and Wednesfield. The mediaeval word 'Nese' means a 'projection' – and it's thought 'Noose' means that the area juts-out from one parish to the other.
Gallows Hill, Warwick – Throughout the 17th century, prisoners were routinely hanged outside Warwick Gaol, on Gallows Hill, Warwick.
Coffin close, Highworth, Wilts – Local rumours suggest a popular local baker was displayed in his coffin on this street, so that the community could come and pay their respects, before he was eventually buried.
Bleeding Heart Yard, Farringdon, London – The name is said to be a tribute to one Lady Elizabeth Hatton, who was murdered there in 1646 and 'torn limb from limb, but with her heart still pumping blood.'
Witches Lane, Sevenoaks, Kent – 'Witch' doesn't refer to an old hag with a pointy nose, but the wych-elm trees which are abundant nearby.
Reapers Close – Horshamm West Sussex – Not the home of the Grim Reaper, but likely linked to the 'reapers' who harvested fields with scythe.
Betty Haunt Lane, Newport, Isle of Wight – This road name is thought to refer to an innkeeper's duaghter, Betty, murdered by smugglers 200 years ago.
To avoid road-going nightmares, head to www.selectcarleasing.co.uk
