COSTA SERVES UP A DOUBLE-CAPPUSCREAMO AT HAUNTED STORE

COSTA SERVES UP A DOUBLE-CAPPUSCREAMO AT HAUNTED STORE

• Costa store in Worcester haunted by ghost of wife and child of Royalist traitor, William Guise

• William Guise hanged by Royalists a day after informing the Parliamentarians of plot to overthrow Cromwell

• The cries of a woman and child can be heard throughout the store

A Costa coffee store in Worcester has called in a team of experts to look into the haunted happenings of their local store.

Staff at the store said that cups have flown off shelves and smashed in mid-air; mysterious shadows have appeared and many believe they have seen the ghost of a woman and child inside the 15^th Century building.

Spookily, the claims have been backed by historian, Anne Bradford. Bradford suggests that the building was originally a medieval merchant’s house, and had a reputation for being haunted: it is well known for housing the death mask of a famous traitor William Guise.

Guise, who posed as a Royalist, was said to have overheard a Parliamentarian plot to overthrow Oliver Cromwell. He passed this information to Cromwell and his troops during the battle of Worcester in 1651. As a result of this act of treachery, Guise was hanged from the sign of the Golden Cross Inn along Broad Street the next day – just a stone’s throw from where the store is located.

The team of spooked out baristas invited medium Julie Angel to the store last week to perform a reading at a special ghost hunting evening. Staff, customers, a former store manager and Anne Bradford also attended to discuss their eerie experiences.

Angel conducted her reading at the store before hearing the spooky tales of staff and customers before reaching her conclusion.

“There is a lot of spirit activity in the store, not only downstairs but upstairs as well,” she said.

“The main hot spots are by the windows at the front of the store where I feel a sense of running water, as well as the spirit of a woman with her child who have immense feelings of grief and bereavement. I imagine this woman and child are related to William Guise.

“Huge amount of spirit activity like this will often cause paranormal occurrences, explaining why the lighting and air-conditioning has been playing up – all without logical explanation.”

Customer Hayley Turner, a civil enforcement officer, said that she had seen the ghost of a woman in the store a few times whilst having coffee with her husband John: “I’m convinced the store is full of spirits – it does scare me but it’s kind of exciting too!”

Former barista Julie Hill said: “Several customers told me they had seen either a girl or a lady figure within the store. One evening one of the cups flew off the shelf in slow motion, and smashed mid-air, then all the pieces just fell to the ground.”

Dawn Brown, the former manager of the Worcester store was apprehensive to be back in the building at the event.

“So many weird things happened here when I was the store manager, from flying cups to the lights playing up and even hearing footsteps and seeing shadows when there wasn’t anyone there. The store used to petrify me at times”, she said.

Whilst the team may well be spooked by the events of recent years, Angel is now working to channel the spirits and help them on their journey back to the supernatural world.

To see footage from the evening, visit http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35-aLINIzB8&feature=youtu.be

To celebrate Halloween, Costa is launching a new drink, Hot Spiced Apple with Star Anise and Cinnamon Stick! For more Halloween inspired treats, try Costa’s Chocolate & Orange Mocha Latte or for a sweet treat enjoy a Patrick Pumpkin Gingerbread or a delicious slice of Chocolate & Orange Window Cake.

For more spooky goings on visit Facebook.com/CostaCoffee or join the conversation on Twitter with #HauntedCosta

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For media enquiries please contact: Costa Press Office on costapress@lexisagency.com or 0207 908 6509.