The Queens Arms
'Ghostly Soldiers'
This public Inn is a very odd looking pub to the passer by who is unaware of the history that lies behind it. The side of the pub looks older than the front, this is noticed straight away. With its black and white timbered structure and old small windows this part of the building looks like it is from a totally different date than the rest of the pub as the appearance from the front of the pub is completely different. The reason for this is very simple, the building was originally three separate buildings, the back end of the building was a separate pub called the Punch Bowl, the front part was The Queens Arms and next door to this pub was a very small one room fruiterer’s shop. Records show that in 1858 a WM. Smith was landlord of The Queens Arms and a J. Bullen was landlord of the Punch Bowl. The Queens Arms however offers more than an arm length of history and a pint to its visitor, the pub is also haunted and has quite a few ghost stories. The most known and most heard about story is when Roman soldiers were apparently seen marching through the pub, light anomalies have also been photographed in the bar area and other ghostly happenings take place in the cellar, at one time the cellar under the pub used to stretch all the way under to where Barclays bank now stands, this area by the bank was where on of the City’s gates were stood, hence the dip on one of the pavements near this spot.
Play
'Something spooky in the cellar
Play nightclub is situated on Blueschool street, the club has people in and out of its doors most days of the week and is a lively hot spot for Hereford people who are out on the town, so with this building being such a lively, busy and noisy venue it is easy to forget what this building was originally used for. In 1710 this building was built and was known as The Bluecoat School, this school was a popular school in Hereford and the demand by parents for their children to be placed in this school was so high that the school had to be enlarged in 1889. After the school was enlarged it could easily take 250 boys and 220 girls, at this point separate houses were also built and added on to the school to house the master and mistress. Records show that in 1879 a George Jackson Caldwell was master and a Mrs. Mary Ann Grove was the mistress. The school unfortunately was closed down in 1973 and since its closure it as been used as Bushwackers which was a restaurant by day and night club at night, now it is Play night club and sadly there is no longer any trace of the old school left, however there is something spooky certainly going on in the building when the music stops, the lights are off and when the doors are closed. A member of staff once told how she saw some sort of ghostly apparition in the cellar and other strange paranormal phenomena occurs in the bar area, however I am sure that this will not keep the thirsty locals away!