Deborah Contessa, The Cemetery Lady, Mistress of the Macabre

My heartfelt thanks to all who joined today’s Military Graves Tour.
You braved the biting cold amongst the stones and stood steadfast as any sentinel — and what a splendid, spirited crowd you were.
It was an honour to wander the ranks of our fallen with you.#graves #cemetery

Every stone tells a story, even the ones whose inscriptions are almost gone. #churchyard #grave

YouTube video by Deborah Contessa St Elphin’s Churchyard, Warrington, with Deborah Contessa - The Cemetery Lady

youtu.be/lHk0XdFgT0c?... click the link & join me on a wander through St Elphin’s churchyard

Beneath brooding November skies, our Blue Plaque was unveiled — a tribute to time, memory, and the eternal hush of stone. Grateful to all who walk with us among the shadows #thecemeterylady #blackpool #history #heritage

YouTube video by Deborah Contessa The Churchyard of St Oswald, Winwick & the legend of the Winwick Pig

A stroll through the ancient churchyard of St Oswald’s, Winwick — where legend, faith & folklore linger. Discover the tale of the Winwick Pig and gravestones reaching back to the 1600s. 🕯️🐖 #Folklore #Churchyards #History

youtu.be/54giUf8Sl5E?...

St Oswald’s Churchyard in Winwick, Warrington, beautiful stones from the 1600s #History #heritage #grave #graveyard #TheCemeteryLady

YouTube video by Deborah Contessa The Churchyard of All Saints, Orton, Cumbria-with Deborah Contessa

youtu.be/RyoROB0aYtc?...
All Saints Churchyard, Orton - with The Cemetery Lady

#CemeteryLady #ChurchyardStories #Cumbria #Orton #EdenValley #Heritage #VictorianHistory

The end of an era . . .
Stephen, our Victorian Ghost Hunter, takes his final bow — beloved by both the living and the dead 💀
But beware . . . the darkness never sleeps.
This festive season, Blackpool Ghost Walks will rise again 👻
#Blackpool #ghosts #haunting #walk #spooky

YouTube video by Deborah Contessa Gamelands Stone Circle, Orton, Cumbria

Step into the ancient mystery of Gamelands Stone Circle — a windswept place of legend, ritual and whispers from four thousand years ago
youtu.be/Q1bAyRRmvKk?...

Huge thanks to everyone who braved the torrential downpour and joined yesterday’s Layton Cemetery tour — your spirit and enthusiasm shone through the rain! #Blackpool #cemetery #tour #cemetery #history #graves

By his mid-twenties, Alfred Tysoe was one of the finest middle-distance runners in the world. He broke records, won championships, and became known across Britain for his grace and power on the track.Layton Cemetery, Blackpool #history #sportsman #runner #grave #cemetery

Congratulations to all who survived last night’s Ghost Walk with myself and The Victorian Ghost Hunter…
It was a dark delight to make your acquaintance — your courage did not go unnoticed.
Perhaps we shall meet again … don’t be strangers.
#Blackpool #ghosts #history #hauntings

A moment of calm in St James’ Churchyard, Burton in Kendal — where weathered 18th-century stones rest on ground sacred for centuries. 🖤
#TheCemeteryLady #BurtonInKendal #CemeteryStories #WhispersOfThePast #HistoricChurchyards

YouTube video by Deborah Contessa The Cemetery Lady visits St James’ Churchyard, Burton-in-Kendal

Beneath the quiet skies of Burton in Kendal lies St James’ Churchyard — where time lingers and the past whispers through the weathered stones. 🖤
#TheCemeteryLady #BurtonInKendal #CemeteryTales #VictorianGothic #WhispersOfThePast
youtu.be/smoUW3Yt6WY?...

YouTube video by Deborah Contessa Prescot, The Churchyard of St Mary the Blessed Virgin, with The Cemetery Lady

youtu.be/Jvz3hvAgsrA?...

The churchyard at Prescot Parish Church has a history predating the Norman Conquest, indicated by its circular shape, with written records of a church on the site dating to 1140. Amongst the stones laying beside the building are many fine examples from the 1700s.

🖤 Eternal thanks to Stephen Mercer, The Victorian Ghost Hunter – it’s with his blessing that I now carry the lantern of the Blackpool Ghost Walks into its next chapter. #blackpool #ghosts #hauntings #heritage

Spooky season creeps ever closer… the shadows whisper, and I have a most chilling announcement to unveil. Watch this space. .. . #spooky #haunting

YouTube video by Deborah Contessa Join Deborah Contessa at St Peter’s Churchyard, Heversham, Cumbria

Heversham’s St Peter’s Churchyard, a Norse cross whispers of ages past, a sundial marks forgotten hours, and stone cherubs with hollow eyes keep their eternal watch… #churchyard #ancient #history #graves

youtu.be/nH-Rj7OGKuo?...

YouTube video by Deborah Contessa The Ruins of Windleshaw Chantry with Deborah Contessa

youtu.be/YnvVQlV1vm8?...
#Chantry#ruin #history #heritage

It was such a pleasure to join The Victorian Ghost Hunter and add an extra whisper of dread to the air.
Though I do fear Supernatural Events may never again surpass the horrors that Temple Street had on offer for us all last night! #ghost #haunting #history

SUNDIAL & STOCKS
the endstones are most probably C17. An older pair of oak stocks is preserved in the church.
The sundial, dated 1714, on a turned shaft of stone has inscribed on the dial ‘Pulvis et umbra sumus’ which translates as ‘We are dust and shadow’ Grappenhall #History #stocks #sundial

Read it and weep fellow taphophiles . . . Memento Mori on a stone from 1674 🖤 #grave #gravestone #churchyard #17thCentury #mementomori

YouTube video by Deborah Contessa St Oswald’s, Grasmere – a churchyard where poetry never dies, with Deborah Contessa

Nestled in the heart of Grasmere, St Oswald’s churchyard is where William Wordsworth rests beneath ancient yews and Lakeland skies. A beautifully picturesque place where poetry and landscape meet.
youtu.be/zTRylKNCnE4?...

I wandered lonely as a goth… and naturally ended up in a graveyard . . .
Whose final resting place did I discover today?
#poet #grave #churchyard #lakedistrict

Rising from Sandbach’s market square, the ancient Saxon crosses whisper of a world over a thousand years gone. Their weathered carvings—saints, angels, and sacred stories—still cling to the stone, echoing the faith and power of early medieval England.
#History #Heritage #AngloSaxon

YouTube video by Deborah Contessa Sandbach Crosses | Anglo-Saxon Treasures of Cheshire with Deborah Contessa

Guardians of Forgotten Time: Sandbach’s Saxon Crosses
youtu.be/8WzzmwvTRyc?...
#history #heritage #ancient #crosses #anglosaxon

YouTube video by Deborah Contessa St Mary’s Churchyard, Sandbach – a place of history and quiet beauty- with Deborah Contessa

Beneath the rare arched bell tower of St Mary’s, Sandbach, history lays all around. Beside the church door stand fragments of early medieval carvings, while the churchyard itself is a patchwork of gravestones many dating back to the 1600s ⬇️ click below & join me! 🪦

youtu.be/pYZUuoXaNho?...

This standing medieval cross ( repurposed as a Sundial) is situated 10m south of the nave of St Mary's Church, Sandbach
#history #heritage #ancient #churchyard

Another one ticked off the bucket list 🖤
Tiny ferry. Huge history.
From the haunting ruins of Piel Castle to a pint with the King of Piel – this island is like nowhere else on earth. #PielIsland #ShipInn #KingofPiel

YouTube video by Deborah Contessa Visit Piel Island, with Deborah Contessa, discover ruins, rebellion, and royalty.

youtu.be/rQgdt7FLNgY?...

I sailed to Piel Island, walked its haunted castle, and drank with a king – not a bad day out #island #history #heritage #piel #king #haunting