FROM wandering ghosts to a severed mummified hand - a Salisbury pub has been named one of the UK's most haunted watering holes.

The Haunch of Venison has been on Minster Street since 1320, and has received the latest spooky status from Ei Publican Partnerships, which assessed around 4,000 venues with rumours of supernatural sightings.

According to legend the Demented Whist Player is the most active ghost inside the pub, and it was assumed to be his hand that was on display until 2010, that was chopped off, thrown into the fire, and later discovered during renovation work.

And pub owner Ilia Klekovkin said the previous landlady believed she had woken up one night to see a man in her room with his arms crossed.

She claimed that a box containing an angel, usually located on a shelf, was found on the floor with the angel's head snapped off the following morning.

“Other staff and customers have heard footsteps when they have been alone in the pub and some have seen the same ghostly figure, always with his arms crossed in front of him, hiding his hands,” Ilia added.

Additionally two women ghosts have been spotted around the pub connected to folklore - one looking for her lost son and another reflecting a time when The Haunch of Venison hosted a brothel.

Ilia said: “The Haunch of Venison has a fascinating history and several separate small bars with features from the 15th and 18th centuries. The ‘Horsebox’ is said to have been used by Winston Churchill and Dwight Eisenhower during the planning of the D-Day landings back in 1944."

The pub's 'secret bar' will be open over Halloween which is not usually accessible to the public.

"The tiny bar was originally accessed from the street and a ‘Haunch of Venison’ glass fronted sign marks the spot on the other side of the jeweller’s shop, indicating its hidden entrance underneath the restaurant,” Ilia added.

Nick Light, managing director at Ei Publican Partnerships, said: “We have a number of buildings within the group that are steeped in history and home to many haunting stories, but we don’t have many as frightening as The Haunch of Venison.

"Its individual bars and rooms are steeped in history meaning it's brave people that frequent them around Halloween.”