'We went to the creepiest building in Lancashire, so you don't have to' - TikTok ghost hunter left horrified

Tony Ferguson, who has more than 40,000 followers on the social media channel, was joined at Ridge Lea Asylum in Lancaster by Jon and Lindsay from Exploring the Afterlife and Simon from GS Simon Exploring with Ghosts, after hearing many reports of strange goings on in the building.

He told The Post it was the creepiest location he’s ever visited.

Tony said: “As investigators we have always wanted to investigate a hospital and asylum so to be able to investigate both in one was incredible.T he building from the outside was very intimidating and once we stepped inside we did not feel alone.This was confirmed whilst setting up the cameras and when we reviewed our footage.

“When we started to call out we starting hearing disembodied voices which were captured on camera, yet everyone is in shot and it is none of us. We heard footsteps in the room with us, strangely enough when we were walking around with all of the debris on the floor it made a crunching sound, but the footsteps we heard sounded like they were on a smooth surface.”

“Jon from ETA saw a dark shadow figure walk down the corridor past the room we were in, seconds before that I, Tony Ferguson said I could hear a female talking and this has also come out of camera. Later in the evening Jon felt very unwell to the point where he had to leave the room, at that time we heard creepy laughing in the room with us.

“We had a lot of malfunction with our cameras, Jon & Simon's camera kept switching off and freezing, whilst this may not be paranormal, this has not happened with their camera's before. Overall there were many things that we cannot explain that we caught on camera. It is very sad to see the poor condition of the building now.

“On the paranormal side we were not disappointed with what we experienced.”

About Ridge Lea

Ridge Lea was originally a women's unit built in 1916 as part of the Lancaster Moor Mental Asylum. After the main hospital site closed, Ridge Lea continued to provide mental health services until its own closure in 2016. The derelict site, which is owned by Seemore Properties, has since been a target for vandals and urban explorers, and plans for demolition have been refused, as the area has been designated a conservation area due to its historical and architectural value.

Stay away

Police have long warned people stay away from the buildings. In 2022, PCSO Martin Miller said the building is in an “extrremely dangerous state of repair” and has asbestos, lead paint and glass strewn across the floors.

The law

Entering someone's property without permission will amount to trespass. Trespass is usually a civil offence; however, some acts of trespass are considered criminal offences. Taking and sharing photographs and videos of property, if done without the owner's permission, could amount to both civil trespass and a criminal offence.