We live on one of the streets at the bottom of Braunstone Park.
I've spent just about all my life growing up in Braunstone. My dad and his brothers and sister went to Braunstone Hall when it was a school. They loved every minute of being there.
My dad doesn't believe in ghosts, but he did tell me that on the stairs ( I think it was or at the bottom of them ) that there was a stain that looked like a blood stain..or something very similar. He said that no matter what they did at the school to get rid of it, it would always re-appear.
The story of the groom hanging himself was to do with one of the daughters of the hall becoming pregnant by him.
She was sent away until after the baby was born. The young groom was dismissed and then told about her being sent away. He then hung himself in the stables.
When the daughter returned after the baby was born and conveniantly disappeared ( usually given to someone else to bring up ), and she heard about the young groom taking his life, she threw herself from the upstairs window.
She had a dog who's name was No No and although I'm not sure if she jumped with him in her arms or he tried to follow her, but he died as well.
No No was orginally buried infront of the house, but for some reason his grave stone is at the side of the house, where the iron gate goes across to stop cars getting around the back of it. Don't know if they exhumed him for some reason and reburied him there.
The Winstanleys were a tragic family, and a few years ago the last remaining Winstanley daughter to of been born in the hall came back for a visit for the first time since she was a child..she was 99 years young.
Also when we were kids we used to call the big oak tree in the playground of the hall the ' hanging tree', just a few years ago a young man did hang himself from that tree one christmas.
Jan.