Mary King's Close is a historic close located under buildings on the Royal Mile, in the historic Old Town area of Edinburgh, Scotland. It took its name from one Mary King, a merchant burgess who resided on the Close in the 17th century. The close was partially demolished and buried due to the building of the Royal Exchange in the 18th century, and later closed to the public for many years. The area became shrouded in myths and urban legends; tales of hauntings and murders abounded.
Hauntings
Mary King's Close has had a reputation for hauntings since at least the 17th century, with several paranormal investigations taking place. It has been pointed out that this particular Close ran the nearest of any to the old Nor Loch, a stagnant and highly polluted marsh; biogas escaping into the close and creating eerie lights may have been the cause for these rumours of spirit hauntings. It is also said that the gas escaping into the closes was known to cause hallucinations.
Mary King's Close in television
Featured in ″The Three Drinkers Do Scotch Whisky″ Episode 7 - Worldwide on Amazon Prime
Mary King's Close was featured on Series 4 of Most Haunted.
Featured in Haunted History's episode Haunted Edinburgh
A 2004 television adaptation of Ian Rankin'sInspector Rebus novel Mortal Causes, the fourth episode in the first series of Rebus, featured a murder whose victim was found in Mary King's Close.
Mary King's Close appears on the Most Haunted Live Halloween 2006 show.
Mary King's Close appears on the History Channel's 2007 program "Cities of the Underworld" Episode 04 Scotland's Sin City.
Mary King's Close was also featured on the Discovery Channel India show Discovery's Biggest Shows
Mary King's Close was also featured in an episode of Ghost Hunters International which first aired in the U.S. on 9 January 2008 on the Sci Fi Channel and in the UK on 1 June 2008 on Living2.
