Leader : Beatrice Wilson

The group meet upstairs in the The Featherbed Rock Café at 2pm on the second Tuesday in the month. It’s a fitting rendezvous as the building has an interesting history.

For a time it was the home of Mary Ann Cotton who is considered to be Britain’s first female serial killer. She was convicted of killing one of her stepsons and is thought to have murdered up to 21 people, including some of her own children. Following the conviction, she was hanged in 1873 at Durham Jail.

In addition – and unrelated to Mary Ann Cotton – the building is also said to be haunted, with the sound of children upstairs and on the stairs being reported – although not by anyone in the group!

Away from the fascinating venue, enjoyable visits to local churches, memorials, Bede’s World, Crook Hall, Washington Old Hall and Wallington Hall in Northumberland have taken place over the last year.