WE ALL live in one of the top haunts in the UK for ghosts and ghouls.

Witnesses have claimed numerous sightings of supernatural beings lurking in dark corners, on the seafront, in shops and residential homes.

Paranormal Database has revealed there are more than 11,900 sightings of ghosts, werewolves, vampires, aliens and other spooky encounters in 103 areas across the UK.

Brighton is second on the list with 140 sightings of ghostly activities.

London leads the way with 633, Edinburgh has 98, Nottingham 78, York 76 and Bristol, 75.

Sometimes ghouls are closer than you think.

The photographic darkroom of The Argus at one of its previous premises was said to be home to a paranormal presence which climbed upon the back on a startled employee while he worked.

Another member of staff spotted a mysterious man in a hat in one of the offices.

Tales also include items being teleported around the site, or moved by invisible hands, at the Fortune of War public house in Kings Road.

Guests at the Brighton Harbour and Spa Hotel, also in Kings Road, claim fire extinguishers mysteriously move around. Then again it could just be a couple of pranksters who were in the mood for mischief.

Witnesses say a poltergeist is responsible for throwing a knife in the air by an unseen hand at Leadbelly’s, which is currently El Mexicano.

Some have said a child haunts the Jubilee Library. It is thought the child was killed during a Second World War bombing raid and the small ghostly apparition dressed in pyjamas is said to carry a wooden toy.

It is not clear whether the ghost has been observed since the 1990s, when the of the last of the bomb damaged buildings were demolished.

It appears that it is not just human ghosts that like to spook mortals, but animals too. Beach goers claim they have seen a dog the size of a small horse. The phantom canine will follow lonely walkers on the beach for short distances before vanishing.

A witness also reported seeing a tall man in old fashioned clothing and a tall hat walking along the sidewalk during the night in 1977 before vanishing into the mist.

Deryck Carver was burnt in a barrel of tar in 1555 and is believed to have been the first brewer in Brighton and the first Protestant martyr.

Since the 1940s it has been claimed his ghost haunts the cellar of the Black Lion pub in Black Lion Street, and in 2006 the manager claimed have felt a unnerving presence.