With countless mysterious tales and bizarre mythological stories, the UK has certainly seen its share of weirdness through the centuries. Whether you believe them or not – whether you think they’re genuine recollections of inexplicable phenomena, or just hoaxes or misunderstandings that fool only the gullible – they still unquestionably have the ability to fascinate and frighten when you hear about them.

And the chills are only amplified when the setting is so familiar, and such strange stories are told of locations in the UK that you might know well, adding an eerie element to our normally peaceful countryside and countless charming villages. Could these tales have a touch of truth to them?

Black Shuck, East Anglia

For those who fear dogs, this haunting hound is a real horror. ‘Black Shuck’ is the name given to a supernatural canine with dark fur which, as legend has it, makes its home in East Anglia, with multiple sightings reported across the centuries. Details of its appearance, not to mention whether it portends bad luck or is a friendly phantom, are inconsistent between stories, but it’s been an enduring part of the mythology of Suffolk, Norfolk, Essex, and the Cambridgeshire Fens.

The most well-known appearances of Black Shuck both occurred in 1577, when on the 4th of August the creature appeared at two churches, Blythburgh’s Holy Trinity Church and Bungay’s St Mary’s Church. It killed two people at each location, and in Blythburgh the church steeple was collapsed and scorch marks – still visible today - were left on the north door.

Black Shuck is still said to be around, with sightings reported in the 1950s and some people still believing in its existence. You can even visit Holy Trinity Church and see the scorch marks on the church door for yourself.

The Green Children of Woolpit, Suffolk

An unusual legend dating back to the 12th century is based around the village of Woolpit in Suffolk, where reportedly two bizarre green-skinned children were found outside the village during harvest time. Speaking no known language and initially only willing to eat raw broad beans, the origin of this brother and sister was quite a mystery.

Eventually, they began to eat other foodstuffs and their skin returned to a more normal colour, though soon after being baptised the boy passed away. Afterwards, the girl eventually learned to speak English, and claimed they had come from another world where it was always dusk and everything was green. They had got lost one day and eventually emerged from a cave which turned out to be close to Woolpit.

The girl went on to live a long life and was said to have even married. Whether there’s any truth to the story is unknown, but if you’d like to pay a visit to Woolpit for yourself, you can.

The Devil’s Footprints, Devon

Back in February 1855, people were terrified by the appearance after heavy snow of strange footprints which spanned around 100 miles around the Exe Estuary in East and South Devon. Not only was the distance travelled unusual, but the prints looked like they had been formed by cloven hooves, and, most strikingly of all, simply travelled over any obstacles in their path, including houses, walls, and rivers, continuing along the tops of structures without any apparent difficulty.

The footprints went from Exmouth to Topsham, appeared to easily cross the Exe Estuary, and then went on to Dawlish and Teignmouth. This enduring mystery has never been quite explained, but several ideas have been put forward.

These include footprints left by rodents, badgers, or even escaped kangaroos, or the route along which a stray balloon dragged its mooring ropes through the freshly laid snow. Some think there may have been multiple causes for unusual prints left in the snow, with people overreacting to the idea of the Devil striding through the night and exaggerating a phenomenon with potentially more mundane origins.

Whether the Devil did pay a visit or not, though, there’s no denying the scenery around the Exe Estuary has plenty of charms of its own.

It’s well worth travelling around the UK’s stunning landscapes and visiting its many evocative sights. Perhaps it’s no wonder that the romantic and sometimes otherworldly scenery has led to some truly unusual legends over the centuries.