The Legend of Black Shuck - Bungay - Suffolk

We took a trip to Bungay this afternoon, to see what the town was like and also to drive past a house we had seen advertised for sale on Rightmove.

The town of Bungay is nice in an old quaint village kind of way (nice to take a stroll in if you are a tourist), but the neighborhood the house was in was a bit run down.

It did give me a chance to visit the site of a legend I had read about when we first moved to England and I was reading up on East Anglia and all it had to offer - The Church of St Mary's in the center of town.

Legend has it that an evil hell hound appeared in 1577 during a thunderstorm and ran around the church attacking the congregants, killing 2 of them before disappearing and reappearing in another church some 12 miles away.

His name - Black Shuck.

Here is an excerpt from Wikipedia: click here to read the complete Wikipedia article

"St Mary's Church was struck by lightning on Sunday, 4 August 1577. During the thunderstorm an apparition appeared, consisting of a black Hell Houndwhich dashed around the church, attacking members of the congregation. It then suddenly disappeared and re-appeared in Holy Trinity Church, Blythburgh 12 miles (19 km) away, injuring members of the congregation there. The dog has been associated with Black Shuck, a dog haunting the coasts of Norfolk, Essex, and Suffolk."

The Darkness even did a song about him...   Click here for the song

I was a bit disappointed because Wikipedia did say you could still see the burn marks on the church door, but alas I could see nothing!

The Main Door (North Door)

A tapestry/embroidery thingie inside the church

The Outside