Is the Blue Lady a ghost with a stout heart or a devious spirit? Destroyed wills and murderous plots are more enjoyable ingredients for this ghost story. Find out what happened when the 2nd Earl ignored his mother’s warning and signed a new will leaving the Hamilton estates to his wife. Was this a fatal move? Decide for yourself then use your imagination to mentally edit the shadowy scenes and ghostly apparition of the transformed news reader into a finished spooky news story.  

Lady Alice’s victory was short lived as she died two years after her husband. Despite leaving the castle to her brother, the Hamilton family successfully contested the will and Killyleagh has remained with the family to this day. One of the oldest inhabited castles in the country, Killyleagh Castle was originally built in 1180 by John de Courcy to protect the shores of Strangford from Viking invaders. Parts of castle were later redesigned by Charles Lanyon including ornate panelling and plaster work seen in this film. This material is Courtesy of the UTV Archive.

Broadcaster: UTV

Programme: UTV Reports

Reporter: Roisin Walsh

Interviewee: Lieutenant-Colonel Denys Hamilton

• James Boyce: Killyleagh Estate - BBC Archive
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