That's the spirit - Dudley Ghost Tour leader talks ahead of Halloween

We're always seeking thrills and chills, whether it's watching a scary movie or reading a spooky novel, we love to be amazed and terrified – and often both at the same time.

But it's old-fashioned ghost stories that have had an enduring appeal, capturing the imagination for centuries. Ghosts returning to haunt the places and people that they left behind have become folklore in many cultures around the world.

Many of the characters involved have suffered sad, violent or mysterious deaths adding intrigue to their stories. These phantoms often appear in books, television shows, films and even children's cartoons.

Whether it's a murder victim feeling bitter about how their life was brutally ended or a lovelorn spirit trying to communicate with the living there are countless tales to be told up and down the country.

And the Black Country, Staffordshire and Shropshire, unsurprisingly, have their fair share of spooky stories from creepy castles to haunted pubs.

Many of them have been passed on by word of mouth through the generations and are often updated when new strange encounters and experiences are reported.

Craig Denston, who leads The Original Dudley Ghost Tour, says ghost stories have always held a fascination for people, especially if they involve a mystery that cannot be explained.

"It's an ancient form of story-telling. Ghosts have been with us for centuries. Even in ancient times, people believed in spirits. They have become part of folklore.

"They are often very human stories often involving sad circumstances such as someone committing suicide or being murdered, so there is emotion attached to them," he adds.

One of the most famous in Dudley is the Grey Lady, believed to be the ghost of a woman named Dorothy Beaumont.

She lived at the town's castle and gave birth to a daughter who died. She herself asked to be buried beside her daughter and for her husband to attend her funeral.

Her requests were not carried out and she is reputed to still roam the grounds of the castle.

The tours, which were launched back in 1993, were the idea of Keith Cheetham who, at the time, was director of now-defunct Black Country Tourism.

Craig originally became involved when he was commissioned as an actor but as a theatre designer he was also able to to create the costumes and masks worn by the 'ghosts'.

"As well as sharing a passion for story-telling, the costumes are a very important part of the ghost tours.

"It's essential to me that I make all the masks and costumes. I didn't want anyone to come on the ghost tour and say 'I saw that mask in the shops'.

"They also give the ghosts an identity and a sense of the world they inhabited. I don't know any other ghost tours that have ghost actors, costumes and masks like we do."

When booking a ghost tour, a lot of people expect to see something paranormal according to Craig but he said he doesn't go out looking for ghosts and encounters are very rare.

"What people see tends to be peculiar lights and shapes that make no sense.

"It's not anything dramatic like glowing skulls floating above their heads. It's more a sense of something looking or feeling out of place. It's something very odd. I'm always updating the tour with new stories I've heard. People will tell me about strange things they've encountered," he says.

"It doesn't happen all the time but people have seen things they can't explain. One of my ghost actors reported seeing something he couldn't explain.

"I have no means of communication with the actors when I am out on a tour so they rely on visual clues. This particular actor was waiting by the triple gate at Dudley Castle.

"He knew that when he saw the light from my lantern that was his cue to walk out.

"So he's waiting to see my lantern appear and he sees a light coming so he stays back and waits the usual 20 seconds before walking out.

"What the first light was we don't know. There was no one else there," adds Craig, who plans to return with a new programme of ghost tours next year.

Dudley Castle is just one of many reportedly haunted sites across the Black Country. Among them is West Bromwich's Manor House, which dates back to the 13th century and is believed to be home to three spirits – a bearded man and two young girls, who are thought to live on the kitchen stairs.

A Pub in Cannock which has received plenty of attention from paranormal groups in the past is The Four Crosses in Watling Street.

Regular ghost tours were held the pub, which was said to be haunted by long-gone residents who remained in the pub's uncovered rooms and passageways.

Two ghostly sightings included a Roundhead soldier in the men's toilets, and a man in a long cloak standing in the car park on a rainy evening.

While there have also been numerous reports of the Black-Eyed Child – a child dressed in white with hollow black eyes – on Cannock Chase, attracting teams of ghost hunters.

In Shropshire, one of the most haunted places is said to be Condover Hall in Shrewsbury.

A blood-stained hand print is said to randomly appear on the wall of the stairs to the basement, belonging to Lord Knyvett. He was allegedly stabbed at the top of the stairs, stumbled down to the basement and left blood on the wall. It has been said the only way the hand print could be removed was by chipping the brick away – as scrubbing the wall didn't work.

The butler was blamed for the death even though it was believed to be the Lord's son. Before the butler was sentenced to death he is said to have cursed the family – there hasn't been an heir to the hall since, and it's assumed the curse is still in effect today.

Whether you are a believer or a sceptic, there is something fascinating about ghost stories.

They make us curious about life and death and can make our spine tingle. And who doesn't like a tale well told of things that go bump in the night?

By Heather Large