A Swansea Ghost Story: The Haunted Café in Sketty
On a recent Paranormal Unpacked filming day in Swansea, my good friend and co-presenter Steve Balsamo recalled some strange and spooky experiences from his time helping at a former antiques shop and café in Sketty with a reputation for being a little, well, haunted.
We were filming on a farm in Swansea owned by our friends Claire and Kev, alongside filmmaker extraordinaire Ant Jones and cryptid expert Gwilym Games. Before running the farm, Claire and Kev used to run Kismet Vintage Coffee & Curiosities in Sketty, and it’s here the activity begins.
The building, which had previously been Dylan’s Wine Shop, was already over a century old, and according to Steve, it didn’t take long before things started to feel unusual when working there alone late at night.
From unexplained knocks and movement out of the corner of the eye, to doors opening on their own and objects shifting when no one was nearby, the stories built up over time.
One of the most shocking incidents involved an old gramophone, which reportedly came apart and flew across the room without explanation during a conversation in the shop. Oh, and they still own the gramophone – in fact, it’s in the video!
Visitors and staff also reported a range of experiences, from objects being moved to a young child seeing a figure standing in the corner of a room upstairs. In another incident, books were found stacked on the stairs despite nobody being upstairs at the time.
Ghost stories aside, we were also filming during a heatwave and had time to explore the surrounding countryside, including fields where people have felt a little uneasy over the years.
Of course, the real reason we were there was to film an episode Paranormal Unpacked, in which we discussed such cryptids as the Gower Hedgehog Man – yes, Gower Hedgehog Man – be sure to check out the channel for more on that soon.
Until next time… nos da!
