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A Morbid Tourist
The Blog
The Author
The Blog

A Morbid Tourist is a place to document my travels to supposedly-haunted, off-beat, or unusual places. The title is a description of me as a person – as long as I can remember, I’ve had a fascination with both travel and the macabre. I’m interested in geography, history, languages, and other cultures which has given me a chronic case of ecdemomania. I also have a particular liking for funerary traditions, folklore, pathology, and anything dead.

My interest in travel and the macabre aren’t necessarily linked, but they’re also not entirely mutually exclusive.

Sometimes these two interests cross paths, like the time I went to an abandoned temple/murder site in Japan, ate sweets in a hearse, or sought out the last remaining Hand of Glory at Whitby’s local museum. These are the travels I enjoy the most – learning about all of my favourite things at once.

My biggest dream in life is to continually travel to strange, haunted, and forgotten places, and then write about them. My hope is to build AMT into something of a community of similarly ghoulish people who enjoy the stranger things in life.

Having said all of that, this blog isn’t strictly going to be about morbid tourism. I’m far too scattered to stick entirely to one niche subject, so there will be other categories including general/more ‘normal’ travel, mental health & chronic illness, baking, and blogging/writing itself (so meta, right?). I hope to entertain and, sometimes, inform.

Finally, I want to use this blog as a kind of portfolio, in the hopes that prospective clients will read it and want to hire me (seriously, please hire me).

The Author

Hi, I’m Kayleigh (or Ceilidh, if you want to use the original spelling), born on a rainy day in April 1992. I live in the south-west of England, and have done for much of my life, barring the three years I spent at university.

I enjoy hiking, making cakes, eating, sleeping, and reading. I wish I had a green thumb but every plant I’ve ever owned has died (including a cactus). 

As a child, I wanted to be a palaeontologist or an actor and have become neither. I got an English Language degree and decided to be ~*a writer*~.

I always had a knack with words and languages, so I was sure it would be easy to just get paid to write things. Spoiler alert: it’s not. Over the years I’ve journaled, blogged, and written many (unfinished) stories.

It all kind of led up to where I am now. After editing a magazine for two years, I started freelancing as a writer and editor (finally being paid to write!!), and decided to have a real go at the blog thing on the side. Thus, this website came into being.

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    Unfortunately I’m having to put my blog on hiatu Unfortunately I’m having to put my blog on hiatus due to my health. I’ve made a post explaining more, so please click the link in my bio to read that. It’s been a horrible decision to make and I feel like crap. 🦇 I *will* be around on Instagram, but I can’t promise any consistency for now. I hope you understand and bear with me for a while 🩶 #amorbidtourist #gothlife #darktourism #ukbloggers
    *NEW BLOG POST* 'Living churchyard' sounds like a *NEW BLOG POST* 'Living churchyard' sounds like a bit of an oxymoron, but that's exactly what you'll find at Bridlington Priory. The graveyard is kept deliberately wild, to encourage pollinators and other local wildlife to thrive. 🦇 Join me as I walk the labyrinth to meet the dead, mourn the last pre-Reformation saint, and discover the tragedy that was the catalyst for a life-saving idea that's still in use to this day. Intrigued? Come and read about it at the link in my bio. 🦇 I'm back with a vengeance after a bit of a break. I had a hell of a month. Starting with an M.E. flare, I then didn't have a chance to rest properly - I attended my brother's wedding and was looking after my bestie, who hasn't been well. Then I got the lurgy. A really NASTY, coughing-all-night, being-sick, agonising-aches-everywhere lurgy. It's week 3 and I'm still not 100%, though I'm FAR better than I was. Thank you to everyone who's been really kind to me while I beat myself up for not blogging ~consistently and neglected everything 🩶✨ #cryptic_aesthetic #amorbidtourist #yorkshire #historicalplaces
    Update: I’m post-flare, but the heat is doing a Update: I’m post-flare, but the heat is doing a number on me. I’m both a Total Goff and Very British so I am simply not made for this weather. 🦇 Continuing to be the ✨worst blogger ever✨ as I haven’t had the energy or inspiration to write for ages. Tomorrow I’m away to a wedding, so I doubt you’ll get much sense out of me then either. 🦇 There will come a day when I sort my life out, but it is not this day. (Full disclosure: these are old photos) Tags: #gothlife #altgirl #summergoth
    I’ve had false information spread about me which I’ve had false information spread about me which needs to be addressed. I’m posting it bit-by-bit to my story as it’s long and I don’t want Instagram to ding me for spamming.
    I love a bleak coastal landscape. Gusty and dull, I love a bleak coastal landscape. Gusty and dull, with an iron-grey sky threatening rain. My imagination always runs away with me in places like this ☁️ #capturingbritain #moodygrams #gothlife #yorkshirelife #yorkshirecoast
    “The current church was stacked upon its predece “The current church was stacked upon its predecessors like a stone lasagne.” If that line alone doesn’t intrigue you enough to read my new blog post, then I don’t know what will. 🦇 I went to St. Bride’s, a church just off Fleet Street with over 2000 years of documented history. In the Crypt museum, the layers of time are shown through the ancient walls still standing underground. Diving headfirst into it, you’ll find that St Bride’s is connected to many unlikely and incongruous things - like the Great Fire of London, Jack the Ripper, British journalism, and wedding cakes! Also there are skeletons, just to sweeten the deal. 🦇 Today’s blog is one for the history buffs: lore-dense and full of surprises and splendour ✨ find it at the link in my bio! #amorbidtourist #historylovers #newblog #londonhistory #gothlife
    Proof that I *do* have a reflection, despite what Proof that I *do* have a reflection, despite what the haters say 💅🏻 #gothlife #camdentown #altgirl #amorbidtourist #londondiaries
    “Remember you must die.” Two memento mori piec “Remember you must die.” Two memento mori pieces I spied in cemeteries - the first in Edinburgh, the second in Boston. What do you want to do before you die? 💀 Memento mori has been a concept since almost the beginning of human history. It’s believed to have originated from the Stoics of Ancient Greece. Obviously the most ghoulish people around, the Victorians, LOVED this philosophy and were very keen on reflecting on their own deaths. This was supposed to help you to reject materialism and frivolity and make you spiritually richer. 💀 The symbol of the memento mori is most commonly a skull, though loads of other symbols like hourglasses, poppies, and blown-out candles are used. #amorbidtourist #mementomori #graveyard_fanatics #gothlife #deathritual
    One of the only surviving Hands of Glory is exhibi One of the only surviving Hands of Glory is exhibited in Whitby Museum. Look at the mirror beneath the hand to see the amazingly preserved vascular structures! Swipe for a closer look at the skin that has retracted from the nails as the hand dried out and mummified. 🦇 A Hand of Glory is a preserved hand, cut from the arm of a hanged criminal. When you place a candle made from the fat of a virgin into the hand, it will light the way only for the holder and will send the household into a deep sleep. The flame can only be put out with milk. Harry Potter fans will remember that Malfoy had a Hand of Glory in the books. Hands of Glory were favoured by thieves looking to get into and out of houses with no obstruction. 🦇 The Hand of Glory at Whitby was found during a renovation of an old cottage. It was concealed above a door, and remains (lol) in remarkably good shape to this day.
    *ON THE BLOG* I’m laying down the law on morbid *ON THE BLOG* I’m laying down the law on morbid tourism! What are your big no-nos when it comes to travelling? Let me know in the comments~ 🦇 I’m really not a big stickler for rules, and the last thing I want to do is be a bore. But I’ve seen so much bad behaviour online that I feel like I need to talk about some unbreakable rules of a morbid tourist. 🦇 Find the link to my blog in the bio, have a read, and tell me what I missed 🩶✨
    How do you feel about liminal spaces? I find them How do you feel about liminal spaces? I find them both cool-looking and deeply unsettling in a way I can never quite explain 🌫️
    In memory of the Hardy Tree 🩶 🪦 Named for th In memory of the Hardy Tree 🩶 🪦 Named for the author Thomas Hardy, the tree was famous for being surrounded by gravestones - some of which were absorbed by the tree over the years. Hardy had arranged the stones there after they had to relocate remains to make way for new railway works. He inadvertently made a beautiful piece of art in which life entwines with death. 🪦 Unfortunately the Hardy Tree was infected with a fungus for a long time (including when I took these photos). Eventually, in 2022, the tree was overcome and toppled. It’s so sad that it’s gone, but I feel really lucky to have had the opportunity to visit it. 🪦 Fun fact: the Hardy Tree was located in St. Pancras Churchyard, where Mary Shelley’s mum was buried. It’s said that Mary and Percy planned their elopement here (and rumours that she lost her virginity right there at her mother’s grave, eek).
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