A couple uncovered a truly terrifying secret while exploring a new property they had just bought in east Sussex – so frightening it was considered as a horror film set.
Husband and wife Steven, 54, and Carolyn Sparks, 42, discovered a secret room behind a bathroom wall during a contractor survey at a property in Brighton, which contained just a single iron bed.
The pair needed detailed plans drawn up to refurbish the property and it was during the survey that Steven and the architect found the door to the secret room.
But when the architect went inside to measure the basement, he failed to mention the creepy single bed that still lay inside.
It was only when the couple went back in to explore with torches in hand that they made the frightening discovery.
Images show the single iron bed takes up the width of part of the room, which has exposed floors and walls and pipes around it.
There were also disused boxes stacked high in one corner of the room.
The room was part of the original Victorian house and was used to store coal. An access hole outside where the coal would have been poured down into can be seen in the images.
After the property is renovated, the only way to access the basement will be via the hallway, but only to ensure there is access to the pipework in case of emergencies.
In another twist, the room was considered to become the subject of a horror film.
Carolyn, who filmed the discovery, explained that her daughter was considering the room for a horror film shoot for a college assignment.
The basement became a contender for the set but due to the fact she hates spiders, the bed stayed and the film never came to be.
Speaking of the unusual discovery, Carolyn said: ‘We discovered there was a basement to the building after we’d purchased the property. It wasn’t on the agents’ details, and nor did we see it when we viewed the property.
‘It’s easily missed as it’s accessed via a little WC, so not really a room you’d go into and look at in great detail.
‘I thought it’d be funny to film as all we could see was cobwebs and said it would feel spooky.
‘We didn’t expect to find a single iron bed, so it was definitely a little bit freaky!
‘That situation alone, never mind finding a child’s bed down there just added to the weird situation.’