A GHOST walk guide has hung up his cape after 25 years of regaling spooky tales to tourists.

Historian Maurice Taylor said due to increasing problems with his vision, he led 65 people on his final tour around Ripon’s city centre last week.

At the end of the walk, residents joined city leaders in paying tribute to Mr Taylor, who has donated the money from his walks to charity.

He said: “It was not the kind of occasion that you feel heartbroken because it had gone well.

“It was particularly pleasant to have that many people come to the final tour and when people told me how much they appreciated what I have done.”

Mr Taylor’s said he believed his retirement could be the end of an era in the city as no one had stepped forward to take on the role he started as part of the 1986 Ripon 1,100th charter anniversary celebrations.

His tours included a blend of historical details, traditional stories about whippings, executions, strange burials and other incidents experienced over hundreds of years in Ripon.