The strangest things Brits have found in their new home – from human hearts to witchcraft sets

You'd be amazed what some people leave behind

Rummaging through the attic or cupboards of a new home isn't always like it is in Escape to The Chateau, unearthing treasures. Sometimes it can be a bit stranger, proven by the ScS competition to find the weirdest new home finds.

Related: Decluttering your home? You could make over £1000 selling these household items

Sofa and Carpet specialists ScS ran a competition to find the creepiest things left behind by previous homeowners. If you're squeamish you might want to look away now.

Kathyrn Gaston from Glasgow was crowned the competition winner after finding part of a human heart. She found an aortic valve in a plastic container in her new kitchen.

hand hold plastic container with orange lid

(Image credit: Future PLC)

At least she was able to snag a new sofa from ScS worth £849.99 for her gruesome discovery. However, she wasn't the only one to uncover some truly baffling objects in her new homes. Read on for the rest of the top ten freaky finds.

Weirdest new home finds

Witch decoy kit

room with rough floor and wooden door and shoes

(Image credit: Future PLC)

Kerrie Jackson from Wrexham found eight odd shoes, animal skulls and a gun barrel under the staircase in her new home. It is believed to be a supposed 'witch decoy kit'.

Mental hospital records

Sam McCloskey from Haywards Heath uncovered the blueprints and food log for an old mental hospital in the 1920s in his new home.

Bottle of arsenic

glass bottle

(Image credit: Anne-Marie Martin)

Possibly one of the most worrying finds. Anne-Marie Martin from Colchester found a bottle of the famous poison hidden away on the wooden beams of her outbuilding.

Rabbit skull

room with wall paper and frames on wall

(Image credit: Tanya Kaushal-Cash)

Everyone has different tastes in artwork, but Tanya Kaushal-Cash from Sunderland found that the previous owner's taste was very peculiar. She found a rabbit skull handing from the wall in a frame.

Witchcraft set

Taking the biscuit for the spookiest discovery, Tracy Martin from Brighton from a small jar containing a dead spider and a burnt pin. She was told that the items were used for witchcraft.

Resuscitation doll

resuscitation doll

(Image credit: Sue Turley)

Sue Turley from Norwich got the fright of her life when she found this 1970s resuscitation doll in a suitcase left by the previous owners.

Polaroid and note

polaroid and note with photo

(Image credit: Paul Jones, ScS)

The creepiest find in the list is a polaroid and note written by a child, found by Paul Jones from Liverpool. To make things creepier the previous tenants had no children.

Erotic novel

From the scary to the obscene. Sam Rowe from Hereford found an old erotic novel from the 50s, called 'Rachel Rachel'.

Handcuffs in the attic

hanging handcuffs on wood

(Image credit: Timothy Grainger, ScS)

This might look like the scene from a horror film, but this photo was taken when Timothy Grainger from Reading was exploring his new attic. He has no idea who or what they were used for. Hopefully, it was just storage...

Related: Five common mistakes that put your home at risk of a fire this Christmas

What is the strangest thing you've found after moving into a new house?

Rebecca Knight
Deputy Editor, Digital

Rebecca Knight has been the Deputy Editor on the Ideal Home Website since 2022. She graduated with a Masters degree in magazine journalism from City, University of London in 2018, before starting her journalism career as a staff writer on women's weekly magazines. She fell into the world of homes and interiors after joining the Ideal Home website team in 2019 as a Digital Writer. In 2020 she moved into position of Homes News Editor working across Homes & Gardens, LivingEtc, Real Homes, Gardeningetc and Ideal Home covering everything from the latest viral cleaning hack to the next big interior trend.