I work alone at night in Edinburgh's dark and spooky vaults

The vaults successful Edinburgh's Old Town are dank, acheronian and spooky - but that is wherever Jamie Corstorphine spends his nights.

He starts enactment soon earlier midnight, past spends up to 10 hours maintaining the dimly-lit tunnels.

Jamie says immoderate of his friends deliberation he's huffy spending hours successful the vaulted chambers connected his ain - but helium has go utilized to his surroundings.

"I find it rather peaceful now," helium said.

The 43-year-old has to enactment astatine nighttime due to the fact that past tours instrumentality spot successful the vaults during the time and evenings.

Jamie's occupation includes coating the doors and walkways, and making immoderate repairs that are needed.

So however scary is it moving successful these eerie conditions?

"The dripping water, the rats, the echoes and the shadows tin marque your caput play tricks erstwhile you are unsocial successful present astatine night," says Jamie.

"When I archetypal started moving present I was a spot tense due to the fact that I didn't cognize the sounds that were people made inside.

"Things origin immense shadows erstwhile you person a torch on. For example, a tiny spider's web tin marque a immense shadiness and past erstwhile it moves successful a draught it tin beryllium rather unnerving.

"Stalactites sometimes interruption disconnected and autumn from the ceilings too.

"When this happens I archer myself to propulsion myself together."

On 1 juncture erstwhile Jamie was moving adjacent the entranceway helium heard children laughing. He thought that was unusual astatine 03:10, truthful helium went extracurricular - but the thoroughfare was deserted.

"That is the lone clip I haven't finished my displacement and I person called a taxi to instrumentality maine home," helium said.

Jamie works for the City of the Dead Tours successful the vaulted chambers astatine South Niddry Street, which are located disconnected the Cowgate.

The vaults were down shops successful the archways of South Bridge, which was built betwixt 1785 and 1788.

They were utilized for retention and arsenic workshops, but were abandoned successful 1796 due to the fact that they leaked truthful badly.

The shops themselves remained adust and their rent paid disconnected the bridge's operation debt.

Shopkeepers insisted connected the vaults being taken disconnected their rubric deeds truthful they did not person to wage the other rent for them.

The South Bridge was built crossed the Cowgate, which was a valley, truthful the well-off could bypass the area, which had go a slum.

In the aboriginal 1800s, determination was an influx of radical from Ireland and the Highlands looking for enactment successful Edinburgh.

"We weren't welcoming to them astatine all," says Jamie.

"They had nary jobs and nary structure truthful they chose to usage the abandoned vaults."

Manure from horses pulling carts connected the South Bridge supra would premix with sewage and rainfall water, which past seeped into the vaults below.

Living successful these wet, unhygienic and unventilated conditions led to illness, and cholera was rife. As a effect galore radical died successful the vaults.

Due to that grizzly history, the tunnels - which inactive leak to this time - person agelong been fashionable with shade hunters.

"Some friends deliberation I'm huffy spending hours successful present unsocial but others are intrigued and often inquire if they tin travel with me," added Jamie.

"But I similar moving connected my ain due to the fact that I get much done."

With nary telephone reception owed to the 75ft of chromatic betwixt him and the thoroughfare outside, helium needs to beryllium cautious and person his wits astir him.

"I don't person an flight program should thing happen. I request to deliberation astir that," helium said.