It can be frustrating getting served in a pub sometimes, so imagine the trauma of getting a drink if you don't exist.

This is the plight of one ghostly visitor who has been spotted lingering in one of Borehamwood's oldest pubs.

The Battle Axes pub, in Butterfly Lane, built in 1890, is believed to be home to the ghost of a German airman.

The spectre of a man dressed in a German pilot uniform is regularly seen walking through the secluded country pub and is spotted loitering in the hedgerows nearby.

Amanda Sherwin, deputy manager of the pub, said: "We had a medium in one night having dinner who said you have ghosts in your pub.'"

Punters at the pub also reported spooky sightings of an old lady dressed in white bath robes roaming the pub's grounds.

Landlord Ali Yazdi claims that bottles are mysteriously opened or moved around the bar during the night and he thinks phantom guests are to blame.

One woman, who recalled in detail the ghostly encounter, but wished to remain anonymous, said: "As I drove past the pub I could see a glowing light in the hedgerow up ahead of me. As I drew closer the figure of an old-fashioned pilot was clearly visible."

It is believed the pub, located near Elstree Aerodrome, was the site of a plane crash.

Mrs Sherwin added: "Many years ago, a plane missed the pub and crashed in the hedge beside the road."

Bill Bailey, who has worked for Elstree Aerodrome for more than 50 years, said there had been a number of plane crashes and people killed near the airfield, but he had never experienced any ghostly occurences.

But, Borehamwood is no stranger to supernatural activity. The Gate Studios, built in 1928 and knocked down last year, was said to harbour the ghost of a man that fell to his death from rigging on a soundstage. The ghost, which haunted the building for more than 70 years, appeared to workers at the studios before its demolition.