Veteran British actor Tom Conti had a ghostly encounter when he stayed at a spooky hotel on a movie shoot.

The Shirley Valentine star was filming scenes on the U.K.'s Isle of Wight and unknowingly checked into a guest house rumoured to have a resident spectre.

The actor had two eerie experiences in the dead of night but eventually performed his own mini-exorcism - by trying to engage the apparition in conversation.

Conti, who also has enjoyed recurring roles in U.S. TV shows Friends and Cosby, says, "I was shooting a movie and I woke up in the early hours... and I heard somebody walking up and down beside the bed. (I) turned around. No one.

"And so I tried to go back to sleep but they started again. Turned around again - nothing. Closed my eyes. And the next thing I felt was 10 fingers (pressing) into my shoulder. Of course, I whirled around and there was nobody there."

The spooked actor decided to confront the ghost next time it made an appearance - and two nights later he got his chance.

He adds, "It came back... and I said, 'Hello, is there anything I can help you with?' and it stopped. Finished. That was the end of it."

The Isle of Wight, off the south coast of England, has earned the nickname 'Ghost Island' amid claims it is the most haunted isle in the world.