Given a Lie superalgebra $$\mathfrak {g}$$
g
, Gorelik defined the anticentre $$\mathcal {A}$$
A
of its enveloping algebra, which consists of certain elements that square to the center. We seek to generalize and enrich the anticentre to the context of supersymmetric pairs $$(\mathfrak {g},\mathfrak {k})$$
(
g
,
k
)
, or more generally supersymmetric spaces G/K. We define certain invariant distributions on G/K, which we call ghost distributions, and which in some sense are induced from invariant distributions on $$G_0/K_0$$
G
0
/
K
0
. Ghost distributions, and in particular their Harish-Chandra polynomials, give information about branching from G to a symmetric subgroup $$K'$$
K
′
which is related (and sometimes conjugate) to K. We discuss the case of $$G\times G/G$$
G
×
G
/
G
for an arbitrary quasireductive supergroup G, where our results prove the existence of a polynomial which determines projectivity of irreducible G-modules. Finally, a generalization of Gorelik’s ghost centre is defined which we call the full ghost centre, $$\mathcal {Z}_{full}$$
Z
full
. For type I basic Lie superalgebras $$\mathfrak {g}$$
g
we fully describe $$\mathcal {Z}_{full}$$
Z
full
, and prove that if $$\mathfrak {g}$$
g
contains an internal grading operator, $$\mathcal {Z}_{full}$$
Z
full
consists exactly of those elements in $$\mathcal {U}\mathfrak {g}$$
U
g
acting by $$\mathbb {Z}$$
Z
-graded constants on every finite-dimensional irreducible representation.