I had a really lovely time this evening in Glossop @darkpeakbooks.bsky.social in conversation with the brilliant Tim Campbell-Green about #Folklore. Wonderful audience, beautiful venue!
Ceri Houlbrook
@cerihoulbrook.bsky.social
Author of 'Winter's Wishfall'. Folklorist. Mum. Northerner. Lecturer in Folklore & History. Eater of cake.
I wonder if the carved head of Barmouth minds having people hammer their wishes into him
It's been an odd day today, beginning with an interview with the Boston based Christian Scientists Monitor about the folklore of scarecrows and ending with sharing a green room space with the rock band Amazons for my seed talk on folklore and feminism
A beautiful day for welcoming the newest cohort of MA Folklore Studies students @herts.ac.uk. The world definitely needs more folklorists (i.e. people who are curious about - and value - the customs we practice, the stories we tell & the beliefs we hold)
I'm a so pleased that the exhibition I co-curated with @cerihoulbrook.bsky.social is now open at the Chelsea Physick Garden. Running until the 15th Nov, it explores the autumnal plants of the garden through the work of pioneering botanical illustrator Anne Pratt.
In case you missed it, here’s my article about historic magical (and religious) house protection. Fire-starting demons; hag stones; evil-repelling plants; mystical markings; witch chimneys; Bibles under pillows & more! Republished by the Smithsonian Magazine. www.smithsonianmag.com/history/six-...
Six Ways That People of the Past Used Magic to Protect Their Homes, From Witch Bottles to Mystical Symbols
Throughout history, humans around the world have employed protective talismans such as special stones, herbs and plants, and decorative demon tiles
smithsonianmag.com
I really enjoyed contributing to this, thinking about why we want our landscapes to have their supernatural stories
Folkloring Podcast@folkloringpodcast.bsky.social · 2w agoGiants, Devils and Dragons, oh, my! With some great quotes from @cerihoulbrook.bsky.social www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/seven... #folklore #legens #europeanlore
Giants, Devils and Dragons, oh, my! With some great quotes from @cerihoulbrook.bsky.social www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/seven... #folklore #legens #europeanlore
Seven Places in Europe That Legends Say Were Built by Giants, Devils or Dragons
Bridges, mountains, caves and rock formations that seem impossible to explain become magnets for folklore
smithsonianmag.com
🍁 🍂 Meet Anne Pratt, Victorian botanical illustrator and researcher. Her work on the folklore and medicinal properties of autumn flora is the focus of mine and Jennifer Evans's new exhibition 'Plantlore' at Chelsea Physic Garden 🍂 🍁 www.chelseaphysicgarden.co.uk/plantlore-is...
Looking forward to this event in lovely Glossop on 8 Oct - come say hi! darkpeakbooks.co.uk/event/an-eve...
Why do I always look so bedraggled when I pop into bookshops? Signed copies of #Folklore available in Manchester Arndale Waterstones
Chatbots are faeries? AI described in technomagical terms, using folklore to explain technologies that are rendered opaque. Products of genAI are compared to faeries: uncanny verisimilitude thwarted by No of fingers. Are such comparisons helpful or do they lead us further down the garden path?
Spotted in Waterstones Manchester Arndale, signed copies of Folklore in paperback on the BOGOF table! Perfect for your TBR as we move into Autumn and spooky season 🎃 pick up your copy today! @cerihoulbrook.bsky.social @odavies9.bsky.social #folklore #booksky
They both honoured the ritual of the Boggart's Toe - balance on it and your wish will be granted
Ceri Houlbrook@cerihoulbrook.bsky.social · 4w agoI had so much fun showing @timdownie.bsky.social & Justin Chubb around my favourite park, hunting for boggarts and discussing my book #Folklore, for their fantastic podcast FolkLands
I had so much fun showing @timdownie.bsky.social & Justin Chubb around my favourite park, hunting for boggarts and discussing my book #Folklore, for their fantastic podcast FolkLands
Really interesting to hear a whole panel on teaching practice. Clare Hickman on Newcadtle's environmental history module.
30 years ago since I had my first academic articles published. Subjects: hag riding & charming. Not an easy sell at the time...
Why was this Lincoln Imp found up the chimney of a C17th-house? You can read some of my theories in this OA article in this brilliant special issue of Revenant edited by @rorywaterman.bsky.social & Anna Milon www.revenantjournal.com/issues/linco...
My mum partaking in some ostensive play in Venice - name the film
So, my next book "Legends and Landscape: An Alternative History of Britain" is now with the publishers. Sept 2027. Plenty of postcard images, thought not this one. Anyone recognise this legendary English landscape?
The lion, a symbol of Venice, has its nose rubbed for good luck. I'm curious why nobody asks the lioness for her favour
Now that I'm recovered from the Death of Robin Hood, I can appreciate its take on folklore: "I've seen the power of stories. They can be used to make men do terrible things. And then those terrible things become stories. And stories? No. You cannot trust any of them. We cannot be trusted with them"
From now on I shall only talk folklore to a background of shiny streamers beneath a giant disco ball
If you're interested in submitting a book proposal to our Radical Histories series, give us a shout. manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/series/radic...
Radical Histories - Manchester University Press
The Radical Histories series encourages innovative and field-defining research in the history of individuals, groups, movements and ideas which challenged the political, social and cultural status quo...
manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk
Ted Vallance@tedvallance.bsky.social · last mo.Very exciting to see the first book in our Radical Histories series out in print- David Kennerley’s sonic history of Chartism @katrinanavickas.bsky.social @manchesterup.bsky.social
In Greece, kites are flown on Clean Monday. In China, they're flown on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month. In St Annes, they're flown today!
Witches guide the way on Pendle Hill. I wonder what the eleven victims would think of this, their legacy in the landscape...
Folks in Worcester are being asked to collect their love locks after the council has removed them from a bridge over the Severn. Nice to see a little mention of our stats too: www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...
Had a great time launching the paperback of Folklore at Topping Books in York yesterday ❤️ It was lovely meeting so many new people and chatting about their favourite folklore. Other stops on the book tour include Manchester on 6 Sep and Glossop on 8 Oct
