A Very British Book: The Road to ‘Tales of Britain’
Author Jem Roberts explains the genesis of Unbound Publishing’s 21st Century roadmap of British folktales.
Riddles, Heroes, and Folktales Come True: Folklore in J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings
Folklore is central in Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings: not only “external” folklore, the folklore of the “real” world, but also “internal” folklore.
Cars, Coins and Cursed Colours: A Brief Introduction to the Folklore of Vehicles
Cars and motorbikes have been with us for over 130 years. In that time they’ve gathered superstitions and urban legends around them like exhaust fumes.
The Origins of ‘Touch Wood’: Tree Spirits, The True Cross, or Tag?
The superstition of ‘touch wood’, or ‘knock on wood’ is still common today, but what was its original source? Madeleine D’Este explores some possibilities.
Folk Healing & Hypnotism: Arthur Spray, ‘The Mysterious Cobbler’ of Bexhill
Arthur Spray, known as ‘The Mysterious Cobbler of Bexhill’, wrote an autobiography in 1935 which detailed his famed powers in healing and hypnotism.