Festive hopes & fears

From keeping a yule log alight to welcoming New Year guests, we demystify some of our weirdest festive superstitions

Britain is a superstitious nation, no doubt about it. What Briton hasn’t at some point verbalised a wish about some impending good luck and suffixed it with the words ‘touch wood’ or ‘fingers crossed’? Superstitions are so woven into our culture that we hardly know we’re doing it – just a few days ago a friend sniggered at me when I broke away from our conversation to bid a lone magpie a good morning (not doing so is considered bad luck). Of course, it’s no new thing – many of our superstitions in Britain predate the arrival of Christianity and are considered Pagan traditions, while during the Middle Ages, people lived in near constant fear of witches, ghosts and the devil himself. And while many superstitions relate to specific industries…

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Discover Britain (Digital) - 1 Issue, December 2024 - January 2025

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