British folk traditions

If you’ve never danced with the “obby oss” or been daubed by a bogie, then a new show at Compton Verney art gallery in Warwickshire is for you. Making Mischief is the first exhibition dedicated to British folk costume and the traditions celebrated by communities all over the UK.

There you can learn about the game of Haxey Hood played in Lincolnshire each January or Padstow’s May Day celebrations and the stylised obby osses that lead the celebration. Or there’s the Jack in the Green festival in Hastings where the bogies splatter onlookers with green paint.

Making Mischief’s aim is not just to document community folklore traditions but also to show how they are revived and updated for the modern world – one that includes female morris dancers and LGBTQ+ performers. The Jack in the Green festival has featured gay bogies for the last 30 years. These changes come thanks to the growing interest from new, younger generations in making the customs their own.

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Folk traditions echo through many new elements of popular culture. As well as the current wave of folk horror films, including box-office hit Enys Men, there are club nights starting up such as Klub Nos Lowen, which champions Cornish folk music and dance, and breakout folk music stars such as Gwenno, who has released albums in Welsh and Cornish and was nominated for the 2022 Mercury prize. New clubs and social groups are also bringing like-minded people together.

Stone Club, founded by artists Lally MacBeth and Matthew Shaw in 2021, organises walks and gatherings for people fascinated by prehistoric pagan Britain. There’s also the Wiltshire-based magazine Weird Walk, which was started in 2019 by musician Owen Tromans, designer Alex Hornsby and James Nicholls who runs a record label. It’s dubbed a “journal of wonderings and wanderings” and showcases writing about Britain’s pathways, ley lines and mystical histories.

Contributors include comedian and Observer columnist Stewart Lee and artist Jeremy Deller. Art is Magic, a book of Deller’s work to be published in May, will feature his exhibition of folk art, and Sacrilege, his bouncy castle Stonehenge.

“People are drawn to ancient sites, stories and traditions,” says Weird Walk co-founder Hornsby. “Sacred landscapes and their lore offer respite, reconnection and an enjoyable yomp. There’s usually a decent pub nearby, too. Someone recently told me that in previous years their mates used to post about going to gigs or to football on the weekend, then all of a sudden it was hikes up mountains and rituals at standing stones … folklore and ancient history is gaining a foothold in the era of social media.”