#folklore uk

[stampedpub]

The UK'S Royal Mail captures the four eras of girlhood in its latest stamp release, Myths and Legends.

Issued March 27, 2025. Art by Adam Simpson.

[vela-pulsars]

not enough stonjourner art out there

[queeringclassiclit]

Cú Chulainn

from the Ulster Cycle of Celtic Mythology

submitted by anon

[rebel-girl-queen-of-my-world]

[violetgashes]

i think my brain is rotting in places

[saru18castillo]

THE ERAS TOUR

London, UK N3 🇬🇧

[brandyvampirexx]

Cassie poor girl🎀

[platosshadowpuppet]

Blackthorn has long has associations with witchcraft and black magic. I can't imagine why...

[meanadeofol]

Insert Hozier song here c:

[keyofnow]

A Cellarful Of Noise

The third instalment of The Beatles mythology — and the first biographical publication about them — was cast through the eyes of their manager, Brian Epstein.

Painting testimonial pictures...

The autobiography was ghost-written by NEMS publicist Derek Taylor and published in October 1964, hot on the heels of The Beatles' first World Tour and return to England, at a time when they were busy recording their next album and preparing for an upcoming UK tour.

What's it all about?!

Although by 1964 international news media was already printing an astonishing amount about The Beatles (includo on their hitherto dubious origins), Brian Epstein's A Cellarful Of Noise was the first attempt at setting the record straight (probably in response to the flood of interview requests with dull reporters asking the same daft questions, just like that scene in A Hard Day's Night).

The story starts near the end, during the height of Beatlemania and The Beatles first U.S. visit, before elaborating on the band's origins. Epstein paints them as working class kids from Liverpool who formed the band from scratch, hustled gigs around Merseyside until a lucky break sent them to Hamburg, where they honed their craft playing extended sets and made a record with an English rocker called Tony Sheridan. The disc caught Epstein's attention when a Liverpool youth requested it at his NEMS record store one day in late 1961, so he ordered several copies, which sold out, and he ordered several more, which also sold out. Sensing an opportunity, and learning it was a local group, he arranged to see the band in person during their regular lunchtime show at the nearby Cavern Club. Taken by the group's charisma, style, and undeniable sound, Epstein offered to manage them.

The deeper you go...

His first act as manager was securing them a recording audition at Decca in London for New Year's Day 1962. The group didn't pass the audition, but Epstein persevered and took the tapes around from label to label, until a chance referral brought him to the office of George Martin, head of A&R at the specialty label Parlophone. Martin took an interest and offered the band a studio test at EMI, but after the session he insisted the group should have a different drummer. John, Paul and George had already been thinking as much, so Pete Best was sacked and replaced by Ringo Starr. And then The Beatles were whole.

After that, the band's ascent was rapid: “Love Me Do” broke the top 20, then “Please Please Me” topped the charts in early 1963, followed by an unbroken string of #1 hits through “Can't Buy Me Love” in mid-1964. Meanwhile the group toured vigorously across the UK, embarked on a brief tour of Sweden, and finally had top billing on their own UK tour; they landed coveted slots on the televised London Palladium programme and at the Royal Command Performance variety show; and Capitol finally agreed to issue their records in the US market as news of Beatlemania reached America. Then came the series of Christmas shows in London, the three-week residency in Paris, and at last their first U.S. visit (including The Ed Sullivan Show with its 80,000,000 viewers that night, and the Washington Coliseum concert). They returned home to film the movie, and John even published a best-selling book.

Epstein's Beatle narrative concludes with various anecdotes from the 1964 World Tour (though curiously he makes scarcely a mention of A Hard Day's Night, and then not even by name), plus short character sketches to demonstrate that they're still human despite their fame, and also that they can sometimes be brats (except George apparently).

And in the end...

With one final glance towards the future, Epstein leaves the impression that he considers The Beatles an unfinished work-in-progress, and hence one can reasonably expect the mythology to expand further, so stay tuned. Given the scope of success already behind them, and peering from the height of Beatlemania, Epstein would've had ample reason to foresee many bright horizons ahead, and he would be proven correct.

🍏

[francescaswords]

I wrote part of my undergraduate dissertation on the folklore behind The Scorpio Races, and I was a bit apprehensive that during my annual reread I would see the abandoned post it notes and revert to upcoming-deadline-panic-mode. Pleased to report I have been thoroughly enjoying revisiting Thisby and my stomach only dropped briefly when I saw the word 'Epona.' Heroically I thought of November cakes and kept going. Thisby really does heal the soul 🍂

[mecthology]

The Devil's Footprints, 1855 👣😈

What made these prints especially bizarre was where they appeared — not just on the ground, but on rooftops, across rivers, and over high walls. Each print was about 4 inches long, 3 inches wide, and spaced in a way that suggested a bipedal creature.

Locals were baffled. Some believed the Devil himself had walked through the snow that night, searching for sinners. The idea caught fire — the tracks led up to homes, churches, and even ended abruptly as if the creature vanished.

Dozens of theories emerged. Some claimed the prints were made by kangaroos, badgers, or even hopping mice. Others suggested a weather balloon dragging shackles through the snow. But none of the explanations quite fit.

Follow @mecthology for more myths and strange cases.

Source: wikipedia.org, discoverygeopark.com, peter-moore.co.uk, www.discoveryuk.com

[tom-yarrow-horny-writer]

Amazing to see LABYRINTH amongst so many amazing zines at #toadlickers #folklore today

🐸👅

[zerozerosenpai-art]

Boof Bark Woof

[violetgashes]