Here's a list of online events and activities for pagans, witches and friends over Twelfth Night and the week ahead. I generally list online events and in-person things in or near London. If you know of a ritual, talk, meeting or workshop you want included, please email me at badwitch1234@gmail.com.
Friday, 2 January 2026
Magical Online & London Events in the Next Weeks
Here's a list of online events and activities for pagans, witches and friends over Twelfth Night and the week ahead. I generally list online events and in-person things in or near London. If you know of a ritual, talk, meeting or workshop you want included, please email me at badwitch1234@gmail.com.
Thursday, 1 January 2026
The Bad Witch's 10 New Year Resolutions for 2026
In 2025 I achieved 7 out of the list of 10 resolutions I blogged about. My main goal was to write a new book on practical magic or divination. I achievied this, and sent the manuscript for Pagan Portals - Dowsing to the Moon Books editor in December. On this post you can see an idea of what the cover photo might look like.
Below are 10 things I'm aiming to do in 2026. Some are repeated or carried over from last year, and some are new.
- Plan some launch events for Pagan Portals - Dowsing, although the book is unlikely to get an offical publication date before the end of 2026.
- Write about seasonal folklore every month.
- Continue to blog about about crafting at least once a month.
- Visit at least six more parks, nature reserves, woods and other green areas in London, then post photos of them to show how the city has oodles of spaces with grass, trees, plants and wildlife.
- Visit two or three historic, magical or sacred places that I've never blogged about before. I'll post photos and details.
- Walk a ley line.
- Interview at least 6 more pagan authors.
- Continue to do some form of divination for the world at least once a month and post about it.
- Reading is probably my favourite pastime, so expect to see at least another 12 posts from me with my thoughts about magical books I've read.
- Finally, I want to walk a labyrinth I've not visited before.
Other previous related posts
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2024/12/rounding-year-reflections-on-new-years.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2024/12/new-year-resolutions-looking-back-at-my.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2024/01/the-bad-witchs-10-new-year-resolutions.html
(Note: I earn commission from advertisers for some links.)
Wednesday, 31 December 2025
New Year's Eve Divination: The Swedish Year Walk
New Year's Eve is a traditional time for divination to find out what the months ahead might bring. In Sweden, one practice is called årsgång, which translates as “year walk". I learnt about it in the book Hallowed Ground by Mark Norman. He writes:
"The ritual began with a day confined in a dark room, alone with nothing to eat or drink. As midnight struck, the walker would leave the room and set out for their local church. On the walk through the forests and countryside, they would come across many supernatural creatures from Swedish folklore, who would try and prevent the walker from reaching the church, whilst still obeying the rules of the ritual.
"The year walk was a solitary practice, and it was forbidden to communicate with anyone else. There could be dire consequences if the person undertaking the walk failed to remain silent and solemn throughout."
The walk continued around the church building a number of times, which apparently varied from place to place and sometimes included specific patterns of footsteps. After doing this, the walker would hope to gain information from spirits that dwelt in the graveyard. They might see ghostly messengers, hear singing from under the ground, or see visions by peering through the keyhole on the church door. The divination could reveal anything about the year ahead, from forthcoming marriages, to the outcome of war, if there would be famine, and who was going to die.
I guess if you're reading this early in the day this December 31, and don't have any party plans, you could choose to give this a go. If you do, please let me know what the spirits tell you.Hallowed Ground: The Folklore of Churches and Churchyards is published by Crossed Crow Books. You can also view the book on Amazon.
(Please note: I earn commission from some links)
Other previous related posts
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2015/12/finnish-new-years-eve-divination-with.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2017/10/london-necropolis-temple-church.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2012/10/london-necropolis-st-brides-church-of.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2012/01/twelfth-night-spell-for-new-year-luck.html
Tuesday, 30 December 2025
Green London: Winter Walk in Beckenham Place Park
I love going on walks in the great outdoors in the days between Christmas and New Year. I took these photos at Beckenham Place Park, which is a huge green space in the Borough of Lewisham in South East London, although it takes its name from a village on the borders of Kent.
The park includes areas of ancient woodland, meadows, a lake, and sustainable gardens. There are several walking routes to enjoy, including part of South East London’s Capital Ring and Green Chain Walk, which are clearly signposted. The River Ravensbourne runs along the eastern edge too.
A Palladian-style mansion in the grounds is a community hub that offers lots of events and workshops, including Mind, Body, Spirit and crafting activities. You can find out the details here. An old stableyard has been turned into a lovely cafe too. The park hosts fairs and festivals as well. At the moment there's a winter funfair and skating rink. If, like me, you want to avoid the commercialism of a funfair, the park is large enough that you can get well away from it and simply enjoy being in nature. As the sign in the picture below suggests:
- Leave your headphones in your pocket
- Allow yourself time in nature
- Slow your pace
- Look at the base of a tree then follow the trunk skywards
- Gaze at the leaves framing the clouds (or bare branches at this time of year)
- Look for the bird that owns the song
- See the beautiful, question the unusual
- Allow curiosity, fascination, and wonder to take hold
- Actively connect to nature, it's good for you
You can find out more about Beckenham Place Park here: beckenhamplacepark.com/
Green London
I've been blogging regularly about London's green spaces in an effort to dispel a prevalent myth in the pagan community that it's just all concrete. Even in the City, which is of course heavily built up, there are still places where nature thrives, while Greater London has huge areas of woods, commons, parks and beautiful gardens.
The pictures on this post were all taken by me. Please do not use them without my permission.
Some Previous Green London Posts
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/07/green-london-ruskin-park-tranquil-gem.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/04/green-london-rookery-streatham-common.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/03/green-london-plumstead-common-its.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/03/green-london-londons-first-botanical.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/09/green-london-st-alphege-gardens-city.html
Monday, 29 December 2025
Occult Book Review: Pagan Portals - Chaos Magic
Actually, as an eclectic witch who honours Eris, Goddess of Chaos, I'm all for that at any time. However, I found this book a great reminder to clear the clutter of old ways of working, look at things with a fresh eye, and aim to start the New Year with a new attitude. Those are things chaos magic really helps with, as it offers oodles of techniques for embracing change.
Here's the synopsis of Pagan Portals - Chaos Magic from the website of publisher Moon Books:
Divided into two parts - Theory and Praxis - this book is a primer for those seeking to explore the philosophies of chaos magic, its principles and practical applications. In Part One, you'll learn to harness the power of intention, belief, and creativity not only to shape your reality according to your desires but also to decondition your mind, remove limiting beliefs, enter altered states of consciousness, achieve gnosis, and more. In Part Two, you'll learn to work with sigils, hypersigils, and magical entities, as well as explore powerful techniques, such as visualization and invocation, and the controversial realm of pop-culture magic. Presenting an understanding of the core concepts of chaos magic, this book provides insight into how to embrace chaos and unleash the mad scientist within. Your reality is yours to create.
The book is by Ivy Corvus, an American occultist who has been practicing chaos magic and other esoteric techniques for over 15 years. She's known on YouTube where she has cultivated a reputation as an experimental chaos magician. This is her first book, but it's extremely well written and easy to follow. Each chapter has practical exercises which build on each other. It's perfect for beginners who want to learn, but is also good as a refresher course for those with more experience.
You can view Pagan Portals - Chaos Magic on Amazon.
Please note I earn commission from some links.
Previous related posts
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2015/08/occult-london-sigil-art-at-cafe-in-crypt.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2014/09/extract-naming-goddess-eris.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/11/review-prosperity-magic-by-rachel.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2025/06/book-review-pagan-portals-feminist.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2024/12/book-review-ness-bosch-on-my-gothic.html





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