Goddess Enchantment - Magic and Spells

An extremely talented friend of mine, Carrie Kirkpatrick, has a pair of books coming out next week - Goddess Enchantment - Magic and Spells: Volumes 1 & 2.

Carrie Kirkpatrick is a well known TV psychic and presenter as well as being a film maker, photographer and author. Goddess Enchantment - Magic and Spells: Volumes 1 & 2 are being published by Grave Distractions Publications and are due to reach bookshops on July 8.

The press release says: "Goddess Enchantment, Magic and Spells takes you on a journey into the realms of magic and legend, retracing the myths of the Goddesses of old with a fresh perspective that makes them accessible in the 21st Century.

"Carrie Kirkpatrick opens the doorway to the magical realms of the Goddesses, inviting you to partake in visualisations, spells and magical rituals designed to help you fulfil your potential. See the Goddesses come to life in vibrant and magical photographs, connect to them and gain from their inspirational blessings."

I'm definitely looking forward to seeing these two books.

Carrie is an expert in working with the Goddess energies and runs workshops helping people connect with the Goddesses to create their own success and bring magic into their lives. For more information about her television appearances and her workshops visit www.goddess-enchantment.tv.

The pictures show Carrie and the book covers.

Links

www.gravedistractions.com

www.goddess-enchantment.tv

Bees and History: A Taste of Honey...

I took this photo of bees on a honeycomb back in the summer of 2009 at an open day of the Kent Bee-Keepers' Association.

One of the bee-keepers had a frame of honeycomb in a glass case, in which you could see the bees busily working. He kindly took it into the sunshine for me to photograph. I promised I would write about his bees - and then I didn't - until now. Oops.

Actually, I did start to write about bees and honey. I began to research the history of bee-keeping and look into the folklore associated with it. I found it was such a huge subject that I felt overwhelmed with the task of trying to summarise it in a single blog post. I made a start, but didn't get very far and it remained as an unfinished draft.

The other day, while I was looking through my old files, I came across the picture I'd taken and the research I'd started and decided that I should publish it on my blog as a short introduction to the subject - a little taste of honey rather than the whole jar!

The history of honey goes back a very long way. Archaeologists have found evidence that humans were eating honey in paleolithic times, and were probably doing so much earlier. Ancient man discovered that it was healthy and could also be made into alcohol - in fact fermented honey was probably the very first alcoholic drink.

According to The Sacred Bee in Ancient Times and Folklore by Hilda M Ransome, bees have been considered sacred ever since man discovered honey. The book says: "It is impossible to overestimate their value to man... He came to regard honey as a true 'giver of life'... He held the bee to be a creature of special sanctity connected with those things which seem to him most mysterious - birth, death, and reincarnation."

Folktales and customs relating to the importance of bees have arisen in cultures all over the world, including the belief that one should always tell the bees about important events, otherwise something could go wrong.

The bee was the symbol of Lower Egypt for thousands of years, and the Bible describes Egypt as a land "flowing with milk and honey". Honey production was an important industry in ancient Egypt. As well as being a popular food, physicians and magicians used honey for its healing properties.

Honey was important in funerary rites and sometimes the dead were preserved just in honey. One story tells of grave-robbers finding a large jar of honey in a tomb near the pyramids. They opened it and started eating, before noticing that the jar also contained the body of an infant.

Priests baked honeycakes to feed sacred animals in temples in Egypt and Greece. Sorcerers of the era also used beeswax to make images of creatures or people in order to perform magic on them.

The belief that a magician can heal or harm a living person by manipulating a wax image of them was common in Babylonia and India as well as Egypt. The practise passed from Egypt to ancient Greece and Rome and was used in many religious ceremonies. Witches today still sometimes use wax dolls, called "poppets", for sympathetic magic.

In Babylonia, offerings of wine, honey and oil were poured on temple foundations, honey was also a common offering in religious ceremonies and as part of rituals to exorcise demons.

Today, honey might be used less for religious purposes, but toast with butter and honey, and a cup of tea, is still the breakfast of the gods in my opinion. There are 44,000 bee-keepers in the UK, with about 240,000 hives. Although they produce 6,000 tones of honey per year, about 80% more than this is imported from abroad.

You can find out more about the Kent Bee-Keepers' Association, including details of events taking place this summer, at http://www.kentbee.com/

Links and previous related posts
The Sacred Bee in Ancient Times and (Dover Books on Anthropology and Folklore)
http://www.kentbee.com/
http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2008/may/13/wildlife.endangeredspecies
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/03/first-bumblees-of-spring.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/08/bees-and-hollyhocks.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/09/buddleia-for-bees-butterflies-and.html
https://www.jenreviews.com/honey/

The Great Escape...

I've quit my job - freedom beckons - and it feels great!

Actually, I've taken redundancy. Last month, my entire department at work was put under notice of redundancy and all the staff were expected to apply for new roles that were being created as part of an office restructuring.

At first I was undecided about what to do - and feeling very stressed about the whole thing.

Then, last week, I got a chance to think things over. I'd done my back in while gardening and was forced to spend a lot of time resting; which also meant I had a lot of time to do some thinking.

I began to realise that, although I like the people I work with, it was the right time to make my escape. I told my boss I wanted out.

My back is fine now, and I've returned to work - for the moment. I'm still not sure exactly when I'll be leaving because I haven't been told if I will have to work my notice period or not.

Until then, I'm biding my time, mentally bouncing a ball against the walls and mulling over all the things I could do when I'm out of that familiar little cell called a workplace. I'm ready to make that break.

Note: My redundancy is from my day job and will not affect my blog writing, which is a labour of love that I do in my spare time.

Previous related posts:

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/06/should-i-stay-or-should-i-go.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/06/summer-solstice-song-list.html

Pagan events in and near London

Here are events in London and other parts of the UK that could be of interest to pagans. If you know of an event that you want listed, please email the details to me at badwitch1234@gmail.com. Please also email me if you spot any errors in my listings.

Tuesday 28 June; Firebreathing Dragons and How the Mind Shapes Myth. Talk by Jeremy Morgan at London Earth Mysteries Circle. Admission is £4.50, concessions £4, members £3, concessions are £4. Talks are usually held on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month at 7.15PM at First Floor, 50 Gloucester Place, London W1U 8EA. http://www.londonearth.com/

Tuesday, 28 June; Spirit Revelations. Lecture by Nigel Peace at The College of Psychic Studies 16 Queensberry Place, London SW7 2EB. Time: 7pm - 9pm. Cost: £8/£12. Advance booking essential. Tel: 020 7589 3292. http://www.collegeofpsychicstudies.co.uk/index.html
Wednesday 29, June; Trance-Formational Magic. Talk by Ursula James, author of The Source – A Manual of Everyday Magic, at Pagan forum The Moot with No Name, arranged through Atlantis Bookshop. Venue: Devereux public house (pictured), 20 Devereux Court, off Essex Street, London WC2R 3JJ. Meet from 7.30pm, event starts at 8pm. Admission £5.

Friday 1 July; The Power of Universal Energy. Lecture by Douglas Ballard at The College of Psychic Studies 16 Queensberry Place, London SW7 2EB. Time: 7pm - 9pm. Cost: £10/£15. Advance booking essential. Tel: 020 7589 3292. http://www.collegeofpsychicstudies.co.uk/index.html

Saturday, 2 July, Talk by John Constable, author of The Southwark Mysteries and Secret Bankside, at the Urban Physic Garden, 100 Union Street, London SE1 0NL. Time: 1.15pm–2pm. This is a free event.

Sunday, 3 July, In Honour of John Michell presented by The Order of Bards, Ovates and Druids. John Constable will talk about Enchanting the Landscape in the Heart of London. Venue: The George Inn, 77 Borough High Street, SE1. Time: 1.45pm for 2pm start. Cost: £15/£10 concs.

News: Witch helps couple conceive against the odds

A woman who had been told she had a one-in-a-billion chance of having a baby naturally has become a mother-of-two after getting magical help from a witch, according to a story in the Daily Mail.

You can read the full story here: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2006319/Claire-Anderson-Has-children-meeting-white-witch.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

Pagan Eye: Eagle Owl

I photographed this beautiful Eagle Owl during a display at Eagle Heights bird of prey centre, in Kent, which I visited a couple of weeks ago, before I hurt my back.

At Eagle Heights, I not only learnt a lot about birds, but also discovered they are difficult to photograph because they fly so fast. All my attempts at photographing falcons resulted in pictures of blue sky - perhaps with a tail feather just disappearing out of shot - or were so blurry they weren't usable.

Eagle Owls are a bit slower. They like to conserve energy and glide through the air whenever possible, or so we were told. I'm quite glad of that, as it helped me get one good picture from over 100 attempts. Thank goodness for digital cameras!

In mythology, owls are often seen as symbols of wisdom and secret knowledge, but are just as frequently feared as being bad omens.

However, Eagle Owls, which are big birds - smaller than the Golden Eagle but larger than the Snowy Owl - can be regarded as powerful symbols of protection. According to website The Owl Pages, in Central Asia, feathers from the Northern Eagle Owl are valued as amulets to protect children and livestock from evil spirits.

I managed to pick up a lovely Eagle Owl feather after the display. It is now on my mantelpiece along with a few other feathers I have picked up over the years. May it protect any youngsters or animals who enter my home.

On each Pagan Eye post, I show a photo that I find interesting, with a few words about it. I'm not quite sure what I'll be including - it could be a seasonal image, a pagan site, an event, or just a pretty picture.

If you want to send me a photo for a Pagan Eye post, please email it to badwitch1234@gmail.com Let me know what the photo shows and whether you want your name mentioned or not. For copyright reasons, the photo must be one you have taken yourself and you must confirm that you are submitting it for A Bad Witch's Blog.

Links and previous related posts:

http://www.eagleheights.co.uk/

http://www.owlpages.com/articles.php?section=Owl+Mythology&title=Owls+Lore+Culture&page=3

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eurasian_Eagle-owl

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/01/birds-divine-messengers-big-garden.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2009/01/bird-watching-portents-and-ornithomancy.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/01/pagan-eye-swan-on-pond.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/04/pagan-eye-ladybird-love.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/03/pagan-eye-lambs-in-barn.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/06/summer-solstice-song-list.html

Pagan Eye: Museum of Witchcraft

This is a picture of the Museum of Witchcraft, in Boscastle, Cornwall. It was taken by Clare Stannard, who recently visited the museum while on holiday.

Clare said: "I loved the area. Very faery! Boscastle was beautiful. The museum was good."

I must admit I am jealous - although I've holidayed in Cornwall many times in the past, I've never visited the Museum of Witchcraft. In fact, I first heard about the museum while watching the TV series A Seaside Parish, which was filmed in Boscastle at the time of the flood (I mean the Boscastle disaster of 2004, not the Biblical flood .)

Watching A Seaside Parish, which followed the activities of a Church of England vicar new to the area, I was impressed by the way in which people of all faiths and outlooks on life worked together to get over the tragedy that had struck the town and to rebuild their lives. What a shame witches and Christians can't always get on that well.

According to the TV programme, the Museum of Witchcraft was one of the less badly damaged properties and about 90% of the collection survived - although the ground floor and basement were flooded and considerable restoration work was required to clean mud off the documents stored there.

The Museum of Witchcraft houses items relating to witchcraft and magic, with a bias towards English and Cornish artefacts.

It first opened on the Isle of Man in 1951, the same year the Witchcraft Act was repealed, and was run in partnership by Cecil Williamson and Gerald Gardner. However, the two men fell out and Cecil eventually sold the museum to Gerald. The museum moved to Boscastle in the 1960s, where it has remained. Since the flood, the building has been restored and the exhibition space improved.

According to the museum website, it currently holds the largest collection of witchcraft-related artefacts and regalia in the world. It has recently published a book called 60th Anniversary: The Museum of Witchcraft - A Magical History, which costs £34.

On each Pagan Eye post, I show a photo that I find interesting, with a few words about it. I'm not quite sure what I'll be including - it could be a seasonal image, a pagan site, an event, or just a pretty picture.

If you want to send me a photo for a Pagan Eye post, please email it to badwitch1234@gmail.com Let me know what the photo shows and whether you want your name mentioned or not. For copyright reasons, the photo must be one you have taken yourself and you must confirm that you are submitting it for A Bad Witch's Blog.

Links and previous related posts
http://www.museumofwitchcraft.com/

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/12/pagan-eye-where-witches-walked.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/03/pagan-eye-arbor-low-stone-circle.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Seaside_Parish

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/07/history-of-pendle-witches-their-magic.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2009/01/wicca-witchcraft-finding-out-basics.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/09/charge-of-goddess-conference-2010.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/09/day-for-gerald.html

http://www.theoccultartcompany.co.uk/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=1&products_id=100

And another attack on paganism

Christian demonstrators are planning to protest outside a pagan moot in Bridport, Dorset, in an attempt to warn people about the “dangers” of the occult, according to a news story on View online.

The Bridport Pagan Moot is due to take place at the George Hotel, Bridport, on Tuesday, July 5 at 8pm.

The group planning the protest, Christian Soldiers Dorset, said: “We are a new Christian movement in Dorset, set up to warn people, especially the young, of the dangers of getting involved in the occult."

If the moot is at a pub, which the George Hotel sounds like, then there won't be any young people there because children aren't allowed in pubs. Perhaps the Christian group should consider that and respect responsible adults' wishes to have a drink and chat about any subject they like - paganism, the occult or whatever.

You can read the full story here: http://www.viewfrompublishing.co.uk/news_view/11580/7/1/bridport-christian-group-to-protest-at-bridport

Blog: The Guardian wants Stonehenge revels banned

Jonathan Jones, in his blog at The Guardian, wants Stonehenge midsummer revels banned because he says there is no historical tradition for them.

He says: "The ancient stones should not be reduced to a stage for feeble pseudo-religious, pseudo-communal fantasies."

Well, that's a bit controversial I would have said. What do you think?

You can read his blog here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/artanddesign/jonathanjonesblog/2011/jun/21/stonehenge-solstice-takeover

Workshops: Aphrodite, Demeter & Persephone

Jane Meredith, author of Aphrodite's Magic, will be in the UK in September and will be running two workshops in London.

Saturday, 10 September: Aphrodite's Healing. One-day workshop at the Wellington Hotel in conjunction with Alternatives. Location: Wellington Hotel, 71 Vincent Square, London SW1P 2PA. Time: 10.30am to 5:30pm. Cost: £65/£40 concessions. For full details and online booking visit
http://www.alternatives.org.uk/Site/EventDescription.aspx?EventID=893

Sunday, 11 September: Demeter & Persephone - The Mother-Daughter Story. One-day workshop at Treadwell's bookshop, Store St, London. Time: 10am-5pm. Cost: £65/£55 early bird price until 31 July. For further details and booking contact Elle at
avalonblessings@googlemail.com

For details of Jane's other workshops in the UK and in France, see her website at http://www.janemeredith.com/southeast/calender.html

You can read my review of Aphrodite's Magic at http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/05/review-aphrodites-magic.html

Previous related posts:
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2009/03/venus-goddess-of-gardens.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/02/tarot-lovers-card.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/05/review-aphrodites-magic.html

News: The Summer Solstice

Here are links to some of the news websites with stories about the Summer Solstice:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2011/jun/21/summer-solstice-celebrated-stonehenge

http://www.gazetteandherald.co.uk/news/9095843.Rain_keeps_revellers_away_from_Avebury/

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/8588548/Druids-celebrate-summer-solstice-at-Stonehenge.html

http://www.newstimes.com/local/article/Here-comes-the-sun-1432455.php

http://crave.cnet.co.uk/software/summer-solstice-google-doodle-celebrates-longest-day-50004188/

http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/166770/20110621/wine-beer-booze-liquor-summer-solstice-2011-celebration-international.htm

God of the Week: Ra

As today is the Summer Solstice - or midsummer - when the sun is in the sky for longer than at any other time of the year, I have chosen Ra, the Egyptian God of the Sun, as the Bad Witch's God of the Week.

Ra - sometimes spelled Re - was the most important deity in ancient Egyptian. He was mostly identified with the mid-day sun, which was seen as a force of light, heat and growth, but was also considered to be the god who created all forms of life. The disc of the sun was considered to be either the body of Ra, or the Eye of Ra.

Ra was thought to travel through the sky each day on a boat, accompanied by other gods and goddesses including Sia (perception), Hu (command) and Heka (magic power). Every evening, Ra would travel on the night boat through the underworld to be reborn each morning.

Mythology website www.godchecker.com says: "He has a very strange relationship with the Sky Goddess Nut (who arches backwards across the world and probably symbolises the Milky Way). In the evening he sails through her mouth and then has to battle through her nightmare insides. Like some computer-devised video game, he wends his way through 12 gates at the rate of one per hour without getting zapped by malevolent hideous monsters. And like some end-of-game baddie, the snake God Apep lies in wait hoping to gobble him up. Once these perils are transversed, he then surfaces via Nut's birth canal to greet the new day."

The photo shows the sun over the Nile. It was taken by myself from a hot air balloon while on holiday in Egypt several years ago.

Links and previous related posts

http://www.egyptartsite.com/ra.html

http://www.godchecker.com/pantheon/egyptian-mythology.php?deity=RA

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ra

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/02/pagan-eye-sphinx.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/06/god-of-week-maahes.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/10/goddess-of-week-selket.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/11/pagan-eye-sunset-over-nile.html

Midsummer Madness Solstice Cycle

If you live in London and are still looking for something to do to celebrate the Summer Solstice, how about considering taking part in the Midsummer Madness cycle ride.

The Midsummer Madness cycle ride starts at 2am on the morning of Tuesday 21 June in Cutty Sark Gardens, Greenwich, and ends just after 4pm on Primrose Hill, North London, in time to see the sunrise.

For full details, visit the website: http://southwarkcyclists.org.uk/content/midsummer-madness-1

Here is The Londonist story about it: http://londonist.com/2011/06/midsummer-madness-a-night-bike-ride-for-the-summer-solstice.php

Review: Paganism A Very Short Introduction

Nowadays, many of us call ourselves pagans. We might be Wiccans, druids, heathens or shamans, but we are happy to use the word pagan as an umbrella term for those who follow nature-based religions. For this year's Census, the Pagan Dash campaign urged us to write "pagan" when describing our religion on the form - and many of us saw potential benefits from being regarded as a unified group.

Historically, that was far from the case. The term pagan was once a rude word meaning an uncivilised barbarian, and it has taken many centuries for that to change.

In a new book Paganism: A Very Short Introduction, author Owen Davies explains the history of paganism all over the world - from the ancient past to modern movements, such as Wicca.

Publisher Oxford University Press says on its website: "'Paganism' is an evocative word that, even today, conjures up deep-seated emotions and prejudices. Until recently, it was primarily a derogatory term used by Christians to describe the non-Christian cultures confronted and vanquished by their Churches. For some it evokes images of sacrifice and barbaric behaviour, while for others it symbolises a peace-loving, nature-worshipping spiritual relationship with the earth."

Owen Davies looks at the changing meaning of paganism in a chronological overview of the attitudes towards its practices and beliefs. Most descriptions of ancient pagan religions were made by Christians, and it is in many ways the Christian tendency to lump all non-Christian faiths together as being pagan that has shaped our concept of the term.

However, from the time of the Renaissance, an interest in the art, writing, philosophy and culture of ancient pagans developed.

In 19th century Europe, many historians and folklorists sought to find remnants of pagan practices in traditional customs and superstitions - often getting a bit carried away with their theories. The end of that era saw an occult revival. Together, these ideas led to modern paganism - different from ancient pagan faiths, but inspired by them.

As OUP says in its summary of the book: "Contemporary social paganism can be a liberating and social force, and the idea of a global Pagan theology is now on the religious map."

Paganism: A Very Short Introductionis easy to read and concise, but highly informative. If you want to find out more about the global history of paganism and the factors that led to the modern pagan movement, this is an ideal place to start. It is a book all modern pagans - and anyone interested in paganism - should read

Oxford University Press has published other titles in the Short Introduction series looking at aspects of pagan history, including ones on the druids and witchcraft.

Owen Davies' previous books include Grimoires: A History of Magic Books and The Haunted: A Social History of Ghosts.

You can order Paganism: A Very Short Introductionon Amazon.

Links and previous posts:
http://ukcatalogue.oup.com/
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2009/10/review-grimoires-history-of-magic-books.html
Paganism: A Very Short Introduction (Very Short Introductions)
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/07/review-druids-very-short-introduction.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/03/review-witchcraft-very-short.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/03/pagandash-be-counted-on-2011-census.html
The Haunted: A Social History of Ghosts

Summer Solstice Song List

Well, I had been intending to get out and celebrate the Summer Solstice in style this year. I'd been considering travelling to Avebury for midsummer celebrations at the stone circle this weekend, then on to Stonehenge to see the sunset on Monday night and sunrise on Tuesday morning.

But I'm not, because I did my back in while gardening and now I'm stuck inside, doped on painkillers and hardly able to move off the sofa. I guess it isn't all bad though, as my lovely partner has been waiting on me hand and foot.

To make up for not be able to dance the shortest night away at midsummer festivals, I've compiled my Summer Solstice Song List from music on my iPod.

What's more, seeing as the weather forecast is for the heavy rain of the past few days to continue, maybe I'm better off indoors with my music.

Here's what I've been listening to:

Waiting For The Sunby The Doors
Sunriseby Pulp
Sunriseby The Mediaeval Baebes
Sun Hits The Skyby Supergrass
Mr. Blue Skyby the Electric Light Orchestra
Walking On Sunshineby Katrina and The Waves
Instant Sunlightby Dub Touch
Summer Solsticeby East Cafe
Sun Kingby The Cult
Always The Sunby The Stranglers
Between Sun & Moonby Rush

If that lot doesn't cheer me up and also help the sun get his hat on and come out to playin between the showers, I don't know what will.

And if you've can think of any other summery songs to add, please leave a comment

The picture at the top is the album cover for Waiting For The Sunby the Doors, which you can order or download from Amazon.

This week's pagan events around London

There are lots of pagan events - including open rituals to honour the Summer Solstice - taking place over the next week in London and southern England. Here is a selection of them. To view future events, click on the events page link at the top.

Saturday, 18 June; The Cauldron of Cerridwen will be hosting their Open Ritual for the Solstice at The Sun Circle, Avebury, Wilts, Avebury, United Kingdom. The event starts at noon. This is a free, family-friendly event and will take place in the field opposite the pub.

Saturday, 18 June; Free and Open Gorsedd Summer Solstice Rite by the Free and Open Gorsedd of Caer Abiri at The Sun Circle, Avebury, Wilts, Avebury, United Kingdom. Druidic style open ceremony to celebrate summer - all faith paths welcome. Meet at the Red Lion pub from noon for ceremony from 2pm-3.30pm. Offerings of bread or cake, mead, poetry and song are welcome.

Sunday 19 June; Understanding Midsummer. An intensive one-day course on symbolism, folklore, custom and magic by Suzanne Corbie at Treadwells, 33 Store Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1E 7BS. Time: 11am - 6pm. Cost £45, advance booking and deposit essential. Tel: 020 7240 8906 or email: info@treadwells-london.com. www.treadwells-london.com/lectures.asp

Sunday 19 June; Open ritual on Primrose Hill with druid Jeremy Morgan. The ceremony starts at 12.45pm and lasts about an hour. It will take place in the Hawthorne Grove on Primrose Hill, London NW1 8YH. Afterwards, people will go to the pub. This is a free event, no need to book a place, just turn up but do bring food and drink to share.

Sunday 19 June; Anderida Gorsedd Summer Solstice open ritual at the Long Man of Wilmington (pictured), in Sussex. Meet near the car park between 1.30pm and 2pm for a walk up to the chalk hill figure at 2pm. Afterwards back to the Giants Rest pub in Wilmington for a social drink together.

Monday 20 June; Croydon Crows. PF moot held every 3rd Monday of each month at the Skylark pub, South End, South Croydon from 8pm onwards.

Monday, 20 June; Food and Magic. Talk by Drewd Galdron at pagan forum Secret Chiefs. Venue: Devereux public house, 20 Devereux Court, off Essex Street, London WC2R 3JJ. Meet from 7.30pm, event starts at 8.30pm. Admission £2. http://secretchiefslondon.wordpress.com

Monday, 20 June - Tuesday 21 June; Stonehenge, the 5,000-year-old megalithic monument on Salisbury Plain, Wiltshire, is the most famous place in England to celebrate the solstices. Entry is normally restricted although English Heritage, which manages the site, will be providing what it calls "managed open access" to Stonehenge for the Summer Solstice, from the evening of 20 June until early morning on 21 June. No camping is allowed. Please use public transport to get there, buses run from Salisbury railway station. For details about access to the stones, visit http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/stonehenge/explore/summer-solstice-2011/ or http://www.efestivals.co.uk/festivals/stonehenge/2011/

Tuesday, 21 June; 2012 - A Time to Change. Channelled lecture by Sarah Tyler Walters at The College of Psychic Studies 16 Queensberry Place, London SW7 2EB. Time: 7pm - 8.30pm. Cost: £5/£8. Advance booking essential. Tel: 020 7589 3292. http://www.collegeofpsychicstudies.co.uk/index.html

Tuesday, 21 June; The Circle of Ankerwycke Litha (Midsummer) Open Ritual. Location: woods at Ankerwycke, near Staines. Places are limited, if you want to attend, call 07889 126311.

Thursday, 23 June; Red Cross Bards for Crossbones. John Constable, author of The Southwark Mysteries and Secret Bankside, will be hosting an evening of open-air poetry and song in the Red Cross Garden with Nigel of Bermondsey and others. There will be floor spots so you can perform your own poem or song inspired by Crossbones Graveyard or by your experience of living in Southwark. Location: Red Cross Garden, Redcross Way, SE1 (2 minutes south of Crossbones) Time: 5pm. At 6.45 There will be a procession up Redcross Way for the monthly 7pm vigil at the gates of Crossbones Graveyard.

Thursday, 23 June; Demons and Angels - The Jewish Tradition. Lecture by James LaForest at Treadwells, 33 Store Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1E 7BS. 7.15pm for 7.30pm start. Entry £7, booking essential. Tel: 020 7240 8906 or email: info@treadwells-london.com. www.treadwells-london.com/lectures.asp

Wednesday 22, June; Terry Welbourn talking about Colin Wilson, author of The Outsider,at Pagan forum The Moot with No Name, arranged through Atlantis Bookshop. Venue: Devereux public house, 20 Devereux Court, off Essex Street, London WC2R 3JJ. Meet from 7.30pm, event starts at 8pm. Admission £5. http://www.theatlantisbookshopevents.com/page2.htm

Thursday 23 June; PFL Midsummer Open Ritual with Jeremy Morgan, the Druid of Wormwood Scrubs. Venue: Conway Hall, Red Lion Square, Holborn, London. Turn up by 7.30pm for pre-ritual social. The ritual starts at 8pm. Entrance: PF members/conc £5. All others £6. Please also bring seasonal food/home-made food and drinks to share at the feast after the ritual.

Saturday, 25 June; The Flow of Domnu. Goddess workshop with priest of Avalon David Spofforth. Venue: Bonnington Centre, 11 Vauxhall Grove, London SW8 1TD. Time: 1pm for 1.30pm start. Ends at 5.30pm. Cost: £15 on the day, £10 in advance. For more details and to book places visit www.priestofavalon.com

If you know of any other pagan events and want them listed on A Bad Witch's Blog, please email me at badwitch1234@gmail.com

Magazine launch

A new, free, online pagan magazine is being launched tomorrow, 18 June. Gaian Times will be published three times a year and editor Mani Navasothy says it will explore science, magic and psychological trends.

Features in the first couple of issues will include:

• A Brief History of Gaia: From Greek goddess to galactic collective
• Utopias and Dystopias: Future societies and what we are (not) doing about it!
• Repealing of the Witchcraft Act (UK)
• Bionics, Concrete and Paganism:
• Spells, Magic and the Human Desperation
• Magical power - Does It Exist?
• Rebellious Wars- Price of Freedom
• The Royal Wedding and the Place of King in Modern Myths:
• 2012: End of the World and Other Such Mysteries.

To view the website and subscribe to the free magazine, visit http://www.gaiantimes.com/

The Stonehenge Enigma: a new look at the stones

Every so often I get a press release that I feel I just have to post to my blog - and this is one of them.

It is about a book called Prehistoric Britain: The Stonehenge Enigma,which offers a new theory about the original purpose of England's most famous stone circle.

There have been many different theories put forward about what Stonehenge was used for. Some are more plausible than others - but the mystery remains and new interpretations of the meaning of the stones are always interesting.

I haven't got a copy of The Stonehenge Enigma yet myself, but I'm going to try to get hold of one - it could be just the thing to read after my review yesterday of Avebury Cosmos - a book about Avebury stone circle.

Here is the press release about The Stonehenge Enigmain full:

At 4:52 on June 21st 2011 the sun will creep over the horizon, then the revered Heel stone of Stonehenge, watched in ore by 10,000 common spectators and Druids alike. Little do they know they have turned up prematurely at Britain's most ancient prehistoric historical event.

For Stonehenge was ORIGINALLY built NOT to observe the midsummer solstice sunrise as commonly believed, but more significantly the midsummer SUNSET and MOON SET occurring some 17 hours later in the opposite direction!

In a new book ‘The Stonehenge Enigma’ launched this month, Archaeologist Robert John Langdon, states in great detail that the true purpose of Stonehenge was to pay homage to the dead and departing spirits leaving to the next world and NOT to worship the sun and rebirth as currently thought.

This revolutionary book proves that archaeologists have only scratched the surface of the historic significance of this world heritage site and have also grossly miscalculated the age of the structure, which accepted carbon dating evidence found in the visitor's Car Park has shown it is 5,000 years older than the experts currently claim and was therefore built around 8,000 BC, making it the oldest prehistoric monument in the world.

In this ancient landscape, Stonehenge was constructed not on a grassy plain we see today, but on a peninsula surrounded on three sides by the river Avon, which had swelled out of proportion, directly after the last Ice Age. This excess of water was created when the two miles of ice that covered our land for over 15,000 years finally melted, flooding the entire landscape, leaving not the Britain we know today but a series of smaller islands and gigantic waterways.

'The Stonehenge Enigma' is the most controversial archaeological book ever written. It contains over forty pieces of scientific evidence, such as carbon dating, to support Langdon's hypothesis that over 10,000 years ago lived a great 'lost' civilisation that lived and traded on this network of rivers and flood plains.

This 'advanced' civilisation, did not roam the land as the hunter-gatherers that history portrays, but in fact lived on reed boats that could not only navigate the internal waterways of ancient Britain, but also travel the 'known world' to trade. These boats were the method used to transport the huge Bluestones from the Preseli mountains in Wales to the site at Stonehenge, negating the need to 'drag' them across Salisbury plain. The most compelling evidence for the existence of this 'lost civilisation' is found at the end of the book where written evidence from one of the worlds most famous ancient philosophers, identifies this civilisation.

'The Stonehenge Enigma' not only rewrites British history and the understanding of the development of our society, but moreover, rewrites the history of the world as Langdon proves that this civilisation was the 'birth place' of our civilisation which has yet to be recognised by historians or archaeologists.

The full article can be found on Robert Langdon's blog site www.the-stonehenge-enigma.info.

You can order Prehistoric Britain: The Stonehenge Enigmaon Amazon.

The picture top shows an impression of Neolithic Stonehenge from website http://www.prehistoric-britain.co.uk/

Previous related posts:
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/06/review-avebury-cosmos.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/02/ancient-history-of-stonehenge-on-tv.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/07/news-archaeologists-find-henge-next-to.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2009/05/secrets-of-stonehenge.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2008/04/archaeologists-investigate-stonehenge.html

Avebury Cosmos and Avebury Stone Circle

Avebury, in Wiltshire, south west England, is not only the largest stone circle in Europe, it is also one of the loveliest.

Not too far from Stonehenge, and almost as famous, it is a Neolithic henge of three stone circles surrounding the village of Avebury.

With open access to the stones, and a great pub at its centre, it is hardly surprising that Avebury is extremely popular with modern pagans pretty much all year round - but especially at times of festivals such as the Summer Solstice.

Although the stones were almost certainly designed to track the movements of the sun and moon, there is something of a mystery about the original purpose of Avebury's complex set of circles and avenues. It was built by stone age people in the Neolithic era as part of a larger prehistoric landscape containing several other monuments, including West Kennet Long Barrow and Silbury Hill. Archaeologists are pretty sure these megaliths were used for ritual and ceremonial purposes, but it is hard to be certain who or what the stone age circle builders venerated.

However, a new book by anthropologist Nicholas R. Mann, Avebury Cosmos: The Neolithic World of Avebury henge, Silbury Hill, West Kennet long barrow, the Sanctuary & the Longstones Cove, offers a theory as to why Avebury, West Kennet Long Barrow and Silbury Hill were built and how they were used by our ancestors.

He says that the ancient Britons were inspired by a profound knowledge of the heavens when they erected these monuments. He examines exactly what the sky at night would have looked like when the megaliths were built.

West Kennet long barrow was built first in the second quarter of the fourth millennium BCE, at a time when the Crux-Centaurus stars would first appear over that site at the start of winter. In time - over many generations - those using the monument would have noticed a slight shift in the stars relative to fixed points in the landscape. When that happened, they started to build the stone circles at Avebury in the valley nearby - and the first stones placed there were also aligned to the rising of the Crux-Centaurus stars.

At around 3,300 BCE the Milky Way would have become level with and visible around the entire horizon of Avebury each winter. The stars of the Southern Cross and Cygnus would have pointed to the North and South Poles and making it seem as though Avebury was the centre of the universe. Other sets of stones were aligned to other stars and the stone circles were also aligned to the sun and the moon, and would have acted as calendars.

Later, as the stars appeared to shift further away from this position of balance, Silbury Hill was constructed and lay at the centre of a new set of astral alignments. Eventually, however, the stars would have appeared to shift even further and the entire complex of megaliths and monument fell into disuse.

Nicholas R. Mann offers suggestions as to what these arrangements of stars could have meant to our ancestors. They could have indicated the right times to do practical things, such as sowing seed, harvesting crops and butchering animals for winter, as well as indicating the correct time for rituals to honour the dead and perhaps venerate the gods of the land and the heavens. The stones would likely have been a focus for social activity and a centre of prestige, power and knowledge. They could also have offered a place where shamans could have more easily journeyed to other realms, using routes indicated by the stars.

Publisher O-Books says on its website: "This book will help visitors and readers to see Avebury in a wholly new light - the light of the heavenly bodies that guided its Neolithic builders. Avebury Cosmos will reawaken our ancient reverence for the stars and deepen our respect for the extraordinary abilities and forgotten knowledge of our prehistoric ancestors."

I certainly agree that Avebury Cosmos is a fascinating book and would recommend it to anyone with an interest in stone circles or who is planning on visiting Avebury either this Summer Solstice or in the future.

You can order Avebury Cosmos: The Neolithic World of Avebury henge, Silbury Hill, West Kennet long barrow, the Sanctuary & the Longstones Covethrough Amazon.

Links and previous related posts:
Avebury Cosmos: The Neolithic World of Avebury henge, Silbury Hill, West Kennet long barrow, the Sanctuary & the Longstones Cove
http://www.o-books.com/

http://www.themodernantiquarian.com/site/23/

http://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/main/w-vh/w-visits/w-findaplace/w-avebury.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avebury
www.britishmysteries.co.uk

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2008/06/midsummer-and-solstice.html

Lunar Eclipse - I See a Bad Moon Rising...

Tonight there is a total lunar eclipse - and it could mean trouble on the way...

The full moon will rise eclipsed at 9.14pm and last for over three and a half hours, ending at 11.45pm, according to the 2011 Astro Diary. One of the things that is quite rare about this eclipse is that the moon will passes right across the centre of the Earth's shadow - making it long and dark.

When a lunar eclipse happens, the Earth casts a shadow over the moon, turning it red and giving it the name Blood Moon. On this particular eclipse, I think that name could be particularly apt. Not only will it be a long, total eclipse seen from many places in the world and, I suspect, will look particularly reddish in colour, but many astrologers are saying that this eclipse could be a sign of particularly difficult and stressful times, when conflict is used to settle disputes rather than peaceful discussion.

I'm not an astrologer, but I have a feeling the astrologers may be right. A lunar eclipse can often be a time of change, when previously hidden feelings come to the fore and unforeseen revelations can take place; when emotions run deep and life changes can take place. This time, I suspect there could be some sudden shocks - even dramatic or seemingly disastrous events.

But I also believe that things will work out for the best in the long run. Sometimes a shock can prompt us to take necessary action before it is too late. Even disasters can bring about profound changes to the way we do things, ultimately making things better than they were before or at least preventing the same catastrophe from happening again - although it might not seem like it at the start.

On a personal level, I have a suspicion any unwanted wake-up call brought by the lunar eclipse could be job related. My firm is currently undergoing a restructuring and things are not being handled in the most sympathetic of fashions. I can see there could be some bitter battles to fight before a fair outcome is reached.

I think many other people are - or will be - facing similar situations. So take care today - and look forward to happier omens in the future.

The picture above was taken by James C Wallace II. I previously used it for a Pagan Eye post http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/08/pagan-eye-beautiful-moon-iii.html last August.

Previous related posts

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2009/08/augusts-lunar-eclipse-time-for-change.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/08/pagan-eye-beautiful-moon-iii.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2008/02/blood-moon.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/06/full-moon-and-lunar-eclipse.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/11/starting-new-diary-for-2011.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/06/should-i-stay-or-should-i-go.html

http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2009/07/fly-me-to-moon.html

News: Austrian druids tackle road accidents

Austrian druids want transport officials to recognise their efforts to stop road accidents at a notorious black spot. The druids were hired to erect monoliths to drain negative energy at dangerous sections of road. After they had done this, the number of accidents decreased dramatically.

You can read the full story at the Croatian Times website: http://www.croatiantimes.com/news/Around_the_World/2011-06-13/19919/Stone_Me_-_Motorway_Druids_Tackle_Road_Accidents

Arbor Low stone circle

These misty and atmospheric pictures show Arbor Low stone circle, a huge Neolithic henge monument in the Peak District. Arbor Low is so impressive it is sometimes called the "Stonehenge of the North".

The megalith consists of 46 large and 13 smaller stones arranged in a circle with a group of stones in the centre. What is unusual about this henge is that the stones are all lying flat on the ground. One idea is that they were once upright and would have looked very much like Stonehenge, in the south of England, but were pushed over by Christians who thought the area was cursed. There is little evidence to prove or disprove the theory, but it seems plausible.

I was sent these beautiful photos of Arbor Low earlier this year by a reader of A Bad Witch's Blog who asked not to be named. I used one of the lovely pictures as a Pagan Eye post, but saved these to post at around midsummer - when many pagans think of visiting stone circles and other megaliths to celebrate the solstice.

As the pictures show, the ancient monument can be a bit bleak when the weather is bad, but on a sunny day it would be a fantastic place to visit.

Last week, I wrote about Sunkenkirk (Swinside) stone circle and I'll be posting more about stone circles and other megaliths in the run-up to midsummer.

Links and previous related posts
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/03/pagan-eye-arbor-low-stone-circle.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/06/sunkenkirk-swinside-stone-circle.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2008/06/midsummer-and-solstice.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2010/06/midsummer-divination-and-mugwort-tea.html
http://www.badwitch.co.uk/2011/02/ancient-history-of-stonehenge-on-tv.html
http://www.peakdistrictinformation.com/visits/arborlow.php

http://www.peakdistrictinformation.com/visits/arborlow.php

http://www.themodernantiquarian.com/site/82

http://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=3

Pagan events near London for the Summer Solstice

Midsummer - sometimes called the Summer Solstice or Litha - is a magical time of year, when the days are at their longest. Pagans celebrate the power of the sun at its strongest, on June 21, with rituals, celebrations, feasting and fun.

There are lots of pagan events - including open rituals to honour the Summer Solstice - taking place over the next couple of weeks in London and southern England. Here are some of the events for the following fortnight:

Tuesday 14 June; Experiencing Etheric Influences in the Landscape: The Limitations of Earth Energy Dowsing. Talk by Pat Toms at London Earth Mysteries Circle. Admission is £4.50, concessions £4, members £3, concessions are £4. Talks are usually held on the second and fourth Tuesdays of each month at 7.15PM at First Floor, 50 Gloucester Place, London W1U 8EA. http://www.londonearth.com/

Tuesday 14 June; Hermes Trismegistus: Fall and Rise of a Magical Figure. Lecture by Gary Lachman, author of The Quest for Hermes Trismegistus: From Ancient Egypt to the Modern World,at Treadwells, 33 Store Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1E 7BS. 7.15pm for 7.30pm start. Entry £7, booking essential. Tel: 020 7240 8906 or email: info@treadwells-london.com. www.treadwells-london.com/lectures.asp

Wednesday; 15 June, The Liberty - a talk by John Constable, author of The Southwark Mysteries and Secret Bankside, at the Urban Physic Garden, 100 Union Street, London SE1 0NL. Time: 1.15pm–2pm. This is a free event.

Wednesday 15 June; Creating Oracle spreads and readings for guidance. Psychic Cafe at pagan forum The Moot with No Name, arranged through Atlantis Bookshop. Venue: Devereux public house, 20 Devereux Court, off Essex Street, London WC2R 3JJ. Meet from 7.30pm, event starts at 8pm. Admission £5. http://www.theatlantisbookshopevents.com/page2.htm

Thursday, 16 June, John Constable, author of Southwark Mysteries (Oberon Book)and Secret Bankside: Walks Around the Outlaw Borough,will be talking, performing and signing books at Woolfson and Tay Bookshop, 12 Bermondsey Square, London SE1 3UN. Time: 7pm. Cost: £5/£3 concs, including a £2 reduction on John's books. For more information and advance booking call 020 7407 9316 or email http://www.woolfsonandtay.com/

Friday, 17 June; Animal Healing. Special event by Elizabeth Whiter at The College of Psychic Studies 16 Queensberry Place, London SW7 2EB. Time: 7pm - 8.30pm. Cost: £8/£12. Advance booking essential. Tel: 020 7589 3292. http://www.collegeofpsychicstudies.co.uk/index.html

17-20 June; Pendle Witch Camp, including a festival of folklore. Festival in Pendle, Lancashire, with talks and workshops. Tickets are £33. For more details and to book tickets visit http://www.penwitchcamp.co.uk/default.asp

Saturday, 18 June; The Cauldron of Cerridwen will be hosting their Open Ritual for the Solstice at The Sun Circle, Avebury, Wilts, Avebury, United Kingdom. The event starts at noon. This is a free, family-friendly event and will take place in the field opposite the pub.

Saturday, 18 June; Free and Open Gorsedd Summer Solstice Rite by the Free and Open Gorsedd of Caer Abiri at The Sun Circle, Avebury, Wilts, Avebury, United Kingdom. Druidic style open ceremony to celebrate summer - all faith paths welcome. Meet at the Red Lion pub from noon for ceremony from 2pm-3.30pm. Offerings of bread or cake, mead, poetry and song are welcome.

Saturday, 18 June; Hilly Fields Midsummer Fayre. Annual summer community fair in its 36th year in a lovely park with its own stone circle. This is not a specifically pagan event, but has a lovely atmosphere of a traditional summer fair with stalls, children's rides, farm animals, crafts, refreshments, arena entertainments, a dog show and more. Location: Hilly Fields (pictured at the top of the page), Hilly Fields Crescent, London SE4 1QA. From noon to 5pm. Free entry. Visit http://www2.lewisham.gov.uk/lbl/Events/event_detail.asp?eventid=6211

Sunday 19 June; Understanding Midsummer. An intensive one-day course on symbolism, folklore, custom and magic by Suzanne Corbie at Treadwells, 33 Store Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1E 7BS. Time: 11am - 6pm. Cost £45, advance booking and deposit essential. Tel: 020 7240 8906 or email: info@treadwells-london.com. www.treadwells-london.com/lectures.asp

Sunday 19 June; Anderida Gorsedd Summer Solstice open ritual at the Long Man of Wilmington, Sussex. Meet near the car park between 1.30pm and 2pm for a walk up to the chalk hill figure at 2pm. Afterwards back to the Giants Rest pub in Wilmington for a social drink together.

Monday 20 June; Croydon Crows. PF moot held every 3rd Monday of each month at the Skylark pub, South End, South Croydon from 8pm onwards.

Monday, 20 June; Food and Magic. Talk by Drewd Galdron at pagan forum Secret Chiefs. Venue: Devereux public house, 20 Devereux Court, off Essex Street, London WC2R 3JJ. Meet from 7.30pm, event starts at 8.30pm. Admission £2. http://secretchiefslondon.wordpress.com

Monday, 20 June - Tuesday 21 June; Stonehenge, the 5,000-year-old megalithic monument on Salisbury Plain, Wiltshire, is the most famous place in England to celebrate the solstices. Entry is normally restricted although English Heritage, which manages the site, will be providing what it calls "managed open access" to Stonehenge for the Summer Solstice, from the evening of 20 June until early morning on 21 June. No camping is allowed. Please use public transport to get there, buses run from Salisbury railway station. For details about access to the stones, visit http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/stonehenge/explore/summer-solstice-2011/ or http://www.efestivals.co.uk/festivals/stonehenge/2011/

Tuesday, 21 June; 2012 - A Time to Change. Channelled lecture by Sarah Tyler Walters at The College of Psychic Studies 16 Queensberry Place, London SW7 2EB. Time: 7pm - 8.30pm. Cost: £5/£8. Advance booking essential. Tel: 020 7589 3292. http://www.collegeofpsychicstudies.co.uk/index.html

Tuesday, 21 June; The Circle of Ankerwycke Litha (Midsummer) Open Ritual. Location: woods at Ankerwycke, near Staines. Places are limited, if you want to attend, call 07889 126311.

Thursday, 23 June; Red Cross Bards for Crossbones. John Constable, author of The Southwark Mysteries and Secret Bankside, will be hosting an evening of open-air poetry and song in the Red Cross Garden with Nigel of Bermondsey and others. There will be floor spots so you can perform your own poem or song inspired by Crossbones Graveyard or by your experience of living in Southwark. Location: Red Cross Garden, Redcross Way, SE1 (2 minutes south of Crossbones) Time: 5pm. At 6.45 There will be a procession up Redcross Way for the monthly 7pm vigil at the gates of Crossbones Graveyard.

Thursday, 23 June; Demons and Angels - The Jewish Tradition. Lecture by James LaForest at Treadwells, 33 Store Street, Bloomsbury, London WC1E 7BS. 7.15pm for 7.30pm start. Entry £7, booking essential. Tel: 020 7240 8906 or email: info@treadwells-london.com. www.treadwells-london.com/lectures.asp

Wednesday 22, June; Terry Welbourn talking about Colin Wilson, author of The Outsider,at Pagan forum The Moot with No Name, arranged through Atlantis Bookshop. Venue: Devereux public house, 20 Devereux Court, off Essex Street, London WC2R 3JJ. Meet from 7.30pm, event starts at 8pm. Admission £5. http://www.theatlantisbookshopevents.com/page2.htm

Thursday 23 June; PFL Midsummer Open Ritual with Jeremy Morgan, the Druid of Wormwood Scrubs. Venue: Conway Hall, Red Lion Square, Holborn, London. Turn up by 7.30pm for pre-ritual social. The ritual starts at 8pm. Entrance: PF members/consc £5. All others £6. Please also bring seasonal food/home-made food and drinks to share at the feast after the ritual.

Saturday, 25 June; The Flow of Domnu. Goddess workshop with priest of Avalon David Spofforth. Venue: Bonnington Centre, 11 Vauxhall Grove, London SW8 1TD. Time: 1pm for 1.30pm start. Ends at 5.30pm. Cost: £15 on the day, £10 in advance. For more details and to book places visit http://www.priestofavalon.com/