The Sleepy Month

I can’t say why, but August the month has ever imbued me with a sense of sleepiness. Before the autumnal nip refreshens the air, a soporific inertia pervades every place. Humans snooze on beaches and on dried-up lawns. Cats and dogs doze in sunny corners and winged insects are rendered drunk on the sugary detritus of summer picnics. With the energy of earlier summer fizzled out, school exams done and dusted and the growing season faded away, we are left with a sense of waiting, for the results and the harvest and what better to do than sleep it off? And yet, there is life in the waning year.
Those of you on release from work and academia can choose from a raft of summer festivals. Depending on your location, the following may be of interest. On the first Saturday of the month, denizens of north-west England may catch a procession of rush sculptures or “rush-bearings.” This veneration of the wild plant reaches back to when rushes were valued as floor-coverings.
Fast-forward to the first Monday following August 12 and to Marham church in Cornwall. A Queen of the Revel is crowned by Father Time in front of the church, which was founded by St. Morwenna. Seated on horseback, the Queen is led to the Revel ground, where wrestling and other “Cornish” amusements take place. A week forward again and it’s haste to the River Teifi (bordering Ceredigion, Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire in west Wales), and to the annual coracle races. This ancient form of boat is put to the test by modern-day fishers in catching a variety of sea and river species.
Third Saturday of the month and it’s on to West Witton (Yorkshire) to witness the burning of Owd Bartle after he is carried in procession through the town to the foot of Grasshill. Fear not: Bartle is made of straw, the effigy of a criminal from sometime in the past. Not quite Wicker Man, then. And this is only the merest flavour of what happens in August on the teeny island of GB. So get up and get going. Watch out for September.

Essence of Summer

The shopping mall is filled with bustle,
Peeling skin and bright-red faces
Van McCoy is playing The Hustle
Sun-browned limbs in public places – suddenly, it’s summer.

Refracted vistas; walls that waver
Bright-blue sky and plane delayed
Lip sunscreen with fruity flavour
We only find respite in shade–that’s just summer.

Braided hair and straw sunbonnet
Rose-pink dawn and evening stars
A broken flip-flop, jewels upon it
Melting tarmac, dusty cars– bring on summer.

Long, bright days and ice-cream sundae
Salty snacks and cool, sweet drinks
Short, dark night and boredom, Monday
Flaming oranges, shocking pinks –good ol’ summer.

Bright-green salads, dressings oily,
Polka dots on painted nails
Strawberries, cream and paper doily
Stripy beach bag, wind-blown sails – celebrating summer.

Swimming parties by the river,
Gentle breezes, yellowed grasses
Icy water makes us shiver
Clinking cubes in cocktail glasses: we love summer.

Sweaty nights and shirts are sticky
Lightening forks and violent thunder
Broken sleep with dreams so icky
Downpours sudden and – no wonder; it’s summer.

All too soon, maybe tomorrow
The bright sun fades, the darkness conquer
Season’s joy will turn to sorrow
And that is when we will long for – summer.

Magical Midsummer

Extremes have always fascinated human beings, the largest, fastest, shortest, and so forth. Whether midsummer (c. June 21 in the northern hemisphere) the longest day or shortest night, is moot. What matters is that something special, magical is afoot on this remarkable day/night. Shakespeare's play, A Midsummer Night's Dream is a nod to this sense of rarity. In European traditions, the supernatural world mingles with that of the human, causing a heady mix of havoc and revelation, recognition and reconciliation. As in every good comedy play, the ending of AMND is a world put to rights. But long before the man from Warwickshire began his writing, the known world venerated the summer solstice most notably through the construction of stone "calendar" sites like Stonehenge. The vanquishing of the druids saw the transforming of these pagan venerations into St. John's Eve, a time for lighting bonfires and spreading the resulting ashes on soil in prep for the following year's crops, all very good agricultural practice. In these secular times, most of us don our summer finery and enjoy the spate of events that summer brings, the outdoor concerts and opera, the tennis at Wimbledon, the racing at Ascot, all served up with strawberries and cream. But I always imagine them spangled with a dash of the ancient, midsummer magic.

Amazing Megan Mary

In 2024, US author Megan Mary published The Dream Haunters: A Metaphysical Mirror of Magick. Once again, the narrative pitches the reader straight into a world of dreams, storms, mirrors, cats, pumpkins and spells. Now, Megan Mary has published a sequel, The Dream Mirrors: A Metaphysical Mirror of Magick. The author weaves dream interpretation seamlessly into the series of events. The story’s setting, Skye Manor, is on an island remote, yet connected to the cosmos. Nor does the author shun technology, the characters (protagonist Hannah, Aunt Jewelia, Madame Morgan, Ashlin, Old Man Adams) making a healthy use of cars and telephones as they battle the dark forces of the Dream Haunters, entities who would forever deprive dreamers of the route to their subconscious store of knowledge and wisdom. At every turn, I recognised the interpretation methodologies as laid out in my book, Dreams: Exploring Uncharted Depths of Consciousness (Mandrake of Oxford, 2020). In Megan Mary's later book, Hannah is presented with the philosophy of the mirror, learning that what she (and we) see in the glass is but one step towards finding the true self. The mirror is a topic that I explore in my other book, Wicked Uncles and Haunted Cellars: What the Gothic Heroine Tells Us Today (Greenwich Exchange, 2024). Other gothic motifs that endear Megan Mary’s narrative to me include the ever-pervading storm, the old house and family connections, and unravelling mysterious documents. I was touched also with her selective use of the Celtic language, actually Irish, which I learned while growing up in Dublin. Above all is the warm sense of connection between the female characters, the sense that all women (fictional and real) can throw off victimhood and take our own steps towards self-actualisation, that we are not helpless pawns in a (mostly) male game of politics and economics. This is a message I stress again and again in “Wicked Uncles”, the gothic heroine being an intelligent, energetic and rational trope emergent in the literature of the time. Since “The Dream Mirrors” is the second in Megan Mary’s series, the time to get acquainted with her fiction is now.

The Conspicuous Castle

From the inconspicuous motte and bailey of the Normans, through medieval fortified dwellings to the grand palaces of later centuries, the castle has been a feature in British landscapes for the past thousand years. And in the history of literature that castle has morphed also, shrunken and expanded into a myriad dwellings, mansions, country cottages, to modernist, modest flats. But this blog concerns the castle, that delicious, brooding, isolated edifice, anthropomorphic entrance with slitted window eyes and portcullis teeth, rising to a zillion spired turrets, useful for hanging out the pennants in times of war and the castle laundry in quieter days. However, such real estate is rather pricey, both to purchase and to maintain, which is why the best castles live in the pages of literature, in romantic tales of brave knights and lovely maidens. Free of plumbing and glazing issues, these graceful figures are free to meet on moonlit battlements, to fall in love and out again, to escape the tyranny of despots, to drink, dance, laugh, cry and finally, marry and produce the next generation of knights and maidens. Ah, where would literature have been without the castle! I retreat to my modern, modest pad and urge you all to follow the link to my newly-published volume Wicked Uncles and Haunted Cellars: What The Gothic Heroine Tells Us Today

The OLRC: All in Good Taste

Those of you headed for a day out in Kingston Upon Thames may be interested in the Old London Road Café, situated at 52, Old London Road. It is but five minutes walk from Kingston train station, on the same stretch of ground as the famed red telephone box installation. With its bare wooden floors and spare furnishings, the OLRC interior resembles a cool hangout from the 1950’s, the sort that might have been filled with ultra-fashionable types sipping coffee, one time. But OLRC welcomes people of all ages and configurations – gracious! They even let me in: and did I enjoy it? I downed a delicious vegan melt, with vegan cheese and bacon that tasted of, er, cheese and bacon, all served with a heavenly side salad. Bathroom facilities are in situ, though limited. But Kingston town centre is just a walk away. So, next time you pass this way, give the fast-foodies and chains a miss, and enjoy this slice of heaven on Old London Road, Kingston.

From their collection to mine: Cyberjammies

As a fan of all things nocturnal, I spend more time in nightwear than any other attire, in fact, I possess more downtime garments than any other type. And like any other fanatic, I am ever on the lookout to add to my collection. Today, this is why I am flying the flag for Cyberjammies, a brand that came to my notice when I happened upon a delectable Cyberjammies night shirt in a local store. Such is the quality and style of the piece, that I’ve since added this nightie from their Nora Rose collection to my collection. (Alas, I do not look like the model in the picture, but one can hope.) In a world where the majority of feminine bed garments offer little choice between looking like a dominatrix or a Victorian matron, Cyberjammies simply ticks all the boxes: attractive, comfortable and functional, and within reach of the average feminine pocket. The garments are made of Modal, a plant-based material, in combo with either viscose or cotton, which feels great on the skin. And they are available online. Oh, and they cater for men and children, also. Check out their site for an eye-catching catching collection of night shirts, nighties, jammies, dressing gowns, loungewear, slippers and much more. Over to you.
https://cyberjammies.com/collections/women

The Memento Mori

I have recently watched Indiana Jones and the Crystal Skulls and oh, what glorious fun it is! In addition to the evergreen Harrison Ford, the plot draws together a number of strands involving archaeology and mythology and intriguingly, the crystal skull. In the narrative, there is at least one reference to explorer FA Mitchell-Hedges, who claimed to have found an iconic crystal skull in South America in the 1920’s. Controversy surrounds the skull: Mitchell-Hedges did not present it to the world until the 1940’s and it has since been found to bear modern tool markings. Whatever the truth, there is no doubting the emotive response to a skull. The most fundamental part of our anatomies, it encases our thinking organ and four out of five of our sense organs. No wonder then that devoid of our fleshly bits, it has become the symbol for death, horror and Halloween. The Mexican nation has placed it as the central symbol for their Day of the Dead rituals and in the seventeenth century, artists made it the centre piece of the memento mori. You know the type of painting, a lush arrangement of luxury (by seventeenth-century standards) items, books, musical instruments, jewels and, plonked in their midst, a great and grinning skull, a reminder of the end we all come to. On that cheerful note, I will finish. Look out for my next gothic preamble.

The Cat: Deity or Demon?

This titular beast has ever occupied a polarised place in history. In ancient Egypt, the cat was revered, the biological embodiment of Bastet, the feline-faced deity its denizens worshipped. Since the days of the pyramids, the cat has veered between the utilitarian – incomparable at keeping at bay the diaspora of rodents that ever follow humanity – and the demonic. By medieval times, the deified cat had been rebranded as a “witch’s familiar”, the furry animal that followed closely at the heels of whatever elderly lady kept it at her fireside, the black cat being particularly suspect. Indeed, so many of these coal-hued beasties were put to death alongside their owners, that the genetic line almost died out and totally black cats are a rarity today. And seeing one is supposed to be lucky or unlucky, I’m never sure which. Today, the cat occupies a spectrum between glamorous fashion accessory and cuddly domestic pet. But no matter how many socializations we project upon the beast, the cat will ever retain an element of gothic nous. You see, the cat prefers to prowl the nocturnal hours and sleep the daylight shift, an ever-suspect social trait. While cartoonists create ever more Mogs and Bagpusses, the cat will always retain an air of the feral and mysterious, a hint of enchantment, and the whispers of an arcane world where secrets await discovery.

Traitors 3, the perfect gothic thriller

Traitors 3 has just kicked off with a glorious bang, a wondrous start to 2025. All the gothic memes and themes are present; the perilous journey that three competitors fail to survive, sibling rivalry (a fabulous addendum by the producers) and the castle, in this case a hokum, nineteenth-century, mock-baronial pile nestling in the sumptuous Scottish Highlands. Ah yes, Ardross Castle is all turrets and battlements on the outside, and the inside a trove of deer antlers, suits of armour, button-leather Ottomans, memento mori both sculpted and painted and framed in gilt: what’s not to love? And the high priestess? With her midnight-black hair and death-pale face, Claudia Winkleman adds a glittering dash of medieval nous. Add moonlight – sorry, floodlight, cloaked and hooded figures, a round table and numerous references to murder and banishment, and you’ve got the perfect mix for weeks of intrigue, treachery and the most shocking of revelations.
In fact, the only missing gothic trope is the presence of a cat – more about that in a further post.