Author of 'Winter's Wishfall'. Folklorist. Mum. Northerner. Lecturer in Folklore & History. Eater of cake.https://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.socialhttps://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3mwqxqo6wwk2dIt's been an odd day today, beginning with an interview with the Boston based Christian Scientists Monitor about the folklore of scarecrows and ending with sharing a green room space with the rock band Amazons for my seed talk on folklore and feminism30 Sep 2026 18:25 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mwqxqo6wwk2dhttps://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3mwol5ljq7c22A beautiful day for welcoming the newest cohort of MA Folklore Studies students @herts.ac.uk. The world definitely needs more folklorists (i.e. people who are curious about - and value - the customs we practice, the stories we tell & the beliefs we hold)29 Sep 2026 19:34 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mwol5ljq7c22https://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3mwgzhhavf22aI really enjoyed contributing to this, thinking about why we want our landscapes to have their supernatural stories [contains quote post or other embedded content]26 Sep 2026 19:29 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mwgzhhavf22ahttps://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3mwekblnkzs2r🍁 🍂 Meet Anne Pratt, Victorian botanical illustrator and researcher. Her work on the folklore and medicinal properties of autumn flora is the focus of mine and Jennifer Evans's new exhibition 'Plantlore' at Chelsea Physic Garden 🍂 🍁 https://www.chelseaphysicgarden.co.uk/plantlore-is-coming-soon/25 Sep 2026 19:52 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mwekblnkzs2rhttps://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3mwbtiwdox22tLooking forward to this event in lovely Glossop on 8 Oct - come say hi! https://darkpeakbooks.co.uk/event/an-evening-with-ceri-houlbrook-folklore/24 Sep 2026 17:59 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mwbtiwdox22thttps://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3mw4t4tjq2s2sWhy do I always look so bedraggled when I pop into bookshops? Signed copies of #Folklore available in Manchester Arndale Waterstones22 Sep 2026 18:09 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mw4t4tjq2s2shttps://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3mvqjfsafl224They both honoured the ritual of the Boggart's Toe - balance on it and your wish will be granted [contains quote post or other embedded content]17 Sep 2026 20:43 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mvqjfsafl224https://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3mvqa37ky4s2oI had so much fun showing @timdownie.bsky.social & Justin Chubb around my favourite park, hunting for boggarts and discussing my book #Folklore, for their fantastic podcast FolkLands17 Sep 2026 17:56 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mvqa37ky4s2ohttps://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3mvnmm3mcc227Why was this Lincoln Imp found up the chimney of a C17th-house? You can read some of my theories in this OA article in this brilliant special issue of Revenant edited by @rorywaterman.bsky.social & Anna Milon https://www.revenantjournal.com/issues/lincolnshire-folk-tales-edited-by-anna-milon-and-rory-waterman/16 Sep 2026 17:03 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mvnmm3mcc227https://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3mvdqmjjxfs2qMy mum partaking in some ostensive play in Venice - name the film12 Sep 2026 18:48 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mvdqmjjxfs2qhttps://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3mv6scc2cxk22The lion, a symbol of Venice, has its nose rubbed for good luck. I'm curious why nobody asks the lioness for her favour10 Sep 2026 19:35 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mv6scc2cxk22https://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3muzuptwyps2sNow that I'm recovered from the Death of Robin Hood, I can appreciate its take on folklore: "I've seen the power of stories. They can be used to make men do terrible things. And then those terrible things become stories. And stories? No. You cannot trust any of them. We cannot be trusted with them"08 Sep 2026 20:35 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3muzuptwyps2shttps://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3muurgkmbds2uFrom now on I shall only talk folklore to a background of shiny streamers beneath a giant disco ball06 Sep 2026 19:52 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3muurgkmbds2uhttps://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3mus4jpnibk2eIn Greece, kites are flown on Clean Monday. In China, they're flown on the ninth day of the ninth lunar month. In St Annes, they're flown today!05 Sep 2026 18:33 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mus4jpnibk2ehttps://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3muprh65e4k2vWitches guide the way on Pendle Hill. I wonder what the eleven victims would think of this, their legacy in the landscape...04 Sep 2026 20:09 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3muprh65e4k2vhttps://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3muncdyjxc22rSo chuffed to see 'Folklore' on a favourites table ❤️ Thank you @wedale-bookshop.bsky.social!!03 Sep 2026 20:34 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3muncdyjxc22rhttps://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3mukhklfxsc26Had a great time launching the paperback of Folklore at Topping Books in York yesterday ❤️ It was lovely meeting so many new people and chatting about their favourite folklore. Other stops on the book tour include Manchester on 6 Sep and Glossop on 8 Oct02 Sep 2026 17:29 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mukhklfxsc26https://bsky.app/profile/cerihoulbrook.bsky.social/post/3mui7mxbfu22cSpotted in the wild (specifically York's Topping Books): signed copies of @witchesetc.bsky.social's amazing book 'Witchland: A Tale of Witch Hunting and War in Seventeenth-Century Britain'01 Sep 2026 20:02 +0000at://did:plc:2bdrgdsaxc7wjsdynhhv55r5/app.bsky.feed.post/3mui7mxbfu22c