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Explore - Folklore & Legends

Montage of St. Mary's Church, North Leigh, with an illustration of the Devil looming over the skyline.

The Devil's Nutting Day at North Leigh

27 February 2024

North Leigh, West Oxfordshire

If local folklore is to be believed, the Devil himself is a surprisingly regular visitor to this West Oxfordshire village.

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An old map showing Black Jack's Spring, at Sparsholt

Black Jack's Well: Sparsholt's healing spring

5 February 2024

Sparsholt Park, Sparsholt

Black Jack's Well in Sparsholt is a natural spring said to have miraculous healing properties.

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The Devil's Punchbowl, map circa 1913

The Devil's Punchbowl, Childrey

25 October 2023

Childrey Parish, Vale of the White Horse

How this smooth-sided Oxfordshire valley close to the Ridgeway got its devilish name is somewhat mysterious.

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A map showing the Devil's Churchyard, 1912

The Devil's Churchyard at Checkendon

22 October 2023

Woodland Northeast of Checkendon, South Oxfordshire

Buried in woodland in South Oxfordshire is a heart-shaped earthwork enclosure that for hundreds of years has been known as the Devil's Churchyard.

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A man rejecting the devil in the form of a serpent

The Devil at Barnard Gate

27 March 2023

Barnard Gate, Eynsham

The Devil in the form of a fiery serpent is said to have ensnared a man on his way to Barnard Gate.

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Sturdy's Castle Public House

The Battle of Mr Sturdy and Mr Castle

10 February 2023

Sturdy's Castle, Banbury Road, Tackley

Sturdy's Castle is a pub with a curious name, and an even more curious legend that inspired it.

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Travellers in the snow

Christmas ghosts and talking cats at Idbury Woods

3 February 2023

Unknown woodland near Idbury

Folklorist Katherine Briggs records a strange tale of travellers lost in the snow and harassed by ghosts, who receive assistance from an unusual source!

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A map from 1944 showing Black Jack's Hole

The Legend of Black Jack's Hole

10 January 2023

River Thames between Godstow and Binsey

This bend in the River Thames between Binsey and Godstow is named for a legendary goblin-like figure who was said to lure swimmers to a watery grave!

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