To think more should be made of our local myths, folklore and traditions

yes I love folklore and our heritage and traditions but no matter what I try it always seems out of reach. I live in Nottinghamshire and I daydream about cosy pubs with a fire in the hearth, horse brasses hung up around the bar, real ale and folk music and traditional storytelling, wassailing, celebrating the seasons etc but where is this stuff?

i definitely think there’s a connection between the mental health issues in this country and how much we’ve become severed from our roots.

I think the lyrics to ‘Roots’ by Show of Hands sums it all up perfectly.

Have you seen worth watching if only for the exploding sex doll

Oh now that’s interesting - I’ve tried so hard to like his books, just can’t for some reason

I’m not sure exactly what you’re getting at here!

I love folklore and love hearing about local legends and superstitions. The Folklore Podcast is fab if anyone is looking for somewhere to find out more.

I really should attend the tar barrels one year as I'm not very far away (waves at fellow Devonians!). I do go to a Wassail each year. Some English folklore is popular - Robin Hood. And King Arthur, although he's shared with the Welsh, Scots and Cornish!

I think a strong cultural identity is a good thing and can result in the opposite of racism and fascism. If you love and appreciate your own culture, you can be similarly fascinated and appreciative of other people's. I know my own love of folklore means I enjoy finding out about the legends and superstitions of other cultures.

Well, the original post makes a lot of societal and political claims which are a lot more questionable and provocative than just "anyone know any fun local myths and legends?"

I think, unfortunately, you have taken a thread and read into it things you have a bee in your bonnet about.

Seeing the numerous downsides of globalisation( and there are so many most noticeably mental health issues) is not “right wing”. Humans are a tribal species, there’s nothing wrong with that. Trying to fudge calling someone racist by saying you share views with right wingers is so thinly veiled as to be laughable.

We can all appreciate cross cultural influences, it’s not an either/or situation. I really deplore the modern perchant for black and white thinking like that.

Given your comments, this thread probably isn’t something that you’re interested in. Might I suggest starting your own to discuss the matters that concern you rather than derailing such a positive feel good thread with your misplaced political agenda. Thank you.

I haven't called you a racist either.

Same! We had that and it was great. We also had Mysteries of the Unexplained. I spent about a year thinking I was going to be a victim of human combustion.

Firstly, your case isn't helped by raising straw man arguments.

I haven't called you racist. I've been very careful not to. I have no reason to think you are.

Some of your arguments and language are shared by right-wing xenophobes, ethno-nationalists and racists, though. That includes phrases including "globalisation is a danger to humanity" and "we are a tribal species", as well as accusing others of "shouting you down". No-one's shouting. We are having a polite and civil conversation. And no-one is shouting down anyone who "mentions" British traditional stories. Where has that happened? I don't think it has.

To respond to your questions of substance:

Of course the world isn't entirely homogeneous. But it's more homogenous than it was 100 or 50 or 10 years ago. Technology makes further homogeneity inevitable to every society that embraces capitalist modernity. Which is every society.

The most significant cultural imposition that Britain made on the world is industrialisation. Modern global trade. And that's the thing we've left behind in India and Africa and the Americas. You can't uninvent it.

So, no, Peruvian culture is not Thai culture is not British culture, but all are affected and changed by the modern interactions of global trade, movement and communication. Where we differ is that you seem to fear this and I see the value in it.

I'm very British. Mostly English. And recognise that some of the richest areas of historic British cultural achievement are a directly result of cross-cultural pollination, whether that's Victorian architecture being influenced by the Italian renaissance, The Beatles (a British take on US RnB) or Anglo-Indian cuisine (a British takeaway on sub-continental cooking).

These British things are more interesting and relevant to me as a 21st century Briton than Morris dancing.

It's interesting, having grown up in an educated, middle class, Communist family to now be called a racist, right winger. My parents always voted Socialist or Labour (as do I), we've always had multicultural friends, mostly left wing, teachers, doctors and lawyers, a lot of them Eastern European, Jewish, although my family is not.

I grew up on a diet of American folk; Bob Dylan and Pete Seeger. But also a lot of British Folk music and history, traditional tales and myths. My family has Irish and Orcadian blood and we feel deeply rooted in these lands.

I'm guessing that if that Peruvians and Thais chose to embrace their own culture rather than The Beatles or Benjamin Britten, they would not be accused of racism or xenophobia. I suspect that this reverse snobbery is something reserved for the British, or more specifically the English.

Surprisingly my view does vary. You seem to view the world as one giant homogeneous blob. Just because you have been exposed to other cultures doesn’t mean that those cultures aren’t distinct. The very fact that you talk about someone in Peru being exposed to British culture indicates there is something distinct about British culture.

Globalisation is a danger to humanity, we are a tribal species, There’s a phrase about ADHD and associated depression. “Feels like they fit in everywhere but they belong no where” globalisation removes tribes and removes the sense of belonging.

Im interested (assuming your British why you are so desperate to move away from anything that might hint at your Britishness. Do you describe yourself as a global citizen rather than British.

“Empire” has existed practically from the moment man sat on a horse or elephant. Interested people have often used this to try and spread their own cultures, but often these attempts have not succeeded whole scale. Indeed, often people’s objections (esp re the British Empire is that it attempted to displace local cultures which indicates people still see local cultures as very important

You see, no one can take away the stories but they can try and kill them off by shouting down people who mention them bu calling them racist/far right etc. The Left have always been far more “Brave New World” with their Dystopia.

I'm British but live overseas and there is a real sense of pride here which is missing in the UK and a lot of the western world.

Stories, traditions, folklore are all shared in an inclusive way here so foreigners like me can learn and enjoy.

I've always been interested in this kind of thing wherever I have travelled in the world, it's fascinating.

The UK has such a long and varied past and so many stories and tales to tell which a lot of people would be interested in, why do we seem almost ashamed of it all now?

Great post. I find it sad that this has been such a lovely thread that seems to have evoked lots of lovely memories for so many yet there still seems to be people who want to make unkind comments and try to insinuate xenophobic intentions.

The National Curriculum has effectively put a stop to teaching/exploring local history (it's incredibly prescriptive).
I remember (at primary school)learning so much about our local area (including going out of school, finding landmarks/buildings etc all with stories attached). We made maps, did research in the local library.
The opportunity to do this, combined with the sheer enthusiasm of a couple of great teachers, left me with a fascination for local history, traditions etc both where I lived and further afield.
Parents can still introduce kids to all this though ...