Many people across the nation still refuse to walk under ladders, always throw a pinch over their left shoulder when they spill salt, or never put shoes on the table lest it leads to bad luck. Traditions like this have been passed down for generations and every part of the UK has a different story.
Beliefs, fears and rituals
In Sussex, peony root necklaces were put on children to help with teething and to chase away evil spirits, while in Humberside a traditional rhyme recommends breaking the shell of a boiled egg to stop any passing witch using it to escape to sea.
Other historical beliefs are even stranger. The Devil throws his club over Northumberland’s blackberries in late autumn, rendering them poisonous. Whooping cough will never be caught by a Lancashire child who has ridden upon a bear. And to kill a beetle in the East Riding of Yorkshire will surely bring on rain.
Some of these traditions are still practised today, while others have been lost to time.