Uncommon Folk
The world of folklore is a diverse, thriving mix of ancient traditions, old gods, strange beasts and curious tales.
Every land has their own folk traditions, and while some themes are universal, each has something special about them that makes them unique.
Join stand-up comedian, writer, and folklore PhD candidate Dan Mitchell as he dives into the dark oceans of folk, hoping to find a never before found denizen of the deep. Featuring exclusive interviews with academics, folklorists, scientists, poets, magical practitioners, and many more special guests from around the world, Uncommon Folk hopes to unearth the bones of folklore and resurrect them with incantations long forgotten.
From deep dives to short nuggets, Uncommon Folk will enlighten, enthuse, and entertain the folk community.
Uncommon Folk
Uncommon Folk 31 Days of Winter- Burning the Clocks
What drives a community to create new traditions in the face of commercialization? Join us as we explore the magic of Burning the Clocks, Brighton's unique winter solstice festival that turns the typical holiday narrative on its head. Born from the creative minds at Same Sky, this event offers a refreshing antidote to the commercial frenzy of Christmas. Imagine the streets of Brighton alive with a dazzling procession of handmade lanterns, each one symbolizing the passage of time and adorned with clock faces.
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burning the clocks. Now, burning the clocks is a relatively new um winter solstice festival and it takes place each year in brighton in england, um. It started in 1994 and it's a direct response to the horrible commercialisation of Christmas. Now it involves a lot of lanterns being paraded through the streets. It will be a procession of lanterns and costumes made from withies or willow canes and white tissue paper, led with a very carnival sort of atmosphere by local bands, drummers, musicians, and it'll be a very, very lively procession through the city centre of Brighton to the seafront where the festivities culminate in a huge lantern bonfire and fireworks. The costumes all include they have to include a clock face, hence burning the clock, and this represents the passing of time, though each year they have a slight change in the theme, but the clocks will remain an aspect.
Speaker 1:This is started by an arts initiative called Same Sky. They describe it as thus Burning the clocks is an antidote to the excesses of the commercial Christmas. People gather together to make paper and willow lanterns to carry through their city and burn on the beach as a token for the end of the year. The lantern makers become part of the show as they invest the lanterns with their wishes, hopes and fears and then pass them into the fire. Same Sky create new urban rituals to replace those traditional festivals that were lost in the dash to be new and non-superstitious festivals that were lost in the dash to be new and non-superstitious. They also described the festival as the giving and sharing of thoughts and wishes, and put them into a secular format that can be enjoyed by all, regardless of faith or creed, the intention being to create new urban rituals to replace all those lost festivals that all us folk lovers look into. So that is the burning thecks Festival in Brighton.
