Sometimes the mirror mists up, the mystery of witch marks, and it's Grim up north

18 September 2025

Welcome to issue 6 of Tales from the Chase, a weekly newsletter for Cranborne Chase. Local events. Odd tales. Mildly strange goings-on. All delivered by email, free, and occasionally unhinged (in a charming way). Was this email forwarded to you? You can sign up for free by clicking below!

We're back, and September’s still got some spark. The days are long(ish), the vibes are right, and adventure’s out there if you’re up for it. Whatever this week throws your way, may it surprise you (in the best kind of way). Scroll down for a stash of stories, updates, and curiosities to keep things fresh.

Featured this week:

• some great events lined up over the next seven days, see what's catching our eye below
• 'Chasing the past' is back, with a feature on witch marks, with a bonus folk tale from Isla Cobb
• Hubert's guide to the mysterious village of Berwick St Leonard and a Grim discovery
• a range of other quirks, curios, and charmingly strange goings-on.

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The continuing saga of hubert and the river goddess

Hubert’s keeping quiet, but word is his feud with Ebble, the river goddess herself, is far from over. Isla Cobb hinted as much last week, and now the ripples are turning into waves.

Apparently, he got a letter just like mine, same day, same seal. But a few days later, after he refused to apologise, things got weird. He found a single wet leaf on his doorstep. Water slid down his wrist when he picked it up, and on the face of the leaf, words shimmered like sunlight flickering through a stream.

“Hubert. Until the day you stop speaking as though you own my story, enjoy the company of water in less welcome forms.”

Since then, it’s been… aquatic. His kitchen tap now offers only a slow, glugging trickle that smells faintly of fish. Wherever he goes, there’s a heron watching. Just watching. Sometimes it drops things on his lawn. Fish, frogs, twigs.

And every morning, without fail, Hubert opens his door to find a solemn line of ducks standing silently, judging him.

Disturbingly, fish dart past his reflection in the mirror when he's brushing his teeth at bedtime. Sometimes the mirror mists up and reveals the words 'you owe me' as if written by a finger on the glass.

And the river visits Hubert’s dreams. Sometimes it murmurs words in a language as old as the earth, a sound like reeds rustling and running water over stones, full of fragments of speech, slippery as minnows. He hears the echo of stones dropped deep into the current. Other times it roars, flooding his sleep with rushing cold and the distant scream of something ancient and wild.

He dreams of waking to find his bed adrift, floating down a quiet moonlit river, wide and slow. Once he woke for real to find his bedroom inches deep in water.

He really should know better than to mess with a goddess. I'll send him that apology guide again.

19-20 September

• Last of the Summer Cider Get ready for epic live music, DJs, tasty food, banging drinks & fab activities to end the summer in true festival style. We’ve got TWO huge circus tents to keep you covered, sunshine or showers. Myncen Farm DT11 8DH (search Cranborne Chase Cider on Google Maps or W3W: ///bead.nerve.supposes). No dogs / no BBQs. Bring a bag – take rubbish home. Cash only (bar + gate). Bring your cup – cut waste & sip in style. Tickets: Limited on the gate (cash only) but best to grab online cranbornechasecider.bigcartel.com – see you under the big top!

20-21 September

• Breamore Country Fair at Breamore House. Think classic village vibes, delicious food stalls, irresistible artisan treats, axe throwing, vintage tractors, heavy horses, gun dogs, hobby horse racing, funfair rides, and local crafts. Also, a dog show. When? Saturday 20th and Sunday 21st September 2025, 10.00 to 17.00 each day. Click here for more.​

20 September

• Tisbury Carnival. Tisbury High Street from 14.00 to 20.00. A lively community event featuring a procession, live music, and various entertainment throughout the day. The theme for this year's Carnival - Wild Safari, celebrating Rudyard Kipling's family connections to Tisbury.

21 September

• Wessex Heavy Horse Show & Country Fayre from 09:00 at Turnpike Showground, Shaftesbury. A traditional countryside event featuring heavy horse displays, dog shows, craft stalls, and family-friendly activities. One of the largest Heavy Horse events in the South West, a spectacle of Heavy Horse breeds. Includes classes for ridden and driven horses, as well as in-hand and harness classes and a Young Handler’s class.It also features the West Of England Heavy Horse Championships, a prestigious Championship that sees the best horses in the West of England compete against each other.

Looking back isn’t just about nostalgia and academic inquiry. The past was an interesting place, maybe more so than you might think. In Chasing the Past we're curious about the history of the Chase, and sometimes unearth bits that you may not have heard about. And sometimes we find the weird, the wild, and the quietly wonderful.

Warding Off Evil: The Mystery of Witch Marks

Ever noticed strange graffiti in old churches, barns, or historic homes? They might be witch marks, also called apotropaic marks, symbols etched into stone or wood, to protect against evil spirits, witches, or bad luck. Popular in medieval and early modern Britain, these marks offer a fascinating glimpse into how people once navigated a world full of unseen dangers.

Specific meanings, symbolism, and purpose of the various types are unclear and the subject of much debate. Whilst we might lump them all together and call them 'witch marks' some scholars may disagree that they all meet this category.

The term 'apotropaic' comes from Greek apotrepein ‘to ward off’, derived from apo ‘away’ and trepein ‘to turn’.

Types of Witch Marks

1. Daisy wheels (Hexafoils)

• The most common type
• Circular, flower-like patterns with overlapping petals
• Believed to confuse spirits by trapping them in endless loops
• Typically found near entrances, fireplaces, or windows.

2. Marian marks (VVs)

• Interlocking "V"s, from Virgo Virginum (“Virgin of Virgins” in Latin)
• Invoked the protection of the Virgin Mary
• Can also appear as an "M" thought to stand for "Mary"
• Other variations include the letters 'A' and 'M' combined, thought to represent "Ave Maria" (Hail Mary)
• Common practice from the medieval period into the 19th century, reflecting a time when belief in the supernatural was widespread
• A form of folk magic, but their connection to the Virgin Mary also rooted them in a deeply religious context.

3. Burn or scorch marks

• Created intentionally with candles or hot irons on wooden beams
• Ritualistic in nature, meant to shield the building from harm.

4. Mesh or maze patterns

• Spirals, interlocking lines, or cross-hatching.
• Designed to confuse or trap malevolent forces.

Where They’re Found

Marks in the following places formed a kind of spirit maze to trap demons and kept them from entering.

• Church porches – guarding sacred spaces.The porch was seen as a threshold between the dangerous outside and the church sanctuary. See the Guide below: Marian marks found in the porch of the church at Berwick St Leonard
• Fireplaces – a suspected entry point for spirits
• Barns and stables – protecting livestock from curses or the “evil eye”
• House thresholds, windows, beams – anywhere a spirit might slip in.

So, Were They Linked to Witches?

Sort of. They were to ward against demons and evil spirits. They were spiritual defences, sometimes combined with superstitious or folk-magical practices. Historians call this vernacular belief; everyday protective rituals used by ordinary people.

In Short

A witch mark is more than a curious scratched pattern or scorch mark. It’s a protective symbol, sometimes a blend of religion, superstition, and fear. These marks offer a unique window into how people tried to make sense of a chaotic, unseen world and safeguard themselves against it.

I asked Hubert for his thoughts. He gave them.

"Of course it makes complete sense that a little graffiti will save you from the darkness. If a spirit isn’t confused enough by loops, lines, and flowers, maybe a Latin acronym will do the trick. Clearly, humans were thinking three steps ahead."

apotropaic tales

I asked local folklore expert Isla Cobb whether she had any stories that included witchmarks, here's what she said.

“I’ve come across several fascinating tales,” Isla Cobb explained. “In one old local farmhouse, the threshold bears a faint daisy wheel carved into the stone. The family who lived there as late as the 1930s believed it kept a mischievous spirit from entering the house at night. They would tell visitors not to step on the mark, or the spirit might follow them home!”

She added, “In churches, Marian marks were sometimes paired with tiny crosses. Parishioners believed these symbols worked together. One calling on divine protection, the other confusing any lingering malevolent presence. It’s remarkable how these marks reflect both superstition and faith, showing the lengths people would go to feel safe.”

Cobb says that while many of the original intentions have been lost over time, the marks themselves remain a tangible link to centuries-old beliefs. A reminder that the past was full of both superstition and ingenuity.

She went on to share a tale about a woman accused of witchcraft, who would use a form of apotropaic symbolism to protect herself from harm.

"This woman was accused of witchcraft, but not for anything she had said or done. She never cursed a soul, nor called the winds, nor blackened milk. But she lived alone, walked at odd hours, and was seen speaking to animals. And she had a way of becoming unseen, of disappearing in the forest. That was enough to call her witch.”

"Whenever she sensed danger, maybe she was being followed and was afraid, she would place long strands of her own hair, delicate grass stems, or fallen twigs along the forest paths behind her. But these weren’t random. She wove them into subtle, intricate patterns. Loops, spirals, and knots that echoed ancient designs. She held them in her mind. To the untrained eye, they were invisible or, at most, nothing but the wind's debris."

"Unseen underfoot, they held power. Anyone who tried to follow her would soon find themselves disoriented. Followers would step over them and find themselves turning off the path, going in circles, retracing their steps, utterly confused, while she slipped away.”

“It was about survival,” Isla said. “In a world where being called a witch could mean exile, or death, this was her way of staying alive.”

"And yet, therein lay a paradox. The very charm that protected her was also potentially proof of what they said about her. So it was a dangerous secret.”

"So what became of her?" I asked.

" No one knows. She disappeared. Some say she became one with the forest. Others say that if you walk the wrong path, her tangles still exist and turn you round, take you somewhere else".

old magic, new spirits

Did you know Fonthill Bishop's own Witchmark Distillery takes its name from the centuries-old hexafoil or “daisy‑wheel” symbol carved into the stone of the old barn where it's located? Stone Daisy Brewery nearby at Berwick St Leonard also keeps the tradition alive, getting its name from the same daisy‑wheel motif.

You sometimes hear some odd things when you're out and about in the Chase, in the pub, out on the paths, in the queue at the villlage shop. Here are some of the more interesting snippets of conversation that caught our ear this week.

“She claims she saw a ghost near the church. It was just Alan in his fleece. It was dusk, mind.”

​
“They call it a ‘wellness field’. It’s just a damp paddock with a gong.”

​
“I don't go to the book club anymore, they only read books where no one is happy and everyone owns a horse.”

“He says his cider’s made from an old Dorset recipe. Tastes like elderflower.”
​

A parish by parish tour of the Chase

Continuing our parish-by-parish pilgrimage through the Chase’s 108 parishes. Alphabetical order, of course; Hubert's in charge and he likes methodical.

We're in the B's: introducing Berwick St Leonard.

berwick st Leonard

This one’s a little different. Situated between Hindon to the west and Fonthill Bishop to the east, Berwick St Leonard is tiny, with a population of less than 50. It doesn’t have a clear ‘village centre’; instead, the settlement is largely shaped by a rural business hub at Berwick Farm, part of the Fonthill Estate. Former farm buildings here now house a variety of enterprises, including events and catering, insurance, a sawmill, vehicle repairs, farm services, the Hygge Hair Barn, and Stone Daisy Brewery.

The 12th-century church, closed since 1966, is now cared for by the Churches Conservation Trust.

The parish extends north from the B3089 road up to the watershed between the Nadder and Wylye valleys, and includes part of the Great Ridge woodlands, one of the largest woodlands in Wiltshire.

Hubert's guide is below. All views expressed are Hubert's own, and not necessarily shared by Tales from the Chase. He may come across as quite grumpy but that's because he is.

One strange thing, on collecting his folded manuscript from the copy of Tess in his dropbox, I saw this sentence underlined on page 180 (Penguin Classics, 1985 reprint),

"I'm coming! Beware of me, beware of me!"

I do hope Hubert's OK...

BERWICK ST LEONARD

Ah, Berwick St Leonard. A village community or a small and bijou business park? You decide. Step carefully: some sheep seem to be plotting a hostile takeover of a nearby insurance firm.

Notable for: A man in a broad brimmed hat asking whether I'd seen Pete. No, I hadn't. He seemed suspicious. He was later seen striding along the B3089 towards Hindon, no sign of Pete.

Also notable:

St Leonard’s Church. A 12th-century masterpiece no longer operational as a church. Looks on bemused as spreadsheets, Zoom calls and full head tints occupy the surrounding buildings. There's ancient graffiti etched in a stone in the porch, including something called Marian marks. Supposed to invoke the virgin Mary, meant to be wards against evil. Clearly stopped working centuries ago. Also: a scratch dial. A medieval sundial that told the hours for prayer. Even centuries ago, people were stressed about schedules.

The “business” vibe. Much of Berwick St Leonard has quietly reinvented itself as a rural business centre. At least one meeting room smells faintly of cows. Evokes the prestige of a countryside location without letting this interfere with invoicing.

The Monarch’s Way. This 615-mile footpath route crosses along the southern parish boundary, along the verge of a B road. Very scenic I'm sure, giving hikers a chance to dodge the traffic and reflect on why there's a business centre in a hamlet with fewer residents than an average office floor in town.

The wider parish​
Stretches up onto the watershed at Great Ridge. Ancient earthworks hide in the surrounding woods. Something called Grim's Ditch, a prehistoric bank and ditch linear earthwork, forms part of the parish boundary up there. Many ancient earthworks of this name exist across England and Wales. The Anglo-Saxons decided to name every inexplicable mound, groove, or vaguely suspicious earthwork “Grim,” attributing them to some shadowy being they didn’t seem to trust. Which is an admirably efficient way of saying, “We have no idea what this is, but it looks like trouble.”

So who was Grim? Well, depending on which expert you ask, he’s either Odin using his Anglo-Saxon stage name, or the devil, likewise using one of his many aliases. Either way, you’re left with the unsettling thought that some of our boundaries were once carved into the earth by a deity with nothing better to do, or by the devil moonlighting as a civil engineer.

It does wonders for the imagination. You can almost hear Bronze Age locals murmuring chants to forgotten gods, warnings carried on the air down to the valley below, where people tap at keyboards, stare at screens, brew beer, fix cars, or get an expert cut and blow dry.

Suggested itinerary:​
​

• Arrive at 9.00. Feel awkwardly professional. If anyone challeges you, say you're here to meet Pete. Hopefully they'll leave you alone. Or usher you into a meeting room with Pete.
• Escape to St Leonard’s Church. Peer at the graffiti and the scratch dial.
• Make your way up to the northern parish boundary and find Grim's Ditch. Wonder if this is what they mean by "It's grim up north". Feel thankful you're not in another meeting.
• Return to the 'village'. Consider whether rural England is advancing, decaying, or just finding a space where ghosts of the past, gods, devils, cows, farmers, insurance brokers and hairdressers can coexist in harmony
• Leave quietly, in case anyone thinks you're a clock watcher, wondering if you remembered to switch off your laptop and wash your mug.

NEXT WEEK: BISHOPSTONE

Prepare to be utterly underwhelmed.

​

The wind shifts, the shadows lengthen, and the owls take flight. If something calls your name from the riverbank… don’t answer.

This weeks motto:

"Ce qui veille dans l’ombre entend tout."​
(That which watches in the shadows hears everything.)

Until the next turning, stay curious

Rob

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