Cursed Britain: A History of Witchcraft and Black Magic in Modern Times

This is the definitive history of how evil magic has survived into the present day from the largely rural world of Georgian Britain and the time of the British Empire to the multicultural present.

In our age of technology and information, it is easy to imagine that black magic in Britain is dead. On the contrary, over recent centuries it has persisted, changed and returned.
Spanning across the largely rural world of Georgian Britain and the time of the British Empire to the multicultural present, and drawing on an unprecedented range of sources, including, diaries, folklore reports and oral interviews, Thomas Waters explores the enduring power of ancient fears and desires.

Through fascinating individual stories, he shows in his book how witchcraft is as diverse as modern Britain itself, incorporating ‘cunning folk’, cynical quacks, and the victims of witch-hunts as well as benevolent and sincere magical healers. Cursed Britain ranges from wise-women to the deliverance ministry, from Victorian occultists to New Age therapists, to reveal why witchcraft has per-sisted, and why it is again on the rise…

Thomas Waters is lecturer in history at Imperial College London and a specialist in the modern history of witchcraft and magic. His first book Cursed Britain: A History of Witchcraft and Black Magic in Modern Times will be available to buy on the night.

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This event is in the Main Hall on the ground floor. For accessibility info: https://www.conwayhall.org.uk/about/visiting-us/