Glastonbury

Glastonbury December 23, 2003

In offering his nominations for “Books of the Year,” Tom Shippey (TLS, Dec 5) tells the following story: “Some years ago a Farmborough biker with an interest in the occult climbed Glastonbury Tor and asked the Goddess to help him find Excalibur before the next full moon. The day before the deadline he saw a sword in an antique shop ?Eit was the stage prop which had represented Excalibur in the John Boorman film. He accepted this as a sign, changed his name to Arthur Uther Pendragon, founded the Loyal Arthurian Warband, and embarked on a career of opposition to such government measures as the closing of Stonhenge.”

This supports my assessment of Glastonbury ?Ethat it was the spookiest town in England. On the other hand, I didn’t find any goddess worshipers when I climbed the Tor; only a handful of teenagers smoking pot.


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