Superstitions: Witch Marks, Touching Wood & Lucky Pants

Many of them pre-date modern religions and defy what science tells us about the world - from saluting magpies, to wearing lucky pants. Yet why do superstitions still have such a strong hold on our lives?Today we’re joined by Sally Coulthard, author of Superstition - the History of Common Folk Beliefs, to find out the origins and meaning behind some of our most common ritualistic behaviours.Why do we touch wood? And what does crossing our fingers say about the crossover between superstition and religion? Let’s go Betwixt the Sheets to find out.This episode was edited by Siobhan Dale, and produced by Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer Charlotte Long.If you're enjoying Betwixt please vote for us at the British Podcast Awards here: https://www.britishpodcastawards.com/voting. It would mean the world to us!Discover the past on History Hit with ad-free original podcasts and documentaries released weekly presented by world renowned historians like Kate Lister, Dan Snow, Suzannah Lipscomb, Lucy Worsley, Mary Beard and more.Get 50% off your first 3 months with code BETWIXT.Download the app on your smart TV or in the app store or sign up at historyhit.com/subscribe.You can take part in our listener survey here: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/6FFT7MK Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Om Podcasten

Join sex historian Kate Lister on Betwixt the Sheets as she gets intimate with the stories that would make your history teacher blush.What were the Victorians really like behind closed (bedroom) doors? How did the Black Death favour women in medieval England? And what was Caesar like in the sack? She'll be bed-hopping around different time periods; from ancient civilisations, to the middle ages, to renaissance and early modern...right up to now.You’ll laugh, you’ll wince, and you’ll ask yourself how much has actually changed.So join Kate Betwixt the Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society - a podcast from History Hit.Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.   Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.