London’s folk customs & traditions

In this tradition, communities walk around the boundaries of their parish, whipping the dividing landmarks with long sticks. Beating the bounds started over 1,000 years ago as a blessing of the fields, but evolved into a way of enforcing borders and teaching them to the next generation. It continues at the Tower of London. And beaters for the nearby All Hallows by the Tower church even take a boat out to beat their boundary in the River Thames.

The autumn and spring equinoxes are the two points in a year when day and night are of equal length. They’ve been markers of seasonal change for thousands of years. Neo-druids from the Druid Order still celebrate in London, as depicted in this painting from our collection. For spring, they head to Tower Hill. In autumn, it’s Primrose Hill.

Joseph Grimaldi, born in 1778, is celebrated as the king of clowns. His influence on modern clowning is commemorated in an annual church service, now held in Dalston, which has run since 1946. The event's become a pilgrimage for clowns, drawing a devoted group in full costume and make-up.

The harvest celebration also brings together the largest gathering of London’s pearly kings and queens. The pearly tradition of costumed fundraising began in the 1870s with Henry Croft, who was inspired by the shiny buttons worn by street-trading ‘costermongers’. The pearlies’ harvest festival is usually held on the last Sunday of September. St Martin-in-the-Fields in Trafalgar Square was its traditional venue. But another celebration now takes place at St Mary le Bow church and Guildhall Yard.

On 1 May, or May Day, it was once common to see a man wearing a tall frame covered head to toe in leaves. This Jack-in-the-Green character was common in the 18th and 19th centuries, appearing alongside celebrating chimney sweeps who danced the streets in the hope of a tip. The custom faded in the 20th century, but has been revived in various places for modern times. Carshalton in Sutton has welcomed Straw Jack, a similar figure, at harvest time.

Since early medieval times, people in England have gathered on Twelfth Night, the 12th night after Christmas, for ‘wassailing’. For some, this custom involved blessing an orchard for a good harvest. Others went house to house, sharing a drink and toasting ‘waes hael’, the Old Norse or Old English for ‘good health’. There was always music and singing. Wassailing has also enjoyed a modern, merry comeback.

This modern, free celebration mashes together the Holly Man (a festive version of the Green Man), wassailing and a performance of a mumming play, a traditional folk drama. The play follows the centuries-old ‘hero-combat’ style, where a knight is killed fighting, then brought back to life by a doctor. It can feature characters like Saint George, Father Christmas and Turkey Snipe.

At the historic Westminster School, Shrove Tuesday is the date of the Pancake Greaze. In this unique tradition, the school chef hurls a thick pancake over a high bar to a crowd of schoolboys in costume, who fight to get a piece. In a more public Shrove Tuesday event, the Guildhall Yard has been the venue for a pancake race between the City’s livery companies since the 2000s.

For over 200 years, on the 12th day after Christmas, actors stepping offstage at the Theatre Royal Drury Lane are greeted with a very significant cake. This tradition is the legacy of actor Robert Baddeley. On his death in 1794, he left money to pay for a new cake every year, specifying that it should be presented to the lucky actors playing that night.

Before Smithfield was home to our museum, it was home to a meat market. Before that, it sold livestock. Anyone who’d been granted ‘freedom of the city’ had permission to bring animals into London to be sold there. That right has remained for freemen, and since 2013, a flock of sheep have been herded over a London bridge to celebrate this history.

One of the better-known British customs, this folk dance featuring bells and handkerchiefs has long been male-dominated – and has often been mocked. However, it’s recently benefited from groups trying to modernise it for newcomers, updating the costumes and focusing on inclusivity. There are active morris ‘sides’ around London.