The folklore and ritual magic of the British Isles is a deeply haunted body of observances and practices. Its rainy melancholy lands have a long history of ghostly hauntings and apparitions, tales of necromancers prowling old graveyards, and practices of Dumb Suppers, soul cakes, and consulting tutelary shades which all trace a diverse hauntological record etched in pamphlets and headstones alike.

From these encounters and legends emerge rich traditions of operative necromancy: from the use of grave dirt for dream incubation and ghost-laying, to the employment of both grimoiric conjuration and planetary sorcery in various cunning work with the dead.

In this illustrated presentation, we will approach traditional pre-modern practices of folk necromancy, exploring the intersections of ghosts, ghostlore, and both folk magic and ritual magic concerning the returning dead in early modern Britain – from helping souls pass on to calling forth spirits of the deceased – concentrating on the magical ways the living and dead can help each other.