Beltane at Thornborough

By Sam Stoker

I am a long-time attendee of the magical festivals of Beltane and Mabon at Thornborough Henge, wonderful gatherings of Pagans and witches from all over at the three buried henges in North Yorkshire. The festivals are held over a weekend with camping Thursday to Monday, and are marked by a free-to-attend ritual on the Sunday, which is what I normally head down for. Being semi local, I go as a day visitor since my witchlings are unlikely to enjoy camping, sadly.

This issue, I was absolutely honoured to get to speak to Nell Stafford who manages and orchestrates the entire event, runs the Facebook groups and event pages, and does all the admin behind the festivals.

POTN: Nell - thank you so much for agreeing to talk to us! How long has Beltane at Thornborough been going? Can you tell us a little about the festival?

Nell: This year is the 22nd year of celebrations of Beltane - in some form or another. From what I have been told, it started small with ceremonies rather than people staying over like now.

The celebrations are held over three days, with the Monday being going-home day.

I see it as a quiet start to the year, despite it being a fire festival. It’s a family friendly gathering with the opening ceremony, and closing, being held on the Sunday. Many attendees have seen past setups with traders and the like in the centre of the henge. We believe that things happened in the centre more than the outside, but we have to do as we are asked just to keep the event going there.

POTN: How did you get involved/start it in the first place and what is your role?

Nell: I first attended the Mabon event in 2011 after being told about it by other therapists, while I was still in training. Fell in love, and have attended most of both festivals ever since. Only mechanical breakdown stops me. Many years later the lovely lady who organised it, Susan Binns, said she was having to step down due to ill health and I put my foot in the ring at Beltane, while I was unattended, and said I would love to take over the reins. My role - well, I would say I am the herder of cats! Juggling contact with English Heritage, Lightwater Holdings, insurance, licensing, ticket booking, marshalls (Dagda are awesome by the way!), firepit hire, rules and regulations, caterers, loos, access to the field for parking and the Henge, and a few other jobs. Head honcho. I do it for the love of the henges and the festivals. Seemed a natural progression. I still run my stall too!

POTN: What groups run the ritual? What sort of rituals are there? Have you had a favourite over the years?

Nell: Sigbrid organises things for the opening ceremony and also does some handfasting. Drums, dancers, fire dancers sometimes. Quarter callers. Druids’ prayer which brings everyone together and also brings up the energy of the earth.

My favourite was the last play by the Sacred Briganties Players. I stepped up to join this group as they were local to me, and was initially the narrator but ended up playing the lead male role. Had a blast and it went too fast. I really wish I had a copy of the script, and I’d maybe do it again.

POTN: What is the atmosphere like for campers?

Nell: The atmosphere is still quite chilled out - the energy rises around the fire on an evening, but like many things we have to limit the noise there too. But everyone is very good and then the singers, poets and talkers come out after then.

POTN: What sort of accessibility is there?

Nell: The accessibility is just through the gate and the ground, in places, can be difficult especially in the dark. Good torches are essential and even those who are sure of foot can struggle.

POTN: Do you have any plans for the future, especially now English Heritage has taken over?

Nell: Just to keep it as it is. People like it as it is. People have suggested other things but I don’t have the time to organise anything else over the weekend, so others are more than welcome to do things.

English Heritage are very supportive of our events and are very helpful with keeping them going. They are doing things to keep the Henge in place for future generations.

POTN: Is there anything you would like to tell our readers about or add?

Nell: My favourite EVER EVER EVER moment was just after the central Henge had a lot of upheaval - filling in holes and removing the rabbits - and it needed our healing, instead of the henges healing us. We organised to give the Henge a big hug. Traders, campers, and marshalls came out and we created a ring of hands around the Henge, as far as we could, and despite the gaps the energy from us was there. We held hands and quietly gave back to the Henge. There were drums and whooping but the energy was there, and we only let go once the Henge, and our ancestors, sent a huge burst of energy through me to say ‘thank you’, and to tell us that we could let go. It was fantastic. Such a buzz.

We cannot thank Nell Stafford enough for taking time out of her incredibly busy schedule to talk to us.

Beltane at Thornborough 2025 runs from Friday 2nd to Monday 5th May, with rituals taking place on Sunday 4th, around noon, and again in the evening. Limited camping is still available for a small fee and in order to book, search for the ‘Beltane at Thornborough’ Facebook event and contact Nell there.

Day visitors are welcome and the address for the Henge is:

Thornborough Henge

West Tanfield

DL8 2RA

All images courtesy of Nell Stafford