Pilgrimage Gathering 2025 

British Pilgramage Trust 

Reconnect with our land, stories, ancestry and spirit

Through the day we explore how intentional walking reconnects us with land, spirit, and story. Join folklorists, mystics, historians, and healers as they ask: how do we walk with meaning?

This special Gathering also supports the work of the British Pilgrimage Trust. By joining us — and by giving an optional donation when booking — you help us bring the gift of pilgrimage to many more people.

The Agenda 

11:00 – 11:20 | Opening Welcome
We open with intentions, grounding, and an overview of the gathering.

11:20 – 12:20 | Panel 1: The History of Pilgrimage
Speakers: Alice Loxton, Luke Sherlock, Daniel Wilson
A sweeping conversation tracing pilgrimage from ancient rites to modern resurgence. Why did our ancestors walk, and why are we walking again today? Pilgrimage as a living compass for times of disconnection.

12:20 – 12:35 | Break

12:35 – 1:20 | Panel 2: Exploring the Archaic Folk Revival
Speakers: Daze Aghaji, Jeremy Deller, Jennifer Reid
Across Britain, ancient traditions are being revived — not as nostalgia, but as resistance and re-enchantment. This panel explores the folk revival as a living culture, rooted in ritual, place, and the commons, from punk zines to ritual processions. What might a creative, inclusive folk future look like?

1:20 – 2:20 | Lunch

2:20 – 3:50 | Panel 3: Canal Pilgrimage (Off-site)

Speakers: Martin Palmer, Jonathan Weekes, Zofia Page
We will walk the canal together, nearby Ladbroke Hall, with a discussion of the international Green Pilgrimage and Sacred Earth Activism networks, bringing a global perspective on sacred environmental movements, and stories from a recent pilgrimage along the River Medway, weaving personal insight with reflections on the ecological and emotional journey of walking a river’s full course.

3:50 – 4:05 | Break

4:05 – 5:05 | Panel 4: The Rise of the Cunning Folk
Speakers: India Rakusen, Tabitha Stanmore, The Seed Sistas
As interest in pilgrimage grows, so too does a yearning to reconnect with ancestral wisdom—particularly the magical, medicinal, and spiritual practices once held by the cunning folk, herbalists, wise women and ritual workers of these islands. In this panel, we explore the resurgence of folk healing and folk magic in Britain today: from sacred plant medicine and lunar rituals to the lived history of spellcraft and divination.

5:05 – 5:20 | Break

5:20 – 6:20 | Panel 5: Beyond the Ordinary
Speakers: Rupert Sheldrake, Mac Macartney, Satish Kumar, Guy Hayward
Pilgrimage is a threshold into the unseen — a journey not only through the natural world, but toward spirit and soul. How can walking with intention awaken our deeper awareness, attune us to the more-than-human, open a portal to the mystery and reawaken our inner life?

6:20 – 7:20 | Dinner Break

7:20 – 9:30 | Evening Concert – in collaboration with Broadside Hacks
Featuring reimagined folk songs rooted in the land and its stories, this concert invites us to dance and reflect.

The Location

Ladbroke Hall is an arts and events venue situated in Ladbroke Grove, West London, set in the historic, former Sunbeam Talbot factory.

Panelists & Speakers

Alice Loxton – Historian, presenter and Sunday Times bestselling author who has presented many history documentaries and worked with organisations such as BBC, Sky Arts, Channel 5, Times Radio, Christie's, Sotheby's, The National Gallery and more.

Luke Sherlock – writer and bookshop owner with a boundless enthusiasm for landscape, heritage and art. Author of Forgotten Churches: Exploring Englands Hidden Treasures.

India Rakusen is a leading voice as a writer, facilitator, and speaker at the intersections of spirituality, ritual and transformative travel. She made the Radio 4 series, 'Witch'.

Daniel Wilson is the face of @greatbritisharchitecture on Instagram. A student of architectural history, he started his page as a means to share his passion for Britain’s built heritage. Through his content, which highlights lesser-known architectural and historic gems from rural Scotland to the streets of London, he seeks to engage a broader audience in appreciating the rich architectural heritage of Great Britain. He recently made and covered a pilgrimage to St Davids.

Dr Tabitha Stanmore – Historian, author, speaker, researcher. Author of "Cunning Folk: Life in the Era of Practical Magic". Tabitha is a postdoctoral researcher on the Leverhulme-funded Seven County Witch Hunt Project at the University of Exeter, and is specialist in medieval and early modern English magic and witchcraft.

Seed Sistas – Experts in the study and clinical practice of herbal medicine. Fiona and Kazz are dedicated to natural health, education, and giving a voice to projects that challenge social norms. They work with many charities and organisations including The Eden Project, The School of Social Entrepreneurs, and others.

Jonathan Weekes is a passionate advocate for sacred activism, blending spiritual practices with social and environmental justice. As a leader in this movement, he explores how our deep spiritual connection to the earth and each other can inspire tangible action for positive change, focusing on the transformative power of ritual, meditation, and sacred action in addressing the pressing issues of our time. Sacred Earth Activism

Martin Palmer is a leading advocate for the Green Pilgrimage Network, an international initiative that explores the intersection of pilgrimage, sustainability, and environmental consciousness. As a renowned expert in religious environmentalism, Martin has worked with communities worldwide to integrate ecological awareness into pilgrimage practices.

Jeremy Deller is a renowned British artist whose work explores the intersections of culture, history, and social movements. He has a unique approach to art-making, which often incorporates collaboration and the exploration of collective memory. Jeremy will offer his insights into the role of art in connecting people to history, place, and ritual.

Daze Aghaji is an environmentalist and cultural strategist whose work explores identity, belonging, and our relationship with the Earth. She began in human rights with Amnesty International before co-founding Extinction Rebellion Youth in 2019 while studying History and Politics at Goldsmiths, University of London. Her activism is rooted in grief and love for the planet.

Dr Rupert Sheldrake – Biologist and author best known for his hypothesis of morphic resonance. At Cambridge University he worked in developmental biology as a Fellow of Clare College. He was Principal Plant Physiologist in Hyderabad, India and was Director of the Perrott-Warrick project for research on unexplained human and animal abilities, funded by Trinity College, Cambridge. Sheldrake has been instrumental in building the British Pilgrimage Trust over the past 10 years, and has many insights to share on what is to come.

Jennifer Reid – a music historian who performs songs and stories and teaches traditional music and craft workshops. She researches ballads and applies them to modern life, and contributes academically with funded research and artistic projects.

Mac Macartney – Mac is an international speaker and leadership practitioner with over thirty years’ experience in people and organisation development. Alongside his extensive experience of working with organisations he also founded Embercombe, a social enterprise located in Dartmoor which seeks to explore and promote the profound regeneration of land, society, and people. All of Mac’s work is focused towards the emergence of a just, peaceful, regenerative, and flourishing future for all species.

Satish Kumar – Peace-pilgrim, life-long activist and former monk, Satish Kumar has been inspiring global change for over 50 years. He undertook a pilgrimage for peace from India to Moscow, London, Paris and America, with no money and reliance on the kindness of strangers. He is founder of The Resurgence Trust, and educational charity that seeks to inform and inspire a just future for all.

Dr Guy Hayward – Co-founder and Director of the British Pilgrimage Trust. Writer, speaker, and pilgrim, has co-authored the book 'Britain’s Pilgrim Places' and has been interviewed about modern pilgrimage for TV, Netflix, Radio 4 and writes for the national media. Hayward completed a Music Psychology PhD at Cambridge on how singing forms community and is one half of comedy singing duo Bounder & Cad and with Rupert Sheldrake also co-founded the Choral Evensong Trust.

What is Broadside Hacks? Is it a band? Is it a label? Is it a club? Is it a promoter? It’s all of those things. Simplest to call it a collective, reckons Campbell Baum, its founder. Simplest, as a listener, just to accept Broadside Hacks as a mark of something interesting, of a way of approaching folk music that combines creative freedom with respect for the past. Simplest to understand Broadside Hacks does not mean musicians steeped in the folk clubs, but musicians who have created their own folk club to create their own understanding of the tradition. Simpler than that, it's a group composed of an array of brilliantly talented individual artists – among them Katy J Pearson, Naima Bock and members of Goat Girl, Sorry and caroline.

REFUNDS POLICY: Please note, we do not arrange refunds or exchanges. When possible we encourage reselling on Ticketswap.

ACCESS:  We do our best to include everyone in our events, regardless of health circumstances. If you have access requirements please email the event organiser directly to discuss. Many facilitators are able to offer reduced ticket prices for those truly unable to afford the ticket price. If this applies to you, do please get in touch with the event organiser.

For PSYCHEDELIC KNOWLEDGE AND RESOURCES please check out the Psychedelic Society website. 

Our facilitators have agreed to our code of conduct. Learn about our procedure for raising concerns

MEMBERS of the Psychedelic Society get a discount off almost all of our events.
Join from £5 a month and become part of this amazing community with invites to special events and more.