A British History of Magic Mushrooms: Talk & Discussion with Dr Rob Dickens

A History of Magic Mushroom Pickers and UK Counterculture 

It's been twenty years since the possession of fresh magic mushrooms was made illegal in Britain. 

From obscure origins, Psilocybe mushrooms quickly and quietly established themselves in local and countercultural Britain. They became a staple rite of passage, folkloric emblem, and mischievous companion in the festival calendar. For over fifty years, these tricksters danced around the law, difficult to capture.

In this talk, Dr Robert Dickens discusses the history of picking Psilocybe mushrooms and explores the events that eventually led to their change in legal status in 2005. He will begin at the accidental 'poisonings' and the slow systemization of the Liberty Cap by mycologists in the nineteenth century, traversing through history to the post-war counterculture's discovery of native magic mushrooms and the emergence of home grow kits. It is both a rural and urban story, spanning generational tensions.

Rob's talk and presentation will be followed by a Q&A.

About Dr Robert Dickens

Robert Dickens, PhD, is a historian and publisher, whose works examines the social and literary history of psychoactive substances and altered states of experience. He is the author of Cobweb of Trips: A Literary History of Psychedelics (2024) and Psilocybe Pickers: A Short History of Bemushroomed Britons (2025), and is currently researching the connection between tripping and gardens for a forthcoming project. He is on the steering committee for Breaking Convention, Europe's largest psychedelic conference, and has been publishing in the psychedelic space for almost 20 years. He lives in the Vale of Pewsey, Wiltshire.

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