The Magic of May Day: Festivals and Folklore

There’s a certain alchemy in the air when May arrives in the UK. The days stretch a little longer, the mornings feel brighter, and gardens erupt with blossom, but beyond the blooming hedgerows and the gentle warmth of the sun lies something even more magical: May Day.

May Day, celebrated on the 1st of May, is an ancient festival steeped in folklore, ritual, and revelry. It’s a time when the veil between past and present feels thin, when villagers once danced around maypoles, crowned May Queens, and welcomed the spirits of nature back into their fields and forests. For a fantasy writer, May Day is not just a holiday—it’s a portal into another world.

In this post, I’ll be exploring the vibrant traditions of May Day in the UK and how these customs can inspire rich, enchanting tales full of folklore, wonder, and whimsy.

A Brief History of May Day

Long before it became a day of Morris dancers and spring fairs, May Day had its roots in pagan seasonal festivals. The most well-known precursor is Beltaine (or Beltane), a Gaelic festival marking the beginning of summer. Celebrated in Ireland, Scotland, and the Isle of Man, Beltane was associated with fertility, fire, and protection—rituals that ensured a fruitful growing season and warded off evil spirits.

With the arrival of Christianity, many of these traditions were softened or repurposed, but May Day remained a joyous celebration of the earth’s renewal. In medieval England, villages would gather to "bring in the May," cutting branches and flowers to decorate homes and churches. Festivities often lasted days and included maypole dancing, Morris dancing, hobby horses, and mock battles between the forces of winter and summer.

May Day represents a liminal time, brimming with symbolism—a perfect playground for fantasy writers who thrive on folklore and forgotten magic.

The Enchanting Elements of May Day

Here are some of the most iconic elements of May Day celebrations in the UK and how they might inspire scenes, characters, or whole plotlines in a fantasy novel.

1. The Maypole: Axis of the World

Perhaps the most recognisable May Day image is the maypole, often decorated with ribbons and flowers. Dancers weave patterns as they circle the pole, their movements symbolising the interweaving of life, love, and community.

In folklore, trees have long been seen as conduits between worlds—the roots in the underworld, the trunk in the human realm, the branches in the heavens. The maypole, often made from a felled birch or ash tree, can be seen as a world tree or axis mundi—a link between realms. In a story, a forgotten village may hold a maypole dance to keep ancient wards intact. Perhaps the ribbons bind a dormant forest spirit, and when the dance is disrupted, the spirit awakens.

Or the maypole could be a kind of magical compass, revealing paths to hidden realms only during the dance.

2. The May Queen: Maiden of the Flowers

The May Queen is typically a young girl or woman crowned with flowers to represent the spirit of spring. In some traditions, she leads the procession; in others, she is paired with the Green Man or the Lord of the May, embodying the union of earth and renewal.

This archetype offers a wealth of character potential. What if the May Queen isn’t just symbolic, but chosen by the land itself? Perhaps the crown of hawthorn blossoms grants her temporary power over the growing things—vines spring to her command, and crops thrive or fail by her whim.

In a darker tale, being crowned May Queen might be less of an honour and more of a burden. What if the title comes with a price—a year of beauty and vitality followed by a sacrifice? Or maybe the previous May Queen disappears, and our protagonist is determined to break the cycle.

3. The Green Man and Jack-in-the-Green

The Green Man, with his face peering through leaves and vines, is a potent symbol of rebirth and nature’s resilience. Often found in church carvings and pub signs, he’s a folkloric figure who never truly disappears, merely waits.

In some May Day traditions—especially in Kent and London—you’ll find Jack-in-the-Green, a man completely enclosed in a cage of foliage, dancing and cavorting through the streets, flanked by chimney sweeps and Morris dancers.

Imagine a fantasy world where the Green Man is a slumbering forest god, awakened only when the land is threatened. Or Jack-in-the-Green might be a trickster spirit, bounding from town to town sowing seeds of both chaos and fertility. A protagonist could stumble upon a neglected woodland shrine, accidentally reawakening ancient beings tied to seasonal rituals.

4. Morris Dancing: The Dance of the Guardians

Morris dancers, with their jingling bells, handkerchiefs, and elaborate footwork, are often dismissed as quaint, but they have roots in ritualistic, possibly even magical dance. The exact origins are lost to time, but it’s clear they once served a symbolic, perhaps protective function.

In a fantasy setting, Morris dancers could be the guardians of the old ways, their dance steps forming sigils of protection. They might travel from village to village performing ancient patterns to ward off corruption or disease. Their bells could serve as wards against spirits, their staffs tapping out enchantments in rhythm.

An apprentice dancer might discover that the choreography encodes forgotten spells—the right combination of steps could open a portal, summon rain, or banish shadows.

Folklore Meets Fantasy

May Day is fertile ground for fantasy fiction because it sits at the crossroads of joy and mystery, the natural and the supernatural. Here are a few story prompts to stir your imagination:

✿ The Forgotten Festival

A village abandoned during the plague is rediscovered centuries later. One curious traveller arrives on May Day, only to find the maypole already decorated and the locals insisting she join the dance…

✿ The Queen’s Secret

Each year, the May Queen is chosen—but no one remembers what happens to the Queen after the festival ends. This year’s Queen is determined to uncover the truth before sunset.

✿ The Maypole Pact

Long ago, a pact was made: so long as the maypole stands and the ribbons are tied, the boundary holds. But this year, the pole cracks, and something slips through.

✿ Jack’s Return

Every century, Jack-in-the-Green returns to reclaim a debt owed by the village. When he names a child to come with him, the villagers must face the past they’ve tried to forget.

These prompts can be used to spark short stories, chapter ideas, or even full-length novels. They all draw from the rich tapestry of May Day folklore, blending real-world tradition with fantasy invention.

Writing May Day: Senses, Symbols, and Seasons

If you’re incorporating May Day into your writing, don’t forget to immerse your reader in the senses. The soft crunch of dew-drenched grass underfoot. The perfume of hawthorn and primrose. The jingle of bells, the drumbeat of feet on earth, the laughter that spirals like ribbons through the air.

May is about thresholds—the threshold between spring and summer, between mundane and magical, between old and new. Use symbolism freely: garlands as crowns, the pole as a tree of life, fire as a purifier, flowers as fleeting beauty.

Let the season shape your story’s tone. May Day doesn’t belong to winter’s solemnity or autumn’s decay—it’s brimming with life, risk, and revelry. There’s joy here, but also something wild, unpredictable. That tension makes it a perfect setting for high-stakes fantasy or bittersweet folklore.

The Stories that Bloom in May

As a writer, I find the month of May endlessly inspiring. Its festivals aren’t just relics—they are living echoes of the stories we used to tell around fires and fields, stories where gods walked as men, and maidens danced with spirits.

May Day reminds us that magic doesn’t have to be hidden in castles or cloaked in shadow. Sometimes, it’s right there—in a flower crown, in a hand-held ribbon, in the turning of a season. These are the seeds from which stories blossom.

So if you’re writing this spring, consider letting May Day into your world. Let your characters walk the old paths, dance around ancient poles, and whisper to the green things. Who knows what might bloom?

Happy May, and may your stories flower with magic and sunlight.