Britain is a thoroughly secular country in which an extraordinary number of people touch wood, count magpies and refuse to walk under ladders, while cheerfully insisting they are not superstitious in the slightest.
The common ones
- Touch wood. Said aloud after mentioning good fortune, usually while reaching for the nearest wooden object or, failing that, one’s own head. Americans say “knock on wood”; the British touch it.
- Don’t walk under a ladder. Explained variously as breaking the triangle of the Trinity or, more practically, as an excellent way to avoid a falling paint pot.
- Black cats are lucky. Britain is the outlier here — in much of Europe and America the same cat is an ill omen. A black cat crossing your path in Britain is good news.
- Thirteen is unlucky. Many British streets have no number 13, hotels skip the thirteenth floor, and some hospitals have no bed 13.
- Never open an umbrella indoors, put new shoes on a table, or cross on the stairs.
- Breaking a mirror brings seven years of bad luck.
- Spilt salt should be thrown over the left shoulder, into the eyes of the devil standing behind you.
Magpies
The most distinctively British superstition, and one a great many people observe without quite meaning to. A single magpie is unlucky, and must be greeted — usually with a salute and “Good morning, Mr Magpie, how’s your lady wife?”
The counting rhyme is known to almost every British person:
One for sorrow, two for joy,
Three for a girl, four for a boy,
Five for silver, six for gold,
Seven for a secret never to be told.
Drivers salute magpies at the roadside constantly, and will tell you it means nothing.
The first of the month
Saying “white rabbits” or “rabbit rabbit” as the first words spoken on the first day of the month brings luck for the month ahead. It is largely a childhood habit, though a surprising number of adults keep it up.
The theatre
British theatre has its own dense set of prohibitions, taken seriously by professionals:
- Never say “Macbeth” inside a theatre. It is “the Scottish Play”. Anyone who says it must leave the building, turn round three times, spit, swear, and ask to be readmitted.
- Never wish an actor good luck — say “break a leg”.
- No whistling backstage, from the era when scene changes were cued by whistles and a stray one could drop a piece of scenery on somebody.
- A ghost light is left burning on stage overnight in an empty theatre.
Weddings
The bride wears something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue, and traditionally a silver sixpence in her shoe. The groom should not see the dress before the ceremony. Wedding cake should be saved, and in some families the top tier is kept for a first christening.
Do people believe them
Surveys consistently find that a majority of British people admit to at least one superstitious habit while denying they are superstitious. The usual formulation is “I don’t believe in it, but I’d rather not risk it”, which is either a contradiction or an entirely reasonable position, depending on how charitable you feel.