Kenneth Glad
Small rituals still accompany life’s biggest moments, from exams to cup finals. A new survey suggests that even in a modern, scientific society, age-old beliefs continue to influence everyday behaviour.
Britain often prides itself on being sensible and unsentimental, more guided by evidence than omens.
Even so, on exam results day in Manchester or Bristol, teenagers can be spotted clutching old keyrings or “lucky” pens, and in pubs before a big cup tie, someone will usually tap the nearest wooden table without making a fuss about it.
According to The Daily Star, a recent survey found that only one in 500 respondents claimed they were not bothered by irrational fears. Detailed polling data was not released, but the figure alone points to a quiet persistence of belief beneath the surface of modern life.
In previous research, Professor Owen Davies of the University of Hertfordshire has argued that belief in superstition often persists because it offers psychological comfort and a sense of control in uncertain situations.
Creatures and charms
Animals have long carried symbolic weight. The Daily Star links the legend of the lucky horseshoe to St Dunstan, who, according to medieval lore, forced Satan to promise he would avoid homes displaying one.
Black cats were viewed much more darkly. In 1232, Pope Gregory IX described them as the “incarnation of Satan,” a claim that fed suspicion across parts of Europe and tied the animals to witchcraft narratives for generations.
The rabbit’s foot has a different history. The Roman writer Pliny the Elder referred in 77AD to the supposed healing properties of hares and rabbits in his Natural History.
Over time, belief in medicinal value blurred into the carrying of a preserved foot for luck. It sounds strange now, but the object became commonplace enough to be sold as a charm well into the 20th century.
Other customs revolve around ordinary objects. The Daily Star reports that knocking on wood stems from pagan traditions in which trees were believed to house protective spirits, so touching timber was a way of asking for safeguarding.
Salt gathered ominous associations through Christian storytelling. In artistic depictions of the Last Supper, Judas Iscariot is often shown spilling it, reinforcing its link to betrayal. Folklore later suggested that tossing a pinch over the shoulder might ward off evil.
In practice, the gesture now tends to be quick and half-ironic. Someone mentions that nothing has gone wrong all week, pauses, and reaches for the salt. Just in case.
Ladders and reflections
The unease around ladders and mirrors draws on older layers of symbolism. Avoiding the space beneath a ladder may relate to the sacred status of the triangle in ancient Egypt, a meaning later reinforced in Christian theology through the Holy Trinity. That overlapping symbolism, carried across centuries, helped turn a practical object into something faintly charged.
Mirrors prompted their own anxieties. Greek “mirror seers” reportedly examined reflections in water to predict health or longevity. Roman tradition added the warning that breaking a mirror would bring seven years of ill health, unless specific steps were taken to counteract the curse.
Scholars note that while not everyone believed such claims literally, the stories travelled widely enough to take root in popular culture.
And then, perhaps because glass still shatters unexpectedly and ladders still wobble against walls, the warnings remain easy to pass on.
Few people in Britain would describe themselves as superstitious in a serious sense. Yet before a driving test, a hospital appointment or a last-minute penalty, fingers are crossed and fate is carefully not tempted.
Sources: The Daily Star; Owen Davies, University of Hertfordshire
