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Philip
Heselton
Written
and compiled by George Knowles
Englishman
Philip Heselton is an independent historian and researcher, a highly
respected writer and author on the subjects of Earth mysteries, Wicca,
Witchcraft and Paganism. More recently he has become better known for his books
documenting the life of Gerald Gardner, which include:
Wiccan Roots: Gerald Gardner and the Modern Witchcraft Revival (2000)
and Gerald Gardner and the Cauldron of Inspiration (2003). Philip was born in Hitchin, Hertfordshire, on
the 29th March 1946 and spent the first few years of his life growing
up in suburban London. After the
birth of his younger brother Nigel Heselton in 1950, his parents, father Kenneth
Yeaman Heselton and mother Joan Heselton, enrolled Philip at the Beckford Junior
School in West Hampstead to start his schooling.
From 1952-1957 he attended the Kenyngton Manor Primary School in
Sunbury-on-Thames, then moved up to Sunbury Grammar School where he completed
his early education in 1964. A mainly solitary person, from an early age Philip had gained an affinity for the land and a deep respect for nature. He would often on his pushbike, cycle and travel out of London into neighbouring counties seeking out the wild woods and desolate heaths for his spiritual inspiration. At the same time he was always aware that realms beyond the physical existed, and this led to his early interest in psychic phenomena, UFO’s and other associated Earth mysteries. The first indication that other folk felt the
same way he did came in 1960, when his parents borrowed a book from the local
library called: Witchcraft Today
by Gerald Gardner. On reading the
book, much of what it said had a familiar ring, almost as if some strange echo
from a past lifetime was attracting him. However
it was what the book didn’t say that fascinated him, the answers to which led
him on a life-long quest of research and exploration into earth mysteries, and
much later to undertake an in-depth investigation into the life of the book’s
author Gerald Gardner. By his mid-teens Philip’s main interested was in UFO’s, which led to his meeting John Anthony Dunkin (Tony) Wedd, his first mentor, and the person who introduced him into the mysteries of leys (sometimes referred to as “ley lines”). Wedd was the founder of the STAR Fellowship, an organization dedicated to finding evidence of UFO’s from space and making contact with their people. The STAR Fellowship first came to public attention through an article he had written for the Flying Saucer Review (issue Jan/Feb 1961), a magazine dedicated to UFO’s, and entitled: Diffusionist Theory and the STAR Fellowship. Wedd also authored a small booklet: Skyways and Landmarks, which he wrote to coincide with the first STAR Fellowship Rally held on Saturday 27th May 1961, a rally Philip eagerly attended. In
1962, together with Jimmy Goddard and other UFO enthusiasts, Philip
founded The Ley Hunters Club, a
revival of The Straight Track Club (1927-1948) first founded by the
earlier pioneer of leys … Alfred Watkins.
In 1965 to support growing interest
in the club’s activities and findings, they also founded: The Ley Hunter magazine. Philip edited
the first few issues of magazine from 1965-66, before handing it over to other
members so he could concentrate on his University studies.
John
Anthony Dunkin Wedd (1919 - 1980)
- Alfred
Watkins (1855 - 1935)
In 1964
Philip’s interest in leys and landscapes led him to the North East of England
and the study of Geography at the University of Hull.
He graduated from Hull in 1967 with a BA (Hons) degree.
Deciding on a career in Planning, from 1968-1970 he
continued his studies at the University of Manchester, gaining a Diploma
in Town and Country Planning. He
then took employment as a Planner with
the East Riding of Yorkshire County Council, and in 1973 was granted membership of the Royal Town Planning
Institute (MRTPI). Later in 1985 he took a
position as a Conservation Officer with Hull City Council. It was not until 1972 that Philip first met some practicing pagans, but of these, one in particular was dogmatic in his thinking, which put him off seeking others for several years. In the late 1980’s he met another group of pagans whose ideas and theologies coincided with his own. Soon after, he became involved with various other local groups, some members of which have become his closest friends. In 1979 Philip helped to found The Northern Earth Mysteries Group, for which he edited their magazine called Northern Earth Mysteries. The remit of the magazine was to record history and archaeology both ancient and modern, as well as folklore and its customs, and to act as a cauldron for unexplained and scientific facts. From hollow mounds to sleeping giants and from rural landscapes to the urban myths of cityscapes, it brought together a host of people with shared interests. Having edited the magazine for more than a few years, Philip passed on the task to another member, Rob Wilson in 1987, so he could move on with his other interests. During
the mid-1980’s together with Jimmy Goddard
and Paul Baines, Philip co-wrote a booklet:
Skyways and Landmarks Revisited (1985).
This was a re-evaluation of the work that Tony Wedd had started on
leys and their connection with UFO’s. As
well as a detailed history of the leys, it contained the full text of the
original booklet written by Wedd, together with the findings of the STAR
Fellowship and his ideas on the significance of sound to earth energies,
which he believed flowed along the alignments and could be used by
extraterrestrials. Philip then
followed this with another booklet: Earth
Mysteries - An Exploratory
Introduction (1985)
co-written with Brian Larkman. ![]() During his writing career thus far, Philip had edited various magazines, had contributed articles to associated magazines in the earth mysteries and pagan genre, had co-written and produced a number of independent booklets, and had self-published a book about his friend and mentor Tony Wedd. What still eluded him however, was his desire to have his own work published by an “established publisher”. That opportunity came just a few years later. In 1989 a friend of his, Caroline Wise suggested
he contact Element Books, who at the time were publishing a series of books (The
Elements of ... series) based on various esoteric subjects.
So Philip wrote to them and offered to write a book based on Earth
Mysteries. After submitting a
synopsis with a sample chapter, the editor of Element Books invited him in to
discuss it. As a result in July
1990 he was offered a contract, and a year later: The
Elements of Earth Mysteries (1991) was published. After
his retirement from Hull City Council in 1997, Philip returned to his roots and
began researching and gathering evidence for a project he had long been wanting
to fulfil. Ever since he first read
Witchcraft Today in 1960 he had been curious about its author Gerald Gardner
and the many mysteries surrounding his life. Equally mysterious was the secrecy and origins of the New
Forest coven, which had allegedly survived through generations of witches.
Philip’s
academic study and detailed research into the life of Gerald Gardner and the
existence of the New Forest coven has been well received and welcomed in the
pagan community. Many see his books
as the most authoritative account to date of the true origins of the Gardnerian
Tradition of modern witchcraft, but does it end here? Philip thinks not! At
the end of his last book: Gerald
Gardner and the Cauldron of Inspiration, he states: “I have enjoyed researching and writing this book
immensely: I hope you will enjoy
reading it. I am still enthusiastic
and hopeful that a fuller story will one day emerge. As I said in Wiccan Roots and will repeat here – the
subject has not finished with me yet!!!” End.
Bibliography:
With
Jimmy Goddard and Paul Baines: Skyways and Landmarks Revisited (1985) With
Brian Larkman: Earth Mysteries - An Exploratory Introduction (1985) Tony
Wedd: New age pioneer
(1986). The
Elements of Earth Mysteries
(1991). Secret
Places of the Goddess: Contacting the Earth Spirit
(1995). Earth
Mysteries (1995). Newland
Avenue School – 1896-1996 – Our Past, Present and Future
(1996). Mirrors
of Magic: Evoking the Spirit of the Dewponds
(1997). Magical
Guardians: Exploring the Spirit and Nature of Trees
(1998). Leylines
- A Beginner's Guide
(1999). Wiccan
Roots: Gerald Gardner and the Modern Witchcraft Revival
(2000). Gerald
Gardner and the Cauldron of Inspiration: An Investigation into the Sources of
Gardnerian Witchcraft
(2003).
Sources:
My grateful thanks to Philip Heselton for all his help in compiling this biography. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philip_Heselton http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Watkins http://www.twpt.com/heselton.htm http://www.tlh6976.fsnet.co.uk/ http://www.leyhunter.com/ Plus others too numerous to mention
Written
and compiled on the 05th June 2009 © George Knowles
Best wishes and Blessed Be
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