M Y T H IC

LON DON

MYTHIC LONDON
Ricardo Jose Arango Chasi / MA Service Design / London College of Communication / University of the Arts London
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“All we must decide is what to do

with the time that is given us.”
-J.R.R Tolkien's "The Fellowship of the Ring"
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I recently went to a concert at the iconic Electric Ballroom in Camden to watch an amazing line-up of Hot water music,
Samiam and Boysetsfire. Nathan Gray singer of the latter thanked the crowd by saying something that really stuck with
me. They said time is finite and it’s the most valuable thing we can gift. Everyone in that room had chosen to gift a
couple of hours of their finite time and to them that was worth more than anything in the world. This is how I feel towards
everyone who helped me throughout this process.

Thanks to Anushka, Eri, Yashuant and all of my amazing cohort who are the most wonderfully warm people you will ever
meet. Thanks to my awesome tutor Phillipa Rose and the rest of my truly punk rock teachers. Thanks to Malavika
Mahajan, Marion Lagedamon, Lucya Starza, John Rogers, Jeremy Rye, Sef Townsend, Ross Norman, Nigel Smith and above
all to Christina Oakley for opening up the doors of Treadwell’s to me. Finally, thanks to my parents, family, and of course
above all my beautiful wife, life partner, and love of my life Valeria who gives me strength every single day.

All my gratitude for all of your time — R

Acknowledgments 3 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

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fig.1

Guiding North
Statement of Intent
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“The city of London is by far and away the

most coded enclosure, once you start to look
at the buildings there's so much manifestation
of different Masonic ideologies and magics…”

- Ian Sinclair, 2020

Guiding North: Statement of Intent 5 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

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Intro.
Tourism is at the heart of London. The Council of the City of London states that the city has approximately 8000
residents, but it hosted more than 10 million annual tourists in 2019 (Campbell, 2022).

The vast majority of London's touristic activity is

limited to the central boroughs and iconic locations.
The Hop-On Hop-Off bus routes connect the most
popular museums and landmarks, but they only cover
7 out of the 32 London boroughs. Most of these
attractions can be found with a quick Google search.
However, if we look below this first layer of London,
Although hidden by time, folk, legends & mythology
continue to affect locals’ day-to-day experiences.
Their impact is not limited to historical
significance, it also feeds local culture.
This deeper layer could inspire a new market of hyperlocal

we can find almost two thousand years of myths, lore, tourism in overlooked boroughs. It could inspire local pubs,

and history that have literally been buried under our parks, tube stations, museums, and others to integrate

feet through time: a hidden London. Folklore & Myths as an attractor.

Guiding North: Statement of Intent 6 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

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Guiding North.
This document re-tells the story of the development of Mythic
London, a service that aims to help the curious find a path to
uncover their own hidden layer of London and become the next
generation of storytellers.

Guiding North: Statement of Intent 7 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

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The tourism that could be… fig.2

but never was

Project Vision
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Close your eyes,

now think about the word London. Do you picture a glass
skyscraper? An old castle? Everyone is different, but most
likely the majority of the tourists that visit London every
year don't picture an old Roman wall, Gog and Magog, the
Temple of the Knights Templar or a sacred well under a
local parish. They do not know there's a hidden London
under our feet ready to be discovered. But when you think
of these iconic London locations you also must ask yourself what role they play on local culture?

A study by the University of Westminster states that "hyper-local"

tourism continues to increase in importance after the COVID-19
pandemic (Pappalepore and Gravari-Barbas, 2022). It identified
increased retention of local money, prosumerism, repeated visitors,
and reduced dependence on foreign tourism.

Project Vision 9 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

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And how could hyperlocal London tourism benefit

from the occult? Take Salem for example, according
to ( O’Loughlin, 2022) Witchcraft Tourism brings the
infamous town over $140 million each year, and with
over two million Americans identifying themselves as
Wicca or Pagan (Yellin, 2021) the interest is bound
to keep growing. We can also validate our fascination
with the fantastic by examining the biggest drivers of
entertainment of pop culture today.
“In the past, the reason for superhero popularity
has been fairly clear: driven by external or internal
crises and social climates, the costumed
protectors have emerged to save our society.
Featuring entertaining storylines and boosted by
contemporary relevance, superheroes have soared
to notoriety as a coping mechanism during times
of hardship…”
-Smart (2016)

Project Vision 10 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

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Amazon Studios released Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power, a

series whose cost per episode was over $50 million. It is the most
expensive television series of all time (Cataldo, 2022).

So, is there a hidden potential in the old stories that lie in every
corner of London to become culture-defining storytelling in the
present? What if we could uncover this occult layer of London and
integrate its stories into our urban identity, experience, and local
economy?

What if we could uncover this

occult layer of London and
fig.2
with integrate them its stories
As a note of clarification for this report the term: occult tourism,
our urban identity, experience will refer to all storytelling associated with mythical, magical, pagan,

and local economy? or of another wise esoteric nature.

Project Vision 11 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

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fig.1

Chapter I — What and Who?

Discovering the hidden

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Rescuing the Hidden

I found myself eager to discover the potential of these hidden layers of London yet anxious and scared at
how fragile our collective memory can really be. Since this is a project about storytelling maybe sharing a
story might help paint a picture.

In 1952 (as the UK regained its standing after WW2), the remains of
what would become one of the most comprehensive examples of a
Roman Mithraic temple in all of Europe were revealed under a
bombing site. Due to a series of unfortunate decisions, the ruins of
the temple were relocated and remained at the mercy of the
elements for decades. Luckily for tourists, conditions for
Bloomberg’s new development stated that ruins would be re-
instated to the original site and protected. Additionally, the site
became a free multimedia experience that recreates a ritual for the
God Mithras. This story shows us just how vulnerable London’s
mythic legacy can be.

London Mithraeum, picture by It’s No Game, 2018

1.1 — Rescuing the Hidden 13 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

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A first question arises:

Be it witchcraft (made illegal since 1542 and legalized until
2008 (UK Parliament, 2008) or the construction of
Christian churches over sacred Pagan springs all around
What if ancient stories of myth
London (many of which to this day are not accessible by & lore were promoted within
the public (Hannon-Bland, 2021), the truth of the matter is
that these layers of history are slowly being forgotten by
our collective identity and our
London’s collective memory. Although Wicca and Paganism urban touristic experience and
appear to be two of the fastest-growing religions in Britain
according to (The Spectator,2004), to the everyday
what would a service for this
commuter and local tourist, these myths, legends, and look like?
folktales are hidden in plain sight and only visible to those
who know where to look.

1.1 — Rescuing the Hidden 14 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

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What has been done?

When we think of the Occult, mythological, and Esoteric within our mainstream pop culture a couple of examples
come to mind.

The Harry Potter and the Wizarding World franchise is a key
example. Although completely fictional and written by a
single author, it has managed to integrate borrowed
concepts of Pagan, occult, esoteric and mythical
storytelling into our collective consciousness. To some,
Kings Cross Station is just a stop on their way to work. To
others, it’s a pilgrimage site to discover the 9 3/4 platform
where Harry first embarks to Hogwarts.
To some, Bull’s Head Passage is a place where they buy new
glasses. To others, it might be the real-life location of the
Leaky Cauldron and the entrance to Diagon Alley
(Margaret, 2022). There are walking tours around the city
to discover hidden locations of the Wizarding World. This
may have reinvigorated the curiosity for the mystic arts for
an entire generation.

1.2 — What has been done? 15 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

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Consider Jack the Ripper, an infamous serial killer of the 1800s riveted
with myth. There are countless tourist walks, books, events, and even
merchandise that have fed a cult fascination with this character.

Both have effectively become a reason for many to visit and have
integrated occult storytelling into the mainstream urban experience and
layer within the city. So, if it has happened before what’s stopping
more and more to become part of our urban experience?

What if ancient stories of myth

& lore were promoted within fig.3

our collective identity and our

urban touristic experience and
what would a service for this
look like?

1.2 — What has been done? 16 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

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Hidden stories… So, In order to promote these stories where do we even find
them? Are there books, maps or even services that already
and where to find them make this connection?

Interview: John Rogers (see annex 1)

John Rogers is an author, artist, director, psychogeographer extraordinaire and author of This
Other London it was through his video “Secrets of the City with Ian Sinclair” that I first
became fascinated by the idea of integrating the hidden layers of London into our mainstream
urban experience. The aim of my interview with him (see appendix 1) was to help answer

“Is there a centralized source of the occult for London?”

“Is there a real interest for local walking tourism?”

1.3 — Hidden stories and where to find them Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022
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— insight 1

London’s occult stories

are scattered
and disconnected

1.3 — Hidden Stories and Where to Find Them 18 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022
MYTHO LO G ICA L
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The first thing I gathered from our conversation was

something I already suspected after carrying on some
extensive digging through Amazon.com, local libraries like
Waterstones, and the internet: There is no such thing as a
starting point or interconnected guide to the occult in London.

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

There are examples of compendiums like London Lore (1) by
Steve Roud, The Secret Lore of London by Nigel Pennick (2),
John Matthews, et al. and maps like Welcome To The Dark
Side: Occult London by Kate Hodges (3) to list a few. But 2
3
there’s no clear connecting tissue between these stories. Each
person must gather each of them from various books, maps,
and conversations. This is something that would only be
further reinforced by additional interviews and fieldwork.

There’s no such thing as a starting point or

interconnected guide to the occult in London. 1

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— insight 2

There’s a growing interest

on urban exploration
and hyperlocal tourism

1.3 — Hidden Stories and Where to Find Them 20 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
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A 5-minute search on Eventbrite will result in over 400 pages of listed

One of the ways COVID-19 affected our lives
walks in London alone. John’s trajectory backs this up, as his YouTube
was by limiting travel and the ability to
videos of walks across the not-so-well-known places of London have
explore new places. In the UK, people
hundreds of thousands of views. His channel has over sixty thousand
actively looked for experiences close to them
subscribers and his book This Other London: Adventures in the
as a way to break the routine and effects of

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

Overlooked City has hundreds of reviews on Amazon.com
social isolation. It is estimated that for the
summer of 2020, 39% of people walked
more than they did before the pandemic, and
“Go Jauntly, London-based creator of a mobile app
this has accelerated the adoption of
specialising in local and family-friendly walks, has seen
its membership rise by 80% to 63,000 since the start of
hyperlocal tourism in the form of casual
the outbreak. Co-founder Hana Sutch attributes the
walks as people have gotten to know more
increase to people’s desire to stay close to their own
and more about their parks and
neighbourhoods while getting some proper
neighborhoods (Alan Franks, 2020)
walks in.” (Alan Franks, The Guardian, 2020)

There’s a hunger for local experiences for

people to see their city through new eyes

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MYTHO LO G ICA L
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Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

“...A wonderful read. Who would have known that
among the ranks of suburban London there is so much
mystery and history. Paleolithic, Roman, Viking,
Druidic it is all there hidden among the serried rows
of houses and parks in London.
(Amazon.com Review for This Other London:
Adventures in the Overlooked City, 2020)

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— insight 3

There’s those who re-tell

and those who re-interpret

1.3 — Hidden Stories and Where to Find Them 23 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
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“you want it in its pure form, you don’t want it in somebody else’s book. I mean, you don’t want somebody
else’s narrative overlaid on top of it. I think London Lore is a really good place to start.” (Rogers, 2022)

There is a challenge with picking and An example of this is the difference between

choosing “which” stories. The stories of London Lore by Steve Roud which collects many
shared stories as they have been researched by

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

the Occult appear to be split into two
camps. There are retold folk stories the author and London’s Ley Lines Pathways of

that naturally change over time as they Enlightenment by Christopher Street which deals

pass from person to person, and there with magical and sacred sites and how they

are re-interpreted stories through the affect our everyday. Although there’s strong

gaze of a particular author with a evidence of the Occult flourishing during World

separate narrative overlaid on the story War (Alexa, 2018), writers at the time took to

(sometimes mixed with artistic “purifying” most new history books to only

interpretation, or spiritual belief). contain hard facts and exclude any lore, even if
culturally relevant according to John.

There’s a delicate storytelling spectrum between

uncovering and connecting the dots
fig.4

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MYTHO LO G ICA L
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Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

“...Where others detect esoteric patterns (Sinclair),
striations (Richardson) or hyper-subjectivity and
hyper-empiricism jumbled together (Papadimitriou),
John Rogers remorselessly extracts the everyday from
itself.” (Amazon.com Review for This Other London:
Adventures in the Overlooked City, 2015)

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Selecting the hidden…

Mythology or Folklore, same difference?

Interview: Marion Langemont (see annex 2)

Marion Lagedamont, is a service and interaction designer, a member of Supra
Systems Studio, and professor of the MA Service at the University of the Arts
London. Above all she specializes on creating occult and supernatural experiences
by integrating interactive and critical design. The aim of my interview with her (see
appendix 2) was to help answer:

“What is the difference between myth and folktale?”

“how could that affect a possible design solution?”

1.4 — Selecting the Hidden Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

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— insight 4

Folktales evolves through

people, myths grow
above them

1.4 — Selecting the Hidden 27 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

MYTHO LO G ICA L
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The word “folktale” is formed from “folk” which refers

to the people and “tale” to a story: stories of the
people. These stories are evolving and so who tells them
and how they are told is inseparable from the story
itself. They refer to daily living in a community. Myths
have roots in tradition, supernatural phenomena, and
“Folklore, we can never catch it. Finding
capsulated folklore is very difficult most of the
time, as its oral storytelling. So even when
people do write them down, they only write

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

legacy. They rarely evolve over time and refer to a down one version and that’s not going to be the
particular time. (Lagemont, 2022). end of it, it will change and evolve.”
This means three things for this service. First, it should (Lagemont, 2022)
include both myths and folktales because larger stories
can enrich our evolving community folklore. Second, it’s
the service’s responsibility to distinguish the two of
them for transparency and clarity. Third, stories need to
be caught before they disappear.

The service should be tools to catch

folklore as it develops

28
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— insight 5

To find a story, find a

storyteller. They are the
content and the medium

1.4 — Selecting the Hidden 29 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

MYTHO LO G ICA L
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But who catches them? Not everyone has the time to
walk around London, visit all the places, and read all the
books to then collect everything into a tour or a blog
and share it. As Marion told me during our interview,
it’s all about a small number of people who are very
passionate and active carrying the weight for everyone
else: Storytellers.
By framing storytelling as the currency in this service,
it is easier to understand their lifecycle. Receivers
become storytellers themselves and pay it forward by
crafting their own stories and inspiring others.
Myths and Folklore without Storytellers
is not storytelling
1.4 — Insight 2
“Folklore doesn’t exist in a vacuum, if
stories existed in a vacuum you know
who tells them and who shares them?…
It can be the writers of those books, it
Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022
can be someone who reads children’s
stories in a library, or it can be
professional storytellers…try and find
local, London storytellers, people from
different backgrounds who are
storytellers.” (Lagemont, 2022)
30
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
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a time... t
on h

up

er
Marion (and other interviewees) helped me realize that my service

ew
Once

as a river, and in the riv...

could not be about creating a centralized way of uncovering occult
information by just exposing it to interested users. Information is not
storytelling, so you need storytellers, people who have the time and
interest to curate information, to find a narrative and craft a telling.

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

To create a service that reveals occult layers of London we need
storytellers to collect and transform cold information into compelling
stories that speak to our urban experience. Rather than finding more
stories to tell, I should find more storytellers to aid in their storytelling.
So now the question is: Who are these storytellers, and how can I help
them?

“The medium is the message”- (McLuhan, Marshall )

Storytellers transform myths and folklore fig.6

into stories

31
MYTHO LO G ICA L
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Myth and Folklore can co-habit the same

service as long as they’re differentiated

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

Folklore is popular and evolves rapidly and must be
caught quickly, myths are larger than life and tend
to be preserved

Storytellers transform curiosities to stories

and imbuing them with meaning

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Re-telling the hidden…

Finding the storyteller

Interview: Ross Norman (see annex 3)

Ross Norman, a tour guide entrepreneur with more than a decade of experience in
London, and Portugal running tours like The Ancient Goddesses of London, and
Dolmen Mystery Mountain Bike Tour with his firm Out of The Norm Tours .
I wanted to answer the questions

“What are the path and motivations to becoming a storyteller?”

“What are some of their obstacles and limitations?”

1.5 — Re-telling the Hidden Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

fig.1
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— insight 6

Storytelling as a way
to make sense of yourself
and the world around you

1.5 — Re-telling the Hidden 34 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

MYTHO LO G ICA L
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Ross’s path began with a personal

experience that had nothing to do with
an interest in folklore or myths. After
escaping a cult, he felt a need to keep
venerating the divine feminine. This led

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

him to discover ancient sacred locations
that played tribute to the old pagan fig.7
Goddesses of London. As more and
more friends asked him to take them on
“I realized that people were connecting to the
his walks, what began as a personal
land through the history and through the acts
journey became his day-to-day.
and rituals that they were doing as we went
around.” (Ross, 2022)

Storytelling allows listeners to charge of

personal meaning the hidden layers of London

35
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Design process-
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Hitting my own end of the rabbit hole

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

fig.42

because of the hidden yet complex community, i had to break the traditional double diamond (Design council, 2019) and
establish a middle step, a “diamond within the diamonds”. this model describes better how I worked in my project on hybrid
modes. discovering new variables while developing others, or defining what the service should do while developing it on the fly. 36
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— insight 7

Storytelling rituals
as a cathartic experience

1.5 — Re-telling the Hidden 37 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

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“London is such a powerful place, people were often are able to cry or let something go through
those small rituals that we were doing.”- (Norman, 2022)
Ross and others highlighted the deep emotional
reaction people had towards these walks and rituals
such as placing flowers while saying a pagan prayer
on the river Thames.
Jeremy Rye (storyteller and interviewee featured
later in this report) also shares this experience and
creates his own tours with the aim to enable story
listeners to walk themselves and continue sharing
these journeys.
There’s a potential for occult storytelling to
impact people beyond just curiosity
1.5 — Insight 7
Before talking to Ross and Jeremy I did not consider occult
storytelling to impact people beyond their own curiosity.
Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022
Sef (another storyteller and interviewee) has seen cases
where storytelling has been for suicide prevention.
“For me the real gift was to help people release
stuff that’s they’re holding on to, so through the
old stories, it kind of gently unties people that are
really bound up and wound up.” (Norman,2022)
fig.4
38
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
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fig.8

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

“...From giants to princesses and gods to warriors,
this tour was a fairytale bike ride through the history
of ancient points on this beautiful land. Ross has a
wonderful energy and enthusiasm he transmits
through the stories he tells on the tour. (Madame,D,
2021)

39
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— insight 8

Storytelling as a craft
and a calling

1.5 — Re-telling the Hidden 40 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

MYTHO LO G ICA L
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This might seem like an obvious insight.

Nevertheless, storytelling (just like standup “Spark is Britain’s first true storytelling
comedy or public speaking) is a craft, and
club, with regular live events across the UK.
some people like Sef Townsend do it for a
living.
We welcome all-comers. Sit back and listen,

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

or sign up on the night to tell your own
Spark is a storytelling community in London
and one of the reasons Ross felt the
story!”
confidence to delve into creating his own - (Spark website, 2015)
walks. I attended a Spark session at Catford
Mews in Lewisham and after listening to
several storytellers and doing it myself I took
several findings from it.

Storytelling can inspire others to scout, gather and craft their own stories.
Connecting curiosity for the hidden with meaning for the internal

41
MYTHO LO G ICA L
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Storytellers balance a personal meaning

with curiosity value

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

Storytellers incentivize people finding their
own meaning

Storytellers don’t just transmit information, they

curate the journey and delivery to create a story

42
MYTHO LO G ICA L
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Who?

Damien has found his calling

sharing occult stories and
mentoring others to collect

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

and share their own.

In contrast to the Story-

guardian, he’s not focused
on growing the community
or preserving lore, but
rather impacts people’s
lives by revealing them.
Although he would like to
reach a bigger and steady
audience he needs a long
time to establish
partnerships.

fig.9 43
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
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— insight 9

The challenge of going

from word of mouth
to organic growth
A challenge that appeared again and again, was ensuring a steady stream of demand for
occult walks. Most storytellers I spoke to began as a hobby and later managed to create a
small following or connection with a bookshop that can promote their events. Is there a
way to tell these occult stories in a contemporary way that feels integrated to our day to
day media and not as a relic of the past?

1.6 — Re-telling the Hidden 44 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

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Impacting through the hidden…

Awakening the curious muggle

Interview: Sef Townsend (see annex 4)

Sef Townsend is a full time storyteller that throughout his career has specialized in
working with immigrant and refugee communities in over 5 continents to preserve and re-
tell their own stories. He frequently conducts walks and talks for various London Councils
and has presented his own radio programs on the BBC, Radio Four and Spectrum. I aimed
to have a deeper understanding of how occult storytelling can affect day to day people:

“How can occult storytelling adapt to the needs of different users”

“What social role can storytelling play in the community?”

fig.8
1.6 — Awakening the curious Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022
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— insight 10

Storytelling
as a social policy

1.6 — Awakening the Curious 46 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

MYTHO LO G ICA L
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Storytelling has the power to be used as a tool for social good. “At the heart of Everyday Magic
Sef has been hired and invited by Councils, NGOs and community is storytelling, complemented
organizations to do this. As a first example, for many years Sef with other art forms. Artists work
had conducted storytelling workshops with refugee families. By
closely with teachers and schools

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

telling them stories, while also giving them a space to share their
to devise programmes which
own traditional stories, he believes these communities can find a
way of “speaking the unspeakable” (Townsend, 2022). develop children’s imagination
and creativity…We tune into class
Consider also “Everyday Magic”, a group where Sef participates
and brings together storytellers with the aim of awakening the
themes and research traditional
curiosity of young children, while teaching them about heritage, stories, poetry and rhymes with
legends and traditions. which to enrich the curriculum.
(Everydaymagic.org.uk)

Harnessing the power of stories to speak the

unspeakable and promote social change

47
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
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fig.10

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

“...we were deeply moved by the painful
conversations stimulated by the stories at times, this
was clearly a reflection of the huge trust and respect
that had developed amongst the group..”
(Manager, 'Salusbury-World' Refugee Centre,
London)

48
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

— insight 11

Making the occult

inclusive

1.6 — Re-discovering the Hidden 49 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 1.6 — Insight 11

I had heard from many story tellers and listeners that

occult storytelling posed a particular challenge because
most source material was written in a very formal and “I’ve struggled with it because I’ve
extensive way. This created a steep learning curve and come from quite a non magical or
quick loss of interest for many participants. What if
spiritual background, so I always find
there was a larger variety of source materials for all
it important to try and speak in a

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

levels of knowledge? This can be done.
grounded way about things rather
Sef coauthored books that address this such as
than “it’s all just magic”, you
London’s River Tales for Children (2022) (1). Sef,
Belinda Evans, and Anne Johnson retell occult history
know?” (Ross, 2022)
and folktales in a way that is inclusive of children’s
needs. They prove that occult storytelling is not a
format or style but rather a type of content that can
adapt to whichever audience and tell its story.

Storytelling is critical in helping Occult lore

1
adapt to each changing times and audiences

50
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

— insight 12

Occult storytelling
as a way of defying
colonialism
For most tourists, the perception of London history and landmarks is seen through an imperialistic
lens. According to (Hirwani, 2022) just in 2021 the Royal family brought close to £2.5 billion to the
British economy in the form of tourism. However, most occult storytellers and listeners feel that
mythological, esoteric and folktale stories can offer an alternative view of London and an opportunity
to de-colonize the city’s identity. Sef has worked with Cambodian, Israeli, Russian and more London
communities to preserve their heritage through storytelling.

1.6 — Awakening the Curious 51 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

— insight 13

The challenge of keeping

track of the community

1.6 — Awakening the Curious 52 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 1.6 — Insight 13

Because of the disjointed nature of the occult On the other hand, Sef has continuously been involved in
community and the lack of a system-wide vision, all levels of talks, walks and publishing in London for years.
one must be constantly involved to not lose track He has been able to not only have a steady flow of walks
of it. and projects, but also train participants to do the same.

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

This was the case with Ross as he left London
because of COVID-19 restrictions and adapted to
new endeavors. Once he came back, he found that
the community had continued evolving and that he
had lost track of it. He needed to rebuild his
network and his walking tour consumer base.
For story listeners a similar phenomenon occurs. As there
is no clear point of entry to the community, nor a place to
be continuously up to date to the happenings and
opportunities within the occult community. This leads me
to my next insight.

The occult community dangerously depends on the constant activity a web of

members to retain all of it’s knowledge and connections. If a link in the chain
breaks, entire networks can become disconnected

53
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

— insight 14

The listener completes

the story
This was widely supported by all participants of my research: Storytelling is not a one
directional experience as the listener fills in the gaps of meaning with their own context
and imagination. Most storytellers I interviewed spoke of waking up a “calling” within
listeners and helping them find their take within the story (from just having a new
connection to their city or discovering a way to explore their spirituality).

1.6 — Awakening the Curious 54 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

MYTHO LO G ICA L
Network map —
LON D ON
evidence wall of the storytelling dependencies

Who?

Our first user “John”, is the

starting state of anyone

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

starting a journey in the
occult, but also the final,
for some.

After encountering an
occult story he wants to
know more. However
doesn’t know where to look
or who to ask. He’s reads
and goes to events, but
unless it becomes a
passion, he won’t spend
to much time on it.

John represents most users

who interact with the
Occult fig.11 55
MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 1.5 — Insight 6

Occult storytelling brings personal and social change as it helps

us make sense and even defy our present, through our past

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

Traditionally occult resources are not written to be
inclusive of wide audiences. Storytellers have shown this
can be done

The web of storytellers is always changing and has no

centralized access point, so if one can quickly lose track of
the community by not keeping up to date

56
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

Incorporating the hidden…

Finding the community explorer

Interview: Jeremy Rye (see annex 5)

Landscape architect, philosopher, historian and storyteller who conducts
interactive walks where attendants peel the occult layers of the city to make
their everyday commute into a pilgrimage of sovereignty and learn to do it
themselves. I aimed to understand:

“What relevance does occult storytelling have in people’s day to day”

“How can we teach them to have the tools to find their own stories and meaning?”

fig.9
1.7 — Incorporating the hidden Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

— insight 15

The stigma of the occult

and the closet

1.7 — Incorporated the hidden 58 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 1.6 — Insight 12

In the beginning of my research, I contacted and emailed several institutions like the British Heritage Society,
British Museum and the London Topographical Society enquiring if they had information of London Myths or
Folklore. I never received a response.

According to Jeremy and more interviewees this might have to These discussions have migrated from history

do with stigma and people fear being discredited. This was to a community-generated social media

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

confirmed by personnel at Treadwell’s, conversations with environment. In Facebook groups like The

occult practitioner Lucya Starza from the Bad Witch’s Blog, Secret Lines of London and OCCULT WALKS

field research interviews at Watkins books, and co-design of LONDON led by Nigel Smith, where

workshop insights. Most participants spoke of fearing that their hundreds of members share stories and

involvement with the esoteric or occult would affect their continue to feed each other with stories,

employment, leading them to living double lives. Christina walks and events of the occult.

Oakley even speaks of those who are in the esoteric “closet”

and those who are not (Oakley, 2022)

Because of stigma associated with some themes, people who explore the
occult community are sometimes forced to stay closeted, and heritage
foundations who could preserve stories remain avoidant

59
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

— insight 16

Stories for curiosity

Stories for transformation
From multiple interviews, I have identifies two dominating ways in which users interact
with the occult. The first one is as something that is curious, reveals the unknown and
changes the way the city is seen. The second (what Jeremy’s walks are focused on)
occult storytelling for transformation. Jeremy takes users through a route used centuries
ago for the Ruler of England to symbolically open up and obtain their own sovereignty.
(Jeremy Rye, 2022)

1.7 — Incorporated the hidden 60 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

— insight 18

Follow a story yourself

and discover your own
One of the main points made by participants during the workshop I conducted at
Treadwell’s and during prototype testing outdoors. Users want experiences of finding pieces
of a story around the city and going along them like a self guised touristic route. Much like
Jeremy (Jeremy Rye,2021), they also want collect and connect the stories to perform their
own pilgrimage of rituals, and later teach others.

1.7 — Incorporated the hidden 61 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

— insight 19

Storytelling makes
visible the invisible
During a walk with Story teller Lucya Starza I asked her what she thought was the biggest
obstacle to promoting the occult of London. She said that the fact is most remnants of Druid,
Pagan and Roman times are literally buried under the city, invisible to us (Lucya, Starza 2022).
Same as with Jeremy’s or Ross’s work, it’s storytelling to make the invisible, visible.

1.7 — Incorporated the hidden 62 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

— insight 20

History remains
Storytelling disappears
For many cultures storytelling has served to preserve culture and history through
generations. Such is the case of the Navajo of Utah that depend on storytelling to inherit
their past. However, there’s a shrinking interest of young tribe-members to listen, and
thus many stories are being forgotten (Long, 2021). If occult storytelling is not passed
down and the curious don’t become storytellers, then the stories disappear.

1.7 — Incorporated the hidden 63 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON User persona— the community explorer and the wellbeing wonderer

Who?

Rose is the evolution of

John. She’s not only curious
but actively interacting with

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

events, workshops and
members of the occult
community.

Her main frustration is not

being aware or having
access to interact with all
the possibilities occult
London could offer. She’s
the second largest group of
users.

fig.12 64
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

Guarding the hidden…

Finding the Story-guardian

Interview: Christina Oakley (see annex 6)

Landscape architect, philosopher, historian and storyteller who conducts
interactive walks where attendants peel the occult layers of the city to make
their everyday commute into a pilgrimage of sovereignty and learn to do it
themselves. I aimed to understand:

“What relevance does occult storytelling have in people’s day to day”

“How can we teach them to have the tools to find their own stories and meaning?”

fig.42
1.8 — Guarding the hidden Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

— insight 23

Bookshops
community hubs
and places of evolution
According to Geraldine Beskin, owner of Atlantis Bookshop in London, because
witchcraft was illegal until 1951, all esoteric or occult shops had to move their rituals
to underground rooms where rituals could be done safely (Beskin, 2022). Speaking
with Christina, she considers this has made the main purpose of an esoteric bookshops
to be community hub (Oakley Harrington, 2022).

1.8 — Guarding the hidden 66 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

— insight 24

The Open doors

and Gatekeepers
of the community
As several interviewees confirmed, a common first step into the occult is stumbling upon or
searching for an esoteric bookshop and being recommended next steps by staff. However there’s
also the gatekeeper. The gatekeeper decide in which situations they must not divulge information of
groups, tours or recommendations to certain individuals if they have not earned their trust.
Essentially filtering new members from detractors (Oakley Harrington, 2019) (Arango Chasi, 2022)

1.8 — Guarding the hidden 67 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

— insight 25

There’s no integrated
visualization of the
occult layer of London
This insight arrises again and again in different forms, the bottom line is that non of my
interviewees (expert or beginner) was able to point to a platform that gathered a live view of all the
layers occult London. Maps like “Welcome to the dark side: Occult London” (Hodger, 2019) shows
locations but is not updated at the speed in which folklore appears and disappears. Platforms like
eventbrite have poor filtering options by subject and Bookshops currently can’t visualize all that is
happening in social media in real time.

1.8 — Guarding the hidden 68 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 1.8 User persona— the modern pagan and story guardian

Who?

Carol’s life and Occult

London are inseparable.
She might own an esoteric

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

shop, Have a huge library in
her house or give Tarot
readings or conduct Ley
Lines workshops.

She wants more Londoners

to know and appreciate the
occult. However, she also
doesn’t want to reveal the
hidden community to
people who might have bad
intentions

fig.14 69
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
M YTHOLOGICA L
LON D ON
LONDON

fig.16

The project will focus only on John, Rose, Carol and Damien and has discarded the rest, as they are outside the focus of my service.

1.8 User personas— How do they evolve? 70 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022
 M Y T HI C
LON DO N

fig.8
Chapter II — When?

Mapping the Hidden

 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

When I first began the project

my research showed that my focus
should be in creating a link
between the tourist and historical
institutions, thinking they would be
interested in preserving and
spreading knowledge and heritage

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

in as many people as possible

fig.18

2.1 — Stakeholder map: phase 1 72

 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

I then realized that these

institutions did not hold an
interest or influence over tourists.
Furthermore, if you removed them
from the equation they did not
affect the core relationships

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

fig.19

2.1 — Stakeholder map: phase 2 73

 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

The deeper I went in the research

the more I realized that if we
viewed stories as the coin of trade
within the community, and
whoever hold access to them as
the central meeting point of value.

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

fig.20

2.1 — Stakeholder map: phase 3 74

 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

Thus, as most users and actors had

to pass through bookshops to access
stories and event, they became this
point of value. Confirming Christina’s
and other interviewees observation
that they functioned as community
hubs, starting points into the occult

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

and guardians of information.

fig.22

2.1 — Stakeholder map: phase 4 75

 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

Finally, by overlapping the

relationship of stakeholders to
“stories” and between them,
I came to several conclusions:

A. Bookshops play a critical role as a gatherer

of knowledge and guardian of community. If

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

they disappear the community would go with
them, and they don’t have the resources or
D.
services to reach more curious muggles

B. Stories are at the trading token of the

community, but their access depends on
participation and awareness with
bookshops or community members

C. The occult community cannot speak as

one to build bridges with commercial
partners that might help them grow and
preserve

There’s a critical need of economically

D. oriented stakeholders to help bring occult

storytelling front stage and inclusive

fig.23

2.1 — Stakeholder map: phase 5 76

M Y THOLOG ICA L
LO N D O N

Design challenge:

How might we integrate occult storytelling to

our urban experience, so that locals can
preserve and reveal the hidden layers
of London?

fig.24

User persona— the story-guardian 77 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 2.2 Rabbit hole Diagram – All routes
fig.25

—Rabbit Hole Diagram

This diagram maps the possible choices a user
makes as they go down the curiosity rabbit hole
to begin a journey in occult themes in London.

Its purpose is to illustrate the archetypal

choices for each user persona, determine the

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

most likely points experience abandonment, and
inform the final service during ideation.

78
 2.2 Rabbit hole Diagram – Walker-by curious
MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

fig.26

—Walker-by curious
This diagram represents the interaction of curious muggles who
happens to search or stumble upon an esoteric bookshop, but limit
their interaction to this hub.

KEY INSIGHTS…

1- progression depends on the openness of the Story

Guardian

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

2- the hole ends when there’s no recommended tours aligned to
the curious user’s interests

3- the hole ends when bibliographical research is required

79
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 2.2 Rabbit hole Diagram – Friend recommendation curious
fig.27

—Friend recommendation curious

This diagram represents the interaction of curious muggles who has
occult interests and is recommended an esoteric shop by a friend.
They decide to visit it online and want to have a tour

KEY INSIGHTS…

1- progression depends on the filtering and UX/UI quality

of the shop’s website

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

2- the hole ends when there’s no recommended tours aligned to
the curious user’s interests

3- the hole ends if friend does not get involved in experience

80
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 2.2 Rabbit hole Diagram – Weekend explorer
fig.28

—Weekend Explorer
This diagram represents the interaction of a Community Explorer
before fully committing to being part of the community. This user
enjoys casual visiting of the bookshop and participating on weekend
tours. However the Occult is not yet a day to day thing.

KEY INSIGHTS…
1- progression depends on the availability and offer of events,
to create a routine

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

2- the hole ends when the storyteller or story guardian do
not offer additional paths of progression

3- this rabbit hole places an entasis on in person experiences rather

accumulation of individual reading and studying

81
 2.2 Rabbit hole Diagram – Bookworm Community Explorer
MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

fig.29

— Bookworm Community Explorer

This diagram represents the interaction of community explorers who
are beginning to be a source of knowledge of the lore and community.
Their interest lies in feeding their curiosity and connecting with others

KEY INSIGHTS…

1- these user is very inquisitive and sees the occult as a

long term interest, specially through media

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

2- the hole ends when there are no spaces to continue exploring
content with others

3- the hole ends when they are denied access to deeper levels
of involvement

82
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON Rabbit hole Diagram – Potential urban storyteller
fig.30

—Potential Urban Storyteller

This diagram represents the interaction of a Community Explorer who
is being mentored, and is passionate to participates in as many
experiences as possible

KEY INSIGHTS…

1- progression depends on securing mentorship and

opportunities to feed curiosity

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

2- the hole behaves cyclically, the user is constantly feeding with
new information and sharing with a bigger and bigger network

3- the user feeds back the community but might be disconnected

from many of them

83
MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 2.2 Insight — Disengagement curve

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

The more time, improvisation and involvement users are
required to uncover the occult , the quicker curiosity faded

84
MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 2.2 — In person experience

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

Users who don’t find in person opportunities to engage,
are less likely to transition from interest to community
85
MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 2.2 — Mentorship lines

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

fig.31

For users to naturally transition to storytellers they

need to be constantly fed by mentorship and events
86
 2.2 Journey map — Curious Muggle

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022 87

 M Y T HI C
LON DO N

fig.9
Chapter III — How?

Supporting the Hidden

MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 3.1 — Service Development

—Service vision

A service that will…

Help local curious discover stories and storytellers in their day to day urban
context and lives

Facilitate their access to deeper knowledge, mentorship and experiences

Promote their evolution into local story-tellers and story- guardians

Facilitate the creation and propagation of their own curated content

89 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

 3.1 — Service Concept:
Mythic London

M Y THI C
LO N D O N

Mythic London is a omni channel service that aims to reveal, celebrate

and integrate the occult layer into our day to day urban experience.
How? By making the occult layer of London more visible, accesible
and inter connected.

—To everyday Curious Londoner’s

it’s a interactive entry point to occult stories of London

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

—To Community Explorers
it’s a visualizer of the hidden occult layer of London, where they can explore more

–To Storytellers
it’s a way to promote their experiences and connect with new community members

—To Story-guardians
it’s a way to grow the community, create partnerships with other guardians and storytellers,
and help preserve the occult while bringing it to the 21st century

90
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

CO-DESIGN,
USER & PROTOTYPE
TESTING WORKSHOP

Based on the Desktop Walkthrough

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

Methodology (Stickdorn, 2018) I
wanted to story hunting portion of
the service with storytellers.

Scenario: Curious Muggle hunting to

unlock stories by growing a
relationship with story guardians.

1. Storyteller gives walk to Curious

2. Curious visits story-hub
3. Story-guardian gatekeeper or
gives key to Curious
4. Curious find another walk / story
to unlock
5. Unlocks walk with key
6. attends new walk
fig.32
7. cycle re-starts
3.2— Workshop steps 91
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 3.2— Workshop materials

1 2
—Test Tool kit
1. User persona figures

2. Treadwell’s Floor Plan

3. User persona cards

4. Street tour maps

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

5. ML story hunt app

mockup

3 4

fig.33

Workshop materials after feedback and annotations 92

 MYTHO LO G ICA L 3.1— Treadwell’s Workshop with Storytellers
and Story-Guardians
LON D ON

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

fig.34 L to R: Nigel Smith (Occult walks of London) Jeremy Rye (Dragon Walks) , Sef Townsend (Author, Storyteller) ,
Lucya Starza (Bad Witch’s Blog), Christiana Oakley Harrington (Owner Treadwell’s)
93
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 3.1— Treadwell’s Workshop: Mythological London
Prototype testing

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

fig.35

Workshop materials after feedback and annotations 94

MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON Story-Guardian needs 3.2— Workshop feed-back

“Story-guardians not “I don’t know if the

story keepers, we people who are
don’t hoard stories competitive of
we gate keep the collecting stories, are
community” the kind of people we
want ”

“People won’t
“We don’t want people want a ping when
to be locked out of commuting”
finding stories,
we want them to spread
them” “People have short
attention span, they
“I would love to pass have to be punchy “Plaques like the blue ones all
along the stories I have but invite to know around London but for
found ” more” Occult…”

“Information should be
“It works well to
Storyteller conversational, not Curious
take stories out of books excluding people but
needs and books and make
needs
also esoteric”
fig.36 them easily accesible”

95 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 3.2— Workshop key insights

Stories or experiences shouldn’t be locked from anyone. Community

Gatekeeping is done by face to face interactions with Story-Guardians

Gamifying story-unlocking risks attracting Curious users who don’t have

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

the best interests of the community in mind

A story-finding service works great for beginner curious users who don’t
have the time to research stories or find hubs to get recommendations

Finding stories should happen offline and online, be as casual as taking a

walk, and accesible with short and punchy content but the ability to know
more

The service should help community groups connect and story tellers
mentor the curious

96
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 3.3 Prototype - Mythic London Occult Plaques

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

fig.37

STORY PLAQUES: PROTOTYPING

To integrate occult stories into our everyday life I took a page
from the Heritage Foundation Blue plaques located all over
London. The plaques aimed to legitimize the heritage of these fig.38 Rendering of possible production version

stories and facilitate curious people stumbling upon them.

97
MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON 3.3 Prototype - How it works?

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

1

fig.40

2
1. Curious identifies story plaque
2. If interested scans code to complete story
3. Opens app (Soundcloud for testing) and Listens to 1min story
98
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON Field testing - Mythic London Occult Plaques

To test it out I installed

the paper plaque in a
high transit location of
the Southbank. Same as
the Heritage Foundation
plaques, this is the
location where the

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

Queen Rat - one of the
folktales tested - would
have had been rumored
to occur.

I observed and asked

passersby to interact
and give feedback on the
plaque and mini narrated
audio story.

fig.39

99
MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON Application — Teaser poster

MYTHIC MYTHIC
LONDON
LONDON

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

UNCOVER WHAT’S
THE THE NAME
HIDDEN OF THE TWO
LAYERS GIANTS
OF LONDON OF LONDON?
UNCOVER MORE AT WWW. MYTHICLONDON.COM UNCOVER MORE AT WWW. MYTHICLONDON.COM

100
MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON
Relevance 3.3— Prototype feed-back

“I want to find
“I don’t know if the
the next part of the story”
people who are
“I didn’t know that London competitive of
had these strange stories. I collecting stories,
related it to the Monarchy or are the kind of
glass buildings”
“Guided tours can be
“It’s easy to use,
expensive in London, this
you can very
could be a self guided one”
quickly know
more on the go”
“Great when you want
to see London
“I would like to follow “It should draw much
differently” more attention”
a path of story plaques,
“Ominous tone matches
like a self-guided tour”
the content”
“There should be a
fact check or link to
fig.41 external info” “The plaque should have an image
“Trail of discovery” to draw your attention, it looks a
“Treasure Hunt” bit commercial”

Content “I like how short and juicy “QR code lets you jump Format
the stories are… you get the right in”
basics of what happened and
options to know more”

101 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

 3.3— Prototype key insights
MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

There could be routes of Story Plaques for extended stories

and function as a mini routes of local tourism.

Story plaques in their minimum viable state offer a seed or “Oh…

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

interesting” moment that if nothing else, visualizes the occult

Although the Story Plaques should be distinctive to pop out in the city,
they should also remain loyal to their occult and mysterious nature

The plaques should serves as a short, clear and juicy teaser complimented
by the online audio story as a complete arch.

Story Plaques should be modular and offer a story to all different levels
of knowledge for different combinations of time and interest.

102
 MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON

fig.42

Value Mapping — how does it benefit users? 103 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022
MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON User persona— the story-guardian

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

fig.42
104
Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022
MYTHO LO G ICA L
LON D ON Business Model Canvas

Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

106
Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022 107 How does the Service work? M Y TH O LO G I CA L
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Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022 108 How does the Service work? M Y TH O LO G I CA L
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fig.42

Chapter V — So?

Conclusion & Next steps

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+
Next steps.
ML has the potential of becoming many things but a collective brand makes the
most sense.

1- a brand that represents and negotiates for a collective of storytellers who create content and story-hubs who host
and preserve it giving the community muscle of negotiations

2- It could become a foundation. Similar to PRODUCT RED promoting the preservation of occult stories ad
storytelling in London

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Conclusion.
In a nutshell, working on Mythic London has been bot work of passion but also a stunning revelation of the
centuries of layers of hidden knowledge that could just fall off our finger tips if we’re not careful.

I truly believe that much like DC, Marvel stories and Middle Earth have become some of the most culturally
significant hallmarks of our time, occult stories have the potential for the same. I also hope someone might
continue this research into how to integrate the occult into our everyday lives.

Next steps? 111 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

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fig.43

Chapter V — From?

Bibliographies & Annex

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Rogers, J. (2018). THIS OTHER LONDON : adventures in the
overlooked city. 1st ed. United Kingdom: HarperCollins.
Sinclair, I. and Catling, B. (2012). Lud heat : a book of the
dead hamlets - May 1974 to April 1975. Cheltenham: Skylight.
Arango Chasi, R. (2022) ‘finding a calling’. Interview
with Ross Norman. Interviewed by Ricardo Arango
Chasi /Medium.com, 15 August. Available at https://
medium.com/@rarango92/post-7-finding-a-
calling-1032654b5d73 (Accessed: 16 November 2022).
Yellin, D. (n.d.). ‘We’re in the middle of a witch moment’:
Hip witchcraft is on the rise in the US. [online] USA
TODAY. Available at: https://eu.usatoday.com/story/news/
nation/2021/10/28/celtic-festival-samhain-2021-
celebration-wicca-witches/6182226001/ [Accessed 16
Nov. 2022].

Matthews, J. and Potter, C. (1990). The Aquarian guide to
legendary London. Wellingborough: The Aquarian Press, Cop.
Winn, C. and Osawa, M. (2007). I never knew that about
London. St Helens? Ted Smart.
Arango Chasi, R. (2022) ‘finding a calling’. Interview
Cataldo, A. (2022). 10 Most Expensive TV Series Ever
with Ross Norman. Interviewed by Ricardo Arango
Made. [online] Collider. Available at: https://collider.com/
Chasi /Medium.com, 15 August. Available at https://
most-expensive-tv-series-ever-made/ [Accessed 16 Nov.
medium.com/@rarango92/post-7-finding-a-
2022].
calling-1032654b5d73 (Accessed: 16 November 2022).

America Magazine. (2022). In Salem, the witch trials are

Roud, S. (2010). London lore - the legends and traditions of
the worlds most vibrant city. Arrow Books Ltd.
Pennick, N., Matthews, J. and Wise, C. (2016). The secret
lore of London. London: Coronet.
Stickdorn, M. (2018). This is service design doing, applying
service design thinking in the real world: a practitioners’
handbook. Sebastopol Oreilly & Associates Inc.
Arango Chasi, R. (2022) ‘follow the rivers’. Interview with John
Rogers. Interviewed by Ricardo Arango Chasi /Medium.com, 13
July. Available at: https://medium.com/@rarango92/post-5-
following-the rivers-12690f40dde5 (Accessed: 16 November
2022).
gone—but the tourists aren’t. Here’s how a local Catholic
Arango Chasi, R. (2022) ‘crown & commerce’.
priest welcomes them. [online] Available at: https://
Interview with Jeremy Rye. Interviewed by Ricardo
www.americamagazine.org/faith/2022/10/31/salem-witch-
Arango Chasi /Medium.com, 26 August. Available at
trials-catholic-244062 [Accessed 16 Nov. 2022].
https://medium.com/@rarango92/post-8-crown-
commerce-76f35d17fdde (Accessed: 16 November
Archaeology, C. (2018). London Mithraeum: reimagining
2022).
the famous Roman temple | The Past. [online] the-
past.com. Available at: https://the-past.com/feature/london-
Arango Chasi, R. (2022) ‘story-guardians & the occult
mithraeum-reimagining-the-famous-roman-temple/
community’. Interview with Christina Oakley Harrington.
[Accessed 16 Nov. 2022].
Interviewed by Ricardo Arango Chasi /Medium.com, 21
October. Available at https://medium.com/@rarango92/
Harris, C. (2021). Saints, Sacred Springs and Holy Wells.
post-9-story-guardians-the-occult-
[online] TEP - The Environment Partnership. Available at:
community-6918859d176b (Accessed: 16 November
https://www.tep.uk.com/saints-sacred-springs-and-holy-
2022).
wells/ [Accessed 16 Nov. 2022].

Bibliographies 113 Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022

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Harris, C. (2021). Saints, Sacred Springs and Holy Wells.
[online] TEP - The Environment Partnership. Available at:
https://www.tep.uk.com/saints-sacred-springs-and-holy-
wells/ [Accessed 16 Nov. 2022].
UK Parliament (2019). Witchcraft. [online] UK
Parliament. Available at: https://www.parliament.uk/
about/living-heritage/transformingsociety/private-lives/
religion/overview/witchcraft/.
Spectator, T. (2004). We are all pagans now. [online] The
Spectator. Available at: https://www.spectator.co.uk/
article/we-are-all-pagans-now/ [Accessed 16 Nov. 2022].
www.yorkshirepost.co.uk. (n.d.). It’s a moot point, but
Paganism may be the fastest growing religion in Britain.
[online] Available at: https://www.yorkshirepost.co.uk/
news/its-moot-point-paganism-may-be-fastest-growing-
religion-britain-1853590.
Evening Standard. (2012). London Lore: The Legends
and Traditions of the World’s Most Vibrant. [online]
Available at: https://www.standard.co.uk/hp/front/
london-lore-the-legends-and-traditions-of-the-world-s-
most-vibrant-city-by-steve-roud-6921589.html
[Accessed 16 Nov. 2022].
Bibliographies
Kirk, A. (2020). Over 80 Languages and More to Come:
‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone’ Translated into
Yiddish. [online] MuggleNet. Available at: https://
www.mugglenet.com/2020/02/over-80-languages-and-more-
to-come-harry-potter-and-the-philosophers-stone-translated-
into-yiddish/
#:~:text=The%20Harry%20Potter%20books%20are
[Accessed 16 Nov. 2022].
https://freetoursbyfoot.com/. (n.d.). How to Find the Real
Diagon Alley in London | Free Tours by Foot. [online]
Available at: https://freetoursbyfoot.com/diagon-alley-
london/ [Accessed 16 Nov. 2022].
Holzwarth, L. (2018). 10 Crazy Examples of Fake News
in American History. [online] History Collection.
Available at: https://historycollection.com/10-crazy-
examples-fake-news-american-history/5/ [Accessed 16
Nov. 2022].
the Guardian. (2020). How 2020 became the year of the
walker. [online] Available at: https://
www.theguardian.com/travel/2020/dec/18/how-2020-
became-the-year-of-the-walker.
114
Time Out London. (n.d.). Meet London’s next gen
witches. [online] Available at: https://
www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/meet-
londons-next-gen-witches [Accessed 16 Nov. 2022].
Starza, L. (n.d.). Magical Online & London Events in
the Next Weeks. [online] Available at: http://
www.badwitch.co.uk/2022/11/magical-online-
london-events-in-next_16.html [Accessed 16 Nov.
2022].
Hirwani, P. (2022). How much money does the royal
family bring in tourism? [online] Available at: https://
www.independent.co.uk/life-style/royal-family/royal-
family-tourism-queen-elizabeth-b2171049.html.
Townsend, S. (2017). About me. [online] Sef
Townsend storyteller . Available at: https://
seftownsend.co.uk/about-me [Accessed 16 Nov.
2022].
every day magic. (2018). EVERYDAY MAGIC
STORYTELLERS. [online] Available at: http://
www.everydaymagic.org.uk/music/ [Accessed 16
Nov. 2022].
Ricardo J. Arango Ch. / 2022
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Townsend, S. (2022) 'Yotam Ottolenghi posted the first photo
from our party for Amal today at the V&A. Mr Ottolenghi
was quite moved as was the lovely public who came to
welcome Little Amal.. Here little Tamarai is presenting Amal
with a lovely bracelet she made for her.' [Instagram]. 22
September Available at: https://www.instagram.com/p/
CVa1ZTjgtr_/?hl=en (Accessed: 16 November 2022).
Norman, R. (n.d.). Out of the Norm Tours. [facebook]
Available at: https://www.facebook.com/
OutoftheNormTours [Accessed 16 Nov. 2022].
Out of the norm experiences (n.d.). Cycle to Ancient
Dolmens in Azenha. History, Theory & Folklore Guided
Tour. [online] Available at: https://www.tripadvisor.com/
AttractionProductReview-g656855-d23426544-
Cycle_to_Ancient_Dolmens_in_Azenha_History_Theory
_Folklore_Guided_Tour-Oliveira_do.html [Accessed 16
Nov. 2022].
GroundWork. (n.d.). Edgelands Exploring Urban
Landscapes from London to King’s Lynn. Sunday 22
May. [online] Available at: https://
www.groundworkgallery.com/events/edgelands-
exploring-urban-landscapes-from-london-to-kings-lynn/
[Accessed 16 Nov. 2022].
Bibliographies
Rogers, John, Lewisham's Magic River Quaggy,
online video recording, YouTube, 13 November
2022, <https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=hByodTyWkbQ> [16 November 2022]
Rogers, J. (2021). Along the Thames from Erith to
the Dartford Creek. [online] the lost
bywayperambulations around london ( .. and
beyond). Available at: https://thelostbyway.com/
category/this-other-london [Accessed 16 Nov.
2022].
Jeremy Rye. (2021). Walking. [online] Available
at: https://jeremyrye.com/walks/ [Accessed 17
Nov. 2022].
Design council (2019). Framework for
Innovation: Design Council’s evolved Double
Diamond. [online] www.designcouncil.org.uk.
Available at: https://www.designcouncil.org.uk/
our-work/skills-learning/tools-frameworks/
framework-for-innovation-design-councils-
evolved-double-diamond/.
Sef, Townsend. (2022) Unpublished interview
conducted by Ricardo Arango Chasi, 23 August.
115
Long, C. (2021). Storytelling is vital to many
Indigenous cultures, but preserving oral
traditions can be challenging. [online] upr.org.
Available at: https://www.upr.org/utah-news/
2021-10-29/storytelling-is-vital-to-many-
indigenous-cultures-but-preserving-oral-
traditions-can-be-challenging [Accessed 16 Nov.
2022].
Beskin, G. (2022) Unpublished interview
conducted by Ricardo Arango Chasi, 1 June.
Arango Chasi, R. (2022) ‘Mythic London
Workshop' [in person]. University of the Arts
London. 11 October.
Campbell, C. (2022). How tourists are returning
to London. [online] Centre for Cities. Available
at: https://www.centreforcities.org/blog/how-
tourists-are-returning-to-london/
#:~:text=International%20travel%20has%20rebo
unded%2C%20and [Accessed 17 Nov. 2022].
Pappalepore, I. and Gravari-Barbas, M. (2022).
Tales from two cities: COVID-19 and the
localisation of tourism in London and
Paris. International Journal of Tourism Cities.
doi:10.1108/ijtc-09-2021-0199.
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