The Summer Solstice, the longest day of the year, has been a moment of power and magic for millennia. From the precise alignment of Stonehenge to the bonfires and fertility rites that have marked the occasion for centuries, this is a day when the veil between our world and the supernatural is thought to be at its thinnest. This powerful ancient energy is still very much alive today, particularly in the tiny, secluded Dorset village of Ashmore, home to a strange and enduring celebration known as the filly loo.
A Village of Secrets
Ashmore, the highest village in Dorset, holds its secrets close. It is a place of long-held legends and folklore. One of the most intriguing tales concerns the Gabbagammies, bizarre little creatures said to have inhabited an ancient long barrow. When the barrow was destroyed to build a new road, strange sounds were heard until the bones were moved to the churchyard. However, no record of a reinterment exists, leading to speculation that the barrow may have been a "thin place" and the relocation of the remains had an impact on the strange happenings.
Another tale tells of a Woman in White who haunts the village's ponds. The legend says a woman was found hanging from an ash tree over the Washer’s Pit after a local squire had a series of distressing dreams. These old stories perfectly set the stage for the filly loo, an event with its own mysterious origins.
The Tradition of the filly loo
The name itself is a mystery, with theories ranging from a corruption of a local man’s name to the French "La Fille de Loo," or "daughter of the water," connecting it directly to the watery folklore of the village. I was even told that the event was originally to encourage the pond to refill, which is why they were "filling the loo." It strikes me as truly weird that a community continues this event year after year without a definitive purpose. It’s almost as if some ancient, ethereal presence demands or requires this ritual. My personal theory is that the filly loo is some great beast that lives deep within the murky waters of the pond, and by celebrating, they appease it for another year, keeping the children and local dogs safe.
The true heart of the filly loo is its incredible folk dance performances. The event features traditional English country dancing by a school called Steps in Time and the lively, bell-jangling White Horse Morris group. The clashing of sticks in Morris dancing is thought to mimic sword fights to drive away evil spirits, while the bells and ribbons are believed to attract good luck and celebrate fertility, perfectly aligning with the Solstice’s themes of renewal.
The most powerful moment, however, is the Horn Dance. This unique folk ritual, known most famously in Abbot’s Bromley, involves dancers with large reindeer antlers. It is thought to be a remnant of ancient pagan fertility or hunting rites. The dance’s melody has its own history, with one version known as "Robinson’s tune" being passed down from a 19th-century wheelwright and fiddle player who described it as ancient even in his own time.
Hearing it performed live during the event brought home a connection to something far older than ourselves. It was a feeling deeper and more meaningful than that of most modern pagan rituals, perhaps because it wasn't trying to look cool or perform authentically—it just was. Run out of a quiet, centuries-old impulse, it’s a living thread that connects us to past generations.