Move over Glastonbury and the Tower of London: the UK’s got a new haunted hotspot. A town in Suffolk has been named the country’s devil-worshipping capital, according to data from the last census.
In Bungay, a small historic market town in Suffolk, 70 people registered as satanists in the 2021 census. Which, considering that the town only has 8,500 residents, is really quite a high number. That’s around one in every 120 people – and that’s just the ones that publicly identified themselves as satanists. In other words, Bungay could have even more than we think. Spooky, spooky stuff indeed.
For those not in the know, ‘satanist’ pretty much just means someone who worships Satan – y’know, the devil, Lucifer, that sort of thing. There are loads of different types of satanism and its practices range enormously, from rituals and songs to simply believing in certain forms of atheism.
Needless to say, local politicians haven’t been too chuffed about Bungay being named the UK’s devil-worshipping capital. Local councillor Judy Cloke told the Daily Mirror: ‘Bungay is most definitely not the devil-worshipping capital of the UK.’
The town does, however, have a history of spooky happenings. A local legend tells the story of the town’s church being struck by lightning sometime in the 1500s, causing some kind of black hell-hound to appear and attack residents. The church graveyard also has something called a Druid’s Stone which, according to local folklore, can be used to summon the devil.
Devil-worshipping aside, Bungay is also known for a few other things. Not only is it the home of Baron Bigod, an award-winning cheese often named amongst the best in the UK, but it’s also where book printer Clays is based (it was responsible for the Harry Potter books and Prince Harry’s recent autobiography ‘Spare’).
The second-highest number of satanists in the 2021 census were registered in Brondesbury in north-west London. However, Brondesbury only boasted 20 devil-worshippers out of a population of over 13,400 – a much less impressive ratio than Bungay.
So if you happen to be a devil-worshipper, now you know where to find some like-minded folks! Now check out our list of the most haunted places in Britain.
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