Hikey Spriteswillbeafteryou,ifyou arenaughty’.I

E didn'tknow what theywere,I thinka sortoffairy We knew the Hey prites - Re thing, but I knew they would come after me. It can be The memoriesofsevenNorfolkpeople HikeyorHiker”.

LE

PE

A

Val A a Bob(89) Met in Fakenham 12-5-2008 = \ Met in the Forum Norwich

P 17-4-2009

y

— da “There were some councilhouses in Kirby Bedon, 1had Ms “Mum talkedaboutHikey Sprites,theycame outin topassthem everyday on theway home fromschool. thedark,ofcoursetherewas no electricitythen.Ispent An oldladylivedinthe lastone,shealwaysusedto | my childhood in Griston.Older childrenused todare say as we passed,“Hurry you home girl,beforethem meto walk pasta gap ina hedge,wherea hosefrom a Highty Spritesgetyou’.didn’t know what theywere, tractionengine passed through, they said the Hikey but Iwas glad to get home”. Spriteswere there”.

Bob,relivinghisfear,demonstrated in the Forum how he Nigel(65) gingerlycrept pastthatgap. Metat the Royal Show | 1-7-2009

Nigel gaveme informationbutalso saidhe would make enquiriesofhis ninety-two year old mother when he visitedher.He laterrang me with his Met in Southrepps 21-10-2008 findings.

“Itwas a night-timething,everyonein Kerdistone “We spent our childhoodin Themelthorpe. When we used to talk about them. They would say, “Get you were kids mum would say, ifwe were naughty, ‘The Hikey Spriteswillget home beforedark,do theHikey Spriteswillgetyou’.It you’.Ishareda bedroom with was common between the Wars”. my sisterGill,ifwe werenoisymum would say,‘Be

you quietortheHikey Spriteswillgetyou’.Ithink Nigel’smother was born during the FirstWorld War. they were a sortofelf,ratherevil littlethings”.

Daphne (i76) Metat a bus stopinTrowse 16-4-2009

“I grew up in . Mum used to say, ‘The 32 33

maybe Hikey Sprites,most certainly Da dl Now for an encounter with fairies, Will-o’-the-Wisp. From Marsham,letterpublishedin E.D.P. 23-3-2009

«1remember theseHikey Sprites,orHikeSpikesaswe

calledthem. My granny would warn us thatthey Hilary > Story

would, ‘Get us ifwe were bad’.But they neverdid! Great Hospital,in Bishopgate,Norwichin Perhaps we weren’t bad enough”. I MET HILARY,A RESIDENTof the questionand in replyHilarytoldthis August 2009. I askedmyusual leading David who comes from a millingfamily (awater mill)gave me further words: wonderful evocativestory.I give itin her own informationby telephone. «we livedin Postwick,my dad worked at Grange «GrandfathertalkedaboutHydraspriteswhichlived Farm. Every sunday evening thefamily,my parents, in water,the millpooland the well.My brother,1 my sistersandmyselfattendedthe6.30evensong think,coined the word Hi ke sprike”. serviceat Postwickchurch,itwas expectedofus. Howversatile the Hikey traditionis! when evensongended,at about 7.30,mum went home withtheyoungestchildrentoputthem tobed. Roland It was Dad and 1 walked down the loke to the marsh. Born and brought up in Docking in theearly 1930s themarsh was coveredwitha blanketof Informationsuppliedby hisfriendAnn 14-9-2009 gettingdark, miston thetopwhichflickeredand dancedamazing

“My oldmum was always on aboutthe Hi Rey Sprites. yellow.1held littleflames,blue,tingedatthe topwith come ifwe were behaving She toldus they would my dad'shand awe-struck,‘they arefairies/hesaid. would come when we were in badly,we thought they we walkedhomein silence,my mindfull ofwonder- 1 punish us oreven takeus away. Ithinkthey in bed and had seenfairies!Erom thatday tothismy belief a kindofverylargegoblin’. were fairieswasneverindoubt”.

account from the north-west corner of the county is a harsh Hertfordshire.Had This Hilary’smum was a Postwick girlbutJack came from of the Hikeys.It isnot difficultto empathisewith young Roland, they areHikey Sprites’. portrayal he been a localladhe might have said,Look Hilary in bed, in the dark,alertand apprehensive,awaitinghisnight-time visitor.lt helpfulthe was a rathersevereway ofgetting Roland totake heed”,however intention. 55 34

36

another

how

conveyed

you”. same over

living warned,

knew childhood

writing Foxley

(inny),

lanterns

an

camping

proprietors, were to

naughtiness”.

his

will

Horstead,

unfortunately

is a

have enquiries

case

Ne

TAM

future,

now

inducement

tell

But

On

long

character.

Is

say

warning.

a

Joan

going

before

CONFIDENT

fifty

in

the

cast

the

the

Wood.

fields

Hikey

continuous

born

recorded.

of

to everyday

carried that

a

those

it

entirely

let

have

Hikey

in

larger

this

their

at has

his

word

children,

will

years

somewhere,

husband

us

I

Here,

if

in

connection

not Keeling

wife,

Terry

Walking

in

and,

began

issued

was

villages,

been

they

hope

survive

on

nets

1928,

prites

This

a used

scale

perhaps?

Sprites

MORE

orally

use

to

“If

rather

their

nearly

“Where's

period

in

staying

met little

were

as

far

tidying

for and

my

her

in

you

be

one

though

Hall,

at

in

before

back

without

PEOPLE

we “Mind

backs”.

a

and

with

a

well,

too

with

researches over-detailed,

grandchildren

troublesome,

wife,

the

that

complete,

are

family?

family,

long

enigmatical

hday

of

with

saw

between

young

wide

noisy,

through

quiet,

a

Ivy

her

family,

moving

knew

a

now

more

both

the

blank

An

will

time.

dog.

the

before

we

them,

Well

garden.

Farm

and

interesting

at

Hyter

Hikey

at

now

two in

I

If

help

recall

can

by

them than

stare,’

It

night,

decided

night,

Foulsham

fey

Foxley

to

an

fanciful

in

although

“The

the that

has

and

the

uses

be

years

see

Holiday

Sprites

of

inhabitant

Foxley.

late

Sprite?”

everyday

It

their

one

as,

much,

aware

little

among

even

same

you

the

great-grandchildren

the

written

soon

the

link

Hikey

to village

‘ghosts’.

ago.

September

form.

hundred

Hikey

parents

might

Hyter

and

that fellow

spend

as

don’t

appeared

Joan’s

means,

of

Park

term

to

became

Not

the

My

your

one

way?

of

sources.

tradition

the

Sprites

Themelthorpe,

I

could

see

get

our

She

in Sprites

his

an

supportive

into

to

encountered

goes

five

Hikey

saying,

fellow

said,

Lantern

clear

and

It

2009,

them,

Overstrand,

hour

you!”

on

name

county describe,

described

have

girls

certainly

will Who

missing

“Most

the

the

or fifty

than

live

campers.

when

with

stretching

when

They

that

with

mind,

Man

future been

were

be

internet

now

knows contacts

two

on

was

little

years,

like

of

“mild

lost

Terry

Joan

Joan

after

all

later

they

is

the

her

and

the

the

but the

has

my

the

in

— in

come

SO while entity

more not

fragment

perhaps. Something

confined enjoyed appeal though.

fear forces

hiding-places outlaws,

bizarre outcast,

voice. would

the

keep of

taking to people

although children.

Hikey

WHAT

First

Do

controlling easily

Do

children.

Hikey These

of

than

that I

them

and to

In

shuffle

we

have Final

of

place. dark

we

Sprite unacceptable

something A

of

those

have

to Janet of ARE neo-pagans forgotten,

those fugitives

has

just

her

entities,

relative, have fears, lay

all

have

away an

carvings

the

brought

places,

Families been

Gradually WE

for

a mum what

have revealed a in

recalcitrant sad

alternative

villages,

few Hey

told here word.

eventually

an

from

such

OMAKE TO the spiritual

my souls

human,

and maybe,

of

a been dread

was a

ideas. forests echo,

on

me, and

name the

behaviour,

kidnapped

great

created a

companion areas deeply

isolated

to

‘Ben Norfolk the not comeback brigands,

driven

Fhoughts

the recorded tenuous

religious

a

youngsters, realm,

me of coalesced animal

to to in

dialect

of

“bogey of folk

a

practitioners

rooted juggle Norfolk

their the their

particular, risk

Bolt’

this

their

by

out a

their

and memory

church

remains

for

woodwose,

and

in where the sheltered spirit

name, tradition,

man’ in

Hikey

communities.

own

was of

with,

feelings.

into those

my own

nearly

originally

recent

strange

woman.

surrounding

nameless

research. their

fonts) of

the concept

version where

enterprises HIKEY

the of

of

of

a

Sprite

unique

on

the

name two

contemporary

favoured reduced

communities years. nefarious that

something All

ubiquitous

appearance,

the

the

Some

or

wild,

perhaps

horrors? might

years?

possible.

of

was

tradition,

I

deep, the

Wild

to

run.

This

name wonder SPRITE!

of

deep

the

of

of

enjoy.

now

transferred

Green

bogey

It

So,

have

dubious woodland, those profound,

practices,

bogey, Man to pagan, certainly

‘bogey

forest,

Forests

for also if

their hold

to because

control

magic.

Surely, this

lurked Man

of

, who

a

the

(now this

Once

sheltered

a

folk a such

man’, odd

nature you nie her

harboured

number exclusively

surviving

of

genesis has

Not

primeval who

provided though,

chose

adults, threat

of

largely belief? sinister

parents,

hard”,

people gait heard

earth

a great

their

were sure

way has

the

the

or

of

to

37 to of

We i aregettingcloseto the tradition,gathering togethermere fragments i atthistwilight stageofthe belief,to tryand makesenseof it.A century and i more ago the Hikey would have à . been a discreteconcept,now itmerges and í A Nght-tim E Woodland Encounter flowswith otherfolkbeliefs,our hold onitis tentative.Twenty-fiveyearsago an my taskwould have beeneasier, my findingsmore focused and cohesive,the IN APRIL 2009 I HAD A STALL at an event in the Forum, Norwich.| resultingbook more Pa ; | ; ! ' prominently displayedthisposterappealingforinformationon the Hikeys, ; Ifyou ars a “asliever,you may be isa pointed that itwas not my H hoping to collectmaterialformy research.A young man, Robert, probably intenten to produce a fieldguide forthe Hikey — although I have described €: in hisearlytwenties, the habitatsthey favour.I cannot adviseyou on came forward with thisinterestinglittleepisode. how to identifythem, not iat much abouttheir habits, theirfood,their habitations.Yet for me, at the end , UN couple of weeks ago of thisproject,they do we were camping in feel“real”.So,ata personallevel,I can saythereare L Wood. Igotout ofmy placesin theNorfolk tentat about 2 a.m.toanswer a landscape,on heathswhere thesunintensifies thescent Y sed ofgorsebloom,where one gets a glimpseof a shydeer,wherelithe birch EN callofnature.Iwas surprisetosee,outof the treessway in + cornerof the wind, there I have feltthe Hikeys are hiding in the bracken,

to my eye,little among the heather. figure(heusedbisbands toindicatea So too,inAutumn woodland when my feetshufflethe

dry leaves,the wind swishesin eo heightofrocms orso)running the treetops and a “plop”marks the fallof an by.1didwt know what acorn or conker — therethey arealmostwithin reach,almost. itwas’tillsawthepictureonyourstall- itlookedjust While our county retainsits largelyruralqualityand some preciousareas likethat! remain beyond the reach of trafficsound and away from the most severe lightpollution, À some magical landscapeswillremain to give us inspiration, refreshment, calm. There the Hikey Sprite will remain, ever elusive,liminal, enigmatic, a justbeyond our touch. AAA In such places, my reader,you may roam as the lightfades,your senses keen and alert,watchful and sensitive,then you may feel the Hikey’s ee presence.Do notbe fearful,with luck,you may have encountered them,all iswell,justbelieve.

A For me, atthe end of myresearch, I am gladto have been aware of them and had theircompanyall this time.Now thoughit istime topartfrom both the Hikeys and ] you my valued reader.Itistime to say a fond,‘fare y’well A tergether’. y + Ray ' November 2009 p

4 Do You KNOW ABOUT THE b HIKEY SPRITES? IF So | PLEASE TELL RAY. THIS IS HOW DICK ,;WHO LIVED IN SPARHAM IN THE MAGINED THEM. 1930s, i 38 39