About Benjamin
enjamin Stimpson (BA, MBACP) is an award-winning UK based writer, independent researcher, podcaster, and public speaker on various topics related to folk practice, British folk religion, occultism, medieval and
early modern history, British folklore, and modern Neopaganism.​
Benjamin holds a BA (Hons) from the University of Waterloo where he minored in Classical, Medieval and Religious Studies; and a Diploma in Spiritual Psychotherapy from Transformational Arts College. In his day job, Benjamin is an integrative therapist utilizing systemic, narrative, transpersonal, and somatic approaches to working with clients.​
As a writer, his research focusses on medieval and early modern folk practice, the folklore and history of magic and witchcraft, and applied modern spiritual and magical practices.
e is the author of Ancestral Whispers: A Guide to Developing Ancestral Veneration Practices (2023, Llewellyn Worldwide), which won a 2024 Gold Medal in the folk magic category of the COVR Awards. His
current projects focus on the folklore of witches, cunning folk, and other magical practitioners in the folklore of Britain. A project connected to this research is debuting in September 2025 through The History Press.
A teacher at heart, Ben has produced a series of stand alone lectures and courses for conferences and private groups. He has previously spoken at such events as The Salem Folklore and Witchcraft Festival; Botanica Obscura Conference; The Ancestral Magic Summit; Occulticon; and the Ancestral Pathways Conference. Copies of these lectures and courses can be found on his Patreon, which acts as an on demand class archive.
enjamin has been guest on over a hundred podcasts speaking about various parts of his research, magical practice, and paranormal experiences. He has also hosted his own podcast, Essence with Ben
Stimpson, in which he interviewed fellow authors and practitioners in the fields of folklore, magic, and the occult. Aside from his appearances at conferences and other events, Benjamin has also been invited to speak to smaller groups in both North America and Europe. Some of these recordings are available on the Courses page.
Benjamin originally hails from North Wales, but spent a few decades living in Ontario, Canada before returning and settling in England. This experience of living abroad served to deepen his love of Britain and its folk culture. When not engaged in research or working with clients, Ben is a big fan of classic British comedy, science fiction/fantasy, cooking, crafting and beading, exploring secret spaces and far off places, and spending time with his office manager Skye (seen here inspecting the first shipment of Ancestral Whispers copies).
