Britain’s Landmarks and Legends: the fascinating stories embedded in our landscape

REVIEW BY EDWARD BIDDULPH How did a giant ship create the White Cliffs of Dover? Why can Oxfordshire’s Rollright Stones never be counted? Which ghost said to haunt Lake Windermere was recorded on Ordnance Survey mapping? The answers can be found in Jo Woolf’s absorbing book, which presents an alternative guide to some of Britain’s best-loved natural and historical sites, and the stories and folklore associated with them. As much as archaeologists work to uncover, assemble, and interpret evidence to bring us plausible narratives about the origins, development, and use of places, sometimes it is the tales and legends that speak most readily to us. Who is not thrilled by stories of