Dr Andy Letcher - In Gandalf's Garden: A Perambulation Through British Psychedelia

British psychedelia is distinguished from its American counterpart by a preoccupation with the past rather than the future. While American psychedelic culture often aligned itself with futurism, space exploration, and techno-optimism, British psychedelic figures frequently drew upon ancient traditions, folklore, and rural mysticism to reinvent local cultural identities. This outlook manifests as a radical nostalgia that seeks to reconnect with an imagined, enchanted England. Key cultural figures like Robert Graves, John Michell, and J.R.R. Tolkien significantly shaped this landscape. Graves introduced the concept of an ancient, mushroom-based religion; Michell pioneered earth mysteries and modernized the theory of ley lines as energetic pathways; and Tolkien provided a literary framework that championed community and nature against industrial encroachment. Together, these figures facilitated a cultural process of resacralizing the British landscape, aiming to heal the perceived disconnection between modern civilization and the natural world.