'UK's oldest witch' dies in Sheffield aged 97

Patricia Crowther, pictured at her Sheffield home in 1971

A woman who was known as the UK's oldest witch has died at home at the age of 97.

Patricia Crowther was a follower and "high priestess" of the Wicca pagan religion and co-created the show "A Spell of Witchcraft" on BBC Radio Sheffield in the 1970s.

Introducing the first of the six episodes, she said: " 'Witchcraft' simply means the craft of the wise people – nothing sensational or horrific in that."

The show hoped to "redress some of the balance" in attitudes towards witchcraft by delving into the history and rituals of the then-obscure religion, and is credited with bringing it to a wider audience.

Mrs Crowther, who lived in Sheffield all her life, created the show alongside her husband, Arnold Crowther, with whom she established Sheffield Coven.

She was initiated into Wicca in 1960 by Gerald Gardner, who is credited with developing the religion, according to pagan publication Wild Hunt.

Her husband, who had been initiated a short time after her, died in 1974.

She was known by the title "High Priestess of the Moon Goddess"

Before joining the occult, she had spent summers as a performer on piers and theatres, and did pantomimes in winter, said Ian Lilleyman, her partner of more than 40 years.

"She loved the theatre. That was the best part of her life, she just loved it," the 75-year-old said.

The pair met at a vegetarian society meeting, where she had been a speaker, and Mr Lilleyman a member of the audience.

Mrs Crowther had been a professional dancer for years and spent time as a children's entertainer but, as she told The Guardian in the nineties, witches do not work for money.

But she kept dancing as part of witchcraft practices, Mr Lilleyman said.

From aged four, when she took lessons at the Constance Grant Dance Centre in Sheffield, she never stopped until she lost her mobility later in life, he said.

And, during wartime, she had sung and played the accordion as part of a group which entertained the troops.

"If I remember rightly, they weren't allowed to know where they were going and the windows were blacked out," he added.

She maintained her interest and belief in witchcraft for her whole life and wrote multiple books, including Witchcraft in Yorkshire and From Stagecraft to Witchcraft.

Mr Lilleyman said there was "never a time she would just sit down and do nothing".

"At night, I would go off to bed and she would be sat reading a book. She never stopped learning, even as she got older," he said.

"She said, 'you've got to read to learn, you don't know everything, you might think you do but you don't'."

The couple also enjoyed visiting their cottage in Whitby.

After about five years of struggling with dementia, she passed away on Wednesday morning with her partner at her side.

Reporting her passing, pagan news site Wild Hunt described her memory as a "blessing" to those who have been touched by her work.

"Her spirit continues to live on in the covens and communities she inspired," it added.

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