All are invited to the 190th Crossbones Vigil, held at the gates to the graveyard in Redcross Way. Starting on the dot of 7pm.
We remember all those cornerstones who have upheld society with little to no recognition or outright rejection. We remember our dearly departed. We honour the locality of this some-time single-women’s graveyard, plague pit, and burial-space of ‘social undesirables’. And in-so-doing, we become present to the spirit of the outcast throughout history, helping people to bridge past, present and future in shining emptiness.
‘Here lay your hearts,
your flowers,
your book of hours;
Your fingers,
your thumbs,
your miss-you-mum’s.
Here hang your hopes,
your dreams
your might’ve-beens;
Your locks,
your keys,
your mysteries.’
We welcome any personal poems, prayers, memories and reflections. We hold especially this time round the Vernal Equinox: Spring, where Old Man Winter has loosened his grip, the shadows get shorter, the future looks warm, and festivity begins a new phase. We tie ribbons, share stories, sow seeds.
Come all who are hungry or thirsty for a spot of magic in the bustle – a chance to stop, wait, and listen to what the goose is saying.
Open Pathways.
(written by Mark)
poem ‘Here lay your hearts…’
from ‘The Southwark Mysteries’ by John Constable
Mark (in photo, to right of speaker Jules) is one of the ‘John Crows’ who’ve taken on conducting the Vigils . He writes: 
The 188th consecutive Vigil for the Outcast, dead and alive, held in the stereet by the shrine in Redcross Way, London SE1, at 7pm on the 23rd of every month.
‘Goose Night’ – 23rd anniversary of the night of 23rd November 1996 when The Goose revealed ‘The Southwark Mysteries’ to John Crow at Cross Bones Graveyard. 
The open pathways lit in shining emptiness. 138 ribbons (2 x 69 or 6 x 23) tied to the gates, renewing the shrine, and the remembrance poem ‘Here lay your Hearts, your flowers, your Book of Hours…’ echoed 11 times. There still weren’t enough ribbons to go around but everyone got to touch the portal and to look through the bars of the gate into the garden with the Mary shrine, lit up with a Grand Cross of candles, the lights flickering in the shadows of the graveyard.
Black Swan Border Morris danced before the beribboned gates, fit to wake the dead with their pipes and drums, their wild howls and clacking staffs, their top hats and swirling tatter-coats.
The self-styled Crow Shaman was ritually purified by veteran interventionist Raga with her African broom.
Cross Bones Graveyard has inspired many artists. On this special night, folk punk indie star Frank Turner stepped up to perform his new song ‘The Graveyard of the Outcast Dead’, sending shivers down spines.
And to top it all, Jules’ Spot. At pretty much every Vigil for the past couple of years Jules Allen has presented a different take on synchronicity and serendipity, riffing off various characters and stories linked with Cross Bones, Southwark and us. Tonight, he was on top form – even got 300 people joining on with his scintillating evocation of the number 23!
Gratitude to all of you, and to all of you who were here with us in the eternal now of our Goose Night – such a powerful communion, kith and kin, so many dear friends and family from so many phases of the twenty-three year site-specific performance and magical work, who have each in your own ways helped nurture and manifest the vision of our Cross Bones Graveyard.
Thanks to Natalie and Lucy for lighting up the shrine in the garden. Thanks again, Jules and Jenn, for your exemplary work as Goose Samurai, demonstrating true service to The Goose.
So many of you I want to thank, so many names spring to mind as I write this now, but like I said at the after party, the deeper you get into naming, the more hurting it is for the ones who accidentally don’t get name-checked. You know who you are, and how much you’ve brought to the great adventure!
Saturday 23rd November 2019 is the 23rd anniversary of this “Goose Night”, which inspired ‘The Southwark Mysteries’ and the magical works at Cross Bones Graveyard, The Halloween of Cross Bones and the Vigils held on the 23rd of every month since June 2004.
23rd October is also our ‘Halloween Portal‘ our own night of the dead, when we perform some of the rituals from the original ‘Halloween of Cross Bones’ (performed 1998-2010 and 2015-16). There’ll be group recitations of Goose and Crow incantations, and the reading of the Names of the Dead. Please get hold of some white ribbons and write on them the names and dates of your own lost loved ones – the names will be read out during the Vigil as the ribbons are tied to the gates. 
From 23rd December onwards, the Vigils will continue under the care of the new magical collective which has emerged to take the work forward. I’d like to thank them – Jennifer, Jules, Lucy, Hannah, Jacqui, Ross, Mark, John M. and Nicholas – and everyone else who’s helped deliver the Vigils and the wider magical works. Special, heartfelt thanks to Katy Kaos, who’s done so much behind the scenes to stage manage and make things happen – The Halloween of Crossbones, The Southwark Mysteries, the Vigils, the plaque, the planters, the dream-catchers, spiderwebs and the other crochet artworks on the gates, and much more. Gratitude!
Our 23rd September Vigil also marks the Autumn Equinox, a time for rebalancing and for letting go of what we no longer need. At the heart of the Vigil is space for creative offerings and short personal testimonies by artists and outsiders from all walks of life. You may like to bring a short poem, song or personal testimony to dedicate to The Goose and her Outcast Dead.
The 183rd consecutive Vigil held at Crossbones Graveyard to renew the shrine, to remember the outcast, dead and alive, and to reconnect with The Goose and her Mysteries. 
We perform simple, secular rituals – lighting the open pathways, tying mementos and ribbons to the gates: ‘Here lay your hearts, your flowers, your Book of Hours…’ culminating in an unconditional blessing ‘Goose may your Spirit fly free!’