Skeptics in the Pub

Witchful Thinking: How we rebranded “witch-hunting” for the 21st Century

Modern scapegoats consumed by flaming bonfire of digital rage

The village square has been replaced by the global feed where rage-baiters lurk to create professionalised panic.

That’s part of the hard-hitting analysis by internationally published historian Dr Molly Northcott. Dr Northcott, whose book on medieval witch-hunts was recently published world-wide by distinguished British publisher Routledge, will deliver a provocative and challenging presentation. Her topic, Witchful Thinking: How We Rebranded ‘Witch-Hunting’ for the 21st Century, will show the human need for a scapegoat is still thriving in the modern digital age. “Central to this discussion is the uncomfortable truth that humans have not changed,” Dr Northcott said. “We have just swapped the pyre for the pile-on, the stake for the smartphone.”

She will dissect the anatomy of the “Cry-Bully” dynamic, analysing how figures across politics, technology, and entertainment have hijacked the language of the victim to frame accountability as systemic persecution. She will also examine the mechanics of collective anxiety and “Cancel Culture”, highlighting the impulse for a public purge. In the Post-truth era of “vibes-based evidence”, she will ask the radical question: Why do we still search for a witch to burn?

5.30pm (doors open to order drinks and gourmet pizza).