The May Queen embodies purity, strength and the potential for growth. She is the personification of the energy of the earth. The Green Man represents the life that grows on earth. They cannot exist without each other.

When the Horned God (the Winter aspect of the Green Man) sees the May Queen in her Maiden form, he realises that to be with the woman he loves he will need to undergo a huge change. As they process together around the hill, he prepares to surrender his life to her. She then gives him life energy and brings him back in his new form, as the Green Man, so they can be together.

This is the 3rd year of our current May Queen’s reign and the Green Man tends to be a different person each year. At the end of the night, the May Queen and Green Man hold court at the Bower.

Photo of the May Queen and Green Man at a rehearsal by Ellen Duffy.