Burning stick held over a wooden bowl of herbs
Burning stick held over a wooden bowl of herbs
Oak
Oak

AN EVENING CIRCLE WITH TANYA FORGAN

SAMHAIN CIRCLE
SAMHAIN CIRCLE
SAMHAIN CIRCLE

The Thinning of the Veil ~ In Honour of Our Ancestors

The Thinning of the Veil

~

In Honour of Our Ancestors

Saturday 31st October 2026, Choseley House, Knowl Hill, Berkshire

Saturday 31st October 2026, Choseley House, Knowl Hill, Berkshire

A Circle for the ones who came before us

In Honour

Samhain marks the turning of the year when the veil between the living and the dead grows thin. It is an old threshold, older than any calendar, when what has passed does not feel so far away, and what has not yet been said can finally be spoken.


This is a gathering to honour the ancestors, known and unknown. The grandmother whose name you carry. The lineage you cannot trace but still feel in your bones. The ones who were lost too soon, and the ones you never got the chance to meet, but whose lives made yours possible.


We come together as women, in circle, to remember what the season asks of us: to release what is ready to be let go, and to welcome what wants to be born in its place.


Come and join the circle. I would love to welcome you.

Samhain marks the turning of the year when the veil between the living and the dead grows thin. It is an old threshold, older than any calendar, when what has passed does not feel so far away, and what has not yet been said can finally be spoken.


This is a gathering to honour the ancestors, known and unknown. The grandmother whose name you carry. The lineage you cannot trace but still feel in your bones. The ones who were lost too soon, and the ones you never got the chance to meet, but whose lives made yours possible.


We come together to remember what the season asks of us: to release what is ready to be let go, and to welcome what wants to be born in its place.


The Ones Who Walk With Us

known and unknown


Some ancestors we can name. Others exist only as a feeling passed down: a resemblance in the mirror, a strength we didn’t know we had inherited until we needed it.

This evening makes space for both, the people whose stories we hold, and the ones whose names have been lost to time but whose blood still moves through us. We will find simple, honest ways to acknowledge them, without needing to have all the answers about who they were.


You do not need to know your lineage to belong here. You only need to be willing to remember that you come from somewhere, and that someone, once, hoped for you.

Some ancestors we can name. Others exist only as a feeling passed down: a resemblance in the mirror, a strength we didn’t know we had inherited until we needed it.


This evening makes space for both, the people whose stories we hold, and the ones whose names have been lost to time but whose blood still moves through us. We will find simple, honest ways to acknowledge them, without needing to have all the answers about who they were.


You do not need to know your lineage to belong here. You only need to be willing to remember that you come from somewhere, and that someone, once, hoped for you.

Some ancestors we can name. Others exist only as a feeling passed down: a resemblance in the mirror, a strength we didn’t know we had inherited until we needed it.


This evening makes space for both, the people whose stories we hold, and the ones whose names have been lost to time but whose blood still moves through us. We will find simple, honest ways to acknowledge them, without needing to have all the answers about who they were.


You do not need to know your lineage to belong here. You only need to be willing to remember that you come from somewhere, and that someone, once, hoped for you.

What This Turning Asks of Us

the dark half of the year


As the wheel turns from Samhain, we move into the dark half of the year, in the old telling of things. Days shorten, the natural world begins its own slow release. It is a season that has always asked us to do the same, to look honestly at what we are ready to let go of, and to sit for a while in not-knowing before anything new can take shape.

What Happens When We Gather

the rhythm for the evening


We will begin by settling into the space together, with warm drinks and quiet conversation. From there, we move into ritual: naming our ancestors aloud if we choose to, and marking what we are releasing as the year turns.


There will be time for reflection, for the comfort of other women’s presence, and for closing the circle together before we step back out into the night.


You do not need any experience with ritual or ceremony. You only need to come as you are.

We will begin by settling into the space together, with warm drinks and quiet conversation. From there, we move into ritual: naming our ancestors aloud if we choose to, and marking what we are releasing as the year turns.


There will be time for reflection, for the comfort of other women’s presence, and for closing the circle together before we step back out into the night.


You do not need any

experience with ritual or ceremony. You only need to come as you are.

We will begin by settling into the space together, with warm drinks and quiet conversation. From there, we move into ritual: naming our ancestors aloud if we choose to, and marking what we are releasing as the year turns.


There will be time for reflection, for the comfort of other women’s presence, and for closing the circle together before we step back out into the night.


You do not need any experience with ritual or ceremony. You only need to come as you are.

"Circle is not something I simply facilitate. It is a way I understand the world" Tanya

Portrait of a woman

About Tanya

Circle facilitator · Ritualist · Embodiment guide

I am a circle and group facilitator, somatic therapist, ritualist and grief tender. For more than three decades, my work has taken me through humanitarian and community spaces, trauma-informed practice, embodied healing and the training of women who hold others.


As a mixed-heritage woman and lifelong edge-walker, I know something of the ache of not fully belonging. My work is shaped by that lived enquiry, alongside grief, identity, social justice, the wisdom of the body and a devotion to rebuilding the relational fabric between us.


I hold circle with warmth and humanity, but also with clarity. I am interested in what becomes possible when we stop performing belonging and begin to practise it.

Practical details

Logistics.

Logistics.

Logistics.

Everything you need to know before you arrive.

Everything you need to know before you arrive.

Date

Saturday 31st October 2026

Time

6PM - 8:30PM

Please arrive a few minutes early so that you have time to settle before we begin.

Location

Location

Choseley House, Knowl Hill, Berkshire

Choseley House, Knowl Hill, Berkshire

Investment

Investment

£30 per gathering. Places are intentionally limited so that the Circle can remain intimate and each woman has space to be heard.

What to bring

Please bring a blanket, water bottle, journal and pen. Wear something comfortable that allows you to sit and move with ease.

Accessibility

If you have any access requirements, health considerations or anything else that would help you feel more at ease, please contact me before booking. I will be glad to talk with you about what you need.

Cancellation and transfer policy

Places are limited and your booking reserves a place in the Circle, payments are non-refundable.

If you are unable to attend, you are welcome to transfer your place to another woman. Please let me know her name and email address before the Circle begins.

If I need to cancel the gathering, you will receive a full refund or the option to transfer your booking to another date.

Practical details

Payment.

Payment.

Payment.