WLD - 'The Green Man' by Kingsley Amis was adapted by Michael Bradbury into a BBC TV 3 part drama way back in 1990. Oddly enough, I was transferring it to DVD only this weekend! It starred Albert Finney, Michael Hordern, Nikolas Grace (as a very "hip and trendy" vicar!), Michael Culver and Josie Lawrence amongst others. I'd forgotten how raunchy and creepy it was!

The comment about not being traceable further back than the 17th Century was made about Jacks in the Green (plural rules as for courts martial and mothers in law), rather than foliate heads/extruding foliage. There is more than enough evidence to show that the 3 commonest forms (foliate head, the face in the leaves and the face emitting foliage) can date back to near Roman times - I found one in Denmark last month on an early mediaeval font that looked like a Lewis chessman.

Ian Anderson (Jethro Tull) wrote a damned good song about Jack in the Green...

Have you seen Jack-In-The-Green?
With his long tail hanging down.
He quietly sits under every tree
in the folds of his velvet gown.

He drinks from the empty acorn cup
the dew that dawn sweetly bestows.
And taps his cane upon the ground
signals the snowdrops it's time to grow.

It's no fun being Jack-In-The-Green
no place to dance, no time for song.
He wears the colours of the summer soldier
carries the green flag all the winter long.

Jack, do you never sleep
does the green still run deep in your heart?
Or will these changing times,
motorways, powerlines,
keep us apart?
Well, I don't think so
I saw some grass growing through the pavements today.

The rowan, the oak and the holly tree
are the charges left for you to groom.
Each blade of grass whispers Jack-In-The-Green.
Oh Jack, please help me through my winter's night.
And we are the berries on the holly tree.
Oh, the mistlethrush is coming.
Jack, put out the light.

LTS