Founded by Mike Hankin and Rita Conry, OffBeat Folk Film Club began as an informal gathering of friends and has grown into an ongoing project dedicated to exploring folk culture, outsider traditions and regional myths through curated screenings, archive films and live events across London and beyond. This week, they wrapped the 2026 edition of the OffBeat Folk Film Festival – 12 days of performances, discussions and screenings focused on contemporary interpretations of folk culture in the UK – alongside the OffBeat Art Club, an exhibition dedicated to weird, obscure and overlooked artworks.
Fresh from contributing to Crack’s list of the 50 greatest scores of the 21st century, this mix dives into their world via folk horror soundtracks, eerie electronics, library music and more – “ideal listening if you’re performing a seance, dealing with a curse, or maybe just on a long train journey,” Hankin says. Dim the lights and listen.
Who: The OffBeat Folk Film Club was started by the artist and designer Mike Hankin and filmmaker Rita Conry. It’s a project which tries to open up what folk means and share stories of ordinary people from around Britain. It was set up as an inclusive space which tries to bring together communities through screenings of folk documentaries, films, talks, exhibitions and events. OffBeat brings together films and artworks which sit slightly outside the mainstream and share a common interest in folkie, offbeat weirdness.
Where: We’re based in North London and most of our events take place at The Walthamstow Trades Hall, although we programme screenings and collaborations across London and beyond.
What: This is an eclectic mix of folk horror soundtracks, hauntology and folk in film and TV. There are some tracks from well-known folk horror films (how could we not include The Wicker Man?), but also bits of library music, eerie electronics, fragments from older British cinema and TV and clips of music made by familiar bands found in weird places. A lot of it draws from the strange atmosphere of 1970s public information films and folk horror cinema.
When: This is probably best listened to in the evening. I’m not sure it’s going to bring everyone charging onto the dance floor, but this is ideal listening if you’re performing a seance, dealing with a curse, or maybe just on a long train journey.
Why: We do this because we think there’s value in creating spaces where people can come together and talk about culture in a more thoughtful and communal way. Folk, for us, isn’t about nostalgia but about participating in something and having a shared experience. That can be quite hard to do when you’re watching films alone on YouTube. OffBeat is, hopefully, a bit of an antidote to that. It’s also a place for a more inclusive and rough-around-the-edges type of folk culture.
Artwork and mix: Mike Hankin
Strange Signals & Folk Horror Cinema: Mixed by OffBeat Folk Film Club
Strange Signals & Folk Horror Cinema: Mixed by OffBeat Folk Film Club
Founded by Mike Hankin and Rita Conry, OffBeat Folk Film Club began as an informal gathering of friends and has grown into an ongoing project dedicated to exploring folk culture, outsider traditions and regional myths through curated screenings, archive films and live events across London and beyond. This week, they wrapped the 2026 edition of the OffBeat Folk Film Festival – 12 days of performances, discussions and screenings focused on contemporary interpretations of folk culture in the UK – alongside the OffBeat Art Club, an exhibition dedicated to weird, obscure and overlooked artworks.
Fresh from contributing to Crack’s list of the 50 greatest scores of the 21st century, this mix dives into their world via folk horror soundtracks, eerie electronics, library music and more – “ideal listening if you’re performing a seance, dealing with a curse, or maybe just on a long train journey,” Hankin says. Dim the lights and listen.
Who: The OffBeat Folk Film Club was started by the artist and designer Mike Hankin and filmmaker Rita Conry. It’s a project which tries to open up what folk means and share stories of ordinary people from around Britain. It was set up as an inclusive space which tries to bring together communities through screenings of folk documentaries, films, talks, exhibitions and events. OffBeat brings together films and artworks which sit slightly outside the mainstream and share a common interest in folkie, offbeat weirdness.
Where: We’re based in North London and most of our events take place at The Walthamstow Trades Hall, although we programme screenings and collaborations across London and beyond.
What: This is an eclectic mix of folk horror soundtracks, hauntology and folk in film and TV. There are some tracks from well-known folk horror films (how could we not include The Wicker Man?), but also bits of library music, eerie electronics, fragments from older British cinema and TV and clips of music made by familiar bands found in weird places. A lot of it draws from the strange atmosphere of 1970s public information films and folk horror cinema.
When: This is probably best listened to in the evening. I’m not sure it’s going to bring everyone charging onto the dance floor, but this is ideal listening if you’re performing a seance, dealing with a curse, or maybe just on a long train journey.
Why: We do this because we think there’s value in creating spaces where people can come together and talk about culture in a more thoughtful and communal way. Folk, for us, isn’t about nostalgia but about participating in something and having a shared experience. That can be quite hard to do when you’re watching films alone on YouTube. OffBeat is, hopefully, a bit of an antidote to that. It’s also a place for a more inclusive and rough-around-the-edges type of folk culture.
Artwork and mix: Mike Hankin
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