Tom Hickathrift: a legendary giant-killer, large and with superhuman strength but not himself a giant. He is comparable to the eponymous hero of the Cornish fairy tale ‘Jack the Giant Killer’, and possibly originates from the Norse god Thor. Most tales describing his various exploits place him in west Norfolk or north-east Cambridgeshire, frequently in and around Wisbech – very close to, but generally just below, the Lincolnshire border, and a few miles south of this pin. In Lavengro (1851), however, George Borrow situates his adventures in Lincolnshire.

The website http://www.hickathrift.co.uk/, maintained by Heritage Alive!, focuses on Tom Hickathrift’s enduring legacy. Katharine Briggs, in Folk Tales of Britain (1970), provides a summary of Tom’s adventures, and links them to the tradition of William of Lindholme, who is also included on this website, and whose alleged exploits were also on the fringe of the county, in the north-west.

Words by RORY WATERMAN