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Birdlip & the Devil, Manor of Witcomb, 1711 (Gloucestershire Archives D1866/P1)
Once upon a time, a shepherd had walked down from Birdlip to Gloucester to get some medicine for a sick sheep. On the way back up Birdlip Hill, he spotted the devil in the woods waiting to catch passers-by. The shepherd was in a quandary for he didn’t want to get caught by Old Nick but had to get back to his sick sheep. He had a flagon of cider so he had a sip to give himself some Dutch courage then had an idea! So, he drank all the cider then poured the sheep medicine into the flagon and set off up the road. The shepherd was about half-way up, just passing Rowland Badger’s Knap by Black Dog Lane, when the devil leapt out and grabbed him,
“It’s hell for you lad!” said the Devil.
“If you say so Sir,” replied the shepherd, “but how about some nice spiced cider for you first?”
Before he’d even finished speaking, the Devil had snatched away the flagon and downed it in one go. But the foul-tasting medicine burned the devil’s throat and, coughing & spluttering, he leapt straight into the nearby Witcombe reservoirs to try and quench the sensation while the shepherd ran off and escaped up the hill!
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