Friday 13th: Why do people get tattoos?

Steve Roud, author of The Penguin Guide to the Superstitions of Britain and Ireland, previously told BBC News that, Friday and the number 13 have always been unlucky in their own right.

“Because Friday was the day of the crucifixion, Fridays were always regarded as a day of penance and abstinence,” he said.

“This religious belief spilled over into a general dislike of starting anything – or doing anything important – on a Friday.”

To further compound the chance of peril, an urban legend started circulating sometime in the 1690s that it was unlucky to have 13 people around a table or in a group, he explains.

Folklorist Anne Marie Lagram – herself a “strong believer” – also previously told BBC News that theories behind “unlucky 13” include the number of people present at the Last Supper or the number of witches to make a coven.

But it was the Victorians who put the two together, said the author of the Country Wisdom and Folklore Diary.

“They were intrigued by folklore and put Friday and 13 together and created a doubly unlucky day,” she said.