Witch who hid ‘true identity’ for years now leads viral TikTok coven and claims to have performed medical miracles

A witch who hid her “true identity” for decades now proudly leads a viral TikTok coven where she claims her spells can manifest prosperity and perform medical miracles.

Julie Aspinall, a 60-year-old security dog trainer from Coventry, discovered her “true identity” as a witch at age 15 after secretly reading about spirituality and witchcraft.

The mother-of-two and grandmother-of-five secretly practised spells and manifestation, in fear of being judged by her loved ones and even kept her spells and incantations hidden from her late husband.

But in 2015 she discovered a community of fellow witches on Facebook.

Inspired, she launched her own group that same year and, in 2018, founded an in-person coven called the Coven of Gaia with 17 members – finally feeling “less alone”.

The coven now share their craft with more than 780,000 TikTok followers, often performing manifestation and prosperity spells – she even claims, despite there being no medical evidence to show it is possible, that they have cured cancer and saved lives.

Julie told PA Real Life: “From reading about witches, at about age 15, I realised I was a witch and I could easily manifest things for myself.

“A few years ago I was looking to move house and had this ideal image in my head, so manifested it, then the next day, a mutual friend put their house on the market which was almost identical (to my vision).

“I’ve protected family and friends, and can manifest money when I need it.”

Julie attended a convent secondary school and was “always getting in trouble” for asking questions about Catholicism and “not understanding” its teachings.

But, by the age of 12, she began to sense she might have “a gift” and initially thought she could be a “special child of God”.

“When I wanted something, I used to be able to get it,” Julie explained.

“So, if I needed some money to get my mum something for Mother’s Day, something would happen, and I would end up earning some money really easily.”

At around 14, her brother’s friend gifted her a book on astrology, sparking her interest in exploring the “spiritual world”.

So, she visited her local library and asked the librarian for “anything spiritual”, which led her to discover witchcraft and realise her “true identity”.

Over the years, she began experimenting in secret, practising spells and manifestation with only her brother aware.

She added: “If my dad knew, he probably would have gotten someone to perform an exorcism on me!

“In the 80s, being a witch, or even a pagan, was a no-go.”

In her twenties and thirties, Julie got married, had two children, and kept her witch identity under wraps.

She began each day with a private “morning blessing” – a prayer to Mother Earth and an expression of gratitude for waking up.

She said: “My late husband (at the time) knew there was something – I mean, nobody would have as many candles in the house as I did!

“He was quite pragmatic and just left me to it.”

Since her husband’s passing around 18 years ago, Julie has met someone new, but he is also “very pragmatic” and is “not interested” in witchcraft.

In around 2015, Julie’s daughter told her about Facebook groups for witches – but she couldn’t find a group that shared her “same idea of witchcraft”, so she decided to create her own.

She added: “I didn’t think my daughter knew I was a witch but clearly she sensed it!”

Over time, thousands joined her “eclectic” group, where members “follow what they want”.

In 2018, Julie started an in-person coven called the Coven of Gaia through word of mouth, which now has 17 members.

The group meets to conduct spells and holds an annual festival, the Festival for Pagans and Witches, every May to teach others about witchcraft.

Their gatherings take place in Julie’s garden room, which features several altars dedicated to Mother Earth, Gaia, and Odin, along with dozens of crystals, candles, and herbs.

Julie serves as an elder in the coven, supported by a council of five mentors who guide the other witches.

In summer 2023, they launched a TikTok account to show that witches are “just normal people”.

The group regularly posts spells for prosperity, abundance, and sleep, using herbs and chants, and their account now boasts over 780,000 followers, earning enough money to expand their spell room.

“We wanted to raise some money for charity, so did a manifestation spell, and the next day one of our videos got one million views,” Julie added.

“We were able to donate £1,000 from the money we earned.

“Each spell is different, but for a money spell, which we conduct on the first of every month, we blow cinnamon into the house and it’s all about your intentions.”

The group frequently performs manifestation spells, aiming to help people through their work.

Despite there being no medical evidence to suggest it is possible, Julie claims the group conducted a healing spell for someone with cancer, which helped cure them.

“We focus our healing on a specific point and send our energies there,” Julie added.

“She was told she was going to die, so we sent healing signals from ourselves to her through a photograph of her, and she survived.

“She dreamt that witches were coming to help her, and we did.”

Julie said she believes a similar spell removed her dog’s tumour.

“My dog had a tumour on his spleen, and we did a big spell on him and when the vets cut him open to remove the spleen, the tumour had gone,” she said.

She has always performed protection spells over her family and believes they have saved lives – she claims two family members were involved in car accidents but escaped without a scratch.

While there is no medical evidence to support any of these claims, Julie remains steadfast in her beliefs.

To “sceptics”, she said: “If someone doesn’t believe in the power of the mind, then they should do a lot of research and see what miracles can happen when people use the power that they’ve got inside them.

“You see videos of people lifting cars when there’s someone trapped under them – we all have untapped power, and there’s so much potential in all of us.”

To find out more, visit: https://covenofgaia.co.uk, www.tiktok.com/@coven_of_gaia and https://afestivalforpagansandwitches.co.uk.