The Imp, the Angel and the Power of a Good Story 📜

Today I found myself standing beneath the vaulted ceilings of Lincoln Cathedral, a place that towers over the city – and over the centuries. If you’ve ever visited, you’ll know it’s not just a building; it’s an experience. One of those rare places where you step inside and feel time shift.

There’s the architecture, of course – gothic arches reaching heavenward, sunlight filtering through jewel-toned glass, the hush of centuries clinging to the air. But today, it wasn’t the grandeur that caught my attention.

It was a little stone figure, tucked away up high: the Lincoln Imp.

If you don’t know the story, let me fill you in. Legend has it that the devil once sent two imps to cause chaos on Earth. One of them made it to Lincoln Cathedral, where he danced on the altar, smashed stained glass and knocked over the candles (classic imp behaviour). But before he could do more damage, an angel appeared and turned him to stone – mid-mischief – where he remains today, immortalised in limestone, grinning down from the Angel Choir.

You have to really look for him. But once you spot him, you don’t forget him.

This little local legend has taken on a life of its own. The Imp is on keyrings, tea towels, postcards. There’s even a football team named after him. And today, as I stood there, I watched families pointing him out to each other. Kids elbowing siblings. Adults retelling the legend in their own words. Everyone connecting – not to the building, but to the story.

And that’s when it hit me: This is why I love what I do.

As a translator and transcreator working in tourism and travel, I spend my days deep in destination content – hotel descriptions, city guides, walking tours, social campaigns. The kind of copy that needs to sell a feeling, not just a fact.

But here’s the thing. You can’t just translate the words and call it a day.
You have to translate the experience.

And that’s where the Lincoln Imp comes in.

Because he’s more than a stone figure. He’s a perfect metaphor for the kind of tourism storytelling that actually sticks. He's local. Mischievous. Unexpected. He’s got personality – and people remember him.

If I translated a guide and said,

“There is a small carved stone figure located in the choir, believed to depict a folkloric imp,”
…I’d be technically accurate. But I’d also be… boring.

But if I said,

“Look up into the Angel Choir and you’ll spot a mischievous little imp, frozen in stone. Legend has it he was caught in the act by an angel and turned to stone – yet a trace of his wicked smile still lingers, watching visitors from the shadows” …that’s a story. That’s a moment. That’s how a place becomes memorable across languages and cultures.

🧭 This is the heart of good tourism translation – and a big part of what I help my clients do.

Whether I’m working on a destination brand campaign, localising copy for a hotel website, or supporting a DMO’s language strategy, the goal is always the same:
Preserve the personality. Keep the story alive. Make it culturally meaningful.

Because let’s face it – in today’s AI-heavy landscape, anyone can churn out a quick translation. But few can capture the voice, the emotion, the legend. And that’s what tourists respond to.

People don’t fly across the world for bullet points. They travel for stories, quirks and that feeling of discovering something just a little bit magical.

✨ So here’s what the Lincoln Imp reminded me of today:

• In tourism, it’s the tiny details that create the biggest emotional anchors.

• In translation, those details must be protected – even if the words need to change.

• And in storytelling, mischief always wins.

Whether you're a translator, a tourism marketer or an inquisitive traveller, don't overlook the small details. It could be the thing that your audience remembers years later.

I left the cathedral feeling oddly inspired. Not just by the scale of the place, but by its smallest character.
The Imp may be frozen in stone – but the story is very much alive.

📍Have you ever come across a local legend that stuck with you?
📚Or seen a place use storytelling in a way that really worked across cultures?

#TourismMarketing #TranslationWithCharacter #StorytellingInTourism #TourismTranslations #LincolnImp #Imp #LincolnCathedral #Transcreation