Tomb tourism is an old hobby in brighter clothes | Barbara Ellen

It seems that there is a rise in tombstone tourism. This is where people visit places with the express intention of looking around graveyards. Dubbed tapophiles, they are sometimes interested in a particular site because famous people are buried there, such as Karl Marx in Highgate cemetery or Oscar Wilde in the Père Lachaise in Paris.

At other times, the tapophiles just wish to wander among the tombstones, enjoying the sombre atmosphere. There are even special tours to ensure you don’t miss out on a particularly rocking cemetery.

As a pale person who doesn’t exactly fit in on the beach (I have to keep moving or someone puts a tag on my toe), all this mooching around graveyards looking at tombstone inscriptions sounds rather intriguing. For me, there’s also a strong Proustian element – hang on, it’s all coming back to me, a vision from my youth, involving hair crimpers, Elnett hairspray, dark-hued clothing and a haunting melody about going “into the trees”…

Enough of the sarcasm. It’s with affection that I say, stop calling these people tapophiles or even tombstone tourists. Just call them by their official name – Big Fat Goths.