A small village in Burgos province, in the north of Spain, is home to what is probably one of Spain’s most bizarre festivals. It takes place every year as part of the Corpus Christi celebrations in the small village of Castrillo de Murcia, 41 kms from Burgos, in the north of Spain. Here, a character representing the Devil, known as ‘El Colacho’, protects babies from his evil influence by leaping over rows of infants born during the previous twelve months, who lie on rows of mattresses in the street.

It’s an event which dates back to the 1620s, and is organised by ‘the Cofradía del Santísimo Sacramento’ – ‘the brotherhood of the Holy Sacrament’. Every year, one of their fittest members is chosen for the honour of playing the part of El Colacho in the village’s Corpus Christi festival.