In this month's episode of Fabulous Folklore Presents, I'm talking to Russ Williams, the author of Where the Folk: A Welsh Folklore Road Trip. Russ grew up in Caernarfon in North Wales, where he was raised on Welsh stories, like the one about a mountain that would send you mad or turn you into a gifted poet if you camped out on it, or the one about the lost civilization drowned by the sea, and the one about the bottomless lake leading down to the Welsh Otherworld. He now lives in Cardiff. 

In this chat, we get into the origin story of the Devil's Bridge legend, we talk about whether stories can ever truly be claimed by one place, and an eccentric figure from Welsh history who has passed into legend.

Buy Where the Folk from Bookshop.org: https://uk.bookshop.org/a/12992/9781915279705

Find Russ on his website: https://www.russwilliams.org/

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When we look at types of folkloric creature, we often encounter the same types in different places, such as mermaids or fairies. But occasionally, you encounter a creature so localised that it only appears in a single place. The Blue Men of the Minch are one such example.

Feared by sailors, the Blue Men of the Minch lived in the straight between the Shiant Islands and Long Island. This stretch of water is known as sruth nam Fear Gorm, or the Stream of the Blue Men.

Most descriptions mention how similar they look to humans - if those humans had blue skin. They usually have grey faces, white beards, and long arms. They're also fearfully strong. And they're also humans with a fondness for pulling ships into the depths.

Let's find out more about them in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore!

Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/blue-men-of-the-minch/

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

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If we think of submerged cities, lost beneath the waves, we're probably most likely to think of Atlantis, that thought-experiment that took on a life of its own. Closer to home, there's the lost Welsh kingdom of Cantre’r Gwaelod, believed to lie between Bae Ceredigion and Ynys Enlli. 

Yet there are countless tales of submerged villages along both the west and east coast of England too, not to mention villages lost to the depths of lakes or reservoirs.

Many of them share a preoccupation with drowned church bells continuing to toll beneath the water. Others tell stories of losses often assigned to divine retribution. So how do these villages appear in folklore? Let's take a look in this week’s episode of Fabulous Folklore!

Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/submerged-villages/

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

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The humble mouse appears in a surprising amount of folklore. Both a harbinger of death if spotted in the house, and a medical remedy for a range of ailments, it seems the mouse both harms and heals.

This reputation even stretches back to ancient Egypt, demonstrating just how ambivalent humans have felt about the tiny rodent for centuries. With strange origin stories, links to a Belgian saint, a use in divination, and a helpful role as the Tooth Mouse, their lore covers a lot of bases!

Let's take a look at the mouse in folklore in this week’s episode of Fabulous Folklore!

Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/mouse-in-folklore/

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

Fabulous Folklore Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/fabulous_folklore

Enjoyed this episode and want to show your appreciation? Buy Icy a coffee to say 'thanks' at: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick

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Welcome back to Fabulous Folklore Presents. This time, I'm delighted to be talking to Darragh Mason, a multi-award-winning photographer, author, and researcher. He studied photography at Dublin City University and has traveled extensively across Asia, Europe, and America, where he has written articles and published his photography. His work has taken him to post-war countries such as Bosnia & Herzegovina and Kosovo. Darragh is particularly renowned for his photographic work on the Aghori Hindu sect and his research on the Djinn.

Darragh also hosts the award-nominated podcast *Spirit Box*, which explores topics of folklore, magic, and the spirit world. Beyond photography, he is the co-creator of the Sigil Engine, a technomantic art project. His book, "Song of the Dark Man, Father of Witches, Lord of the Crossroads", delves into the Dark Man as a devil-like figure in folklore and magic, exploring his role as trickster, initiatory guide of witches and creative force.

In this chat, we talk about the Dark Man as a concept, discuss his role in initiatory tales, and get into folklore as a continuum, rather than something that just happened in the past. There's a bonus rant about AI too!

Buy Song of the Dark Man: Father of Witches, Lord of the Crossroads: https://amzn.to/3V2r3x7

Find Darragh online at: https://www.darraghmason.com/

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

Fabulous Folklore Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/fabulous_folklore

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Humans first domesticated horses in around 3500 BC. Since then, they’ve pulled our chariots and carts, carried royalty and soldiers, worked on farms, and been steadfast companions.

Horses are actually a prey animal, which perhaps explains their vulnerability to supernatural attack by witches and fairies. 

Yet as the stories in this episode will show, they’re also famous for their speed, ability to help humans, and even fantastical leaps and bounds.

But let’s look at these horses, from spectres to Black Bess, in this week’s episode of Fabulous Folklore!

Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/horses-in-folklore/

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

Fabulous Folklore Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/fabulous_folklore

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Britain is supposed to be a nation of animal lovers, especially when it comes to pet dogs. According to the PDSA, 29% of UK adults own a dog, which gives an estimated population of 10.6 million pet dogs.

While 29% isn't a majority, the number of pet dogs in the country has increased over the last few years. So it seems only fair to see how this popular animal appears in folklore. After all, I've already covered their eternal nemesis, the cat!

In folklore, they sometimes appear as death omens—dogs persistently howling meant death was imminent. And they also appear in mythology, with Cerberus the three-headed dog guarding the Greek Underworld, and Anubis, the jackal-headed god presiding over the weighing of the heart ceremony in ancient Egypt. Let's not forget Sirius, in the Canis Major constellation, literally known as the dog star.

They take the form of spectral hounds, loyal companions, witches' familiars, and even give their name to a hangover cure. So let's explore the folklore of dogs in this week’s episode of Fabulous Folklore!

Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/dogs-in-folklore/

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

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Human relationships with deer stretch back thousands of years. Archaeologists uncovered red deer skulls at Star Carr in Yorkshire which are 11,000 years old. No one knows what they were used for, if they had practical applications or were used in shamanic rituals.

But it suggests some kind of relationship between humans and deer, even if we're not sure what that involved. Deer appear in mythology all over the world, although this post will focus on the British Isles.

From shapeshifting deer to fairy cattle, deer cults to white stag legends, let's explore the appearance of the deer in British and Irish folklore and legend in this week’s episode of Fabulous Folklore!

Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/deer-folklore/

Deer Woman article by Carolyn Dunn: https://endicottstudio.typepad.com/articleslist/deer-woman-and-the-living-myth-of-dreamtime-by-carolyn-dunn.html

National Leprechaun Museum podcast episode with Mark and Tracey Norman: https://open.spotify.com/episode/3mK66mxwarcOlIiKZBorQ7

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

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I’ve been sharing real-life supernatural experiences from Fabulous Folklore listeners for the past couple of weeks. It’s been brilliant to see how vulnerable people have been in sharing these, since talking about such things can often earn you a strong amount of scorn. 

But I really think it’s important to preserve these stories, a) to honour the experience itself, and b) to create a space where people who’ve had them can feel less alone.

It’s also been very fascinating to see how the experiences are rarely outright terrifying, but instead are just unsettling enough to disrupt normality. 

So let’s hear about the last lot of these experiences in this week’s episode of Fabulous Folklore!

Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/supernatural-experiences-3/

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

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In this episode of Fabulous Folklore Presents, I chat to Scott Richardson-Read of Cailleach's Herbarium about Scottish cosmology, discuss the differences between Scottish folk magic and folk magic practices elsewhere in the British Isles, and talk about the value of ancestor work in Scottish folk magic.

Scott is an independent researcher, published author, and activist with several master’s degrees in research, social sciences, and psychology. His academic background helps him explore Scottish folklore, customs, and traditions, uncovering their relevance today while grounding them in a rich historical and social context. His next book is launching in Spring 2025 “Mill Dust and Dreaming Bread” exploring these topics in a new way.

Combining academic research, archival work, and hands-on experience, Scott explores the historical roots of Scottish folk practices. With his "in the world, off the page" approach, he encourages people to take an active role in preserving Scotland’s cultural and intangible heritage. Through his work with the Woven Land Network, Scott curates events that bring together experts in Scottish folk magic, music, storytelling, and traditional practices, making these traditions meaningful and accessible today.

Scott’s passion for activism is shaped by a lifelong commitment to social justice. He works alongside minority groups, helping to influence legislation, policy, and practice in Scotland, and advocates for marginalised communities to ensure their voices are heard where it matters most.

Find Scott's website: https://cailleachs-herbarium.com/

Find Scott on IG @cailleachsherbarium

Support Mill Dust & Dreaming Bread - Reviving Scottish Folk Belief on Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/from-dust-to-light/mill-dust-and-dreaming-bread-reviving-scottish-folk-belief

Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/

Become a member of the Fabulous Folklore Family for bonus episodes and articles at https://patreon.com/bePatron?u=2380595

Fabulous Folklore Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/shop/fabulous_folklore

Enjoyed this episode and want to show your appreciation? Buy Icy a coffee to say 'thanks' at: https://ko-fi.com/icysedgwick

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