Mythical Creatures

Rhianna Pratchett explores the tale of a mysterious wolf-like creature in Shetland.

This mythical beast is not all it might, at first, seem to be. Rhianna digs into the story and finds out what it could reveal about folklore - and ourselves - in the 21st century and what the future might hold for mythical creatures.

The fantasy writer concludes her trek across an enchanted British Isles to discover mythical creatures that lurk in all corners of the land.

Rhianna is out to uncover what they can tell us about our history, our world and our lives today.

Storyteller: Graeme Johncock

Other Contributors:

Catriona Macdonald

Producers: Lorna Skingley and Sarah Harrison

Executive Producer: Mel Harris

A 7digital production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in December 2023.

Rhianna Pratchett is on a quest to find out about an Irish death omen, the Banshee.

She explores the importance of this creature’s cry, the significance of her haggish female form, and why the belief of her remains strong today.

The fantasy writer continues her trek across an enchanted British Isles to discover mythical creatures that lurk in all corners of the land.

Rhianna is out to uncover what they can tell us about our history, our world and our lives today.

Storyteller: Liz Weir

Other Contributors:

Dr Kelly Fitzgerald

Original Music by Ben MacDougall.

Producers: Lorna Skingley and Sarah Harrison

A 7digital production for BBC Radio 4 first broadcast in December 2023.

Rhianna Pratchett heads to the Scottish coast to meet a shape-shifting sea creature called the Selkie.

Selkies are seals in the water, but can remove their seal skins and become humans on the land.

Rhianna explores the tale of The Selkie Wife. She delves into what it reveals about murky parts of our own history, and asks how it can be used to empower and help people today.

The fantasy writer continues her trek across an enchanted British Isles to discover mythical creatures that lurk in all corners of the land.

She's out to uncover what they can tell us about our history, our world and our lives today.

Storyteller: Shona Cowie

Other Contributors:

Sharon Blackie

Original Music by Ben MacDougall

Producers: Lorna Skingley and Sarah Harrison

A 7digital production for BBC Radio 4 first broadcast in December 2023.

As a child, Rhianna Pratchett was told of sleeping giants on the hilltops near her grandparents' house in Wales.

Now she returns to the Welsh mountains and to Cader Idris – a striking mountain in the Eryri National Park – to meet a particularly intriguing giant.

Rhianna discovers why giants have been important to humans for centuries and asks what giant tales might offer us in the present day.

The fantasy writer continues her trek across an enchanted British Isles to discover mythical creatures that lurk in all corners of the land.

She's out to uncover what they can tell us about our history, our world and our lives today.

Storyteller: Peter Stevenson

Other Contributors:

Erin Kavanagh

Original Music by Ben MacDougall

Producers: Lorna Skingley and Sarah Harrison

A 7digital production for BBC Radio 4 first broadcast in December 2023.

Rhianna Pratchett hears tales of folkloric hobgoblin-like creatures nicknamed 'hobs' from the North York Moors.

These small, hairy creatures might do your chores while you’re asleep. Like many other friendly household spirits they can be useful - but also temperamental. You need to stay on the right side of your hob!

Rhianna, keen for some help around the house, takes notes on how to keep your hob happy, and what happens when it’s not. She also explores what such tales can tell us about our lives - past and present.

The fantasy writer continues her trek across an enchanted British Isles to discover mythical creatures that lurk in all corners of the land.

She's out to uncover what they can tell us about our history, our world and our lives today.

Storyteller: Rosie Barrett

Other Contributors:

Bob Fischer

Original Music by Ben MacDougall

Producers: Lorna Skingley and Sarah Harrison

A 7digital production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in December 2023.

Rhianna Pratchett is on the trail of one of her favourite mythical creatures - the mermaid.

She visits Conwy in North Wales, the scene of a mermaid’s curse, and dives into a myriad of salty tales.

Rhianna hears how the meaning and representation of mermaids has changed throughout history and how the mermaid can speak to the environmental movement in the 21st century.

The fantasy writer is taking us across an enchanted British Isles to discover mythical creatures that lurk in all corners of the land.

She's out to uncover what they can tell us about our history, our world and our lives today.

Storyteller: Ffion Phillips

Contributor:

Professor Sarah Peverley

Original Music by Ben MacDougall

Production Manager: Nikki Cannon

A 7digital production for BBC Radio 4 first broadcast in December 2023.

Rhianna Pratchett tentatively heads to Scotland, in search of a small but vicious castle-dweller, that soaks its cap in its victims’ blood – The Redcap.

She explores why stories of such violent creatures originated in a region with its own turbulent past, and finds out how their use has shifted over time.

The fantasy writer continues her trek across an enchanted British Isles to discover mythical creatures that lurk in all corners of the land.

She's out to uncover what they can tell us about our history, our world and our lives today.

Storyteller: Graeme Johncock

Contributor:s

Icy Sedgwick

Additional Voiceover: Neil Hutchinson

Original Music by Ben MacDougall

A 7digital production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in December 2023.

Rhianna Pratchett explores the dark world of water demons, from Jenny Greenteeth in the North of England to kelpies – shapeshifting water horses – in Scotland.

She hears chilling details of their activities and their purpose but also learns what can be used for protection against these fearsome creatures.

The fantasy writer is taking us across an enchanted British Isles to discover mythical creatures that lurk in all corners of the land.

She's out to uncover what they can tell us about our history, our world and our lives today.

Storyteller: Lari Don

Contributor:

Mark Norman

Original Music by Ben MacDougall

A 7digital production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in December 2023.

Rhianna Pratchett seeks out dragons, and heads up to Sunderland, to meet one such specimen, The Lambton Worm.

Rhianna explores how these powerful creatures reflect human power struggles, symbolise changing threats, and how they are used to justify who has rights over the land.

The fantasy writer is taking us across an enchanted British Isles to discover mythical creatures that lurk in all corners of the land.

She's out to uncover what they can tell us about our history, our world and our lives today.

Storyteller: Stuart Miller

Other Contributors:

Dr Jamie Beckett

Original Music by Ben MacDougall

A 7digital production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in December 2023.

Fantasy writer Rhianna Pratchett takes us across an enchanted British Isles to discover mythical creatures that lurk in all corners of the land.

She uncovers what they can tell us about our history, our world and our lives today.

In the first of ten episodes, Rhianna is on the trail of Black Dogs.

She visits Suffolk, to hear a tale of a hellhound that left its mark on the small town of Bungay. It’s one of many spectral black dogs that are said to stalk coastal paths and lonely crossroads.

Rhianna explores why Black Dogs appear so often in folklore, and their psychological link to fear and negative emotions.

Storyteller: Michael Lambourne

Other Contributors:

Helen Bruce

Original Music by Ben MacDougall

A 7digital production for BBC Radio 4, first broadcast in December 2023.