Something Wicked

Telling ghost stories at Christmas might sound like an odd tradition. But in the UK and other parts of Europe, it’s a holiday mainstay. After all, what’s more festive than telling tales of the macabre?

CW: violence.

By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes. It’s Macbeth - a play inspired, in part, by one of the most infamous witch trials in Scottish history.

CW: This episode contains descriptions of violence.

How do you know that your child is really your child? This is probably not a question many parents ponder today. But, for hundreds of years in Britain and Ireland, the possibility that fairies would steal your child and replace it with a crude imitation seemed very real to some people. In some cases, this had tragic consequences.

CW: This episode contains descriptions of violence and abuse from the beginning, which some listeners may find distressing.

Almost every school child knows the tale: say ‘Bloody Mary’ three times in a dark room, and she will appear. Her legend has made its way around the world. But could this rite of passage come from chilling stories that are centuries old?CW: This episode may not be suitable for young children.

Halloween in America is technicolour. Orange pumpkins, brightly-coloured costumes, parties and celebrations all round...it’s a big deal. But in the UK and Ireland, Halloween has darker roots that are well over a thousand years old. TW: This episode contains discussions about death, and towards the end, COVID-19.