Fabulous Folklore with Icy

When you think of witchcraft in earlier centuries, you probably think of stereotypically wizened women, huddled around cauldrons or casting curses. You probably wouldn't immediately think of royal witches. Yet within the space of a single century, there were four women in England's royal family that fell prey to witchcraft accusations. Whether they actually practiced witchcraft is unknown, and qui...

Shapeshifting witches appear in various British tales, in which witches appear as cats, hares or even hedgehogs. In other stories, they can magically transform humans into horses, to carry them to their meetings. Let's look at shapeshifting witches in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore! The Witch by Ronald Hutton - https://amzn.to/3ZE3483 Find the images and references on the blog post: http...

Shapeshifting is an ancient ability that appears in cultures around the world across a vast period of time. It appears in an array of 'types' of shapeshifting. Some creatures can simply shift their form due to a natural ability. Gods often change their form (hello, Zeus), but they can also change the form of others. Demonic activity, sorcery, and being cursed might also lead to a person shifting t...

Furniture tells us a lot about a period, people, or place. It's solid, so it can often be the only tangible artefact left. It often bears the impression of human activity through use, and they tell stories. Items of furniture also carry their own traditions through the ways in which we use the things that we inherit. Quilts, that cosiest of furnishings, carry so much energy from one generation to...

In this 9th episode of Fabulous Folklore Presents, I chat with Dr Delyth Badder, a Welsh folklorist and antiquarian book collector based in Pontypridd in the south Wales valleys with a special interest in Welsh death omens and apparitions!  In this interview, we chat about death omens in Welsh folklore, the problems with sharing folklore on social media, exploring some eerie Welsh ghost stories, a...

This episode isn't strictly a Fabulous Folklore episode...it's actually the Eerie Essex Christmas special, but I appeared on it, along with Jo from the Modern Fairy Sightings Podcast! So sit back with a mug of something warm, and enjoy ghost stories, tales of Christmas customs, and modern Santa encounters... Eerie Essex Podcast - https://www.buzzsprout.com/1827712 The Modern Fairy Sightings Podcas...

One of the plants that bears a festive name actually has nothing to do with the period - and that's the Christmas Rose. It's actually a black hellebore, part of the buttercup family. This is a plant accused of murdering Alexander the Great, believed to have cured insanity in ancient Greece, and used as a poison in warfare. So what's the folklore associated with the black hellebore? How does it app...

Few things are as synonymous with Christmas decorations than the tree itself. Pine, spruce and fir have all been used at some stage to form the centrepiece of the festive decorations. But what exactly is the folklore associated with conifers? How do they appear in protective practices? Can you use them in magic? And what is their link with Christmas? Let's find out in this week's episode of Fabulo...

Many plants are linked with Christmas, including ivy. What is the folklore of this climbing plant? How is it used in magic? Let's find out in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore! Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/folklore-of-ivy/ Weather folklore talk with Creswell Crags: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/red-sky-at-night-the-fascinating-world-of-weathe...

Treasure, stolen booty, graves, and other dark things lurk in the folklore of British caves. Let's go and explore a few legends in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore! Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/folklore-of-british-caves/ Weather folklore talk with Creswell Crags: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/red-sky-at-night-the-fascinating-world-of-weather...

Tunnels seem to accrue more folklore than most. Perhaps it's because we can't see where they go when we can only see the entrance. Or perhaps we've been so primed by fiction to believe tunnels must lead somewhere that we love the idea of a secret world beneath our feet. Some tunnel legends are common and appear all over the British Isles, with people attempting to explore them and vanishing during...

Catacombs are subterranean cemeteries, providing eternal rest to those who lie there. Yet they're also mysterious sites, sometimes open to tourists, and less often used for burial. Stretching away below ground as they do, it's easy to imagine what goes on away from prying eyes. But what folklore is attached to these unique locations? Let's explore a handful and see what we find in this week's epis...

Legends tell of treasure beneath Tynemouth Castle & Priory. Did Walter the Bold really find the Wizard's Cave, or does it lie there still? Or was the cave the haunt of smugglers? Let's find out in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore! Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/wizards-cave/ Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: http...

These four weird ghost stories come directly from my own experience. I can't say if they happened, or I just imagined them, but listen with an open mind... Happy Halloween! Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/weird-ghost-stories Read 'The Foundling' short story: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fridayflash-foundling/ Get your free guide to home protection the fo...

In this eighth episode of Fabulous Folklore Presents, I chat with Mario Góngora, professional voiceover talent and host of the podcast, “Yes, This Happened,” a paranormal show detailing supernatural accounts from real people who swear that what they experienced really happened.  These stories originate and are collected from the Caribbean, Mexico, and all of Latin America. Expect some ghostly goin...

The severed head is a common motif in horror films. But aside from the obvious examples, like Perseus and Medusa, or the head of Bran in Welsh legend, how does the severed head—and indeed the Headless Horseman—appear in folklore? Let’s find out in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore! CW: Discussion of execution. Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/seve...

The gallows loom large in the historical imagination. Indeed, it's quite the staple in many Hammer horror films, emerging from the mist as a crow caws off-screen. But how does it appear in the popular imagination of medicinal cures and folk magic? Let’s explore the folklore of the English gallows in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore! CW: Discussion of hanging and execution . Find the images...

In this seventh episode of Fabulous Folklore Presents, I chat with Helen Nde, Cameroonian-born researcher, writer and artist and curator of the Mythological Africans platform! In this interview, we chat about African folklore, the importance of mythology and storytelling, and Helen's new Kickstarter! Find Mythological Africans on Twitter here: https://www.twitter.com/MythicAfricans Support the Kic...

Death superstitions provide a common theme throughout folklore. It’s hardly surprising. Before the advent of modern medicine and health and safety, communities may have felt more at the mercy of life’s whims. Following superstitions gives an element of control. Indeed, many of them also have mundane roots. Hanging a dish cloth over a door knob meant there would be a death in the family. That said,...

Skeletons are a common costume choice at Halloween. But they’re the ultimate symbol of death. Let's be honest, if I see a skeleton, then I know I'm looking at a dead body.  So let’s explore the folklore of skeletons, and how they appear in art, in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore! CW: Discussion of skeletons and human remains. Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.ic...

Seaside plants have to be tough to survive in their salty, windy conditions. Learn the tales associated with a collection of coastal plants in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore! Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/seaside-plants-folklore/   Learn Kitchen Herbalism with Rowan + Sage: https://school.rowanandsage.com/courses/kitchenherbcraft?affcode=437...

Lighthouse legends cling to these odd buildings around the British Isles. And lighthouses ARE odd places. Learn the tales associated with lighthouses in England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore! Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/lighthouse-legends/   Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: http...

Grace Darling helped save 9 people from a shipwreck in the North Sea in 1838. She went on to become a Victorian hero. And naturally, that meant a few myths sprang up about her! Let's dig into the story of Grace Darling in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore! Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/grace-darling/   Donate to the RNLI: https://rnli.org/suppo...

Shells evoke days at the beach and the wonders of nature. But they are the remains of living creatures—so you can see why some people think it's bad luck to bring them indoors! They're also associated with St James...and some think the 'she sells sea shells' tongue twister has an interesting origin! Let's dig into the folklore of shells in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore! Find the images...

In this sixth episode of Fabulous Folklore Presents, I chat with Edward Karshner, Associate Professor of English at Robert Morris University! In this interview, we chat about the folklore of Appalachia, including its ghosts, witches, and the strange sense of fatalism! Find Ed on Twitter here: https://www.twitter.com/EdKarshner The links we mentioned! Seven Sisters of the Pleiades: Stories from Aro...