Fabulous Folklore with Icy

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...

Paper is a wonderful material. It's portable and light, and as an everyday material, charms made from paper can be easily overlooked. We can reshape it, recycle it, and completely destroy it...or we can use it to preserve ideas! All of these qualities help explore why it can be a material of choice in some folk magic. Let's find out why it's perfect for spells and charms in this week's episode of...

Glass is a strange material. Its original source material is sand, but it needs human intervention through the application of heat and other processes to find form. We can see through it, but we can't touch what's on the other side. You can use it to concentrate a light source. Or it's helpful if you want to protect your eyes, but still see what you're doing. Both solid and fragile, it can be used...

Stones are perhaps some of humanity's oldest friends. They provided building materials and became simple tools. But they also vary in size, making some of them very portable as amulets. It's no wonder that they've accrued both lore and superstition alike.  Let's find out more in this week's episode of Fabulous Folklore! Find the images and references on the blog post: https://www.icysedgwick.com/f...

Different metals are often baked into mythology. Look at griffins and dragons with their hoard of gold. Or Bellerophon's use of molten lead to kill the deadly chimera. According to legend, people paid for their passage to the underworld with coins placed over their eyes. But how do different metals turn up in folklore? Why is iron such a protective metal, while silver has a whole range of uses? Ho...

Herbs are useful for flavouring your food or drink, but they have a range of protective and magical uses too. How is basil linked with both love and hatred? Why was dill the magician's herb? 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/edible-plants-folklore/   Learn Kitchen Herbalism with Rowan + Sage:  ht...

Thyme appears in folklore to bring courage, help bring love, guard against evil, and give fairies somewhere to live. What else can you use thyme for? 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/thyme-folklore/   Learn Kitchen Herbalism with Rowan + Sage: https://school.rowanandsage.com/courses/kitchenherbc...

Rosemary appears in folklore to aid remembrance, love divination, mourning, and protection from evil. What else can you use it for? 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/rosemary-folklore/  Get your free guide to home protection the folklore way here: https://www.icysedgwick.com/fab-folklore/ Learn h...

Sage is delicious and versatile, appearing in magic for love and remembrance, as well as a host of folk remedies. What can you use sage for? 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/sage-folklore/   Learn herbalism with Rowan + Sage: https://school.rowanandsage.com/courses/kitchenherbcraft?affcode=43759...

Parsley has links with death dating to ancient Greece. How is it also linked to both love magic and protection? 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/parsley-folklore/  Learn herbalism with Rowan + Sage: https://school.rowanandsage.com/courses/kitchenherbcraft?affcode=437598_3qokpyep Get your free gu...

In this fifth episode of Fabulous Folklore Presents, I chat to Dr Alessandra Pino, the author of A Gothic Cookbook ! In an update since we recorded this episode, the book is now 100% funded, so you're guaranteed a copy if you support the project now! You can also get 10% off your pledge with the code 'GOTHICPOD10'. We talk about what how food works in Gothic texts, mostly literature but also film,...

According to King's Lynn legend, the diamond-shaped brick emblazoned with a heart has a connection to Margaret Read, or Shady Meg, burned as a witch in 1590. How does this strange brick fit into this tale of witchcraft? 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/shady-meg-kings-lynn/   Get your tickets fo...