Folklore, Food, and Fairytales with Rachel

Every year, panto season rolls around again, and amid the usual mixture of fairy tales and family favourites, we often find several versions of Dick Whittington around the country. Unlike Sleeping Bea...

15 Jan 202217min

The name 'Boudica' conjures up a range of associations, but most often we perhaps think of a flame-haired warrior standing up to the might of Rome. Freedom fighter, warrior queen, Celtic icon—she's pe...

8 Jan 202225min

New Year's Day has long been a time associated with gift-giving, visiting friends, and attempting to predict the fortunes of the year ahead. Unsurprisingly, it's also been a time of rituals and supers...

1 Jan 202220min

In this second interview-based episode of Fabulous Folklore, I chat to folklorist Mark Norman, host of The Folklore Podcast and author of Dark Folklore! We talk about what may lie behind the resurge...

23 Des 202140min

The Grey Man of Ben Macdui appears to haunt the summit of Ben Macdui in the Cairngorms—Scotland's second-highest mountain. Climbers have reported strange sounds, feelings of dread, and even glimpses o...

18 Des 202119min

The Will O' The Wisp appears in a range of tales across the world. With varied names like corpse candles, fox fire, Jenny of the Lantern, and ignis fatuus, it also has a variety of origin stories!  L...

11 Des 202117min

Spectral black dogs, or Black Shuck, haunt the English countryside. But the stories vary as you travel around. Some dogs are premonitions of disaster, others are linked with the Devil, while some ev...

4 Des 202116min

Air travel seems fraught with potential problems—and you have little to no control over any of them! Learn about the range of superstitions and rituals people use to reach their destination safely in ...

27 Nov 202117min