Hedgehogs in Folklore: Witches, Familiars, and Milk Thieves
Hedgehogs are one of the stranger mammals you might encounter. They're nocturnal, they hibernate, they're prone to rolling into a ball when frightened, and they're extremely vulnerable to habitat loss...
20 Sep 202520min
Moles in Folklore: Folk Remedies and Weather Omens
Moles are fascinating creatures. They're phenomenal diggers and while they weigh around 120g, they can shift 540 times their body weight of earth. Given they live entirely underground, they're a rare...
13 Sep 202520min
Otters in Folklore: Brave Helpers or Fearsome Monsters
Otters are some of the most charming mammals you might encounter. Sometimes nicknamed the "water sausage" by the internet, otters are playful, intelligent, and capable of using tools. They also appea...
6 Sep 202515min
Creepy Listener Stories of Space and Place
When we think about folklore, we often think about the characters involved: King Arthur, Queen Mab, Lady Godiva, and more. Yet folklore has an intrinsic link with place, too. Even the most throwaway...
30 Aug 202521min
The Screaming Skulls: Guardian Spirits or Poltergeists-in-Waiting?
English folklore is full of peculiarities. The legends of the so-called screaming skulls are definitely among them. These are skulls kept in mansions and farmhouses, sometimes considered to be guardi...
23 Aug 202526min
Storytelling and Making Folklore Accessible with Three Ravens
I'm talking to Eleanor Conlon and Martin Vaux from the Three Ravens podcast about the difficulties in defining 'folklore', the importance of storytelling, which of England's 39 historic counties has t...
20 Aug 20251h 32min
How does 'Poltergeist' draw on actual poltergeist accounts?
Poltergeist marked Hollywood's big-budget engagement with the ghost film in 1982. Produced by Stephen Spielberg and directed by Tobe Hooper, it took the haunted house film and mashed it together with ...
16 Aug 202527min
The Power and Allure of Poisonous Plants with S.A. Lawless
S.A. Lawless is an herbalist, gardener, forager, mycophile, outdoor educator, and published author and illustrator, with a long-held fascination with folklore and witchcraft, currently living in rural...
12 Aug 20251h 27min
