Urban Legends among Children: Clowns, Insects, and Ice Shards
In January, I asked people if they wanted to share any children’s folklore as part of my February theme. As a branch of study, this largely refers to folklore created, shared, and maintained by childr...
14 Feb 22min
Trolls as Toys and Figures from Folklore
Some toy trends make sense, like the fascination with Lego or even Barbie-mania, which naturally enjoyed the boost from the 2023 film. The fad for trolls, however, doesn't immediately make sense. Thes...
7 Feb 22min
Ralph Hedley: Painter of North East Scenes and the Working Class
The arts remain one of the best ways to preserve culture in a way that people can interact with. Literature, folk music, and art, among others, allow us to experience culture, even secondhand, using t...
31 Jan 30min
Explore 3 strange legends of the Newcastle Castle
The Newcastle Castle occupies a strange position in the city centre. So strange that some people can’t believe we have a castle in town at all! Various buildings have stood on the site for centuries,...
24 Jan 22min
Meet Joe Wilson: The 19th-Century Bard of Tyneside
Walk along Stowell Street in Newcastle upon Tyne and turn into St Andrew’s Street, and you might notice a plaque on the wall. It marks the site of the house where Tyneside bard Joe Wilson was born - t...
17 Jan 27min
The Blaydon Races: The Story Behind the Tyneside Anthem and Sporting Event
Inhabitants of the Tyneside region are undoubtedly familiar with the 19th-century song, 'The Blaydon Races'. It describes a journey from Newcastle's city centre to Blaydon to see the races, and even b...
10 Jan 20min
Newcastle Disasters: Fire, Flood, and Plague
Newcastle upon Tyne is famous for many things: its bridges, nightlife, and being the birthplace of Greggs are just some of them. We've seen plenty of world firsts here, been on the frontline of scienc...
3 Jan 30min
New Year Folklore and Traditions with Eerie Essex
We're onto the final instalment in this series of Festive Folklore episodes, that are coming to you with the help of some of my Fabulous Folklore friends! This time we're turning our attention to New ...
27 Dec 202546min
