Spinning in Folklore: Impossible Bets and Crafting With the Fates

In this 10th episode of Fabulous Folklore Presents, I chat with George Popov, the Bulgarian born writer-director behind the folk horror films, 'Hex' and 'The Droving', and the 'Sideworld' documentary ...

21 Feb 202345min

Hats and gloves end up subject to lots of folklore around dropping them, or putting them in the wrong place. But what does it all mean?  Which is a sign of luck, or that you'll invite misfortune? Le...

18 Feb 202316min

The folklore of clothes contains ways to use the contents of your wardrobe to attract luck, discover who you'll marry, and defeat the fairies!  But how? Let's discover some of these practices in thi...

11 Feb 202318min

Footwear is surprisingly common in folklore, with boots, shoes and stockings used for protection, divination, and medicine. Burning shoes, pinning stockings, avoiding those who are barefoot—it's all ...

4 Feb 202319min

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 wit...

28 Jan 202329min

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 the...

21 Jan 202317min

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 fo...

14 Jan 202317min

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 st...

7 Jan 202321min