The Loch Ness Monster is perhaps one of the world’s most enduring mysteries. Does a giant reptile really lurk in a Scottish loch? Has it somehow survived for millennia on its own? Or is it something darker and more dangerous? It is, after all, a monster. Its legend dates to the 7th century, although recorded…

Few maritime disasters have captured the public imagination like the RMS Titanic. Perhaps it’s because of the relatively recent nature of its sinking, compared to the loss of the Mary Rose warship.  The countless films, documentaries, and exhibitions probably help in prolonging fascination. New theories and reconstructions attempt to pin blame on one factor or…

In this month’s episode of Fabulous Folklore Presents, I’m talking to Russ Williams, the author of Where the Folk: A Welsh Folklore Road Trip. Russ grew up in Caernarfon in North Wales, where he was raised on Welsh stories, like the one about a mountain that would send you mad or turn you into a…

When we look at types of folkloric creature, we often encounter the same types in different places, such as mermaids or fairies. But occasionally, you encounter a creature so localised that it only appears in a single place. The Blue Men of the Minch are one such example. Feared by sailors, the Blue Men of…

If we think of submerged cities, lost beneath the waves, we’re probably most likely to think of Atlantis, that thought-experiment that took on a life of its own. Closer to home, there’s the lost Welsh kingdom of Cantre’r Gwaelod, believed to lie between Bae Ceredigion and Ynys Enlli.  Yet there are countless tales of submerged…