The Folklore Podcast

Author Elizabeth Lee discusses her book 'Cunning Women' with guest reviewer Hilary Wilson. Voted one of the best books of 2021 by readers of Grazia magazine, the novel is based around the events of the Pendle Witch Trials and follows cunning woman Sarah Haworth as she searches to find love under the gaze of a new magistrate investigating a strange series of deaths in the village.

Dr Amy Jeffs is the author of the book "Storyland: A New Mythology of Britain" which sees Amy retelling some of the well known and more obscure mythological tales of the British Isles, along with expert analysis on their themes and content. The title has been phenomenally well received and has been shortlisted for the Waterstones Book of the Year prize.In this episode, hosted by the creator of The Folklore Podcast, Mark Norman, Amy discusses her research, themes of British mythology and some of the sources for it, and we get to listen to the Prologue of the audiobook version of Storyland.To visit Amy's website, please click hereTo support the work of the Folklore Podcast and Folklore Network in collecting and preserving folklore materials for the future, please visit our support pages

This episode of the Folklore Podcast Book Club discusses the book “The Wheel: A Witch’s Path Back to the Ancient Self” written by Jennifer Lane and published by September Publishing.The book follows Jennifer on her year-long journey via the Pagan calendar, through the seasons, as she explores how the ancient wisdom of witchcraft and paganism has profound resonance in our increasingly frenetic and detached modern world. Paganism gave Jennifer the rootedness that she was lacking in her busy and stressful life and allowed her to restore her relationship with time and the natural cycle that had previously been lost. Book reviewer Carly Tremayne discusses the book with Jennifer, and together they explore the themes that it brings up. Find the review for this and many other folklore book titles on the Folklore Podcast website hereThe support the work of the Folklore Podcast and Folklore Network in collecting and preserving folklore materials for the future, please visit our support pages.

Mark Norman, creator and host of The Folklore Podcast, welcomes folklorist Dr Jeana Jorgensen onto the show to discuss the study of folklore, why it is important and the types of approaches which could be used. Acting as a springboard for the discussion is Jeana's book 'Folklore 101' which is one of the liveliest and most accessible introductions to the subject which anyone could hope to read.Follow Jeana on Twitter hereClick here for Jeana's blog on Only Sky.Please help to support the work of the Folklore Podcast and its other projects in collecting and preserving folklore materials for the future. Visit our support pages to learn more.

Season 7 of The Folklore Podcast begins with an examination of the case of the Bideford Witches - three poor women from a port town in Devon in the South West of the UK who are notable for the fact that they were the last three women accused of witchcraft to be hanged in England. But exactly how much of their story has anything to do with witchcraft, and how much is a commentary on the social and physical conditions of those living in poverty in our past?Dr John Callow discusses his research into the case, which forms the backbone of his new book on the women.Visit John's website at www.johncallow.co.ukTo support the Folklore Podcast and its work collecting and preserving folklore for the future, please visit the support pages on our website.

We round off Season 6 with a special feature length episode. Broadcaster and comedian Robin Ince is in conversation with podcast creator and host Mark Norman in this live recording, made as part of Robin's 100 Bookshops tour in 2021, supporting his book "The Importance of Being Interested". The discussion covers science, folklore, storytelling and the intersection of all three things in an free-form conversation.This episode is closed in traditional fashion by the talented music duo Lunatraktors, with a unique performance of "The Holly and the Ivy" using reconstructed pre-Christian themes of the song.To support the Folklore Podcast in its aim to collect and preserve folklore materials for the future, please visit our Patreon page or make a small donation via our website.Visit The Cosmic Shambles Network for more of Robin's work, and the Lunatraktors website to learn more about them.

In the final episode of The Folklore Podcast Book Club for 2021, guest reviewer Bethan Briggs-Miller (Eerie Essex podcast) speaks with author Clio Velentza about her modern reworking of the Faust story, "The Piano Room", published by Fairlight Books.The Folklore Podcast Book Club is part of The Folklore Network. To support our work preserving folklore for the future, please visit our Patreon page.

Guest reviewer Hilary Wilson speaks with Dr Maria DeBlassie about her book "Weep Woman Weep" which centres around the Mexican legend of La Llorona. The discussion takes in a diverse range of topics from urban legend to New Mexico folk medicine via the decolonisation of the diet and more.Visit Maria's website hereTo support our work saving and preserving folklore for the future, please visit our Patreon page.

Hearing stories. Telling stories. Adapting stories. The power of stories...We speak with Nydia Hetherington, author of "A Girl Made of Air" and Molly Aitken, author of "The Island Child" about their use of folklore and story in their novels. For Nydia, these stories are drawn from Manx folklore which Molly's book is firmly rooted in Irish lore.The Folklore Podcast Book Club is part of the Folklore Network; committed to collect, preserve and make available folklore material in all forms for the future. To support our work, please visit our Patreon page or visit our website here where you can learn more and make a one-off donation.

Lindsay Sharman and Laurence Owen of Long Cat Media, the creators of fiction podcast Mockery Manor, discuss working with themes of folklore and fairy tale in the construction of their popular show. We examine some of the folklore which has found its way into Mockery Manor as well as a wider discussion of this way of telling stories.Visit Long Cat Media on the web hereTo support our work at The Folklore Network in collecting and preserving folklore in all forms for the future, please visit our Patreon page here or visit our website to learn more

In this episode of The Folklore Podcast Book Club, Jhenah Telyndru joins us to discuss her book examining the Welsh Goddess character Blodeuwedd, whose complexity makes her much misunderstood. Jhenah hold an MA in Celtic Studies from the University of Wales and approaches the subject both from the academic angle and also from her own spiritual side, bringing a unique perspective to the subject.Blodeuwedd is published by Moon Books, whose website is hereVisit Jhenah's website hereThe Folklore Podcast Book Club is part of the Folklore Network, striving to collect and preserve folklore for the future. You can support us on Patreon or click here for more information.

Sculptor Aidan Harte joins podcast host Mark Norman to discuss the figure of the Pooka in Irish folklore, as well as the recent controversy surrounding the design for a statue of the beast which he was commissioned to produce for the town of Ennistymon.This episode also features musician Enda Haran performing his protest song about the Ennistymon Pooka.Visit Aidan's homepage hereVisit Enda Haran Music hereThe Folklore Podcast is part of the Folklore Network, working to collect and preserve our folklore for the future. To help us undertake this vital work, please visit our Patreon page or make a small donation on our website.

Host Mark Norman is joined by Nina Allan, author of 'The Dollmaker' to discuss her novel 'The Good Neighbours' which fuses crime investigation, the power of myth is shaping human narratives and the world of fairy belief.We discuss some of the themes of the book, including the work of Victorian painter Richard Dadd, whose most famous work 'The Fairy Feller's Master Stroke' adorns the cover of the novel and beliefs in the world of fairy.Visit Nina's website hereThe Folklore Podcast Book Club is part of The Folklore Network, which strives to collect and preserve folklore materials for future generations, housing them in The Folklore Library and Archive. Please share our work and, if you can, support us here for extra content.

Folklore Podcast creator and host Mark Norman is joined by Gabriela Houston, author of the fantasy novel 'The Second Bell' to discuss the folklore of her native Poland. Gabriela uses various aspects of Slavic lore, in particular a reworking of the traditions relating to striga, in this book, although the conversation branches out far more into various aspects of folklore including healers, superstition and all things monstrous.The Folklore Podcast is part of The Folklore Network, which aims to protect and preserve our folklore for future generations. To help support what we do, please consider a small donation via our website or joining our Patreon page.

In an episode of The Folklore Podcast Book Club which is a continuation of our discussion with Prof. Jack Zipes on the main podcast, guest reviewer Hilary Wilson talks with artist Natalie Frank about her collaboration visualising the fairy tales in the book 'The Island of Happiness' from Princeton University Press. The Folklore Podcast Book Club is part of The Folklore Network, collecting, conserving and preserving folklore for the future. You can support our work on Patreon at http://www.patreon.com/thefolklorepodcast or by making a donation on the website at http://www.thefolklorepodcast.com Music: 'November' by Kai Engel. CC BY 4.0. Click here to see Kai's catalogue.

When we think of tellers and recorders of fairy tales, our mind naturally turns to Hans Christian Andersen, Charles Perrault or, of course, the Grimm Brothers. And yet, the 17th century French writer who actually coined the term ‘conte de fee’, or fairytale, when she published her major collection of them in 1697 goes largely unremembered - sidelined perhaps because of her gender at a time when such prominence amongst women was sadly much more rare. That writer, who compiled the original collection in the French language, was Marie-Catherine Le Jumel de Barneville, known more colloquially as Madame d’Aulnoy. Her work is not often found in English-language volumes, but is rather sidelined to one or two translated stories being put into anthologies alongside other writers. But in April of this year, Princetown University Press released a new English collection of Madame d’Aulnoy’s tales, beautifully visualised by Natalie Frank and translated by the eminent Professor Jack Zipes. The book, called The Island of Happiness features a new translation of The Tale of Mira, one of d’Aulnoy’s earlier stories in which the beautiful protagonist kills any man who falls in love with her, before herself falling for a man who is indifferent to her. In this episode of The Folklore Podcast, guest interviewer Hilary Wilson speaks to the eminent Professor Jack Zipes, translator of D'Aulnoy's works and expert on the literary fairy tale. on the life of Madame D'Aulnoy. To support all of the Folklore Podcast Network's projects and help to enable us to continue providing free access to the world's experts in folklore and their materials, please visit our Patreon page or made a small donation via our website.

Guest interviewer Becky Jones meets Dr Martin Shaw, mythologist and storyteller and the author of the book 'Smoke Hole', published by Chelsea Green Publishing. 'Smoke Hole' uses traditional folk tales as a metaphor on modern life. Martin is director of the Westcountry School of Myth and the interview looks at his work as a wilderness guide, the ways in which his writing provides commentary on the modern through mythology and much more. Click here to find out more about the Westcountry School of Myth Click here to watch the video version of this interview on our YouTube channel The Folklore Podcast Book Club is part of the Folklore Library and Archive. To support our work in preserving and making folklore resources available for future generations, please click here.