John Mirk of Lilleshall Abbey wrote in the 1300s of the three fires made on St Johns Eve. One of Clean bones, to purify and deter spirits. The second a wakefire, made of wood, the social circle of warmth. the final was of bones and wood, a ritual blaze called St Johns fire. #Folklore #Midsummer

A blindfolded young woman should pick a rose on Midsummer Day at midday while the clock struck twelve. She should fold the rose in white paper and put it away until Christmas Day. If she did it right, the rose would still be fresh. She should put it on her bosom & her intended would snatch it away.

"A goblin must have helped: a glow-worm could not find its mate; it set the trouble in motion. It was the elder-tree: Midsummer Eve!" (Wagner) 🎨 Tuesday Riddell #WyrdWednesday

An 1855 oil painting by Scottish painter William Bell Scott, depicting pixies dancing by firelight. In a letter written by Scott in 1886, he described the painting as showing ‘fairies dancing before a great dying kitchen fire…at a Haunted House on Midsummer’s Eve.’ #WyrdWednesday

Blessed by recent heavy rains, the South is putting on its own Midsummer Magic! Look to the ancient Live Oaks for the Resurrection Fern. Shriveled and brown just days ago, the downpours have woken it up - turning the canopy into a lush, vibrant green explosion! #WyrdWednesday #Nature #Ferns

The Snork Maiden describes a Moomin Valley custom: after the Midsummer bonfire burned down you'd collect 9 kinds of flowers and place them under your pillow, and your dreams would come true. 'But you weren't allowed to say a word while you picked them...' #Wyrdwednesday 1/2

#FolkloreThursday is 11 years old on 18th June! Celebrate with us by sharing your favourite folklore to the hashtag between 9am-4.30pm and 6.30-7.30pm BST and join us for the final @culturalfutureshub.bsky.social 5.30-6.30pm BST. Tickets: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-cultur... (Image:James Petts)

#WyrdWednesday The Zorra Berradeira or Screaming Fox is a spirit said to roam the Algarve in Portugal at night, filling the air with it's eerie howls and foul stench. To hear it's cry is an omen of death or disaster. It is sometimes described as looking like a goat with wings. 🎨 Carlos Porfírio

Wyrdlings! Esta é a ditosa pátria minha amada, Portuguese poet Camões wrote, whose day of death in 1580 is now Portugal's national day. And this year it falls on a #WyrdWednesday so this week’s topic is “Portugal!” Come, sit down & tell us wynderful tales of Portuguese lore, literature & history!

“All the world will be your enemy, Prince with a Thousand Enemies, and whenever they catch you, they will kill you. But first they must catch you, digger, listener, runner, prince with the swift warning." ("Watership Down") Richard Adams was born #otd 1920 🎨 Léa Chaillaud

Sometimes they come back. From old tales. And walk among us. For #EarthDay today, we have such an old tale, about green children from the Middle Ages. And it might even be a tale along the lines of... hope, maybe? Read more in our 53rd #darkspringtide story below. 🎨 Charles Folkard

My short #horror story 'Needles' recently fell out of print, so it's up on my blog if anyone would like a read. It's based on the true story of Kitty Hudson, dubbed 'the human pin cushion', an early patient at the now defunct Nottingham General Hospital in 1783. cwreeve.com/2026/04/22/n...

According to a Flemish folktale, a woman went to the market with a basket full of eggs. Along the way, she spoke ill of another woman who was known to be a witch. The eggs in her basket changed into toads. 🎨Teagan White #WyrdWednesday

Some sea-faring people believe that if you don’t break the shell after cracking open an egg, a witch might steal the shell and use it as a boat, then sail out to sea and summon a powerful storm! #WyrdWednesday 🎨 from the Wellcome Collection

The Irish word for fairy is sheehogue [sidheogl, a diminutive of 'shee' in banshee. Fairies are deenee shee [daoine sidhe] (fairy people) ~W.B. Yeats Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry 🎨 John Atkinson Grimshaw (1879) #BookologyThursday

In a Flemish folktale, a woman who was said to have been a thief during life haunted a town in the shape of a deer. The ghost deer would knock on doors and wait. Between her horns she carried an illegible text. She stopped appearing when someone deciphered the text. 🎨Eugen Krüger #WyrdWednesday

Wyrdlings! Some things are set in stone. Or wood. Or bone. You name it, since this week: "Carvings, Inscriptions & Writings on the Wall" is our #WyrdWednesday topic – so, tell us tales of wyrd bas-reliefs, strange runes on artefacts and otherworldy hieroglyphs found in deep dungeons!

Often when you think you're at the end of something, you're at the beginning of something else. ~ Fred Rogers 🎨Martin Johnson Heade (1819–1904) #wyrdwednesday

England

Wyrdlings! Swedish storyteller Elsa Beskow turns 152 this week, reason enough to give you: “Sabaton, Snorri, Storsjöodjuret - Strange Scandi Stories!” as this week’s #WyrdWednesday topic! Come, tell tales, of elks, sea rovers and Nordic Noire!

Wrydlings! Connect with your fellow wyrdlings using our official #WyrdWednesday Starter Pack 👻 go.bsky.app/VbnjwPS

🖼 Woodland floor with Snowdrops, Josef Lauer, C19th.

Guess who Ireland’s “Black Gentry” is. And if they leave their rookery is a sure sign of bad luck coming... but what if the rooks return? Well, we’ll find out in our 3rd #winterfolklore tale. Read it below. 🎨 Carton Moore Park

The Haunted Park by Richard Doyle (1824-1883) #PhantomsFriday

In Celtic mythology, a white stag is a herald of profound change. In Arthurian legends he symbolizes the eternal quest for spiritual knowledge. In Narnia, the stag grants wishes to those that catch him. art by Sebastian Meyer

Some say the animals talk at midnight on Christmas Eve and what the animals say is seldom good. But, of course, we hear what they have to say in our 25th #yulefolklore story, because it’s a proper #wyrdwednesday tale and… talking goats! Read it below! 🎨 Edgar Hunt

Blessed Yule youtu.be/rNI6b35kdi0?...

On the 21st December, The Stiperstones becomes a dangerous place. The Devil sits on his chair and calls forth all the wicked folk, to judge their misdeeds and partake in the most important black mass of the year. During this, they elect the king of evil for the next 12 months. #folklore #solstice

Lovely memories of wonderful reviews of my poetry collection, In the Shadow of Gods, when it first came out. 👇

We light the candle crown of St Lucy in our 14th #Yulefolklore tale today, of course, but learn that there is always a dark counterpart, even when we keep the other at bay. Find out how that goes in the link below. 🎨 John Bauer

Delighted that Selkie has been rereleased today. It was such a wonderful experience to write this script and work with the amazing @storiesalt.bsky.social and our brilliant actors! 💙 If you would like to travel to the sea today 🦭 pod.link/1812026298 🦭

Many cultures feared the winter dead would wander, but they also welcomed them home. Lighted candles, open doors, and shared food kept the living and the dead in gentle company. #FolkloreSunday Art: Jeffrey Sparks

The end of the year is a liminal time and the believe of witches abroad doing mischief is almost universal across Northern Europe in December. We meet one in our 9th #yulefolklore tale in the Bavarian Alps – and, of course, she’s up to no good! Read it following the link below. 🎨 Maéna Paillet

Wyrdlings!   It’s fantasy fantasy pioneer George MacDonald’s 201st birthday this week and to honour him, we’ll give you:   “Going Deep - Goblins and Other Things that Burrow and Crawl Underground”   as our #WyrdWednesday topic!   Come and share tales with some depth ⛏️👻

A little late but Gruss vom Krampus 🖤💀

Rereading @racheldeering.bsky.social's wonderful poetry collection. Can't recommend this book often enough!

I'm so excited to share that I have an article in Witch Magazine! This is a real 'pinch me' moment for me, as it is such a beautiful magazine, filled with stunning artwork and so many talented writers! 🌙✨️ www.witchesmagazine.com #witches #paganism #folklore #Shropshire #writing #witchcraft

They “appear at Christmas-Time not by themselves, but in attendance on the real gift-giver...: while these dole out their favours, those come on with rod and sack, threatening to thrash disobedient children, to throw them into the water, to puff their eyes out.” (Grimm) 🎨 André Ducci

Kali would like to remind everyone that this book exists before she goes to dance with her fellow witches in the woods tonight.

The Aurora Borealis is associated with death among some Indigenous tribes. The Skolt Sámi believed that the dead bled from their open wounds in the afterlife, creating the ribbons that danced across the sky. #WyrdWednesday

Magic, tall tales and #Yulefolklore A story a day – told over the holidays, until 6 January. So, come, gather around the fireplace and listen to dark seasonal tales of trolls, witches & other things that go bump in the Winter! Find the link for today’s first tale in the comments 🎨Hannah Ward

Now that itch is back up why don't you jump on over there to get a game which is perfect for one shots with virtually no prep and also is great for introducing kids to ttrpgs. In Fey Wanderer you play fey creatures on a quest for a treasure fey-earth.itch.io/fey-wanderer

The castle of Düsseldorf is said to be haunted by a white lady. According to legend, a duchess named Jakobine & her lover were murdered by her jealous husband. Her ghost was alleged to be seen before a series of fires which plagued the castle. #WyrdWednesday

If you like gayness, angst and emotional trauma have we got the perfect show for you! ❤️💜🏳️‍🌈💔

Support this wonderful poet if you can! 🖤 Also, if you haven't read In the Shadow of Gods yet, you're missing out on some of the most beautiful lines ever written. ko-fi.com/kofisupporte...

I am SO EXCITED to announce that we are FULLY FUNDED!!🖤✨ Massive thank you to everyone who has pledged, shared, and supported this project! @signemaene.com and I are so excited to bring these stories to life! www.kickstarter.com/projects/sig...

We are very close to being fully funded for this project!! There is one week left for The Witch's Child Kickstarter! Please consider pledging or sharing this link with all of your witchy friends. Thank you so much!🕷️🐍🐺 www.kickstarter.com/projects/sig...

It's Halloween, Flanders' witches are joyously cackling while dancing to strange, wild music in the woods. Our project has just reached 80% funding! Thank you so much! 🖤🌙🖤 kck.st/492NqKt

Such a cool collab! Both podcasts are fantastic!