It all starts when two friends are invited to the home of a mysterious spiritualist medium to experience a seance in their search for evidence of the paranormal. But the medium’s home used to belong to a girl who died there. And that’s never a good combination.

So starts the story of 'The Seance', a piece of live theatre written and directed by the guest on this episode of The Folklore Podcast, Chris Stagg.

Chris talks with Mark Norman, creator and host of The Folklore Podcast, about his writing and interest in horror, and specifically about the logistics of placing a seance live on stage in front of an audience.

You can find Chris on social media:

Twitter/Instagram @cw_stagg

Bluesky @cwstagg.bsky.social

To support The Folklore Podcast in producing more content, please consider joining the Patreon page to access more content at www.patreon.com/thefolklorepodcast

In this special edition release of The Folklore Podcast, we chat with the New York Times Bestselling horror author Grady Hendrix about his fiction and non-fiction writing, and about his new book 'Witchcraft for Wayward Girls' which is released on the same day as this episode - January 14th, 2025.

Support The Folklore Podcast on Patreon and get extra exclusive content at www.patreon.com/thefolklorepodcast

Folklore in the Field is the bonus episode strand of The Folklore Podcast where we chat with people out on location about their work and interests. No frills. No heavy production. Just conversation.

In this episode, Folklore Podcast creator and host Mark Norman chats with children's author Claire Barker about her interests in folklore and her writing, including 'Knitbone Pepper, Ghost Dog', 'Picklewitch and Jack' and her forthcoming book 'Hettie Nettle's Handbook for Hedgewitches'.

Visit Claire online at https://clairebarkerauthor.com/

Support The Folklore Podcast on Patreon to access exclusive extra content at https://www.patreon.com/thefolklorepodcast

In this episode, the first show of the 10th anniversary season of The Folklore Podcast, we look at the classic TV mini-series 'The 10th Kingdom' which is celebrating its 25th birthday.

Folklore Podcast creator and host Mark Norman gives an overview of some of the content that you can expect during the season. This is followed by an interview with special guest Simon Moore, who wrote the screenplay for 'The 10th Kingdom'.

Simon gives some insights into his writing and the show and discusses the subjects of fairy tales and folklore. The interview also gives some information about the potential for a possible return to 'The 10th Kingdom' through new novelization and the options for a new TV series.

To support The Folklore Podcast on Patreon and get exclusive bonus material, please visit https://www.patreon.com/thefolklorepodcast

Find The Folklore Podcast on the web at http://www.thefolklorepodcast.com

The old Irish tradition of using enormous stones in the landscape, sometimes known as testing stones, as a feat of strength has been all but lost for generations. Such stones were lifted to honour the dead at funerals, as a rite of passage to adulthood, as a test of suitability for particular jobs or roles, and for many other purposes.

There are many such stones still lying in the Irish landscape, the purpose forgotten, until recently. Thanks to the diligent research and investigation of the guest on this episode of The Folklore Podcast, David Keohan, these stones are gradually being rediscovered, mapped, and lifted once again.

In this episode, we learn about the Irish traditions behind the Lifting Stones, and David's efforts to rediscover them.

You can follow David on his Instagram page at https://www.instagram.com/_indiana_stones_

If you enjoy this episode, please consider subscribing to our Patreon page. You can do this for free to access our storytelling podcast, Stories from the Hearth, or for a subscription from just £1 a month, you can access a whole catalogue of exclusive member only content. Visit www.patreon.com/thefolklorepodcast for more details

In this bonus interview from The Folklore Podcast, recorded live at the International Society for Contemporary Legend Research 40th anniversary conference at Sheffield Hallam University, Dr Megan Kenny sits down to chat with Folklore Podcast host Mark Norman and Perry Carpenter from the Digital Folklore Podcast.

Megan is a Senior Lecturer in Psychology and Sheffield Hallam and talks about power and psychology in folklore.

You can listen to Megan's own podcast Monstrous Flesh, which looks at women in horror, wherever you get podcasts. The website is at https://www.monstrousflesh.co.uk/podcast

Support the work of The Folklore Podcast on Patreon at www.patreon.com/thefolklorepodcast

As listeners in the US celebrate Thanksgiving, this bonus minisode takes a look at what we actually know about the history of this celebration versus the popular myth.

Support the Folklore Podcast via our Patreon page at www.patreon.com/thefolklorepodcast for additional content.

In this episode of The Folklore Podcast we enter the secretive world of the circus and the carnival sideshow - a community with much tradition and folklore but at the same time many secrets.

Our guest Nathan Wakefield, himself a variety performer, uncovers the world of the Sideshow Geek - controversial and eccentric acts which shocked many an audience member in the sideshows of the past. But how much of the act was genuine, and how much was just that - an act?

Nathan's book, 'The Rise and Fall of the Sideshow Geek' offers an in-depth look at this fascinating topic, aspects of which are touched on in this interview. Please note that this episode carries a content warning for stories of acts which may have involved abuse of animals.

Useful links:

Nathan's performing website: https://nathanmcscary.com/

Nathan's publisher's website: http://outsidetalkerpress.com/

Book softcover: https://outsidetalkerpress.bigcartel.com/product/the-rise-and-fall-of-the-sideshow-geek

Book hardcover: https://outsidetalkerpress.bigcartel.com/product/the-rise-and-fall-of-the-sideshow-geek-snake-eaters-human-ostriches-other-extreme-hardcover

eBook Purchase Link: https://books2read.com/u/38YOew

To support The Folklore Podcast on Patreon and access extra content, please visit www.patreon.com/thefolkorepodcast

We meet musician and composer Freya Waley-Cohen to talk about her work and the ways in which folklore and the occult have inspired her music. In particular, we look at 'Spell Book', a dramatic song cycle which sets spell-poems from Rebecca Tamas' book WITCH to original music.

You can visit Freya on the web and learn more about her work at https://www.freyawaleycohen.com/

To support the work of the Folklore Podcast on Patreon and access extra content, please visit www.patreon.com/thefolklorepodcast

There can be few people who don't have at least a passing awareness of the legend of the lost continent of Atlantis. But probably a significantly smaller number don't know much about Lemuria, another alleged land mass which sunk to the depths and which has since been seized upon by occultists to posit theories about our ancestral past.

In this episode of the Folklore Podcast we sort the aquatic wheat from the chaff with special guest Justin McHenry whose latest book provides an in-depth look at the stories of Lemuria.

You can visit Justin's website at https://www.justinjmchenry.com/

To support The Folklore Podcast and help us to keep going into our 10th season, please visit www.patreon.com/thefolklorepodcast

In this episode of the podcast, we explore the use of folklore as an inspiration for the creation of music, with award-winning musician, composer and songwriter Kate Young.

At the time of release, Kate has just released her much-anticipated debut album, Umbelliferæ (pronounced ‘um-bell-ifer-aye’), a captivating record inspired by plantlore and the ancient medicinal uses of wildflowers from the British Isles. Drawing from world traditions, chamber music, and indie/pop influences with a stunning song-led string quintet collection, each track is a unique journey through soundscapes inspired by specific plants, which Kate has woven together with stories and melodies that capture the essence of their characteristics and historical uses.

You can find out more about Kate and her music, and get a copy of her album, from her website at https://kateyoungmusic.com/

Support the Folklore Podcast on Patreon to help us to keep producing the content you enjoy. You can join as a free listener and access our storytelling podcast there, or from a small amount each month access our back catalogue of bonus materials. Visit www.patreon.com/thefolklorepodcast to sign up.