
A storytelling and folklore podcast.
Telling some of the famous and not so famous British and Irish myths, legends and folktales, in no particular order.
Coming direct from South Yorkshire it is currently regularish, and will feature all of the above and whatever other miscellaneous snippets take my fancy.
Presented by Graeme. Website at http://www.TalesofBritainandIreland.com
The first of two episodes on Irish fairy lore – featuring three tales of the Aos Sí and there’s not a pair of gossamer wings in sight.
Discover the connection between a fairy rath and the fairies wrath, meet a dead donkey who doesn’t drop anything, and take a good look at a fairy baby. While you still can.
For musical credits, sources and more visit the website: https://talesofbritainandireland.com/episode-40-irish-fairylore-1-aos-si-what-you-did-there/
#myth #mythology #folklore #legends #celticlegends

“And the fairies danced there once more in the moonlight, as they used to do in the old time”

The first of two episodes on Irish fairy lore – featuring three tales of the Aos Sí and not a pair of gossamer wings in sight.
Discover the connection between a fairy rath and the fairies wrath, meet a dead donkey who doesn’t drop anything, and take a good look at a fairy baby. While you still can.
There’s also a bit more of a lengthy discussion on the nature of fairies in Ireland at the beginning of the episode – where I ramble on a fair bit about how this fits in to wider fairy lore.
I hope you enjoy these three stories and expect more next time!
“Come away, O human child!
— W.B. Yeats, The Stolen Child
To the waters and the wild
With a faery, hand in hand,
For the world’s more full of weeping than you can understand.”

Some depictions of the Sidhe (without wings)
There are relatively few depictions of the Irish fairies available in the public domain, and many of those that are have unfortunately been caught up in giving them wings and the like, rather than representing them as they appear in the stories.
However here is a sample of illustrations that don’t do that from some of the more famous collections of Irish fairies at the turn of the century. They do serve to give some feel sure to the sheer range of the Aos Sí.











There’s no doubt at all but that there’s the same sort of things in other countries; but you hear more about them in these parts because the Irish do be more familiar in talking of them
From Lady Gregory’s Visions and beliefs in the west of Ireland
Selected Sources
Sources for stories told this episode
- Children of the Salmon and Other Irish Folktales – Eileen O’Faolain (Link to buy), Irish version of the story is here: The Gaelic Journal Vol. IV
- The Fairy-Faith in Celtic Countries – W.Y. Evans Wentz – interesting text for the stories, but a lot of the theory is very dated
- Ancient Legends of Ireland – Lady Wilde
- Legendary Fictions of the Irish Celts – Patrick Kennedy
Other sources
- Magical Folk: British and Irish Fairies: 500 AD to the Present – Simon Young & Ceri Houlbrook (ed.) Particularly the essay by Jenny Butler (Link to buy)
- The Good Neighbours: Fairies in an Irish and Scottish Cultural Context – Morgan Daimler
- Live Irish Myths episode 90: The fairies with Morgan Daimler (Daimler is an authority on this subject and in addition to the two sources listed here has a number of great youtube videos/interviews, journal articles and books on this subject)
- Irish Gothic Fairy sources – Steve lally & Paula Flynn Lally (Link to buy)
- Fairies, a Dangerous History – Richard Sugg (Link to buy)
- Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry – W.B. Yeats – a free book that is a great source of tales
- Ireland’s Immortals – Mark Williams (link to borrow at archive.org)
- Visions and beliefs in the west of Ireland – Lady Gregory, another free work that holds up
- The Irish Fairy Book – Ed. Alfred Perceval Graves
Musical credits for Episode 40: Irish Fairylore 1
Intro music from the incredibly talented Alice Nicholls Music
Outro music, and other various by Josh Keely and Mitch Newman
Other music, used under various Creative Commons and public Domain licenses:
Sláinte
Lark in the Morning. The Atholl Highlanders
The Butterfly. Kid on the Mountain
Denis Murphy’s Polka. I’ll Tell Me Ma. John Ryan’s Polka
Black Velvet Band
Myuu
Cold Shivers
Tip Toes
Skeleton Dance
Axeltree
Dragon Country (Apple & Clove) Instrumental Version
Damiano Baldoni
World of ruin
Magic Dance
Lee Rosevere
What’s Behind the Door
Incomptech.com/Kevin Macleod
Scheming Weasel
Lionel Schmitt
More than fantasy
Love and Sadness
[…] fairy lore with three more tales of the Aos Sí. If you’ve missed part 1 it’s here: Episode 40: Irish Fairylore 1 – Aos Sí what you did thereFeaturing a new trendy get rich quick scheme (robbery), absolutely banging tunes and highly […]