Ep 57: Processional Gnomes, Psychopomps and Chanting Monks of Staffordshire

A plethora of encounters and experiences from two sisters who grew up in the Staffordshire Moorlands. Twins, Gemma and Kate lived on a farm in Leek and their experiences shared here include: trooping gnomes, lights in trees, a visitation from a Raven at a funeral, spectral chanting monks, disappearing and reappearing objects and much much more!

⭐️In the exclusive bonus on Patreon, our guests share further spooky events which took place at a haunted hotel in Devon that used to be owned by a member of her family. Plus, I will read some supernatural lore and weird tales of Staffordshire including the headless horseman of Onecote, local fairies dancing in a ring near Leek, the Black Mere of Morridge and Lud’s Church. Staffordshire seems to be quite a hot spot!⭐️

*Bonus will release on Monday 24th April at 4pm at https://www.patreon.com/themodernfairysightingspodcast

Main Image: “Pro Pàtria” fragment of verses from the same chapter of Liliana.
by Apel les Mestres 1907

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Warning: These are not fairytales. The Modern Fairy Sightings Podcast is designed for viewers and listeners 16 years and older. This show is unsuitable for children or anyone who might be sensitive to creepy content.

Show notes

A photo I took on the path to Tintagel Castle in Cornwall (the legendary place of King Arthur’s conception and birth!). I think it’s a raven. Or is it a crow?


Ravens

Ravens, the largest birds in the corvid family, are well known in folklore as psychopomps – creatures who lead the recently deceased souls to and from the afterlife as part of the transmigration process.

The Morrigan famously takes the form of the raven as does the Welsh god, Bran the Blessed. In Native American mythology they are known as messenger spirits and guardians of magic. In Northern European folklore, ravens were viewed as guides for the dead. Odin himself had two ravens, Huginn (thought) and Muninn (memory) who flew around the world gathering knowledge on his account, similar to Lugh the Irish God who also had two ravens.

Processional Gnomes

It was the Irish poet, William Butler Yeats who originally divided the fairies into ‘trooping’ and ‘solitary’ in his book, Irish Fairy and Folk Tales. The general sense is that the troopers are largely benevolent while the solitary folk can be mischievious or dangerous. However, from my own pleasant experience with what appeared to be a solitary Fae man, the above does not necessarily ring true!

Other instances of these observed formation of Fairies are in Episode 31: Arrival of the Fairy Host. I also mention previous guests of the show, Dr Jack Hunter and Dr Neil Rushton‘s experiences.

Mentions

Lights in the Sky https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12367516/reviews

Mixon Mine Fairies: https://ludchurchmyblog.wordpress.com/places-of-other-local-interest/mixon-mine-fairies/

Gem’s She-Shed and Garden Sightings

Gem talks about some anomalous lights in her shed, which I will upload on Monday 24th April. In the meantime, check out this strange photo which seems to capture a being with a hat wandering around her garden!! If anyone out there is an expert on photos and videos, please contact me.

Gem’s ‘Missing Jewellery’ story on BBC Sounds:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p0f3108w

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If you enjoy the show, please consider sharing your favourite episodes with friends. Don't forget to rate and subscribe wherever you listen, and if you can, please support by joining The Curious Crew on Patreon

Want to report a sighting?

Contact me at: scarlettofthefae@gmail.com
If you love the show and want support it and join our loving community you can find us at Patreon 

Ep 53: Dartmoor Gnomes and Seer Lineage

Another delve into the original interview recordings I made in early 2017 when the Modern Fairy Sightings Project first launched.  Mark Norman and I were at the time researching for the Devon chapter in Simon Young’s book Magical Folk.

One particular woman responded to a poster I’d pinned up in Dartmoor, calling for people to contact with their fairy encounters! We spoke about her family history with fairies and her own understandings of the Otherworld. 

Later on in the show, I share more reported fairy sightings on Dartmoor featured in Janet Bord’s book, Fairies: Real Encounters with Little People.

In the bonus episode on Patreon, we explore  20th century Dartmoor folklore by Theo Brown, which mentions a few stories of sightings in Postbridge, not far from Bovey Tracey, where our guest had lived.

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Warning: These are not fairytales. The Modern Fairy Sightings Podcast is designed for viewers and listeners 16 years and older. This show is unsuitable for children or anyone who might be sensitive to creepy content.

Shownotes

Janet Bord’s Fairies: Real Encounters with Little People (1997)

Theo Brown’s Tales of a Dartmoor Village: Some Preliminary Notes of the Folklore of Postbridge (1973)

Susan Chittenden’s A Romance of Two Worlds (2021) (pls email me for Susan’s contact)

J. R. W. Coxhead – Devon Traditions and Fairytales (1959)

Edward L. Gardner: Fairies: A Book of Real Fairies (1974)

Marjorie T. Johnson’s (Simon Young ed) Seeing Fairies: From the Lost Archives of the Fairy Investigation Society, Authentic Reports of Fairies in Modern Times (2019)

Dermot MacManus Middle Kingdom: The Faerie World of Ireland (1980)

Simon Young’s Magical Folk: British and Irish Fairies: 500AD to the Present (2020)


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If you enjoy the show, please consider sharing your favourite episodes with friends. Don't forget to rate and subscribe wherever you listen, and if you can, please support by joining The Curious Crew on Patreon

Want to report a sighting?

Contact me at: scarlettofthefae@gmail.com
If you love the show and want support it and join our loving community you can find us at Patreon 

Ep 52: Interview with Kate ‘Hare Girl’ Ray

I speak with paranormal investigator, Kate ‘Hare Girl’ Ray from her excellent YouTube podcast show, Hare in the Hawthorn.

Originally hailing from Nottingham, Kate has a particular interest in the Wollaton Gnomes case, and is a published author on the subject. She also writes for Haunted Magazine and creates magnificent mushroom-related art pieces in her spare time!

Kate shares a gnome encounter that took place in her teens at the Uffington White Horse and describes the time she acted as a mediator between a troubled home owner and an angry French Fae being, for the TV show Help my House is Haunted.  We also discuss the strange potency of this time we are living through. 

A video version of this episode will release on The Modern Fairy Sightings YouTube channel next weekend. 

 
In the bonus episode waiting for you on Patreon, Kate shares a shocking experience which left her terrified but offered a greater understanding and respect for the Fae.  Join us there for access to a whole back catalogue of bonus episodes.

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Warning: These are not fairytales. The Modern Fairy Sightings Podcast is designed for viewers and listeners 16 years and older. This show is unsuitable for children or anyone who might be sensitive to creepy content.

Shownotes

In the main episode, Kate describes a being she saw on the way down to Wayland Smithy from the Uffington Horse. Here’s what she created in its likeness:

Likeness of a Fairy Being seen by Kate Ray in the bushes near Wayland Smithy
By Kate HareGirl Ray of Hare in the Hawthorn

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If you enjoy the show, please consider sharing your favourite episodes with friends. Don't forget to rate and subscribe wherever you listen, and if you can, please support by joining The Curious Crew on Patreon

Want to report a sighting?

Contact me at: scarlettofthefae@gmail.com
If you love the show and want support it and join our loving community you can find us at Patreon 

Episode 21: Awakening to Them

This episode is a deep chat about a number of extraordinary events and contact that my guest has experienced. The subject of a UFO/orb experience is covered early on but we do return to the subject of Fae. There’s so much cross over between fairy experiences and alien encounters and it’s been generating a lot of discussion for some time now. From my discussions with many listeners, topics about aliens and UFOs have also been gaining general interest, alongside fairy encounters.

My guest shares how these encounters have developed for him over time, resulting in an ever-deepening spiritual path. The discussion was recorded back in May 2021.  

There’s a bonus chat on Patreon where we discuss more personal healing experiences and he enlightens me on the idea of Starseeds – people on earth who come from other planets and are here to help the earth and its inhabitants.  

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Main image: by Dorothy Lathrop (1922) from, Down-Adown-Derry: A Book of Fairy Poems, by Walter De La Mare

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Warning: These are not fairytales and the content is unsuitable for children. Episodes may contain descriptions which some may find unsettling or frightening. The Modern Fairy Sightings Podcast is designed for listeners 16 years and older.

Tea Ceremonies

My guest shared some information about tea ceremonies, which feature strongly in his practice.

Chinese tea ceremony (artist unknown)

“Tea has been used for over 10,000 years in China as a plant teacher and medicine by shamans who later travelled to Japan. Tea is very connected to the elementals and nature spirits, as you will experience when you drink the tea. For meditation, I use Oolongs or Pu-erh tea, from China or Taiwan – organic if possible. The Fae tea is called Shuixian tea or sometimes Wuyi Shuixian tea. Shuixian means ‘water fae’ and people who drink it often see Fae. Phoenix Oolong is also a good choice as it connects you to the heavenly creatures (dragons, phoenixes etc). China has a large number of Fae found throughout their folklore, because they were Taoist. The tea does contain a small amount of caffeine but it calms, helps you meditate and opens the upper chakras. It’s all in the brewing: a teaspoon of the Fae oolong tea to one cup of boiled water. Put the leaves in the cup and take out after one or two minutes. Wait until the tea has cooled down a little, then take it to a sacred place (this could be your garden or somewhere safe to meditate in a park). Stay empty and flow with what comes in. You can ask the tea if it has any messages.”

My deep gratitude to our guest for sharing this information. We may provide an episode about tea ceremonies at a later date. Let me know if this is something you’d be interested in!

Shownotes

UFO Documentary: ‘The Phenomenon

Dr Jack Hunter’s Spirits, Gods and Magic: An Introduction to the Anthropology of the Supernatural.

Dr Jack Hunter’s short course, ‘Spirits, Gods and Magic: An Introduction to the Anthropology of the Supernatural‘, Sophia Centre, The University of Wales, Trinity Saint David.

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Podcast intro music: Transmutate by Snowflake (c) copyright 2020 Licensed. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License.