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.

Folk tales have been important to us for centuries, but in the grand span of their existence we only started writing them down relatively recently. In this episode of the Folklore Podcast, we are joined by Scottish storyteller Allison Galbraith, who is one of those who not only tells in person, but also commits stories to print.

Amongst these is the tale Zombie Cow, which she performs as part of this episode and which we couldn't resist using as an episode title.

This episode is a rich investigation into the art of storytelling, the written word and much more.

Visit Allison's website at www.voiceandstory.com

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

In one of our occasional Folklore in the Field episodes, recorded live at events, Folklore Podcast creator and host Mark Norman is joined by Bronte Schiltz for a discussion of representations of the ghost on television.

This interview was recorded at the UK Ghost Story Festival 2024 at the Museum of Making in Derby, UK.

To support the Folklore Podcast on Patreon, please visit www.patreon.com/thefolklorepodcast

A quick interruption to your lives with some news about the podcast!

In another of our occasional series looking at the work of American storytellers, we meet the award winning Laura Packer.

Based in Minnesota, Laura has over 25 years of storytelling experience and was recently inducted into the United States National Storytelling Network’s Circle of Excellence - a select group of storytellers determined by their peers to be standard bearers of the art, and masters at the craft.

You can find Laura online at https://laurapacker.com/

Please visit www.patreon.com/thefolklorepodcast where you can join our Patreon support page for free or pay a small amount each month to help our work.