Post

More from @reviewwales

Mark Rees

@reviewwales

Dec 16, 2021

CHRISTMAS IN WALES: A THREAD 🎄🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿
"One of the most curious customs which was once in vogue about Christmastime was the procession known as Mari Lwyd, a man wearing the skeleton of a horse’s head decked with ribbons and rosettes."
1/
#FolkloreThursday #Wales #Christmas

I'll be updating this thread with lots of Welsh folklore as we count down to Christmas, sources to follow. The Mari Lwyd photo above gets used a lot this time of year, it was originally taken for one of my stories in South Wales Evening Post many moons ago. Nadolig llawen!

Christmas in Wales:
The Mari Lwyd (the man wearing the skeleton of a horse’s head) "was enveloped in a large white sheet and proceeded round the houses, followed by a merry procession, singing songs, playing merry pranks & collecting Christmas boxes."
2/
#FolkloreThursday #Wales

Read 5 tweets

Mark Rees

@reviewwales

Oct 17, 2020

HALLOWEEN IN WALES:
A THREAD 🎃👻🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

"All Hallows Eve is by the Welsh called Nos Calan Gaeaf, meaning the first night of winter. It is one of the 'Teir Nos Ysprydnos' - three nights for spirits - upon which ghosts walk and fairies are abroad."

#Wales #Halloween #Ghosts #Folklore

I'll be updating this thread daily with snippets of Welsh folklore from various sources (references to follow) as we count down to October 31.
Oh, and for lots more Halloween history, be sure to check out the GHOSTS & FOLKLORE podcast... if you dare! 🎃
markreesonline.com/ghosts-folklor…

"Nos Calan Gaeaf or All Hallows' Eve was a time of much festivity. In the days of old it was attended by many superstitious rites & ceremonies. A huge log was thrown on the fire for heat & light. As a rule, the only illumination was that of the ruddy fire-glow."
#Halloween #Wales

Read 13 tweets

Mark Rees

@reviewwales

Sep 4, 2020

My new book PARANORMAL WALES was published in March - the same week the UK went into lockdown, great timing! - so I postponed my book launch until Halloween.
Sadly that won't be possible either, so I'll be having a virtual launch party on my GHOSTS & FOLKLORE podcast instead.
👇

The great thing about doing it online is that all my friends from around the world can join in, so it should be my most well-attended book launch to date - even if I am sitting here on my own talking to myself into a mic! Signed copies will also be available, more on that soon
2/

The PARANORMAL WALES book launch will be live on: Thurs, Oct 29 - just in time to get everyone in the Halloween mood.
Just like my "Ghosts of Wales - Live!" events there'll be spooky surprises & guests and I'm not entirely sure what I'm doing so any suggestions would be great!
3/

Read 6 tweets

Mark Rees

@reviewwales

Jul 22, 2020

Today is the feast day of Mary Magdalene. This is said to be her skull, which is kept in a glass dome in a crypt outside Provence:
"The skull of Mary Magdalene rests in the crypt of the Basilique Sainte Marie Madeleine, a massive Gothic basilica whose construction began in 1295."

More on Mary Magdalene's skull here:
magdalenepublishing.org/skull-mary-mag…

@reviewwales

For more weird and wonderful tweets:

⚡️ “Curious Wales: Folklore, ghosts, myths and legends” by
@reviewwales

twitter.com/i/events/12786…

Read 5 tweets

Mark Rees

@reviewwales

Jul 20, 2020

Who wants to WIN a spooky free book?
I'm giving away a copy of PARANORMAL WALES to one lucky person, a spine-chilling journey in search of the country's "most haunted" locations.
Just like and retweet to enter. Good luck!
(*Porcelain ghosts not included!)
#paranormal #wales #win

Standard Mark Rees T&Cs apply. Winner will be drawn at random and DM'd on Mon, July 27. Bribery probably won't work, but it's always worth a try. Judges decision (mine!) is final. I'll be moaning that I have no books left in a week or two, I really should stop giving them away...

If you enjoy my weird and wonderful tweets, why not join me for more Ghosts & Folklore on:
• Facebook: facebook.com/reviewwales/
• Instagram: instagram.com/reviewwales/
• Podcast: markreesonline.com/podcast/
• YouTube: youtube.com/channel/UCqPaf…
• Newsletter: markreesonline.com/markreesnewsle…

Read 4 tweets

Mark Rees

@reviewwales

Jul 16, 2020

The Llanddona Witches of Anglesey had a curse for unpleasant men:

"May he wander for ages many;
And at every step, a stile;
At every stile, a fall;
At every fall, a broken bone;
Not the largest, nor the least bone,
But the chief neck bone, every time."

#Wales #FolkloreThursday

The Llanddona Witches verse/curse has been translated from the Welsh language. Here's the original:
"Crwydro y byddo am oesoedd lawer;
Ac yn mhob cam, camfa;
Yn mhob camfa, codwm;
Yn mhob codwm, tori asgwrn;
Nid yr asgwrn mwyaf na’r lleiaf,
Ond asgwrn chwil corn ei wddw bob tro."

"The favourite haunts of Welsh witches were desolate places far from the busy centres of toil and traffic. In Anglesea they held their revels near the Druidical stones and the Roman watch-tower on Holy Island when making compacts with the devil."
#Wales #FolkloreThursday

Read 4 tweets

Share this page!

Enter URL or ID to Unroll

Mark Rees

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

More from @reviewwales

Mark Rees

Mark Rees

Mark Rees

Mark Rees

Mark Rees

Mark Rees

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Send Email!