Derbyshire Folk Tales

A collection of folk tales from the surrounding areas of the Peak District.

Passed down from generation to generation , many of Derbyshire's most popular folk tales are gathered together here for the first time. Ranging from stories specific to the region, such as 'The Derby Ram', to others which are local versions of well-known classics, like 'Beauty and the Beast', all of the tales in this collection are rooted in Derbyshire's past. Written to recreate the oral traditions that made these anecdotes popular, this book provides entertainment for all. Richly illustrated with original drawings, accounts of love, loss, heroes and villains are all brought to life through vivid descriptions that have survived for several centuries. These tales have been adapted to make them accessible, enjoyable and, at times, very relevant to contemporary readers. Pete Castle has lived in Derbyshire for over twenty years, and is a professional storyteller with over thirty years of experience. For the last ten years he has been editor of Facts & Fiction, the UK's only storytelling magazine.

Passed down from generation to generation, many of Derbyshire's most popular folk tales are gathered together here for the first time. Ranging from stories specific to the region, such as 'The Derby Ram', to others which are local versions of well-known classics, like 'Beauty and the Beast', all of the tales in this collection are rooted in Derbyshire's past. Written to recreate the oral traditions that made these anecdotes popular, this book provides entertainment for all. Richly illustrated with original drawings, accounts of love, loss, heroes and villains are all brought to life through vivid descriptions that have survived for several centuries. These tales have been adapted to make them accessible, enjoyable and, at times, very relevant to contemporary readers.

Ranging from the silly to the gory and unsettling, Nottinghamshire Folk Tales features tales of love, murder, and all kinds of roguery. From historical to fabled, the book includes an array of heroes and villains – including the legendary Robin Hood – and lovers of the supernatural will find an abundance of fairies, ghosts and monsters. This book presents the history of the people of Nottinghamshire through the stories they have told and passed on, keeping alive the rich history of events, ideas and customs. Whether the stories are of national import or local folklore, Pete Castle has made them accessible and enjoyable.

The life of the travelling musician hasn't changed much over the millennia. For a prehistoric harper, a medieval fiddler or a modern guitar player, the experience is pretty much the same: there are times when everything goes well and others when nothing does. But it's not just performing that can go wrong – listening can also be dangerous! Can you stop dancing when you get tired or must you keep going until the music stops ... if it ever does? What happens if it carries on past midnight? What if it turns you to stone? Pete Castle has selected a variety of traditional tales from all over the UK (and a few from further afield) to enthral you, whether you are a musician, a dancer, or a reader who likes to keep dangerous things like singing and dancing at arm's length.

Within these pages are tales of scheming creatures and ferocious animals from across the British Isles, passed down through the generations. Amongst the more famous beasts of myth and legend, such as the Loch Ness monster lurking in Scotland's black waters and the Hartlepool monkey that was mistaken for a French spy, are the less well-known stories of the peculiar, fantastical and extraordinary. Discover the fox Scrapefoot and his run-in with bears, the fisherman's wife who was really a seal, and the two warring dragons hidden under Caernarfon – all brought to life by noted storyteller Pete Castle. Illustrated with unique drawings, these enchanting tales will appeal to young and old, and can be enjoyed by readers time and again.

In this book, first published in 1970, Ruth L. Tongue has collected a number of county folk tales recorded by her from childhood onwards, from old people, village children and farm round-the-fire sessions. Many of the beliefs embodied in the gipsy and witchcraft tales are still in practice today among the travelling people and locally ‘gifted’ healers. The tales reveal a good deal of fairy lore, some tree lore, including ghostly trees like Crooker, and the ‘uncanny’ Black Dog makes his appearance in more than one tale. The collection includes several of the long fireside tales which would be told on succeeding evenings on winter nights round the kitchen fire, and rhozzums from various localities.