Kelpies | Three Ravens Bestiary #10
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Show notes
From nuggles to brags, the Ceffyl Dŵr to nixies, there's plenty of reasons to be nervous about horse-shaped monsters on the shoreline - but fear not, as Martin is here to demystify Kelpies and mythical water horses in general!
Part of the "Three Ravens Bestiary" series, we start by discussing the links between seaweed and kelpies, the first appearances of mythical Kelpies in the poetry of William Collins, Robert Burns and Walter Scott, and how the history of horse riding is inextricably linked with tales of monstrous horses in folklore.
It's a galloping ride that takes us from the Highlands to Ancient Scythia and back again, and along the way we're venturing through early French ballads, talking broomsticks, Roman myths, and Dark Age stone monuments, while discussing the Pictish Beast, the Nuckelavee, shelleycoats, and much more!
Along the way, we'll have advice on how to spot a Kelpie in the wild, what to do to tame one, and how to kill these naughty beasts if such a thing proves necessary - although, as usual, there's some pretty weird stuff to uncover as we venture down to the water's edge, from Fairy Locks to backwards hooves, the Kelpie's links to Virgin Mary, and a possible battle between an early saint and the Loch Ness Monster...
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Three Ravens is a completely independent English myth and folklore podcast where we share stories, celebrate folk culture, and fall backwards through the hedgerows of history.
Hosted by real-life couple Eleanor Conlon and Martin Vaux, and mostly recorded at our home in rural Sussex in southern England, Three Ravens is rated 4.8/5 from over 500 reviews and has grown by word of mouth care of our lovely listener community ‘The Conspiracy of Ravens.’
We release three episodes a week, on Mondays, Thursday and Saturdays, through which we explore folktales, folkways, fairy stories, folk songs, mythology, local heritage, seasonal customs and traditional beliefs.
Our research inspires our retellings of stories from across history and culture, with episodes standing alone but connected together across over 500 chatty, mostly light-hearted, swear-free installments driven by passion, kindness and curiosity.
Now ranked as an all-time Top 5 podcast across several categories by Goodpods, charting in the Spotify, Apple and Rephonic UK Fiction Top 10 across 2024, 2025 and 2026, if you’re interested in ghosts, monsters, regional beliefs, and the things that unite us all, then join us round the campfire and listen in…
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