During my recent cruise gig to France, I was lucky enough to go on a cultural adventure in Saint-Émilion, a medieval town I’ve talked about in lectures for years but had never actually visited. Famous for its wine – like everywhere in the Bordeaux region – it’s a rabbit warren of winding streets and steep…
I kicked off 2026 with an exciting new sideline: travelling the world as a cruise ship speaker. To say it’s been an adventure – a cultural adventure, even – would be an understatement. I’ve been lucky enough to set foot in Africa for the first time, hang out with the free-roaming monkeys on the British…
A huge thank you to everyone who came along to the very first Paranormal Unpacked Live! in Swansea on Easter Saturday – wow! 👻 And a huge apology to those who couldn’t get in or had to stand. We hoped it would be busy, but didn’t expect it to be overflowing. The response to the…
Mark Rees will be touring Swansea this spooky season, presenting four spine-chilling talks as part of the Swansea Libraries programme in Morriston, Killay, Mumbles and Gorseinon. Halloween is a time for ghost stories — and Swansea has plenty to tell. These talks focus on the most haunted places in Swansea, offering fascinating insights into the…
On Wednesday 17 September, Mark Rees will present an extended online version of his talk, The Sublime Landscapes of Dracula, as part of the Derby Dracula Project’s Dracula: Lunchtime Bites series. The event is free, but you must book in advance. In May, Mark delivered this talk at the inaugural Dracula Returns to Derby conference,…
Author Mark Rees gives the lowdown on Neath Port Talbot’s most spooky places. (This article was originally published in South West Wales Without a Car in 2024) Margam Castle is considered to be one of the ‘most haunted’ places in Britain. Its supposedly paranormal residents include a white lady who haunts the stairs at night,…
What makes Wales feel like, well… Wales? Is it the castles—more than 600 of them scattered across the landscape? The breathtaking 870-mile Wales Coast Path, the only one of its kind in the world? Or maybe it’s the stories—the myths, the battles, the poets and bards who spoke in hushed tones of fire-breathing dragons and…
For fans of the paranormal, Yvette Fielding needs no introduction. Best known for her long-running TV show Most Haunted, Yvette brought ghost hunting into the spotlight and into homes across the UK. Now, on her podcast Paranormal Activity with Yvette Fielding, she delves deeper into all things supernatural— and Mark Rees had the pleasure of…
Fairy gold: Ever wondered about the secrets behind sudden, inexplicable wealth in folklore? In the latest episode of the Ghosts and Folklore of Wales podcast, host Mark Rees dives into the captivating tales of Welsh fairy gold. These stories, rich with mystery and enchantment, reveal how encounters with the Tylwyth Teg—the fair folk of Wales—could…
