EP43 Nasty Little Elves: The secret origin of the ellyllon and a folk tale from Cardiff on the Ghosts and Folklore podcast. These are not your Lord of the Rings elves!
The Secret Origins of the Ellyllon, Wales’ mischievous fairy folk
If you think all elves are tall and noble like in a J.R.R. Tolkien Middle Earth book or a Games Workshop Warhammer game, think again!
The ellyllon – Welsh fairy folk – are small and goblin-like, dwelling in misty and sleepy hollows where they can help you make your fortune, or take it away again at the drop of a hat.
But how can you tell them apart from the other fairies, y twylwyth teg?
For all the secrets join journalist and author Mark Rees (Ghosts of Wales) who goes in search of the secret origins of the elves on the Ghosts and Folklore of Wales podcast, which includes an old tale discovered in Victorian Cardiff about the elf who helped a down-on-his-lick farmer.
Did you catch last week’s episode of the Ghosts and Folklore of Wales podcast?
Did you miss last week’s episode? Catch up now: EP42 The Ghost Ship Mystery: Invisible boats dock at the harbour, while phantom funerals are seen in the graveyard at night. What does it all mean?
For a full list of every episode, from the Mari Lwyd to the Mabinogion, and to subscribe, visit the Ghosts of Wales podcast page.
Enjoy this elvish podcast? Read lots more eerie tales in The A-Z of curious Wales!
The A-Z of curious Wales by Mark Rees – as well as Mark’s other weird and wonderful books – is available now from all good bookshops, and online from the books page.
Published in 2019 by The History Press, here’s the blurb:
Wales’ history is packed with peculiar customs and curious characters. Here you will discover alien landscapes, ancient druids and a Victorian ghost hunter.
Find out why revellers would carry a decorated horse’s skull on a pole door to door at Christmastime, how an eccentric inventor hoped to defeat Hitler with his futuristic ray gun, and why a cursed wall is protected by a global corporation for fear it might destroy a town.
From the folklore surrounding the red dragon on the flag, to the evolution of the song ‘Sosban Fach’, this compendium of weird and wonderful facts will surprise and delight even the most knowledgeable resident or visitor.