Mysterious Britain & Ireland

Author: Daniel Parkinson

Featured Sites

Stirling Old Jail

Stirling’s Old Town is situated on high ground that leads up to the castle, in an area that has been inhabited from prehistoric times. This small locale is packed with sites of historical interest and intrigue. A good base is the Youth Hostel right next to the jail which incorporates part of a historical church in its façade.

Apparitions / Hauntings

Neidpath Castle

Neidpath Castle is one of the stronger positioned Peel Towers or fortified Tower Houses that are dotted around the border lands, testimony to the troublesome period of Border skirmishing and lawlessness in the 14th-17th Century. The castle sits on a firm defensive position surmounting a rocky crag overlooking the River Tweed.

Hauntings

Castle Fraser

Castle Fraser is now a grand castle and stately home owned by the National Trust, developed and improved on from its beginnings as a fortified towerhouse by generations of the Fraser family. The castle was known as Muchall in Mar until 1695.

Legends

Portencross

The castle at Portencross dates to the 14th Century and is thought to have been used by the Scottish Kings as a halfway house between Dundonald and Rothsay. There is a story that Robert the Bruce stayed here.

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Articles / Black Dogs / Folklore / Haunted Pubs / Occult / Road Ghosts / Witchcraft

Crossroad Blues

“I went down to the Crossroads, fell down on my knees” Robert Johnson.
When Robert Johnson sang of the Crossroads down in the 1930’s Mississippi Delta, he was paying homage to a tradition that has existed in varied forms for centuries, and at the same time adding his own contribution to the wealth of folklore that exists around the crossing place of two highways.

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Articles / Folklore / January / Scottish Folktales

Robert Burns and Folklore

Robert Burns was born on the 25th January 1759 during the ‘Age of Enlightenment’ but also in a time when the country superstitions and supernatural beings were an integral part of folk belief. The landscape of Burns’ was one where the natural rhythms of nature were much more intertwined in the day to day of working life.

Ancient Sites / King Arthur / Scottish Folktales

Eildon Hill

Eildon Hill is a triple peak that dominates the landscape around Melrose in Southern Scotland. The hillfort was occupied in pre-historic times, was used as a signal station by the Romans, and was re-occupied during the Romano-British period. It is associated with the legendary wizard Michael Scot, and the ballad of Thomas the Rhymer.

Ancient Sites / Folklore / Scottish Folktales

Edin’s Hall Broch

This is one of the most southerly broch survivals, which are more typically associated with Northern Scotland. Broch’s were multi floored defensive structures with room for cattle in the lower enclosure and accommodation on the upper floors accessed by passageways in the thick walls.

Ancient Sites / Burial Mounds / Earth Works / Folklore / Legends / Standing Stones

The Hill of Tara

The Hill of Tara – ancient seat of the Kings of Ireland – is the focal point in a complex landscape of ancient monuments dating from the Neolithic to the Iron Age. It is a stirring setting where mythology and history fuse together, and has been revered as a holy site for thousands of years.