Summary
The witch has held a place firmly in our imagination for centuries – from whispered warnings in folklore to pop-culture driven heights. But what does it mean to be a witch now?
Presenter India Rakusen, creator of the podcast 28ish Days Later, is on a journey to find out.
In this episode, we're investigating what made older women a key target during the witch hunts in many places in Europe. India wants to find out why that was, and how this has subsequently shaped life for older women several hundred years later. We meet modern witches who show us how covens help to break down ageism.
'Hag' poem written and performed by Sarah MacGillivray.
Presenter: India Rakusen Additional voiceover: Emma Taylor Scored with original music by The Big Moon.
Executive Producer: Alex Hollands Producer: Elle Scott Producer: Lucy Dearlove AP: Tatum Swithenbank Production Manager: Kerry Luter Sound Design: Olga Reed
A Storyglass production for BBC Radio 4
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Before you listen to this BBC podcast, I'd like to quickly tell you about some others. |
| 0:05.2 | My name's Andy Martin and I'm the editor of a team of podcast producers at the BBC in Northern Ireland. |
| 0:11.3 | It's a job I really love because we get to tell the stories that really matter to people here, |
| 0:16.3 | but which also resonate and apply to listeners around the world. |
| 0:19.6 | And because the team is such a diverse |
| 0:21.2 | range of skills and strengths, we have trained journalists, people who love digging through |
| 0:26.0 | archives, we've got drama and even comedy experts. We really can do those stories justice. So if |
| 0:31.8 | you like this podcast, head to BBC Sounds where you'll find plenty more fascinating stories |
| 0:37.1 | from all around the UK. BBC Sounds where you'll find plenty more fascinating stories from all around the UK. |
| 0:39.8 | BBC Sounds, music, radio podcasts. |
| 0:47.7 | I'm Indyraxon and you're listening to Witch from BBC Radio 4, |
| 0:55.7 | a series exploring and probing this shape-shifting word. |
| 1:01.0 | And something that I've found along the way so far |
| 1:03.9 | is that when you start examining the word which, |
| 1:08.3 | it's not long before another word comes knocking at the door. |
| 1:16.6 | Episode 8. |
| 1:19.0 | Hague. |
| 1:23.3 | Excuse me. Okay. Do you know what I'm? We're in the village of Toriburn, in Fife, Scotland. |
| 1:36.3 | A bit further down that way? |
| 1:37.7 | Yeah, but the tides sense. |
| 1:40.3 | Lucy and I are searching for the grave of somebody who was cast out as a witch |
| 1:44.3 | and left to lie forever in a watery, liminal space. |
... |
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