Hello all, Eric Rivenus with the most notorious podcast here. Each week I

interview an author or historian about a historical true crime tragedy or

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One of the most enduring legends of folk creatures you can find throughout

history are those elusive woodland dwellers we call fairies. In the modern day

when we think of fairies we tend to contrab images of cute little spirits

flitting about in gospel or wings. But you can find legends of tiny creatures we

would think of as fairies and cultures all around the world. For example some

African cultures have stories about a benevolent fairy race known as the

Aziza who are believed to bring good luck to hunters. The ancient Greeks told

of magical creatures known as the Zena who were said to guide lost travelers

to safety. But at the same time much of what most of us would think of as

traditional fairy lore stems from Celtic mythology and although the majority

of fairy stories tend to depict them as benevolent and shy forest creatures some

of the tales can be downright menacing. One story from 1757 tells of a British

cleric named Edward Williams who claimed that as a young boy he and some other

children had been playing in a field when they witnessed a strange

procession of eight tiny couples dressed in red. Each of these menisky figures

stood only a couple inches tall. When the strange creatures noticed the children

...