Last Witch of Scotland
After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal
History Hit
4.7 • 2.1K Ratings
🗓️ 23 October 2023
⏱️ 31 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
In 1727, Janet Horne of the Highland community of Dornoch became the last person in Britain to be tried and executed for witchcraft.
As the poet Edwin Morgan put it; They tarred her and feathered her, bound her and barrelled her burning in the peat-smoke, while the good folk of Dornoch paused briefly for a look.
But maybe the events aren’t quite as black and white as they seem?
Maddy Pelling tells Anthony Delaney the story this week.
Written by Maddy Pelling.
Edited by Freddy Chick. Produced by Charlotte Long.
Discover the past on History Hit with ad-free original podcasts and documentaries released weekly presented by world renowned historians like Kate Lister, Dan Snow, Suzannah Lipscomb, Lucy Worsley, Mary Beard and more.
Get 50% off your first 3 months with code AFTERDARK. Download the app on your smart TV or in the app store or sign up at historyhit.com/subscribe.
You can take part in our listener survey here.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Transcript
Click on a timestamp to play from that location
| 0:00.0 | This episode is sponsored by Warner Brothers and Salem's Lot, the spine-tingling new horror film from the legendary Stephen King. |
| 0:09.1 | It is so exciting, it is that time of year. It is spooky season. |
| 0:13.0 | Oh, it's just the best time of year. |
| 0:15.0 | No surprise that we love this time of year, of course. |
| 0:19.0 | There is no better fit for this season than a good horror film. |
| 0:22.0 | Salem's lot is one of Stephen King's |
| 0:25.1 | favorite stories, I'm sure you've heard of it, and it's adapted from the 1975 best-selling |
| 0:30.0 | novel. Salim's Lot follows an author who returns to his hometown in Maine, but things are not as they should be. The place is being preyed upon by a bloodthirsty vampire. |
| 0:42.1 | Of course it is. |
| 0:43.0 | Why wouldn't it be the place is called Salem? |
| 0:45.0 | Salem's lot is the latest adaptation of Stephen King's bestseller. |
| 0:49.0 | From the creators of the record-breaking horror franchise, The Conjuring Universe. |
| 0:53.0 | So take yourself, your mom, your romantic date, or just a pillow to hide behind to see this |
| 0:59.6 | after dark endorsed vampire movie. |
| 1:02.3 | Salem's lot in cinemas October 11th. |
| 1:05.0 | It's 2023 and we're standing on the edge of a small road in the highlands of Scotland. |
| 1:18.0 | The town is Dornock in Sutherland less than a mile from the choppy grey North Sea, beyond which in rough parallel lies the top of Denmark. |
| 1:27.0 | It's a warm June night, and to one side open grassland stretches away, covered by a cloud of midges and framed by distant mountains. |
| 1:38.0 | On the other is a house, perhaps no more than a hundred years old, plastered with grey pebbled ash, typical for this part of the world. |
| 1:47.0 | Its garden is bordered by a low stone wall and sheltered only by two thin fur trees. But we haven't come for the |
| 1:56.8 | house or even the setting. Instead we're here for a small unassuming stone, upright and covered in lichen and bedded in the lawn just beyond the front door. |
| 2:09.5 | Around it arranged in a circle are small pebbles, tiny offerings left by tourists and well wishes. |
... |
Please login to see the full transcript.
Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from History Hit, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.
Generated transcripts are the property of History Hit and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.
Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.