Monday, November 2, 2009

Storytelling - Yorkshire myths



The Peg Powler is a hag from English folklore with a green skin, long hair and sharp teeth who is said to inhabit the River Tees. She grabs the ankles of those who wander too close to the water's edge, especially naughty children, and pulls them under water and drowns them.

Barghest, Bargtjest, Bo-guest, Bargest or Barguest is the name often given in the north of England, especially in Yorkshire, to a legendary monstrous black dog with huge teeth and claws, though in other cases the name can refer to a ghost or Household elf, especially in Northumberland and Durham (see Cauld Lad of Hylton). One is said to frequent a remote gorge named Troller's Gill. There is also a story of a Barghest entering the city of York occasionally, where, according to legend, it preys on lone travellers in the city's narrow Snickelways. Whitby is also associated with the spectre.[1] A famous Barghest was said to live near Darlington who was said to take the form of a headless man (who would vanish in flames), a headless lady, a white cat, a dog, rabbit and black dog. Another was said to live in an "uncannie-looking" dale between Darlington and Houghton, near Throstlenest[2] ..

5 comments:

denise nestor said...

Nice work Lee! "uncannie-looking", love that : )

Claire said...

I really really love Barghest. Both pieces got great reactions at the show. Must pick your brain about photoshop techniques sometime.

Jane O Sullivan said...

hmmm...uncannie
I LIKE ...so interesting ,thanks for sharing lee

emma rowe said...

Braghest is my favoureite, yorkshire is one dark place, read david peace's books about yorkshire in the 70's, he paints a bleak picture, the moors feature in his books as do missing children so these myths made me think of his very dark books, like them very much

lee pitman said...

Well cannie or canny is one of those Northeast words that mean ten things, here I think it mean good but it’s hard to tell when written. Photoshop wise there isn’t much really there the elements are all hand made and scanned. Photoshop was used to layer and compose the image which would be far to complicated to do all by hand.

The books where made into three feature-length television episodes last year called Red Riding they are hard to get your head round but very interesting well worth a watch.

And yes it’s grim up north : )