Fairy Folklore of County Clare

343,425
0
Published 2017-01-08
A short film about the survival of fairy folklore in the West of Ireland. Shortlisted for the Dingle Irish Film festival Shorts Category.

Made by Tess O'Shea.

Interviews (in order of appearance):
Eddie Lenihan | Ed is a folklorist and collector of Fairy Tales, you can see his books and stories here eddielenihan.weebly.com/
Bridie Morgan
Francis Whelan
Bridget Carroll

Don't forget to SUBSCRIBE to Celtic Irish Tales Youtube Channel, to watch upcoming short films about traditional irish culture.

All Comments (21)
  • Subscribers and supporters of my work 💚. If you've been enjoying the films and would like to support my filmmaking financially, you now have the option to do so through Patreon. Absolutley no obligation, but if you do feel like it, the link is here. ☘ www.patreon.com/CelticAtlanticTales By supporting my work in this way, I can improve my craft, and continue to create documentaries about traditional irish culture
  • @Candy-ji1sr
    I am Welsh. One day I climbed a hill and at the top was a meadow with an ancient tree. Every 4 to 6 years these giant toadstools would grow from it's base and us locals would go to look. Well this one year I went up there to see and a tiny, not more than 1 ft being poked his head from behind the toadstool. His skin was green. His clothes were green and brown. He smiled and waved at me and then was gone like a wisp of smoke. I will never forget him. He remains with me 50 years later as a precious encounter. Faerie folk exist.
  • @ShoJ369
    My Granny swore the fairies were real. Today it is still written into deeds of homes, that the bushes are not to be removed.
  • @bobchlarson788
    I wanna sit down for tea with that old lady and just listen to her stories
  • @cathy14cs
    As 5yr old 50 years ago I peeked out the window at my nanas house at dawn and saw about 4 or 5 little people playing around her letter/milk box. No one would believe me except my nana who said that ‘I had a touch of the Irish’. and that’s why I could see them. I can still picture them in my mind as clear as I did that day.
  • Ireland is such a beautiful magical place, my grandma from Ireland would tell me endless stories and fairytales about fairy’s, that you should always believe. To this day I am 24 and still very much believe. Most people that I know don’t and probably think I’m weird for it, but my heart and my love for anything Irish will always be in my heart.
  • I've met many people in Ireland, including young poeple, who have seen the fairies. An earlier generation took them for granted, and it's not so common now. But yes, people still do see the fairies.
  • @Liudolfingen
    I was sceptical of fairies, I thought they were from times gone by. About 12 yrs. ago, my daughter and I were walking just outside my friends house, which was in the forest. It was mid summer, I heard a whiring sound, like a really fast fluttering. It just appeared, and in a few seconds disappeared. She said Mom, did you see that.?? I sure did,... looked like if it landed in a tree, it would be very well camouflaged. Must have been a woodlands Fairy, It looked a little scary, kind of like a larger butterfly, but thin, about 1 1/2 feet long, with lots of dangling things off it wings. Natural colors of browns. I heard that whirring sound, twice after that. I felt it was up to no good. Felt faint. After seeing the forest Fairie, my friend said he had seen little green fairies in his garden, but had never told anyone. This is a true story from Ontario Canada.
  • @yanifree114
    Once my cousin inherited the land (in County Clare) he did just that..cut down the faery fort. Shortly thereafter, his wife almost went blind and on top of that, she suffered a miscarriage. Everyone talked of it and blamed it on the cutting down of the fort. I remember that lovely mystical fort well.
  • I used to live across the street from a little patch of woods. A screech owl lived in it, I would listen for it's call every night. Right about at dusk, little tiny lights would appear in the underbrush and bushes all along the edge of the woods. They wouldn't move around like fireflies but we're stationary, as if the fairies were lighting their lanterns with the dusk. It was wild and magical!
  • I have two Hawtorn( Fairy Trees) in my side garden. During a bad storm a few yrs ago another tree ( ash) lost a huge limb and I was evacuated outside to the front of my home for nearly 7 hours while two teams of Arborists ( tree surgeons) took the Enormous limb off. During conversation with the "Tree inspector" he told me that no arborist would ever fell a Hawthorn tree on account off their connection to the spiritual realm. Also travellers ( Gypsies) will not cut from a Hollywood tree untill a certain date in Nov. An Almond branch was used by Aaron in the Bible and Cedar trees/ Fig trees and Olive branches also figure prominently in the scriptures and The ancient Druids always gathered under an Oak tree. How forgetful we have become regard the Spiritual significance of the Realms hidden in plain sight
  • @amenmolier2416
    Iam from a tiny hillock village mongchen ,nagaland,India.there is a place in our village where a woman returning from the fields met a group of tiny people cooking in egg shells,on asking them what they were up to they told her they were stationed there for rest and were to reach a place called orangkong that night itself,orangkong is a real place far away from our village,so from facts we can conclude they travel faster than humans
  • @debleb166
    Look, even if the faeries aren't real (I believe they are, though!), the fairy forts shouldn't be cut down anyway. They're still an important part of the culture and history of Ireland
  • @crimson2991
    My grandma insisted fairies live on her farm we used to think she was crazy when she made them little furniture left them out gifts she always said they protected her, one morning at about 7 am I went to the barn to feed her pet pig, we had a barrel full of apples and I would toss him some, as I was approaching the barrel I heard something from inside, then all a sudden out scrambled a little man he had little boots, brown little trousers and a hat, he swung from the barrel, slid down and ran into a hole in the ground, I was stunned!! Even my dogs were shocked they wouldn’t leave the hole he ran into, a bit bigger then a squirrels, I will never second guess grandma ever again. And now as rich city ppl flock to her area and buy up land they have been trying to force her out and it always falls through things always go wrong for them, I really believe they protect her and her land. 🧚💗
  • @brendariley3416
    An American. My mom is 83 years old. She told me when she was in high school she and a friend were driving home at night. Mom was driving down a road that had corn fields on each side. It was foggy. She slowed down because she saw something coming out of the corn. She says it was aittle man with shoes that curled up. She says he walked into the middle of the road and stopped and stared at her with a disgusted look on his face, then turned his head and walked across the road to the other side and into the cornfield. She says her friend and she just stared at each other in disbelief. They both acknowledged that they had seen the same thing. Mom says they never spoke about it again. I was little when she told me her experience. When I got a bit older and started to question that story, I asked her to tell me again. She did. She told me it was true. Throughout the years, every once in a while, I asked her again. I am 57 years old. The story has never varied and she has maintained that it happened. My mom is a levelheaded factual thinker, and not one to make up atoriesor gossip. I'm so lucky.
  • The lady saying the non believer's being more educated.. That may be true in academic terms but there are many levels of intelligence and knowledge and this lovely lady and all in the know really have the knowledge of what others don't understand or can begin to comprehend. 💚
  • I'v seen one Fairy once only. I'm a securty officer at night and the the area I was in is like a park. Walking to the end of a building 5 feet off the ground. next to a pine tree hovered the fairy suprized by my presents I shined my flashlight at it and it came foward to me about 5 feet. It was the same size as a Barbi Doll, and it wore a sliver atire that exposed no outside seatures, even the face was hidden. We looked at each outher and I apologised for disturbing her. She must have felt I was no threat tured away and changed color to match the pine tree outer surface and I contunued my patrols. No I did not return that night to the same spot. This is the 1st time I reveal this. God thee father has many creations why not Fairies.
  • @dmacisaac9382
    My Grandmother taught me how to be respectful of the faeries and always carry a heel of bread ❀ my favourite book about the faeries is by Raymond E. Feist called Faerie tale , it's one that's better read during the day and if you're a true believer , it will be better than a Stephen King book ❀
  • @whitebird5383
    When my Irish grandmother gave me a cookie or candy she would always give me an extra one to keep in my pocket in case I encountered a fairy. Since fairies can be mischivious, she said, offer it a cookie so they will leave you alone. I always got to eat the other cookie though. Lol