Ad Litteram English Folktales World Folklore Series
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English Folktales World Folklore Advisory Board Simon J. Bronner, Ph.D. Distinguished Professor of Folklore and American Studies Pennsylvania State University at Harrisburg Joseph Bruchac, Ph.D. Abenaki Storyteller and Writer Natalie O. Kononenko, Ph.D. Professor of Slavic language and Literature University of Virginia Norma J. Livo, Ed.D. Writer and Storyteller Margaret Read MacDonald, Ph.D. King County Library Systems en^lish folktales Edited by Dan Keding and Amy Douglas World Folklore Series LIBRARIES UNLIMITED A Member 0/ ihc Greenwood Publishing Group Westport, Connecticut • London Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data English folktales / edited by Dan Keding and Amy Douglas, p. cm. — (World folklore series) Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 1-59158-260-1 (alk. paper) 1. Tales—England. 2. Folklore—England. I. Keding, Dan. n. Douglas, Amy. III. Serie GR141.E57 2005 398.2'0942—dc22 2005016075 British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data is available. Copyright © 2005 by Dan Keding and Amy Douglas All rights reserved. No portion of this book may be reproduced, by any process or technique, without the express written consent of the publisher. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2005016075 ISBN: 1-59158-260-1 First published in 2005 Libraries Unlimited, 88 Post Road West, Westport, CT 06881 A Member of Greenwood Publishing, Inc. www.lu.com Printed in the United States of America The paper used in this book complies with the Permanent Paper Standard issued by the National Information Standards Organization (Z39.48-1984). 10 98765432 The publisher has done its best to make sure the instructions and/or recipes in this book are correct. However, users should apply judgment and experience when preparing reci pes, especially parents and teachers working with young people. The publisher accepts no responsibility for the outcome of any recipe included in this volume. This book is dedicated to my parents who have always helped me to follow my heart and to Chris who holds my heart in trust. Amy Douglas I wish to dedicate the book to Tandy Lacy, my wife, who truly understands why I tell stories. Dan Keding Together we would like to dedicate this book to all the English storytellers who have shared their friendship and tales over the years. Especially to Mike Rust, Taffy Thomas, Helen East, Derek and Pippa Reid, and Richard Walker. The journey has been shorter because of you. This page intentionally left blank Contents Preface xi Acknowledgments xiii Introduction xv A Brief History of England 1 The Fool in All His Glory 15 Start and Finish 16 The Farmer and the Cheeses 18 The Pottle of Brains 20 Jack Turnip 26 Lazy Jack 27 The Vinegars 35 The Old Woman Who Lived in a Vinegar Bottle 37 The Mare's Egg 40 The Most Unfortunate Man 43 Wily Wagers and Tall Tales 47 The Old Woman and Her Pig 48 The Dog That Talked 50 The Horse Who Knew about Cars 51 Old Lightowler 53 The Hole Stone 54 White Ram Night 60 The Wrestlers of Carn Kenidjack 62 Vll Dragons and Devils 65 The Lambton Worm 66 The Laidly Worm 71 Pollard and the Brawn 75 Recipe for Stotty Cake 77 The Devil and the Coracle 79 The Devil in Wem 83 The Devil and the Stiperstones 85 Witches, Wonders, and Weddings 89 Lightening the Load 90 A Story of Zennor 92 The Stars in the Sky 95 The Pixies'Bed 98 The Old Woman and the Fairy Folk 99 WildEdric 102 Tattercoats 105 Kate Crackernuts 108 A Wedding Toast 114 Molly Whuppie 115 The Glass House 120 The White Cow of Mitchell's Fold 125 The Elder Tree Witch 128 Holy Days and Days of Heroes 131 The First Simnel Cake 132 Recipe for Shrewsbury Simnel Cake 134 Golden Shoes 137 Oranges and Lemons 141 The Great Bell of Bosham 143 Brother Jucundus 145 Little John and the Nottingham Fair 151 Robin Hood and the Monk 154 Sir Gawain and Dame Ragnall 160 The Alderley Legend 165 Vll i ' Content Stories for When the Sun Sets 169 A Rhyme 170 Teeny Tiny 171 The Dead Moon 173 The Golden Ball 177 Jenny Greenteeth 182 The Standing Stones 184 The Girl and the Anorak 186 Mr. Fox 188 GythaoftheMill 192 Riddles 199 Answers to Riddles 203 A Parting Song 205 Notes on the Stories 207 Glossary 213 Additional Reading 216 Index 217 About the Editors 221 About the Storytellers 223 Contents / ^X This page intentionally left blank pr^/ac^: This book is the fruit of long friendship and a common love of story. Dan Keding and Amy Douglas first met more than ten years ago on the American side of the ocean. Amy was visiting the National Storytelling Festival in Tennessee as part of a year studying storytelling, and Dan was performing at the festival. Since then, a strong mutual respect for each other's stories, culture, and traditions has deepened into a long-lasting friendship. Over the last decade, Dan has come to know and love England and its stories, while Amy has relished the opportunity to share her English stories with an American audience. They have both treasured the support and generosity of the English storytelling community. xi This page intentionally left blank tleknowtedgm^rits We would like to express our sincere appreciation to the many people who have helped in the creation of this collection. Most of all, we thank all the storytellers who have contributed to the book. Their love of story and dedication to sharing, crafting, and caretaking of English folklore, myth, and tradition is the fuel that keeps the bright light of our heritage ra diant. All the storytellers and details of their work are listed at the back of the book. Thank you to all the photographers who have kindly given permission for their work to be included: Brian Douglas, Jackie Douglas, Janet Dowling, Helen East, Lynette Eldon, and Chris Lambart. Our thanks go to The Association of British Counties (ABC) for their per mission to use their map for the basis of the map of stories. ABC is a society dedi cated to promoting awareness of the continuing importance of the eighty-six historic (or traditional) counties of Great Britain. To learn more about their work, please visit their Web site: www.abcounties.co.uk. On the English side of the Atlantic, this book has very much been a family af fair. Heartfelt gratitude is given to Chris Lambart, Amy's partner, for his enormous support in bringing cups of tea at just the right moment, his written to order synop sis of the history of England, and his technical help with the map. Thank you to Jackie and Brian Douglas, Amy's parents, for their time spent proofreading and to Jack and Molly Douglas, Amy's grandparents, for their rhymes and recipes. Thank you to both generations for inspiring their daughter/granddaughter with a deep love of language and tradition that has been a joy throughout her life. On the American side, Dan thanks, as always, his wife, Tandy Lacy, for her never-ending support. Sadly no longer with us, he would also like to remember and acknowledge his maternal grandmother, who came to America in 1922 from Croatia and brought with her folktales and fairy tales that he learned from an early age. She gave those tales as a gift and in turn instilled in him his love of story and storytellers—those stories helped to shape Dan both as a man and as a storyteller, and that is where it all began. Xlll This page intentionally left blank Introduction Although England is a small country, it is amazingly diverse. As you travel through the country, every few miles the scenery, atmosphere and even the accent of the people change. There are modern built-up city centers, the wild windswept moors of Devon and Yorkshire, the domestic patchwork quilt of the rural middle England, mountains and meadows, forests and heath, babbling brooks and rush ing rivers. The English history lies spread out across the land: ancient hill forts, ruined castles, black and white timbered manors, thatched cottages and the mod ern architectural feats of the Tate Modern and the Eden Project. And everywhere you go there are stories to be found. Every rock, mountain, field, and village has its own story. Some are well-known throughout the country, such as the stories of Robin Hood and King Arthur; some are almost forgotten, the memories of them lying in their place name or a mossed-over memorial—but they are all still here waiting to be discovered and brought to life on the tongue of a storyteller once more. Passing on those tales from one person to another is part of the storytelling world and a tradition that is live and well in England. Every time that Dan visits England, he returns with a pocketful of stories, gifts to share with his audiences in America. Sometimes those tales are shared late at night after a performance or festival, sometimes on a journey, the places in the story being pointed out through the windows of the car. There are storytelling clubs scattered all over England, some informal gath erings where like-minded people come together to swap stories, others where you can hear professional storytellers in concert. There are a number of storytelling festivals including Festival at the Edge in Shropshire, The Lakeland Storytelling Festival in the Lake District and the West Country Storytelling Festival in Devon. There is a Society for Storytelling (SfS), a national body promoting stories and storytelling throughout England and Wales and even a museum, Mythstories, dedicated to the art of storytelling.