A monk comes across an odd priest and an even odder town. You see, on the first night after a death, the entire village empties out for fear of the flesh eater. Curious, the Monk chooses to stay and that night, he beholds a frightening sound...then a frightening shape...then- what happens next? Well, you'll have to listen or read the 1998 book, Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things, by Lafcadio Hearn to find out more! Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

R.F Kuang's Katabasis has reignited the discourse around journeying into the underworld as a storytelling device. We've covered many stories in the past with the theme of Katabasis (namely Inanna and Persephone), so why not deep dive into the various versions of Orpheus' myth especially with Supergiant Games' Hades II coming out! Join us as we trace Orpheus and Eurydice's story from Pindar to Virgil and Ovid all the way to Supernatural, Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Hadestown as we ask the age old question- why did Orpheus turn?  Show notes for this episode can be found on our website at: https://talesfromtheenchantedforest.com/2025/09/24/katabasis-the-myth-of-orpheus/ You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

Sometimes when you find the Shadow-Daddy of your dreams, you won't care that you're dancing with the Devil. Instead, you'll hold him tight until he needs to find a way to get rid of you! Join Fox and Sparrow as they share a tale that frightens even the devil himself! It is the tale of Katcha and the Devil by Czech writer Božena Němcová from her collection Národní báchorky a powěsti (Folk Stories and Legends) with English translations from the book Czechoslovak Fairy Tales by Parker Filmore. Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

What one single creation probably changed the course of human evolution? If you're thinking tools then you're close but we're thinking FIRE! If you're looking for a tutorial on how to make a fire in Australia then this is not the episode for you! However, if you are searching for a tale on how Bootoolgah, the crane, and Goonur, the kangaroo rat, created fire and then hid it away from everyone else- then you're in the right place!  Today’s Australian folktale comes to us from the 1896 book, Australian Legendary Tales: folklore of the Noongahburrahs as told to the Piccaninnies, by K. Langloh Parker. Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

Combining the stories of the "Goose Girl" and "Love like Salt," we have the tale of the Goose Girl at the Well from the Brothers Grimm! The moral lessons of this tale? 1. Sometimes helping a wild old lady do a meaningless task that feels like torture is worth the hassle. 2. Telling your father you love him like salt can lead to immediate exile...who knew Kings could be so salty?  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

Welcome back to our special "Box Office" episodes where we look at the folklore behind the fiction. Today we deep dive into the mythology and monsters behind "K-Pop Demon Hunters" using interviews from co-directors Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans. We might not be covering tales of your idols, but we're still golden because we'll be discussing demon-hunting Shamans, the tale of Princess Bari, Jeoseung saja, Dokkaebi and Gwishin.  Show notes for K-Pop Demon Hunters monsters and mythology can be found on our website at: Tales From the Enchanted Forest  You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

If you love playing "Who's that Pokemon" then this is the fable game for you! Join Fox as she tries to guess the animals in each tale Sparrow has collected! Sometimes with a furry clue and sometimes without- Sparrow shares 6 short tales from all around the world including tricksters and revenge!  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

This story is adapted from Petre Inspirescu's "Ileana Simziana" or "liane of the Golden Tresses" and is the final part of the story so be sure to check out part one: "The Princess who would be a Prince."  Last episode the young Princess set off on her quest to save her Empire and her family by pretending to be a Prince. After passing her father's tests and proving her courage, she arrives at the palace and quickly becomes entangled in a quest to free the beautiful Princess Iliane of the Golden Tresses. Fall in love with wave-jumping witches, gender defying curses and oddly enough- security guard nuns.  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

When the ailing ruler of the last nation to stand tall against a conquering nation finally surrenders, only one thing stands in the way of his people's peace- the Empire demands a prince as a hostage. Having only daughters, he tests their courage until his youngest proves her valour, courage and strength. So, she sets off to become the Princess who would be a Prince. This story is adapted from Petre Inspirescu. This is part one, so stay tuned for part two!  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

The Prince of the West runs off for seven years to win the hand of the Princess of the East, but when things go sideways, she has to rely on her own skills and wit to survive! Joining her are 40 beautiful maidens as they don disguises, blades and even crowns to survive. The Betrothed of Destiny comes from The Golden Maiden and other folk tales and fairy stories told in Armenia by A.G. Seklemian (1898).  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

It is May which means a whole host of things from Bealtaine to the emergence of the Oak King and Holly King, the Green Man, Persephone, the May Queen and other figures associated with rebirth and fertility. So, in honour of these celebrations and folk figures, we turn to the Welsh Mabinogion, a collection of stories from the 12th-13th centuries. Our first story is the abduction of Creiddylad and our second is the creation of the flower queen, Blodeuwedd.  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

Today we head back to Brazil and our animal folktales straight from Fairy Tales from Brazil: how and why tales from Brazilian folk-lore by folklorist Elsie Spicer Eells. This explanatory tale takes us to a capitalist Tiger and his just punishment for exploiting his sole worker- the rabbit.  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

Today we have three tales of Sæmund: The Wise Priest-Wizard of the North! Saemunder/Saemund, an Icelandic folk hero, attended the Black Magic school run by the devil himself. We look at how his tales may have been canonized from their original oral traditions. These tales are "Saemund at the Black School," "The Magic Whistle," and "Saemund on his Deathbed" which all come from “Scandinavian Folktales,” edited and translated by Jacqueline Simpson. Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

The consequences of accidentally partying too hard after a hurling-match are too much to handle for one little fairy and his fairy tree. Edmund Leamy's Irish Fairy Tale includes the shortest exile known to storytelling, a helpful ogre, ugly princesses and helpful animal companions. Truly a tale for the bingo cards.   Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

March is in full swing as the long preparations towards Nowruz (the Persian New Year) begin! To celebrate spring and all things pickled, we have two stories today- "The Pumpkin Child" and "The Rolling Pumpkin" from Iranian folklore traditions. Whether you want to listen to a Cinderella-esque fairy tale or the misadventures of an old woman, we have something for you!  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

Finish the story of the Snow Queen with us as we continue Gerda's journey to save Kai with the help of a chatty crow (and his sweetheart), another couple's happily ever after, the little Robber Girl and a reindeer from Lapland! Will Gerda's quest to save her beloved childhood friend end positively or will she have to just let it go?  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

With the Groundhog proclaiming an extension to winter, why not go back to one of the most timeless tales of frost and shivers- Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen." She is an infamously familiar figure, but how many of us actually know this wild tale of friendship and love? Join Fox, Sparrow, Kai and Gerda as they tell this story about good and evil (with some trolls for effect). Part One covers chapters one to three of the tale.  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok

Happy Lunar New Year / Spring Festival to all those celebrating! Join Fox and Sparrow as we share the the tale of the Nian, the Jade Emperor's Great Race and the tale of the animals visit to Buddha. Out of the twelve zodiac animals, we discuss some of their attributes and what lies in store for us during the year of the wood Snake!  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok X @FromEnchanted

Spring and Father Frost had a lovely daughter who could never love, but what happens when she yearns to? Aleksandr Ostrovsky's folk play "The Snow Maiden" had many harsh critics including ones that called it anti-theatrical, a story about a stupid king and his stupid subjects, and a pale imitation of Shakespeare's Midsummers Night Dream. However, despite the initial onslaught, the mythologically rich folk story later became a national hit. Follow us on this journey from Afanasyev's "Snow Child" all the way to Nikolai Rimsky‐Korsakov's opera!    Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok X @FromEnchanted

With Midwinter a few days away and the reign of the Holly King coming to an end, we turn to a Midsummer Tale to help warm us up during these cold months. Barbara Leonie Picard's tale "Lord Alaric's Lady" comes from her fairy tale collection called "The Faun and the Woodcutter" and reminds us what the true meaning of fairy-love stories should be.  We'll see you again in the New Year, Travellers! May your holidays be full of wonder and cheer.  Show notes can be found on our website at: www.talesfromtheenchantedforest.com You can also find us on: Bluesky Mastodon Instagram   TikTok X @FromEnchanted