Press Releases

Press Release

15 October 2009

New ghosts at St Fagans: National History Museum, Cardiff.

Avoid the hoards of trick-or-treaters and egg throwers this Halloween and visit St Fagans: National History Museum, Cardiff to experience the Celtic roots of the holiday. The Museum has three evenings (29, 30, 31 October ) in which to celebrate this frightening family-friendly festival.

St Fagans has often been called Britain's most haunted Museum. Ever since the Museum opened its doors in 1948, staff, visitors and local villagers have experienced the unexplainable at several of the Museum's re-erected buildings. On 29, 30, 31 October 2009, for the second year running, St Fagans will be hosting its Halloween Nights.

One ghost that that might make an appearance this year is Gwrach y Rhibyn (The Witch of Rhibyn). This phantom is popularly imagined to assume the appearance of a disgusting hag with huge black teeth, long lank arms and hair several yards long. Her crowning distinction is her extraordinary ugliness. She is an omen of Death; some say she is a warning of plague. This witch has not been seen in Cardiff since 1878; an eyewitness account of that year recalls the terrible fright this witch gave a Cardiff resident:

(A fuller account can be seen in the Notes to Editors) "...It was at Llandaff...on a visit to an old friend, that I saw and heard Gwrach y Rhibyn...saw her plainly, sir, a horrible old woman with long red hair and a face like chalk, and great teeth like tusks, looking back over her shoulder at me as she went through the air with a long black gown trailing along the ground below her arms, for body I could make out none... as I am a living man, sir, I saw her go in at the door of the Cow and Snuffers Inn, and return no more. I watched the door of the inn a long time, but she did not come out. The next day, it's the honest truth I'm telling you, they told me the man who kept the Cow and Snuffers Inn was dead - had died in the night."

Calan Gaeaf or Halloween marks the end of the old Celtic year and it's when the walls between this world and the otherworld grow thin; it's a time of great change for all creatures and it's when the ghosts of Wales are known to make an appearance. Halloween is also a time for fun and celebration: playing games, drinking, and eating. cakes.

Wear your creepiest costume for a walk around the Museum after dark, and experience a night of light, dark and illusion. Apparitions will be conjured up using ‘smoke and mirrors' to dramatic and thrilling effect. You might meet the ghost of the White Lady or come face-to-face with a ghost locked in a magic mirror. Listen out for the haunting howls of the Hounds of Annwn - the mythical dogs of the otherworld. If you visit the Museum's tannery you might see the Tanner's ghost, an apparition that has only recently made an appearance at St Fagans.

Family activities such as spooky storytelling, apple-bobbing and craft workshops, combined with tastefully chilling audio and visual effects will make these truly memorable nights. Telephone 029 2087 8440 to buy your ticket now.

ENDS

For press information and images please contact: Iwan Llwyd, Communications Officer. Call: 029 2057 3486 Email: iwan.llwyd@museumwales.ac.uk Visit: www.museumwales.ac.uk

(For interviews before 21 October, please contact: Matthew Davies, Activities Coordinator. Call: 029 2057 3500)

Some of the Welsh ghosts that make up the creepy cast of characters at St Fagans' Halloween Nights:

Gwrach y Rhibyn: (The Witch of Rhibyn) A hideous being, she is an omen of Death; some say she is a warning of plague. Not seen in Cardiff since 1878.

Y Tylwyth Teg: (The Fairies) Their magical harp music might entice you to join them in a dance. Do all you can to resist. Those who dance find that a great deal of time passes in what seems like a few minutes. Try to make sure you have friends who can collect you from the party after a year and a day, otherwise you may lose track of time altogether.

C?n Annwn: (Hounds of the Abyss). The howling of these dogs indicates that a notoriously wicked person is about to die. If the sound is loud the hounds are hunting at a safe distance, if faint it means the pack is close...

Hwch Ddu Gwta: (The Tail-less Black Pig). At the end of Halloween night everybody heads quickly home as the bonfire burns out. Don't stay out too late or the Hwch Ddu Gwta will get you.

The Blood Red of Kennixton Farmhouse: The walls of this re-erected house are painted red, originally with a mixture of lime and ox-blood, there is also a Rowan tree heavy with red berries growing nearby. Witches suffer ill consequences when they come too close to this house.

Y Ladi Wen: (The White Lady). A terrifying ghost whom if spoken to may ask you for help. Sometimes she will offer treasure or gold for assistance but show any sign of fear or distraction and she may disappear.

The Bwbach: A bad-tempered creature that will play tricks on those who disappoint him. Unfortunately the Museum must have upset him recently. Watch out, he's sure to pop up somewhere.

The Wicker Man: Strabo, a Roman writer, claimed that the Celts burned ‘...cattle and wild animals of all sorts and human beings' in a giant straw and wicker man. In more recent times bonfires have been associated with Halloween and Guy Fawkes Night.

Y Toili: This is a phantom funeral which foretells an actual funeral that takes place at some time in the near future.

The Magic Mirror. There is an old superstition that if you approach a mirror at midnight on Halloween, holding a candle, that you will see the face of your future wife or husband.

‘The Evil One': Have you ever come across an aristocratic gentleman off the beaten path who insists you play cards or offers you a strong drink? Look out for anything suspicious - the smell of sulphur, the hint of a pair of horns - it may be the Devil himself trying to lead you into temptation.

The Tannery Ghost. This apparition is back again by popular demand. Tannery workers cleaned fat and flesh from the hides which was probably eaten by the large mastiffs they kept. The treatment of the leather involved the use of unpleasant substances.

Eye-witness account of seeing the Gwrach y Rhibyn, Llandaff, Cardiff, 1878:

"...It was at Llandaff...on a visit to an old friend, that I saw and heard Gwrach y Rhibyn. I was sleeping in my bed, and was woke at midnight by a frightful screeching and a shaking of my window. It was a loud and clear screech, and the shaking of the window was very plain, but it seemed to go by like the wind...I Saw the Gwrach y Rhibyn, saw her plainly, sir, a horrible old woman with long red hair and a face like chalk, and great teeth like tusks, looking back over her shoulder at me as she went through the air with a long black gown trailing along the ground below her arms, for body I could make out none. She gave another unearthly screech while I looked at her; then I heard her flapping her wings against the window of a house just below the one I was in, and she vanished from my sight. But I kept on staring into the darkness, and as I am a living man, sir, I saw her go in at the door of the Cow and Snuffers inn, and return no more. I watched the door of the inn a long time, but she did not come out. The next day, it's the honest truth I'm telling you, they told me the man who kept the Cow and Snuffers Inn was dead - had died in the night. His name was Llewellyn, sir - you can ask any one about him, at Llandaff - he had kept the inn there for seventy years, just at that very spot. It's not these new families that the Gwrach y Rhibyn ever troubles, sir, it's the old stock."