Halloween Character Cards 2025
The Witch of Rhibyn
A hideous banshee 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 and 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:
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…’
Twm Siôn Cati
On some desolate roads, if you listen hard enough the sound of a horse’s hooves can be heard… the sound of the famous highwayman Twm Siôn Cati. Wales’ very own Robin Hood was known for taking from the rich and tricking the unscrupulous. He evaded the authorities including his arch enemy the Sheriff of Carmarthen by hiding in a cave in the Tywi Valley.
The Tail-less Black Sow
A fearsome black sow without a tail, often accompanied by a headless Ladi Wen. Together they roam the countryside and terrify everyone on Calan Gaeaf. At the end of Halloween night everybody must run home to safety as the bonfire burns out, if they linger their souls might be taken by the fearsome tailless black sow. Don’t stay out too late or the Hwch Ddu Gwta will get you!
Chants and verses have been recorded in different parts of Wales such as:
Adref, adref am y cynta’, Hwch Ddu Gwta a gipio’r ola’.
Be sure you are the first at home, the tail-less black sow is sure to roam.
And
Hwch Ddu Gwta a Ladi Wen heb ddim pen
Hwch Ddu Gwta a gipio’r ola’
Hwch Ddu Gwta nos G’langaea
Lladron yn dwad tan weu sana.
The black sow and headless white lady,
Will try and catch the last to leave,
Thieves abound knitting stockings,
Beware the tail-less black sow on winter’s eve.
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. You might spot her looking for victims with her partner in crime, the Hwch Ddu Gwta.
Soldier
The Battle of St Fagans was the largest battle ever to take place in Wales. In May 1648, around 11,000 men fought a desperate battle in the village. Hundreds of men were killed, and legend has it that the river Ely ran red with their blood. In 2016, a museum visitor reported a sighting of two ghosts in military uniform hiding in the bushes. Watch out in case they appear again!
The Wickerman
Around 2,000 years ago, during a war in ancient Gaul (modern-day France), Julius Caesar recorded that the Celts built a large wooden figure shaped like a man – the Wickerman. Druids would judge those who had harmed the tribe, and if found guilty, they were placed inside the figure’s limbs and body. After a feast, the Wickerman was set alight, burning everything within.
The idea behind this has endured for centuries with very little to no evidence, apart from this paragraph found in Julius Caesar’s book. But it’s inspired medieval books, art, music and eventually films – often focusing of the gruesome and horror aspects.
In truth, the tradition may be more symbolic. If the Wickerman was ever a real tradition, it’s more likely to have been part of a Spring or early Summer Festival, intended to bring back the sun and ensure a fruitful season.
Today, we burn the Wickerman as part of our Autumn and Winter Festivals, remembering the role of fire in ancient celebrations. We also mark Halloween – seen by some as the Celtic New Year and others as an important Autumnal festival – a time to gather, reflect, and prepare for the months ahead. Traditionally, this is also a dangerous time, when the boundary between our world and the otherworld grows thin.
It is to these that we build and burn the Wickerman; to scare off the evil spirits and to ensure a safe winter.