Round the Herne

This year's Pageant, celebrating pagan mythology through the performing arts, has had to go virtual due to the wretched pandemic and rules that make public gatherings nigh on impossible. Thankfully we have had willing volunteers offering their skills at storytelling, poetry, and song (namely Carys, Nick Ford, Greg McDowell, and Rob Lummis). The links to the YouTube playlist are below -  Welcome – https://youtu.be/mnNNHR3xLK4 Opening talk on shapeshifting in storytelling - https://youtu.be/sf_tJi3RtBU The Indian Boy, the Witch, and the Wolf (Rob Lummis) – https://youtu.be/HqUVfeJslqo Pagan songs from Carys – https://youtu.be/_IYlzjqaRBo Tide of Words (poems about oceanic myths) - https://youtu.be/Pny4LsEwOW4 Arcadian Werewolf Rap (Nick Ford) – https://youtu.be/71m1-wDg3J0 Shifty Sagas (stories about shapeshifting) - https://youtu.be/0Bl7JzSODi4 Reflections on the Golden Bower (poems by Greg McDowell) – https://youtu.be/VGSCBwcUSQc Farewell - https://youtu.be/I...

Pooka's Pageant will be Saturday 16th November, 10am till 4pm at Oddfellows Hall in Ipswich. The Pageant is a celebration of mythology and mysticism through storytelling, poetry, music, and other performing arts. PROGRAMME 2019 10.00 Welcome & toast to the Pooka 10.15 The Dagda’s Harp – a talk by Robin Herne 11.00 Fable-ous Fruit – stories by Malcolm Busby 12.00 Poetry share 12.15 Lunch 1.15 Fifth Season – music with Carys 2.00 Poetry share 2.15 Music & Mayhem – music, poems & stories with Sheila & David 3.00 Break 3.15 By Land, Sea & Sky – stories with Robin Herne 4.00 Thanks & farewell toast Tickets are £5, with profits going to various animal charities. Please spread the word if you know anyone who would like to attend.

On December 1st Pooka's Pageant (a celebration of mythology and folk lore through the performing arts) will be held at Oddfellows Hall in Ipswich. The programme is shown below, with more details here . Tickets are £5 on the door (£3 in advance) with any profits being split between Husky Rescue and the Hare Preservation Trust. This year we also have three trade stalls - Robert Lummis jewellery, incense and crafts; Whispering Eofor's jewellery (see more details here ); and Michele Bo Boyd's felt ornaments. Please feel free to circulate details to any people you think would enjoy attending. The Pageant s family-friendly with refreshments available on the day (feel free to bring your own sandwiches if staying all day!) PROGRAMME 1 0.00am ~ Welcome and a toast to the Pooka 10.15am ~  'Weaving Wyrd Words',  poetry & song with Sheila Haskins 11.00am ~  'Wolf Song ',  music with Carys Singer 11.45am ~  'Flower Power ',  plant imagery in po...

This Saturday, 18th November, will be the annual celebration of mythology through storytelling, song, and poetry. Doors at Oddfellows Hall open at 10am (close at 4pm), and tickets are £4 with any profits going to animal charities. A link to the programme can be found here with performances from Fiona Dowson, Shaun Ibbs, and Robert Lummis, plus music from Carys and two story sessions with me (one about underwater deities and the other about the spectral doings of dark and deadly entities). Hope to see plenty of people there.

November 5th was our seventh annual Pooka's Pagaeant, a day-long performing arts event celebrating pagan mythology and legend through story, poetry, song etc. The day was a challenging one, not least because two of the performers pulled out due to illness so their places in the programme had to be filled with last minute turns. The audience was not a large one, though it was a very friendly and engaged one. We had the remarkably talented harpist Shani Liz Wyman travel up from the far west to perform a series of beautiful pieces on two harps which her late husband had crafted for her. It was a very inspiring performance and the interludes between each instrumental, where Liz introduced the piece and spoke about both her life and inspirations, were both moving and informative. The replacement activities for the unwell performers seemed to go down fairly well, with one set of poetry readings and another discussion on how the arts can be used to help create community in paganism (whi...

On Monday the East Anglian Daily Times featured an article which I wrote in early December, discussing both Pooka's Pageant performing arts festival and some of the ethics of storytelling. This latter is an issue that is of growing interest to me, alongside the general philosophy underpinning the art of storytelling. I expect I'll revisit the topic again in the future. Page 1 of the EADT article is here and Page 2 here. I'm not sure how legible these scanned copies are, so the text and a very short story is below. Storytelling article for EADT November 7 th saw the sixth annual Pooka’s Pageant in Ipswich, a gathering of storytellers, poets, and singers who celebrate mythology and folklore through the performing arts. Both experienced and new performers strutted their stuff, drawing on the myths of medieval Wales, Ancient Egypt, Japan, Iceland, and English fairy tales. The audience was appreciative, and some money was raised for animal charities in the proce...

On November 7th, 10am to 5pm at Oddfellows Hall, I will be coordinating our annual performing arts gathering - Pooka's Pageant. As in previous years there will be a full programme of speakers, performers and workshops to entertain people with (all for a mere £4, with any profits being split between animal charities). We will be opening at... 10am - a talk on Narrative Psychology and its applications within paganism 11.15 - choose between Songs of the Sea with Terry Smith, or Welsh Mythology with Beverley Price We break for lunch at 12.15 and a chance to share some poetry. 1.15 - Japanese mythology in Lady of the Mirror with Marion Leeper, or alternately a workshop for aspiring storytellers 2.15 - Joshua Harris will be telling myths of the Norse Gods, or if you prefer listen to some pagan themed poetry for disturbed and disturbing children with Robin Herne (i.e. me) 3.15 - Carys Deverell will be regaling us with pagan songs and music 4.15 - Emmalena Louise Ellis will be t...

In previous years we have held Pooka's Pageant (a celebration of polytheism through the performing arts) in August. Due to an excess of events in that month, this year we have transferred it to November 7th - still in it's usual Ipswich venue. I am currently scouting for polytheist storytellers, poets, singers, puppeteers, or other performers who want to celebrate the Old Gods and spirits through their performances. Each year we try to get a good mix of cultures ~ previous years have included Irish, Welsh, Greek, Germanic, Scandinavian, African, Arabic, Native American, Chinese, Indian, and Inuit tales. If you are a polytheist performer (or know someone who is) within easy travelling distance of Ipswich, do get in touch via robinherne@hotmail.com