The Paranormal Database

Calton Hill, Edinburgh.

Gateway

Location: Edinburgh (Lothian) - Calton Hill
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Seventeenth century
Further Comments: According to one story, dating back to the Seventeenth Century, a magical fairy gateway leading to France, Holland, and the fairy kingdom opened on the hill, though only those with second sight could see and use the mythical entrance. A young lad claimed to have access to the gate and would act as a drummer to the many fairies who used the portal. The lad claimed to be needed on a certain date by the little people, and despite all physical efforts to force him to miss the meeting, the lad slipped away from his wardens and was never seen again.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2003-06-01   Last updated: 2003-06-01   ID: #4314

Centaur

Location: Edinburgh (Lothian) - Royal Botanic Garden
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: 1960s
Further Comments: Robert Ogilvie Crombie claimed to have encountered several mystical creatures here, including a centaur, a faun named Kurmos, and Pan.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2015-03-30   Last updated: 2015-03-30   ID: #11779

Vanishing Piper

Location: Ednam (Borders) - Nearby mound known as the Piper's Grave (aka Pict's Knowe)
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Believing the fairies within the mound would teach him new tunes, a piper entered to seek enlightenment. He was never seen again.

Source: Historical Record, Published Media
First added: 2008-03-02   Last updated: 2008-03-02   ID: #8286

Butter Flingers

Location: Egton Bridge (North Yorkshire) - Egton Grange
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Early nineteenth century
Further Comments: The local elves were said to create mischief by throwing their freshly made butter at doors and gates.

Source: Historical Record
First added: 2019-10-31   Last updated: 2019-10-31   ID: #13387

Hobthrush

Location: Elsdon (Northumberland) - Elsdon Moat
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Hobthrush, a brownie-like entity, tirelessly worked here until, after someone spotted his hat was a bit worse for wear, made him a new one. Offended, Hobthrush left and never returned.

Source: Historical Record
First added: 2018-06-13   Last updated: 2018-06-13   ID: #12864

The moor is said to be protected by a nature spirit.

Brown Man

Location: Elsdon (Northumberland) - Elsdon Moor
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A stocky dwarf like figure, the brown man looks after the local wildlife, and has been known to kill anyone who persistently harms the natural balance.

Source: Historical Record, Published Media
First added: 2002-06-13   Last updated: 2002-06-13   ID: #1206

Awfshots

Location: Esk Valley (North Yorkshire) - General area, including Goathland and Danby
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Still present
Further Comments: Awfshots, flint arrowheads used by ancient people, were traditionally believed to have been used by fairies. Farmers would touch their cattle with the arrowheads found here for protection. Emily Bronte refers to the objects in her work.

Source: User Submission
First added: 2012-08-26   Last updated: 2012-08-26   ID: #11086

Brownie

Location: Ettrick (Borders) - Forest
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This woodland was the home of a brownie, although little more is known about the creature.

Source: Historical Record
First added: 2018-05-23   Last updated: 2018-05-23   ID: #12835

Shellycoat

Location: Ettrick Waters (Borders) - River
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Shellycoat was the name given to a playful water spirit which dressed in a shell covered jacket. He normally carried out his antics while hiding in the river, trying to lure the gullible forever closer to the cold waters.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2004-09-22   Last updated: 2004-09-22   ID: #5480

Fairy Abduction

Location: Evanton (Highland) - Balconie House
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The lady of the house was taken away by a strange man dressed in green, who appeared from nowhere. A few years later a witness reported seeing her chained at the bottom of a local cavern, though no one was able to climb down and release her. The house also may be haunted - one story told was of a group of fishermen who fled the house one night after encountering a ghost.

Source: Historical Record
First added: 2003-02-20   Last updated: 2003-02-20   ID: #3921

Fairy Fort

Location: Exford (Somerset) - Cow Castle
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Still present
Further Comments: This Iron Age Hillfort was constructed by fairies to protect themselves from earth spirits.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2009-04-13   Last updated: 2009-04-13   ID: #9215

Harassed by Fairies

Location: Fetlar (Shetland) - Unnamed disused watermills on the island, unlikely to remain
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Several abandoned watermills on the island were associated with myths, the most prevalent one being that fairies had driven the owners away.

Source: Historical Record
First added: 2017-06-17   Last updated: 2017-06-17   ID: #12525

Helpful Horse

Location: Fleetwood (Lancashire) - Hackensall Hall
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This boggart took the form of a horse. The entity would plough fields and work around the farm in return for a warm place to spend the night (or a pie, depending on the story).

Source: Historical Record, Published Media
First added: 2003-10-04   Last updated: 2025-08-03   ID: #4622

Sketch by Franz Marc.

Tiny Horses

Location: Forenaghts Great (County Kildare) - Longstone Rath
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: 31 October 1971
Further Comments: Author Herbie Brennan and a friend visited this site late at night and spotted several small white horses galloping along the earthwork. He described them as being no taller than a cocker spaniel and around 25 in number.

Source: Needs Review
First added: 2011-04-30   Last updated: 2011-04-30   ID: #10397

Little Folk

Location: Foulridge (Lancashire) - Area around Lake Burwain
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The area around the lake is reportedly home to boggarts and hobs. There are also stories of ghostly Roundheads moving around the area, some on horseback and others wearily walking holding pikes.

Source: Published Media, User Submission
First added: 2003-10-26   Last updated: 2003-10-26   ID: #4723

Fairy Stone

Location: Fourstones (Northumberland) - Exact area no longer known, was on the south edge of the village
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Last seen in nineteenth century
Further Comments: The village is said to have taken its name from four stones, either holy or Roman in nature, which marked the four corners of the village. One of the stones was said to act as a message drop between fairies and had a small recess in which small pieces of paper could be left.

Source: Historical Record
First added: 2018-02-21   Last updated: 2018-02-21   ID: #12754

Cauldron

Location: Frensham (Surrey) - Church
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: The cauldron in the church is said to have been taken from fairies that once lived nearby, though other accounts say it belonged to a white witch. Earthen mounds near the pond are thought to have been created by the Devil and are unlucky to disturb.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2002-07-17   Last updated: 2002-07-17   ID: #1799

The deep waters of the Blue Pool, Furzebrook.

Water Fairies

Location: Furzebrook (Dorset) - Blue Pool
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: Once a clay pit, the hole was left to fill with water. Some say that it has become bottomless, and that fairy folk live within the water waiting to drown those who are too curious. Others say it is the Devil who pushes people in.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2008-08-30   Last updated: 2008-08-30   ID: #8830

Lavina

Location: Fyfield (Essex) - Gypsy Mead
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Dawn (reoccurring)
Further Comments: Lavina, a female elf, can be heard singing on the site at sunrise.

Source: Historical Record
First added: 2002-05-05   Last updated: 2002-05-05   ID: #664

Witches

Location: Garway (Herefordshire) - Garway Hill
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A piece of local folklore says, 'There will always be nine witches from the bottom of Orcop to the top of Garway, as long as water flows'. Depending on the story, the witches either helped a man recover his wife who had been kidnapped by fairies, or had brought her back from the dead.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2024-02-24   Last updated: 2024-02-24   ID: #15279

Hay Maker

Location: Glaisdale End (North Yorkshire) - Hart Hall
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A dab hand around the farm, this hob left when (like so many of his other helpful friends throughout Yorkshire) the owners tried to give him new clothing to replace the rags that he wore.

Source: Historical Record, Published Media
First added: 2003-01-04   Last updated: 2003-01-04   ID: #3467

Cliodhna

Location: Glandore (County Cork) - Coastline
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Weather dependent: Stormy weather
Further Comments: Cliodhna, the Banshee Queen, met Keevan of the Curling Locks during a feast at Tir Tairngire. She fell in love with the mortal and they escaped in a ship, landing in Glandore. Keevan set off inland to hunt, leaving Cliodhna to sleep on the beach. Depending on the storyteller, Cliodhna either drowned while sleeping or fairies tracked her down and returned the queen to Tir Tairngire. Cliodhna is still heard when the conditions are right, a deep and hollow roar emerging from the caves along the cliffs of Glandore.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2024-05-28   Last updated: 2024-05-28   ID: #15432

Old postcard of Glastonbury Tor.

Fairy King

Location: Glastonbury (Somerset) - Glastonbury Tor
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: UFO 1980s, tall man Winter 2003, others unknown
Further Comments: Local legend has it that St Collen visited the head of the fairy royal family on this hill. A woman, named by some to be Queen Guinevere, is also said to manifest over the Tor, and possesses golden hair that illuminates the area. During the 1980s, a woman ascending the tor spotted what she thought was the full moon behind trees, only to realise that the globe was moving towards her - she fled. In 2003, another witness quickly left after encountering a tall man, standing between seven and eight feet tall, with red curly hair and two stubby horns. The man wore a huge excited grin.

Source: Historical Record, Published Media, User Submission
First added: 2002-07-06   Last updated: 2026-04-10   ID: #1638

Falin

Location: Glen Aven (Aberdeenshire) - Mountains
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: This demonic creature, whose head is twice the size of its body, is so evil that anything which crosses an area where it has walked is doomed to die soon after.

Source: Published Media
First added: 2003-05-31   Last updated: 2003-05-31   ID: #4253

Brownie

Location: Glen Devon (Perth and Kinross) - Unknown residence
Type: Fairy
Date / Time: Unknown
Further Comments: A Brownie left this residence in disgust after the homeowner left some new clothes out for the entity to wear.

Source: Historical Record
First added: 2015-06-18   Last updated: 2015-06-18   ID: #11840