To subscribe to Commentary Club go here - COMMENTARY CLUB 021 - Santa Claws
Showing posts with label cats. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cats. Show all posts
Tuesday, 10 December 2019
COMMENTARY CLUB 021 - Santa Claws (2014)
To subscribe to Commentary Club go here - COMMENTARY CLUB 021 - Santa Claws
Friday, 2 December 2016
FOLKLORE ON FRIDAY - Species of Spectres VII
Welcome once again dear readers to yet another exploration of all things ghostly and folkloric. This week we are still considering the possible classifications we can make under the heading of Animal Apparitions. We already discovered the spectral equivalents of man's best friends, the hound and horse, and last week investigated the strange fluttering of avian apparitions. So then it's only right and proper that we first sketch in a subcategory for Feline Phantoms, for as cats have enjoyed our company for many centuries it is unsurprising there are a fair few folk tales relating to metaphysical moggies.
Now to keep us on track and focussed on ghostly folklore, I'm not going to be making such mention of the reports of panthers and pumas roaming the British Isles. For these Alien Big Cats (or ABCs for short) are a relatively recent phenomena, and are perhaps more properly considered as belonging in the field of cryptozoology rather than folklore. Now that is not to say that folklore cannot be modern or recent, and while some writers and researchers have mooted the theory that ABCs are possibly a modern mutation of traditional tales of phantom black dogs, I tend to consider them to me more likely real creatures than phantom animals. Aside from tricks of perspective causing misidentification of regular felines, I think it is telling the ABC phenomena begins after a law was passed in the early 1970s that regulated the ownership of exotic animals, and several reports have been uncovered of big cat owners releasing their former pets into the wild as a result.
However even leaving ABCs aside, there is still a strong enough tradition of ghostly cats to justify a Feline Phantoms category. However while spectral hounds tend follow the same pattern, and tales feathered phantoms can be classified into distinct sub-groups, accounts of ghostly moggies seem to prove that even when they are ethereal or ectoplasmic, cats will still be cats i.e. independent to the last, always doing their own thing, and generally defying any rules we try and impose on them!
Naturally several tales of ghost cats would appear to be accounts of deceased pets returning. For example, at a house in Birtley, County Durham, a phantom Persian cat has been spotted on several occasions, and research has revealed that such a cat was the pet of a former owner. While at the Market Cross pub in Swaffham, Norfolk, a phantom cat is frequently mistaken for a real moggy. It is speculated that possibly this feline phantom was the pet of one of the pub’s other ghosts, one of the spectral old fellows who are sometimes seen sat drinking and smoking by the fire.
Actually it would appear that pubs are something of a favourite haunt of spectral cats. In Bedford, London, the Square Inn (formerly known as The Bull-nosed Bat) there have been many sightings of a phantom cat. While at The Beehive in Great Waltham, a ghostly grey cat is often seen disappearing through walls. This would appear to be something of a favourite trick with feline phantoms, as in the Gatehouse Restaurant, in Battle, Sussex, the ghost of a former house cat floats about and allegedly is often seen disappearing through a wall. At the Old Talbot public house in Worcester, a ghostly cat has been known to brush up against people, only to disappear as soon as it has gained their attention. And at Sower Carr Lane, in Hambleton, another spectral cat does much the same trick, rubbing against the legs of walkers yet remaining invisible.
At Ye Olde Starre Inne in York two phantom black cats are often seen, and seem to delight in spooking the dogs of any patrons. It is said they are the spectres of two cats that were bricked up in a pillar between the front door and the bar. While this may sound terribly macabre and cruel, it is a historical fact that many dead cats have been found walled up in old buildings. The theory is that these animals were a kind of sacrifice or protective charm carried out when these places were built, and this practice is suspected to be the origin of several ghostly moggies. For example, the black cat that haunts the bridge over the River Coquet, in Rothbury, Northumberland may well have been such a sacrifice made when the bridge was built.
In a tale of a haunting in the late 19th century which took place at Lower Seedly Road, Manchester, part of the ghostly manifestations was the sound of a cat crying, and later the spectre of a headless cat appeared. Quite how it cried without a head remains a mystery. However being missing bodily appendages does not appear to overly trouble feline phantoms, for in 1675 the house of a Mr Edward Pitts in Puddledock, London suffered a poltergeist infestation, and one of the phantoms reported was a legless cat floating through the house. Of course cats famously never abide with convention, as demonstrated by the phantom puss that haunts Balbriggan, County Dublin who appears sporting a striking shade of green.
Surprisingly given that traditional association with witches, there don't seem to be very many ghostly cats linked with witchcraft. However there are a couple who appear to belong distinctly to the dark side. Firstly there's tales of a seemingly evil black cat that manifested in a room at Powerham Castle and attacked a guest. But perhaps the most famous ghostly moggy of all also enjoys a highly sinister reputation. Montpelier Hill in County Dublin, Ireland was the home of the Irish Hellfire Club where much whiskey was drunk and allegedly orgies, debauchery and evocations of Satan took place. The club's mascot was a large black cat who allegedly took the place of Satan in their gatherings. It was also said they had burnt a cat alive and committed several murders at their gatherings.
At first they met in a ruined hunting lodge atop the hill, and later in a nearby Victorian mansion, the Killakee house. In 1968 when renovations were being done on the now crumbling house, workmen began reporting ghostly manifestations, and soon several folks had seen an evil looking black cat. One of these was the painter Tom Massey who was left badly shaken after an encounter with the snarling brute, which he described as having burning eyes - and he would later paint the beast as seen below. In 1970, further work at the house uncovered a shock secret, a small skeleton was buried beneath the kitchen floor, and what's more with the bones was a brass statue of a demon. This macabre discovery seemingly proved the old tales that the Hellfire Club had once beaten a deformed boy to death. However there's still tales of ghostly activity in the area, and the malevolent spectral cat is still allegedly seen at the house and prowling Monpelier Hill...
Well folks, that brings us to the end of Species of Spectres for this year - over the next few weeks we'll be shifting gear into a more festive mode and looking at some Yuletide folklore...
Now to keep us on track and focussed on ghostly folklore, I'm not going to be making such mention of the reports of panthers and pumas roaming the British Isles. For these Alien Big Cats (or ABCs for short) are a relatively recent phenomena, and are perhaps more properly considered as belonging in the field of cryptozoology rather than folklore. Now that is not to say that folklore cannot be modern or recent, and while some writers and researchers have mooted the theory that ABCs are possibly a modern mutation of traditional tales of phantom black dogs, I tend to consider them to me more likely real creatures than phantom animals. Aside from tricks of perspective causing misidentification of regular felines, I think it is telling the ABC phenomena begins after a law was passed in the early 1970s that regulated the ownership of exotic animals, and several reports have been uncovered of big cat owners releasing their former pets into the wild as a result.
However even leaving ABCs aside, there is still a strong enough tradition of ghostly cats to justify a Feline Phantoms category. However while spectral hounds tend follow the same pattern, and tales feathered phantoms can be classified into distinct sub-groups, accounts of ghostly moggies seem to prove that even when they are ethereal or ectoplasmic, cats will still be cats i.e. independent to the last, always doing their own thing, and generally defying any rules we try and impose on them!
Naturally several tales of ghost cats would appear to be accounts of deceased pets returning. For example, at a house in Birtley, County Durham, a phantom Persian cat has been spotted on several occasions, and research has revealed that such a cat was the pet of a former owner. While at the Market Cross pub in Swaffham, Norfolk, a phantom cat is frequently mistaken for a real moggy. It is speculated that possibly this feline phantom was the pet of one of the pub’s other ghosts, one of the spectral old fellows who are sometimes seen sat drinking and smoking by the fire.
Actually it would appear that pubs are something of a favourite haunt of spectral cats. In Bedford, London, the Square Inn (formerly known as The Bull-nosed Bat) there have been many sightings of a phantom cat. While at The Beehive in Great Waltham, a ghostly grey cat is often seen disappearing through walls. This would appear to be something of a favourite trick with feline phantoms, as in the Gatehouse Restaurant, in Battle, Sussex, the ghost of a former house cat floats about and allegedly is often seen disappearing through a wall. At the Old Talbot public house in Worcester, a ghostly cat has been known to brush up against people, only to disappear as soon as it has gained their attention. And at Sower Carr Lane, in Hambleton, another spectral cat does much the same trick, rubbing against the legs of walkers yet remaining invisible.
At Ye Olde Starre Inne in York two phantom black cats are often seen, and seem to delight in spooking the dogs of any patrons. It is said they are the spectres of two cats that were bricked up in a pillar between the front door and the bar. While this may sound terribly macabre and cruel, it is a historical fact that many dead cats have been found walled up in old buildings. The theory is that these animals were a kind of sacrifice or protective charm carried out when these places were built, and this practice is suspected to be the origin of several ghostly moggies. For example, the black cat that haunts the bridge over the River Coquet, in Rothbury, Northumberland may well have been such a sacrifice made when the bridge was built.
In a tale of a haunting in the late 19th century which took place at Lower Seedly Road, Manchester, part of the ghostly manifestations was the sound of a cat crying, and later the spectre of a headless cat appeared. Quite how it cried without a head remains a mystery. However being missing bodily appendages does not appear to overly trouble feline phantoms, for in 1675 the house of a Mr Edward Pitts in Puddledock, London suffered a poltergeist infestation, and one of the phantoms reported was a legless cat floating through the house. Of course cats famously never abide with convention, as demonstrated by the phantom puss that haunts Balbriggan, County Dublin who appears sporting a striking shade of green.
Surprisingly given that traditional association with witches, there don't seem to be very many ghostly cats linked with witchcraft. However there are a couple who appear to belong distinctly to the dark side. Firstly there's tales of a seemingly evil black cat that manifested in a room at Powerham Castle and attacked a guest. But perhaps the most famous ghostly moggy of all also enjoys a highly sinister reputation. Montpelier Hill in County Dublin, Ireland was the home of the Irish Hellfire Club where much whiskey was drunk and allegedly orgies, debauchery and evocations of Satan took place. The club's mascot was a large black cat who allegedly took the place of Satan in their gatherings. It was also said they had burnt a cat alive and committed several murders at their gatherings.
At first they met in a ruined hunting lodge atop the hill, and later in a nearby Victorian mansion, the Killakee house. In 1968 when renovations were being done on the now crumbling house, workmen began reporting ghostly manifestations, and soon several folks had seen an evil looking black cat. One of these was the painter Tom Massey who was left badly shaken after an encounter with the snarling brute, which he described as having burning eyes - and he would later paint the beast as seen below. In 1970, further work at the house uncovered a shock secret, a small skeleton was buried beneath the kitchen floor, and what's more with the bones was a brass statue of a demon. This macabre discovery seemingly proved the old tales that the Hellfire Club had once beaten a deformed boy to death. However there's still tales of ghostly activity in the area, and the malevolent spectral cat is still allegedly seen at the house and prowling Monpelier Hill...
Well folks, that brings us to the end of Species of Spectres for this year - over the next few weeks we'll be shifting gear into a more festive mode and looking at some Yuletide folklore...
Friday, 8 May 2015
FOLKLORE ON FRIDAY - Not So Merry in the Month of May Part II
Last week we explored the widespread superstition that it was unlucky to marry in the month of the May, and we traced this age-old belief back to the Romans. Due to the Roman festival of Lemuria, which was to placate the shades of the unquiet dead, being held in the middle of May, the whole month was considered unlucky for marriages. However in the annals of folklore, the fifth month was ill omened for a variety of other activities too.
In Scotland, where they placed much store in the old proverb "marry in May, rue the day", it was also said to be hazardous for a young mother to be weaning her children in this month too. Possibly this too derives from the same ancient beliefs that the rites of Lemuria tainted the month, for there was a more widespread belief that children born in May were destined for ill-luck. Many folkloric sources that warn it is unlucky to marry in May add the sinister line that children born in this month "die in decay", holding that "a May baby is always sickly, you may try but never rear it". A common taunt to those unlucky enough to be born in this month was "you are but a May cat".
And what pray tell is a May cat? Well, obviously these were kittens born in the fifth month, and like their human counterparts they too were held to be sickly and weak. Indeed the May malaise touched other branches of the animal kingdom too, with May ducklings being said to be more likely to sprawl and in Dorset it was said that colts born in the May would have the unfortunate habit of lying down in any water you tried to ride them through.
But it is the humble cat who gets the worst share of folklore here. For in addition to being sickly, May cats who did survive had the widespread reputation of being somewhat useless. According to many sources, a May cat would not make a good mouser, with many holding that not only would they be rubbish at keeping down the local rats and mice, but would also bring venomous reptiles, worms and snakes into the house instead. In some places it was even said that it was May cats that would creep into beds and cots and steal your breath away...
Again this is possibly related to the rites of Lemuria. Cats were popular pets in ancient Rome, and were associated with the Diana, goddess of hunting and Libertas, the goddess of freedom. Furthermore they were the only animals allowed in the temples, hence as the temples were closed during this Roman festival possibly this is why cats born in May are ill omened, having been denied the presence of the gods. However given that the superstitions about May cats are localised to the British Isles, perhaps we shouldn't be stretching back to the Classical world, and instead looking for connections closer to home.
Certainly in British folklore, May is a hazardous month. For example, you've postponed your wedding, are not expecting a child, and even the cat is not having kittens so surely you're safe to get on with a bit of housework and make ready for the summer... Wrong! Stop right there! Firstly leave that winter bedding in place! "Wash blankets in May, you'll soon be under clay" says the lore of Oxfordshire, while in Bristol it is said "wash a blanket in May, wash a loved one away". Ok so we're leaving the bedding alone! How about getting some lighter clothes for the summer? Well, that is out too - "don't cast a clout, until May is out" says an old British proverb - "clout" an old English word for "clothes".
Now the reasons for these strictures and taboos on changing bedding and garments in the month of May we can trace to a different origin than ancient Roman festivals of the dead; indeed it is perhaps the origin of much of the other lore of ill luck in May too. And like many things in the British Isles, it comes down to the weather! The clearest indication, and indeed explanation comes from an 1852 publication, The Englishwoman's Domestic Magazine Almanack, where it is written -
We warn young persons during this month not to throw off their warm clothing too suddenly, as in this changeable climate we often have a day of sunshine followed by a day of rain and hail. Many are the deaths by consumption, the seeds of which have been sown by this pernicious practice.And there we have it - from sickly kids and kittens, to keeping cosy blankets and coats - all these forms of ill luck in the fifth month we can attribute to the changeable weather in May. Now for years it was thought that it was just an old wives' tale that getting cold can lead to catching a cold, but recent scientific research has shown that there is truth in the old saying. For, in basic terms, when your body has to work harder to regulate your temperature, your immune system becomes less effective; in particular the body's heat saving device of constricting blood flow means there are less white blood cells in the blood vessels to fight incoming germs and viruses.
Naturally infants are more prone to infection, and by getting caught out in cold weather, by not having your winter coat or having ditched the winter bedding, adults are at risk too. And as we don't commonly associate May with a time for colds, flu or infections, to fall ill in this month was seen as bad luck. Hence it turns out that the dire warnings about the month of May are founded not in superstition or ancient rites, but based on practical observances that folks were at risk of falling ill at an unexpected time of the year.
Sunday, 24 July 2011
HYPNOBOBS 41 - The Black Cats of Poe Part I
This week Mr Jim Moon begins an examination of the various screen adaptations of Edgar Allan Poe's classic tale The Black Cat. In this show, we look at The Black Cat (1934) starring Bela Lugosi and Boris Karloff, the early exploitation flick Maniac (1934), the chills and chuckles of The Black Cat (1941), Roger Corman's Tomb of Ligeia (1964) starring the legendary Vincent Price, and the obscure but distinctly groovy The Black Cat (1966).
DIRECT DOWNLOAD - HYPNOBOBS 41 - The Black Cats of Poe (Part I)
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