My second visit to the Eisteddfod and this time it was a very great delight to watch our beautiful Christine leading the traditional Gorsedd ceremony. The Guardian gave it a Witness page which was nice, but considering it’s the largest arts festival in Europe one wonders why it didn’t make the news? Too peaceful? No … Read more
Charles Sullivan has told me that Routledge Revivals List has agreed to reprint his key 1997 anthology. It is currently ONLY available from academic libraries, unless you’re lucky to have bought one years ago. Sullivan, Charles William III, ed. 1996. The Mabinogi: A Book of Essays. NY: Garland Publications. This is great news as this … Read more
The disability issues are the pits. Big runaround only to be told they will do nothing to help. I just can’t walk the route from the ordinary car park. It’s much too far for me. If this cannot be sorted I shall have to give it all up, for the sake of a half day … Read more
I duly worked on the list of primary Sources as instructed, which was useful. I thought it would help Christine to get to grips with me if she saw a paper or two, so I analysed the first lines when Rhiannon appears “The Advent of Rhiannon.” Then I examined the gold silk she and others … Read more
It seemed wrong that my chief heroine is a mighty horsewoman and I had never so much as touched a horse. I decided to meet one and arranged an appointment with Bramble the Welsh cob in Somerset. She was almost exclusively interested in eating grass, but graciously allowed me close. Unfortunately I wasn’t told she … Read more
Only a little less terrified than my very first meeting back in January. Christine is consistently gentle, but she holds so much power: to open the gates, or cast me out. She is surprised I am so nervous, but it is not primarily about she herself as she is very kind to me. It is … Read more
This is a major Mabinogi storytelling with a long term tour across Wales and southern England. http://www.treeofleafandflame.co.uk/ VIDEO link http://www.treeofleafandflame.co.uk/video/4581604658 or it’s on youtube. Daniel Morden is the storyteller, His book Tree of Leaf and Flame won the Wales Books Council Tir Na Nog Prize in 2013. Oliver Wilson-Dickson – violin and Dylan Fowler – … Read more
My conference diary 2015 until the summer, updated. Abstracts will be uploaded both here and on Academia.edu I’m aiming to complete my general review of Mabinogi scholarship summer 2015 which will generate lots for the site. In the autumn I will move to more focus on my own theories. However these are already leaking into … Read more
I had corresponded with four universities during the autumn 2014 to find a home to study Rhiannon. One disqualified itself after initially looking good. Another was friendly and seemed to understand my project, but could only offer a fairly rigid scheme of study. The other two never answered my emails. The fifth, Swansea, didn’t look … Read more
Sept. and Oct. 2013 I had collected a lot of the Mabinogi Bibliography in document form. Did a triage on the main softwares available. Decided to use Zotero for the online bibliog. It has a neat double software which synchronises entries made on their site, and on my laptop. I can categorise it using tags. … Read more