Kilkenny Folk Tales

Anne Farrell gathers legends, myths and remembered stories from County Kilkenny, linking local places with saints, castles, caves and creatures. The collection includes the tale of Grennan Castle, the comic dispute between St Evin and St Moling settled by fish, and traditions surrounding Dearc Fhearna, now known as the Dunmore Caves.

Elsewhere, Dame Alice Kyteler and the Countess of Ormond appear alongside Kilkenny Cats, shape-changing in Ossory, fairies, ghosts, banshees and local saints. Farrell draws on historical sources and newly recorded reminiscence, presenting the material in the voice of a local storyteller. The result brings together bloodier legends, humorous yarns, cautionary tales and accounts rooted in the county’s communities and landscape.