{"podcast":{"title":"The Three Ravens Podcast","slug":"the-three-ravens-podcast-6092563","podcast_index_feed_id":6092563,"rss_url":"https://feeds.acast.com/public/shows/6404e1f4c5ea8c0011811194","website_url":"https://shows.acast.com/threeravenspodcast","image_url":"https://assets.pippa.io/shows/6404e1f4c5ea8c0011811194/1762731467101-0eb1042b-7eea-4cd5-b8b9-9f44f87aadbd.jpeg","author":"Three Ravens","episode_count":511,"summary":"Three Ravens is an English myth and folklore podcast hosted by Eleanor Conlon and Martin Vaux. In each weekly episode, released on Mondays, we explore a historic county, digging into the history, folklore and traditions of the area, from ghosts and mermaids to mythical monsters, half-forgotten heroes, bloody legends, and much, much more. Across our first six series we ventured around England's 39 historic counties twice, taking turns to tell a new version of a legend from that county - all before discussing what that tale might mean, where it may have come from, and the truths it reveals about England's hidden past. Our Bonus Episodes are then released on Thursdays ( Magic and Medicines about folk remedies and arcane spells, Three Ravens Bestiary about cryptids and mythical creatures, Forgotten Melodies about folk song types with original performances from us, and Magus , which is about the lives of the most famous witches and wizards in history). On Saturdays, we then release episodes of our interview series Local Legends, with each episode featuring a chat between us and an acclaimed folklorist, author, podcaster or historian, deepening discussions about that week's county. In b…","last_synced_at":"2026-08-02T04:21:37.212610+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-three-ravens-podcast-6092563"},"episode":{"title":"Magic and Medicines #24: Wicca","slug":"magic-and-medicines-24-wicca","published_at":"2026-05-11T05:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-three-ravens-podcast-6092563/magic-and-medicines-24-wicca","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-three-ravens-podcast-6092563","url":"https://www.threeravenspodcast.com/","audio_url":"https://sphinx.acast.com/p/open/s/6404e1f4c5ea8c0011811194/e/6a00d4c845d57527152a9766/media.mp3","summary":"This new episode of Magic and Medicines has perhaps been a long time coming - we're finally talking all about Wicca! We trace earlier ideas which informed the path scholars call a 'magico-religion' back to the early 19th century, when historians first hypothesised about the existing of an ancient, secret witch cult. Through texts like Charles Leland's Aradia , via Frazer's The Golden Bough , to the highly influential (if historically dubious) work of Margaret Murray, we arrive in the melting pot of secret societies and orders which emerged from Western esotericism in the first part of the 20th century. Although such theories left most members of the Folklore Society cold, they thoroughly inspired Gerald Gardner, and the development of what would become Wicca began. It's a twisty, turny journey, with witch traditions of dubious ancient origin, Cones of Power, and many, many breakaway branches, all the way through to sparkling Geocities sites, teen witches, and the rich, eclectic patchwork that is international Wicca today.  We really hope you enjoy the episode, and we will speak to you again on Thursday with another double bill of Lang Tales! Three Ravens is an English Myth and Folklore podcast hosted by award-winning writers Martin Vaux and Eleanor Conlon. Released on Mondays, each weekly episode focuses on one of England's 39 historic counties, exploring the history, folklore and traditions of the area, from ghosts and mermaids to mythical monsters, half-forgotten heroes, bloody legends, and much, much more. Then, and most importantly, the pair take turns to tell a new version of an ancient story from that county - all before discussing what that tale might mean, where it might have come from, and the truths it reveals about England's hidden past... Bonus Episode…","meta_description":"This new episode of Magic and Medicines has perhaps been a long time coming - we're finally talking all about Wicca! We trace earlier ideas which informed…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":4683,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-three-ravens-podcast-6092563/episodes/magic-and-medicines-24-wicca/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-three-ravens-podcast-6092563/magic-and-medicines-24-wicca.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}