Village Wisewomen in West Cornwall

14/11/2025

Wow!

13/11/2025

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❧ 𝒯𝒽𝑒 𝐾𝒾𝓃𝑔 𝑜𝒻 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝒞𝒶𝓉𝓈 ❧

𝐴 𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑎𝑛𝑔𝑒 𝑡𝑎𝑙𝑒 𝑓𝑟𝑜𝑚 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑜𝑙𝑑 𝐵𝑟𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑠ℎ 𝐼𝑠𝑙𝑒𝑠
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On a cold winter evening, a sexton was late returning home from his work in the graveyard. His wife sat by the fire with their black cat, Old Tom, half asleep at her feet. When the door finally opened, the sexton rushed inside looking pale and shaken.

Before his wife could speak, he blurted out, “Who is Tom Tildrum?”

His wife stared at him. “Tom Tildrum? Why? What’s happened?”

The sexton tried to steady himself as he explained that he had been digging at a gravesite when he must have dozed off. He woke to the sound of a cat crying. At first he thought it was only Old Tom come to find him, but when he looked up from the edge of the grave, he froze.

There in the moonlight was a procession of nine black cats, each with a white patch on its chest. Eight carried a small coffin draped in black velvet. The ninth walked in front with the proud bearing of a herald. Their green eyes glowed in the dark and with every third step they cried together, “Miaou.” The sexton watched in disbelief as they approached the grave.

The leading cat stepped forward, looked straight at him, and spoke in a thin, clear voice:
“Tell Tom Tildrum that Tim Toldrum is dead.”

The cats then turned and walked away, disappearing among the gravestones as quietly as they had come.

When the sexton finished his story, his wife looked down at Old Tom. The cat was staring at her husband as if he had understood every word. His fur bristled. His eyes widened. Then Old Tom gave a sharp cry.

“What? Tim Toldrum dead? Then I’m the King of the Cats!”

With that he sprang up the chimney and vanished. He was never seen again.

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Scholars trace this strange little tale to British and Irish folk tradition, where talking animals often appear as messengers between worlds. No one agrees on what Tom Tildrum’s kingdom truly was, but the story survives because of its eerie simplicity. A quiet room, an ordinary hearth, and the sudden realization that the creatures beside us may live stranger lives than we ever imagined.

12/11/2025

28/10/2025

This week we’re celebrating with our crystal set for Samhain - which marks the darkening of the days and end of the harvest season, seen as new year in the Celtic tradition. Halloween is based on this time to honour those passed, with the belief that the veil between the worlds grew thin.