Our next meeting will be held in The Woolpack, Tillicoultry and the theme is “Beltane”.
Beltane is the Gaelic May Day festival, marking the beginning of summer. It is traditionally held on 1 May, or about midway between the spring equinox and summer solstice.
Come and join us to hear stories, poems and possibly even songs around this theme. It’s sure to be a captivating evening.
An entertaining evening was had by members old, new and returning at the Community Shed, Alloa.
The evening began with the host, Oor Gail, sharing April Fools stories from 2026, then we warmed up by playing “two truths and a lie”.
We heard original poems and a well-known folk song, “Where Have All the Flowers Gone” as well as tales of Persephone, the origin of midges, “The Willow Tree”, “The Bluestone of Crail”, how the hare restored the sun to the sky amongst others.
We had a full house at our storytelling meeting with the theme of “Beltane”, with many stories and poems told – so many that it was a struggle to fit them all in!
From original poems about spring and family feuds to tales of hares, crabs, tramps and tailors, to traditional stories of the Scottish Queen of Winter, fairies and those who live alongside them, a most entertaining and enlightening evening was enjoyed by all.
STORYTELLING SESSION REVIEW: WEDNESDAY, 18TH MARCH, 2026
We had a healthy turn out for our most recent session which had the theme, “A Spring in your Step”. We heard an original poem, “A Spring in your Step”, tales of maidens, magic, mayhem and green mist, true tales, myths and legends.
As always, a most enjoyable evening was had by all in the welcoming environs of The Woolpack, Tillicoultry.
STORYTELLING SESSION: WEDNESDAY, 18TH MARCH, 2026
Our theme for our next gathering is “Spring in Your Step”. We have a plethora of stories and poems to share on this loose theme, so please join us for an uplifting evening which is sure to make you feel ready for Spring. All are welcome to come and listen or perhaps tell your own tale.
Our next storytelling evening will take place in The Community Shed, Alloa (see address above) at the usual time of 7.30pm – 9.30pm. Our theme is “The Circle of Life”. Please join us to hear tales, poems and perhaps even songs based on this theme.
We had our first meeting in The Community Shed on Wednesday. Thanks to Forth Valley Men’s Shed for making the cosy space so welcoming.
Our theme was ‘All at Sea’ and we had a number of fascinating contributions from Skye to Aberfeldy, to Ireland, to Staroven, Greece and many more.
No poetry this time but a lot of fun was had as usual. We’ll continue to meet here once a month and once a month in the Woolpack.
A warm welcome awaits you at our next session. Our theme this week is “All at Sea”. Have you a story, poem or perhaps even a song featuring the sea, sea creatures, sailors or being confused? Join us to share or simply to listen. A warm welcome awaits!
A warm welcome awaits you at our next session. The theme is ‘Burns, interpret as you like. Whether you have tales of burns, scalds, the little trickling burns or you may even want to recite a poem, sing a song by the Bard or just come along for the craic. It’s sure to be an entertaining evening. Hope to see you there.
There was a fantastic turn-out of storytellers for our Burns themed evening. We were treated to stories, poems and even a song, from Robert Burns, Scotland and other countries.
Our first offering was a short poem by the Bard himself, “Naebody”, followed by a tale from Orkney, “The Mermaid Bride.” After that, we heard a recitation of “My Luve is Like a Red, Red Rose”, the second Burns poem of the evening. Next we listened to a Slavic tale of a strange forest creature, “The Leshy”.
The undoubted highlight came next, a thrilling telling of “Tam O’Shanter” by Robert Burns, recited by one of our newest members.
A story from Japan followed, “The Burning of the Rice Fields”. Then we were treated to a humorous Scottish song, “Johnnie Sands”. The penultimate story of the evening was “Agnes Maclehose” who was the inspiration for Robert Burns’ “Ae Fond Kiss”. The evening came to an end with a short tale from Gaza.
A wonderful time was had by all!
We had a good turn-out for our first session of 2026, despite the freezing cold and threat of snow.
We began by making our personal three wishes for 2026. We shall see if we are able to manifest these into reality when we revisit at the end of the year.
Next we chose a penny from a jar, and shared a memory from our pasts, based on the year that coin was minted. This provoked many tales and many emotions.
Our first offering of the evening was an original poem, penned by one of our newest members, which she has kindly allowed us to publish here:
Hillfoots Tales
There is a lovely kind lady I know quite well,
Who goes by the name of Eleanor Bell,
Eleanor introduced Hillfoots Tales to me,
Which has filled my heart with glee.
We all have stories or poems to share,
We clap afterwards ’cause we all want mair,
Donations are welcome for the tin,
Then this event can continue and that’s a win.
We all meet in The Woolpack,
As we all love to yak,
We all laugh and we smile,
And we stay for a while.
We look forward to the next time we meet,
As we all know we are in for another great treat.
Next up was a Welsh tale, “The Cauldron of Inspiration” in which the wise woman Ceridwen who brews a magical potion of inspiration, but things do not turn out as she hopes. Then we were treated to a tale of the Norse myth of Creation, a strange tale of giants, gods and other mythical creatures. After that we listened to “An Unexpected Sunflower”, which was about bringing happiness to others and made us all smile. We heard another original poem next, “Get in Shape”. We could all sympathise with the character’s struggle to stay fit and healthy! “Ebeneezer the Wanderer” was our nest story, about an orphan boy whose luck changes when he finds a box of seeds in a hedgerow. This story was a local one, set in and around Alva. And finally, we heard a selection of stories about sightings of ghosts in Stirling Castle.
And it has to be said that even our members who came along without a tale to tell, ended up telling their own stories nonetheless.
