Edinburgh Fortean Society

@edinburghforteansociety.org.uk

1092 Followers 87 Following

Oldest Fortean Society in Scotland. http://www.edinburghforteansociety.org.uk/ https://www.facebook.com/groups/162025221364

There's a cryptid in my garden I don't know what it is It's time to take some photographs For full analysis There's a cryptid in my garden It's got a swishy tail I'll measure distance and the tree To give a sense of scale There's a cryptid in my garden It's leaving lots of scat I'll send it off for testing To see if it's real Big Cat There's a cryptid in my garden Oh no, it's just just a moggy In my defence it's rather big And outside's rather foggy.
A scene from Star Wars: A New Hope. Luke, a young farmboy, is kneeling down and C3-PO watches on while R2-D2 projects a hologram of the Absolute Unit sheep.
Jeff Goldblum as Zeus in the 2024 TV series "Kaos". He is dressed in a tracksuit and apron and stands next to a BBQ in front of his mansion.
Next EdFortSoc: Wednesday 8th of July We have done Fortean books, music and films. Its now time for the one you have all been waiting for – Fortean Poetry! (Not to be confused with Vogon poetry) A chance to regale us all with your favourite Fortean poems and a chance to find out what we are managing to squeeze into the category. The only criterion is it must not just be a spoken version of a song lyric. If you wish to take part with a reading or a dramatic recitation just give me a shout so we don’t have a dozen people trying to do the same poem. Wednesday 8th of July The Royal Oak 1 Infirmary Street Edinburgh 7.30pm, £1 A reminder – there will be no formal meeting in August due to some obscure local festival called the Fringe.
A still from the show. Darren Naish, PhD, Author/Paleontologist. Paused at the wrong moment.
An X post showing a box of Dinosaur Smarties sweets with a comment by Nick Slawicz saying "Erm, they're called palaeontologists, actually."
The midsummer celebrations in Dössberget, Sweden. A Swedish folk band stands by while a number of celebrants in traditional Swedish folk costumes attempt to raise a midsummer pole, a large mast decorated in green garlands.
A metal pin badge of the Cerne Abbas giant, a chalk hill carving that depicts the outline of a naked man holding a large club. This badge shows him from the rear, showing off his buttocks instead of his famously enormous and erect dangly bits.
A photo of an information sign saying "Did you know... according to legend, the steep cliff face here was used for ritual senicides, meaning that people threw down the elderly or forced them to jump when they could no longer fend for themselves. This, however, is a so-called factoid - a myth that has become a truth..."
A black t-shirt with a cartoon mongoose and a speech bubble saying "I am a little extra, extra clever mongoose".
Scene from Ghostbusters - Egon walking through shelves of books holding a PKE meter which suddenly registers high energy levels.
Christopher Walken as Emperor Shaddam IV in "Dune: Part Two". An elderly man with combed-back white hair and white clothing.
Nessies Before Nessie: A Scientific and Cultural History of Scottish Sea Serpents Until 1900 Before the Loch Ness Monster, Scotland had sea serpents. Giant marine serpentiforms were reported around Scotland throughout the nineteenth century. Starting with reports and strandings in the islands, there were approximately 69 reports within Scottish marine waters until 1900 plus a number of misidentifications and hoaxes. Until 1873, all but one report, came from the regions of Scotland that were associated with Norse influence. Scottish attitudes to the existence of sea serpents in the period, transformed from irreverent scepticism to a more widespread belief and enthusiasm with sea serpent themed entertainments and appearances in literature. Intriguingly, newspaper interest in the sea serpent peaked in the late 1840s and declined in the 1870s and 1890s – two decades which saw the most Scottish reports. The few Scottish scholars who did express an opinion on the existence of giant serpentiform animals were cautiously in favour.
A newspaper illustration from 1871 captioned "A Quebec woman creates a sensation riding through St. John Street in a hearse, reclining on the coffin-bed, and smoking a pipe".
Stabilised extract from the Patterson-Gimlin film of a supposed "Bigfoot", a large hairy primate, moving amongst the rocks and trees. More likely a human in a costume.
The "They Live" meme. Roddy Piper with sunglasses off - sees grey horse. Sunglasses on - Mari Lwyd.
Will You Join The Dance? A brief history of the Danse Macabre The Dance of Death was an artistic trope that began in the fifteenth century to show death as the great leveller: everyone will die, from the lowliest peasant to the king and the pope. Death is depicted as a skeleton, leading people from all walks of life to join his dance. This talk will look at the origins of this image, and the way it evolved, and tied in with other memento mori images, as well as reflecting shifts in anatomical understanding. Cat’s Bio: Cat Irving has been the Human Remains Conservator for Surgeons’ Hall since 2015 and has been caring for anatomical and pathological museum collections for over twenty years. After a degree in Anatomical Science she began removing brains and sewing up bodies at the Edinburgh City Mortuary. Following training in the care of wet tissue collections at the Royal College of Surgeons of England she worked with the preparations of William Hunter at the Hunterian Museum at Glasgow University, where she is now Consultant Human Remains Conservator. Cat is a licensed anatomist, and gives regular talks on anatomy and medical history. She recently carried out conservation work on the skeleton of serial killer William Burke.
Homer Simpson saying "The Bus that couldn't slow down".
The next meeting of the Edinburgh Fortean Society will be Ewan Irvine talking on: Between Fear and Faith: A Medium Who Still Sleeps With the Lights On From the wide-eyed curiosity of 18 to the weathered wisdom of 56, my journey has been a collision of chills and charm—a lifetime spent straddling the line between skeptic and believer. I’ve coaxed stories from the departed and unraveled mysteries in haunted halls, yet I still sprint up the basement stairs like a kid fleeing monsters. Why? Because the dark reminds me that wonder and terror are two sides of the same coin. This talk isn’t about conquering fear; it’s about how the unseen world taught me to embrace the aliveness of being spooked—and why every shadow holds a story waiting to be heard. Wednesday 10th of September The Royal Oak 1 Infirmary Street Edinburgh 7.30pm, £1
A cartoon by Charles Addams showing Lurch standing on the roof of the Addams family home, about to pour boiling liquid onto carol singers far below. Mr and Mrs Addams look on excitedly.
Fred Gwynne as Herman Munster.
A faked screenshot from the Wikipedia page "History of the Internet": The history of the Internet originated in the efforts of scientists and engineers to build a global media presence for the Museum of English Rural Life (MERL) in Reading, England, and by extension the global awareness of Absolute Units. The Internet Protocol Suite, the set of rules used to communicate between networks and devices on the Internet, arose from research and development at the University of Reading and involved international collaboration, particularly with researchers in the United Kingdom and France
Charles Fort wearing a party hat with a party blower thing in his mouth. He looks down to party.
Next EdFortSoc : Wednesday 9th of July The next meeting of the Edinburgh Fortean Society will be Gavin Ritchie talking on: The Unavoidable Subject An apple falls in gravity irrespective of the hand that drops it, so why are outcomes in parapsychology so dependent on the individuals involved? This presentation explores subjectivity within experiences of psi and the paranormal. If our individuality truly is a decisive factor in these experiences, what might that tell us about the reality of reported phenomena, or even, about reality itself? Wednesday 9th of July The Royal Oak 1 Infirmary Street Edinburgh 7.30pm, £1
A scene from Fritz Lang's "Metropolis" (1927). The Grim Reaper, a skeleton in a robe with a giant scythe on his back, plays a human femur like a flute, animating seven statues representing the Seven Deadly Sins. It was a particularly feverish delerium.
Road warning sign on a post - silhouette of an otter with the text "Otters crossing, 100 yards"
Cillian Murphy wearing hospital garb standing in front of a very informative "Grow your own" display of agricultural tools at the MERL.
Next EdFortSoc : Wednesday 11th June 2025 The next meeting of the Edinburgh Fortean Society will be Gordon Rutter talking on: You Cannot Be Serios! Thoughtography Ted Serios was a Chicago bellhop who claimed he could imprint images onto photographic film and Polaroids using only the power of his mind. How were the images produced? Was Serios the first person who claimed this ability? And what has happened since the 1960’s heyday of Ted Serios? Come along to find out more about Ted Serios and his strange abilities. Wednesday 11th June The Royal Oak 1 Infirmary Street Edinburgh 7.30pm, £1
Gary Larson cartoon - a man standing on a stage is placing his hands on a vacuum cleaner saying "I command the foul demons that have clogged this vacuum cleaner to come OUT!". Other people on the stage are holding electrical items. The caption says "Appliance healers".
Cropped page from the comic strip "Slaine" in 2000AD. A woman going through a cave and seeing a giant cave painting of Slough Feg, a horned man.
Cave painting of unknown creature. From Tassili N'Ajjer, Algeria.
A cute little squirrel, a wooden postcard with a horse skull laser-engraved on it and a brass cannon on wheels.
A delicious sponge cake that looks vaguely like a brick.
A low-quality black and white "photo" of Bigfoot riding Nessie (the "Surgeon's photo", a famous fake of Nessie sticking her head out of the water)
Fry from "Futurama" holding the fossilized remains of his dog from a thousand years ago, a mongrel called Seymour. Bender the robot looks on, scowling at the dog, as he feels usurped.
The next meeting of the Edinburgh Fortean Society Michael Cox will be talking on The Tarves Beastie: A Forgotten Gef? Did Gef the Talking Mongoose have a contemporaneous Scottish cousin: the Tarves Beastie? Join us as we unearth a neglected 1930s poltergeist case from Aberdeenshire, and explore the startling correlations between this obscure haunting and that of the Isle of Man's charismatic man-weasel. Wednesday the 9th of April 7.30 pm Downstairs in The Royal Oak,1 Infirmary St, Edinburgh EH1 1LT, £1 entry
Next EdFortSoc : Wednesday 12th March The next meeting of the Edinburgh Fortean Society will be Ann Jones talking on: Into the Goblin Universe: Ted Holiday’s Tales of the Unexplained How did the angling correspondent of the Western Mail find himself helping an Anglican priest perform an exorcism of the Loch Ness monster? Join us as we trace Ted Holiday’s extraordinary Fortean journey encountering ghosts, ley lines, UFOs and lake monsters as he tries to unravel the paranormal mysteries of the Phantom Menagerie and unlock the sinister secrets of the Goblin Universe. Wednesday 12th March The Royal Oak 1 Infirmary Street Edinburgh 7.30pm, £1
Pterodactyl Costume Fan : LEGO minifigure of person dressed in grey costume with underarm wings and a pterodactyl hat.
LEGO minifigure. Grey Alien dressed as a tourist in shirt, t-shirt, backpack and hat. Holds a lego camera.
A scene from 1922 film "Dr. Mabuse the Gambler", portraying a seance.
The same pic of the church from original post but modified a bit.
Large mural on wooden fence depicting a Bigfoot and a unicorn striding down a city street.
The next meeting of the Edinburgh Fortean Society Shadows of the Past: Ghosts and Timeslips Author Graeme Milne will share accounts from his personal files where eyewitnesses have been unwitting participants in past events. From the tragic replay of a theatre engulfed in flames to a step bck in time to wartime Aberdeen, many of the accounts were told directly to the author in person. Wednesday the 12th of February 7.30 pm Downstairs in The Royal Oak,1 Infirmary St, Edinburgh EH1 1LT, £1 entry
Our first meeting of 2025! Wednesday the 8th of January 7.30 pm The Beehive Pub, Grassmarket, Edinburgh, £1 entry Fortean Songs We had Fortean book recommendations during lockdown. Later on we had Fortean films. It seems sensible to move on to Fortean songs next and that’s what we’re doing! The idea is to put forward a Fortean song, explain why you have chosen it and then listen to it, complete with video if available. You’ll need to let me (Gordon) have your song choice in advance and I’ll have everything ready on the night. If you want to take part but can’t be there on the night we can prerecord your contribution or I can read something out for you. This will be our last meeting at The Beehive, details of the new venue will be announced at this meeting and online afterwards.
Next EdFortSoc : Wednesday 13th November 2024 The next meeting of the Edinburgh Fortean Society (our final talk of 2024) Gordon Rutter will be speaking on The Folklore of Birds Did you know the barnacle goose comes from a shellfish? Have you any idea of why we break the wishbone of a chicken for good luck? And talking of luck, how can we ensure all our interactions with magpies are lucky? Come along and find out about these and other folkloric beliefs surrounding a range of birds – birds united by the fact they are all in this talk! Oh and by the way – the barnacle goose doesn’t really come from a shellfish. Sorry. Beehive Inn Grassmarket Edinburgh 7.30pm, £1