Stori Canthrig Bwt

a contemporary refabulation of an ancient 4th Century legend of the Witch of Nant Peris

“The dominating authoritarianism in the western world demands people are disconnected from the land…
The lore is in the land …
Leave those who are pecking over the carcass of the earth to their dying beliefs and the rest of us can get on with rebuilding relationships, stories, knowledge and place. Quietly and with people"

- Tyson Yunkaporta

In 2024, as part of two projects, Crone Cast and Stori’r Tir, I started to wonder what might it be like to re-imagine legends/stories of women, especially those which seem to have lost something over the years… how might these stories be relevant today? Can reimaginging these stories really help us think about change differently, perhaps?

My local ‘old woman’ legend is the legend of Canthrig Bwt. Hers was ‘originally’ a terrible (and classic) story of an old witch/giant/hag. She lived beneath a cromlech stone and ate the children of Nant Peris before getting her head cut off by concerned locals. I wondered whether this story (and equivalents across the world) might have lost its deeper or more nuanced meaning. And if so, how might it be re-fabulated to help navigate these strange times.

I wrote the story - Stori Canthrig Bwt (published in September 2025, by Tea with a Tree) - in a flow of consciousness, building on research I’d done into the history, culture, field names and places… and looking at the land around me. Artist Wanda Zyborska created her own visual interpretation of Canthrig Bwt, and these, combined with my photos, illustrate the story.

It is striking just how strongly writing this story connected me with the details of place: I now I see Canthrig Bwt’s influence everywhere in the landscape, changing the way I feel about past, present and future. She has become very real to me! Maybe this is what ‘real’ authors experience as they create and write about characters?

Yn 2024, fel rhan o ddau brosiect, Crone Cast a Stori’r Tir, dechreuais feddwl sut beth fyddai ail-ddychmygu chwedlau/straeon am fenywod, yn enwedig y rhai sy’n ymddangos fel pe baent wedi colli rhywbeth dros y blynyddoedd… sut allai’r straeon hyn fod yn berthnasol heddiw? A all ail-ddychmygu’r straeon hyn ein helpu i feddwl am newid yn wahanol, efallai?

Fy chwedl ‘hen wraig’ leol yw chwedl Canthrig Bwt. Roedd ei chwedl hi ‘yn wreiddiol’ yn stori ofnadwy (a chlasurol) am hen wrach/cawr/gwrach. Roedd hi’n byw o dan garreg gromlech ac yn bwyta plant Nant Peris cyn cael ei phen wedi’i thorri i ffwrdd gan bobl leol bryderus. Tybed a allai’r stori hon (a’r hyn sy’n cyfateb ar draws y byd) fod wedi colli ei hystyr ddyfnach neu fwy cynnil. Ac os felly, sut y gellid ei hail-ffabwleiddio i helpu i lywio’r cyfnod rhyfedd hwn.

Ysgrifennais y stori - Stori Canthrig Bwt (a gyhoeddwyd ym mis Medi 2025, gan Tea with a Tree) - mewn llif o ymwybyddiaeth, gan adeiladu ar ymchwil a wnes i i'r hanes, y diwylliant, enwau caeau a lleoedd… ac edrych ar y tir o'm cwmpas. Creodd yr artist Wanda Zyborska ei dehongliad gweledol ei hun o Canthrig Bwt, ac mae'r rhain, ynghyd â'm lluniau, yn darlunio'r stori.

Mae'n drawiadol pa mor gryf y cysylltodd ysgrifennu'r stori hon fi â manylion lle: rwy'n gweld dylanwad Canthrig Bwt ym mhobman yn y dirwedd nawr, gan newid y ffordd rwy'n teimlo am y gorffennol, y presennol a'r dyfodol. Mae hi wedi dod yn real iawn i mi! Efallai mai dyma beth mae awduron 'go iawn' yn ei brofi wrth iddynt greu ac ysgrifennu am gymeriadau?

—o—o—o—o—o—o—

Mae Stori Canthrig Bwt wedi'i gyhoeddi gan Tea with a Tree.

Wedi'i argraffu ar bapur heb ei orchuddio, gan ddefnyddio inciau llysiau, mae'n brydferth! 21x21cm. 46 tudalen. Ar gael am £10 + p&p.
Ar gael hefyd yn Palas Print, Caernarfon neu Caban, Brynrefail

Stori Canthrig Bwt has been published by Tea with a Tree.

Printed on non-coated paper, using vegetable inks, it is beautiful! 21x21cm. 46 pages. Available for £10 + p&p.
Also available at Palas Print, Caernarfon or Caban, Brynrefail

Cymerwch ran!

Yn ffodus i mi, roedd fy stori i gyd-fynd ac yn ogystal â pherfformio'r stori yn y dafarn leol, a chael y llyfr wedi'i gyhoeddi, rydw i - mewn cydweithrediad â'r artist Wanda Zyborska a'r awdur Seran Dolma - wedi creu rhaglen barhaus sy'n archwilio Canthrig Bwt ymhellach.

P'un a ydych chi'n artist, yn awdur, neu'n chwilfrydig am lên gwerin a lle, rydych chi wedi'ch gwahodd i gymryd rhan mewn ail-lunio stori sydd â'i gwreiddiau yn y tir ac sy'n adlewyrchu'r tir.

Gallwch hefyd fwynhau fersiynau eraill o Stori Canthrig Bwt, darllen fersiynau gwreiddiol o’r chwedl a mwy!

Take part!

Lucky for me, my story seemed to resonate and as well as performing the story in the local pub, and having the book published, I have - in collaboration with artist Wanda Zyborska and author Seran Dolma - created an ongoing programme further exploring Canthrig Bwt.

Whether you are an artist, a writer, or just curious about folklore and place, you are invited to take part in reshaping a story that has its roots in the land and reflects the land.

You can also enjoy other versions of Canthrig Bwt’s Story, read original versions of the legend and more!

Dysgu Mwy - Learn More

Me reading Stori Canthrig Bwt (6.10.24) with Ellen Davies creating live sound, and Pip Owen’s response to the story