We read a lot about Irish mythology, but what about Britain and Northern Ireland? There are books detailing British folktales, myth and legend, from King Arthur to Stonehenge, pictured right. I decided to concentrate on the great Stonehenge, Glastonbury and the Giant’s Causeway.
Salisbury Plain holds the key to one of the greatest tourist attractions in England, Stonehenge. Stonehenge has stood for four millennia. It comprises of a circle of thirty uprights capped by lintels, but the stones we see today represent Stonehenge in ruin.

Many of the original stones have fallen or been removed by previous generations for home construction or road repair. But what does the circle of standing stones mean and how was it built? The theories are numerous. Some say it’s a temple to forgotten gods and others that it is a Neolithic observatory.

What we do know is that some of the stones are bluestones and in wet weather they turn a bluish colour. The strange thing is bluestones are only available in Ireland and Wales. How did they transport them such a great distance?

Merlin of Arthurian legend is reported as saying: “Laugh not lightly, in these stones is a mystery, and a healing virtue against many ailments, giants of old did carry them from the farthest ends of Africa and did set them up in Ireland, what time they did inhabit there.” It remains a mystery to this day.

Now, from the most popular tourist attraction to the most mythical spot in England, Glastonbury Tor, pictured above, which rises up from the flat landscape of Somerset.
Christian legend claims that Joseph of Arimathea visited and brought his young nephew Jesus with him. It is also said that Joseph returned around 37 AD and brought with him the Holy Grail. William Blake, the famous English poet, believed the legend and was inspired to write ‘Jerusalem’, the opening lines of which are:

And did those feet in ancient time
Walk upon England’s mountains green?
And was the Holy Lamb of God
On England’s pleasant pastures seen?

In Arthurian mythology, Glastonbury is said to be the island of Avalon and King Arthur’s burial place. Today, Glastonbury hosts a fantastic rock concert each year and is visited by thousands.

The Giant’s Causeway in Bushmills Co. Antrim is central to an area of isolated ruins, kelp walls and shoreline fields, where years of farming and fishing have taken place. It is an amazing collection of 40,000 Basalt columns, hexagonal in shape. The discovery of the Giants Causeway is reported to have been by the bishop of Derry in 1692.

Legend has it that it was the work of the giant Finn MacCool. Finn is supposed to have constructed it so that he could have a sturdy pathway to Scotland in order to fight the Scottish giant Benandonner. The truth is that they formed 65 million years ago over a long period of igneous activity. It is, in fact, rock crystallisation under conditions of accelerated cooling.

The same formation can be found can be found at Staffa in Scotland. The other thing that this area of Antrim is famous for is the sinking of a Spanish ship in 1588 called the ‘Girona’ when 300 sailors drowned in terrible conditions. The Ghost of the ‘Girona’ is said to haunt the stones to this day.

The Giant’s Causeway is open all year round.