The Nuckelavee

Of all the supernatural beings once believed to roam Orkney, none was as feared as the creature known as the Nuckelavee.

The Nuckelavee was a creature of abject terror, and spoken of with bated breath until comparatively recent times.

Although many folklore creatures had a dualistic nature, the Nuckelavee was a creature of sheer evil. His sole purpose was to plague the islanders - a task from which he rarelyt rested.

According to the old Orcadians, who lived in constant fear of the Nuckelavee, only the power of the Mither o' the Sea kept the beast in check. Were it not for the fact that she restrained him in the summer, and that his terror of fresh rainwater kept him hiding in the winter, they were sure that the Nuckelavee would have driven mankind from the Northern Isles long ago.

Despite the fact that his home was considered to be the sea, the Nuckelavee was known to wander freely on land. It was during these landward excursions that he was most often encountered by mortals - usually seen riding a steed as monstrous as himself.

Grotesque hybrid

The surviving accounts vary, with some storytellers merging the two monsters so that rider and horse become one - a vile hybrid of man and beast that, they swore, was Nuckelavee's true shape.

From the few recorded descriptions of the Nuckelavee, we learn that his head was similar to that of a man only "ten times larger". He had an incredibly wide mouth that jutted out like a pig's snout and a single red eye that burned with a red flame.

Hairless, his body was also skinless, its entire surface appearing like raw and living flesh. It was said that his thick, black blood could be seen coursing through his veins, as his sinewy muscles writhed with every movement he made. His long ape-like arms hung down to the ground and from his gaping mouth spewed a foul, black reek.

All in all, not a pleasant sight to encounter on some lonely stretch of coastline.

The Ghost of Pembrey Hills

They hide a secret



The Pembrey hills stretch deep into Burry Port territory and provide a beautiful background to the seaside town, which is sandwiched between the hills and a rugged, wild coastline that faces the Gower.

These hills have proved popular for many years, especially during the summer season when schoolchildren free from the classroom would roam the hills to build dens, rope swings and use cardboard sheets to slide down the steeper areas, abandoning all thought for personal safety.

They were a fabulous place for picnics too owing to spectacular views of the coast. If you ever happen to find yourself in Burry Port, drive up to the 'Lookout' on the narrow lane from Isgraig and you will see exactly what I mean. Stunning!

But there is a darker story linked to the Pembrey hills.

Will Mani lived in Pinged and was a very cruel man with a foul reputatation. He beat his wife regularly, whether drunk or not and of friends he had few because people wisely chose to stay away from him. He would hide in the hedgerows on the hills and rob travelers who were going to Carmarthen on buisness. Mani was a brutal thug and seemingly proud of it.

In 1788 he added murder to his bumper list of crimes, after he killed a woman who was out walking on the hillsides. There was never any doubt of guilt. The cuff from his coat was found in his victim's hand and was identified by the tailor who made it. Will Mani's fate was sealed and he was hanged then gibbeted on the hill at Pensarn in Carmarthen.

It is said that his ghost still haunts those hills in Pembrey.