The Big Grey Man of Ben MacDui

About this episode

This episode explores the legend of the Big Grey Man of Ben Macdui, a mysterious figure said to haunt the Cairngorms.

High in the mist-shrouded Cairngorms, where the winter wind bites like a vice, lies the domain of a long-spoken, unsettling presence. For over a hundred years, the climbers of Ben Macdui have told stories of a towering figure pacing just beyond sight and of booming footsteps lost in the fog. Known as the Big Grey Man, few have seen it, several have heard it and even more sensed it, but just about none have ever agreed on what “it” actually is. SOURCES Gray, Affleck (1970) The Big Grey Man of Ben MacDhui. Impulse Books, Edinburgh, Scotland. Baker, Ernest A. (1973) The British Highlands: With Rope & Rucksack. EP Publishing Ltd, UK. Wood, Wendy (1930) Secret of Spey. Rob Grant & Son, Edinburgh, Scotland. Alexander, Henry (1926) The Ben MacDhui Giant Spectre. The Cairngorm Club Journal, Vol XI, No.64, July 1926. The Cairngorm Club, Scotland. Aberdeen Press & Journal (1925) Cairngorm Club. Aberdeen Press & Journal, Mon 30 Nov 1925, p5. Aberdeen, Scotland. Aberdeen Press & Journal (1925) Letters To Editor. Aberdeen Press & Journal, Tues 1 Dec 1925, p5. Aberdeen, Scotland. Aberdeen Press & Journal (1925) Mountain Climbers & The Ghost of Ben MacDhui. Aberdeen Press & Journal, Thurs 3 Dec…

People in this episode

Host: Ben Cutmore

Topics covered

• mythology
• mountain folklore
• ghost stories
• Cairngorms
• climbing
• unexplained phenomena

Keywords

• Big Grey Man
• Ben Macdui
• Cairngorms
• ghost stories
• mountain climbing
• Scottish folklore

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Aberdeen Press & Journal, The Scotsman

Books & works: The Big Grey Man of Ben MacDhui

Places: Cairngorms, Ben Macdui

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