The Call: Peadar Ó Guilín, Irish Fantasy and the Nature of Fairy Stories

About this episode

Peadar Ó Guilín discusses the influence of Irish storytelling on his work and the themes in his new book.

Ireland is one of the world’s greatest fantasy hot spots. Join Irish fantasy writer Peadar Ó Guilín and Julia Golding as they embark on an exploration of Ireland’s rich storytelling tradition and its influence on Peadar’s work. Discover how ancient tales of invasion gave rise to the Sidhe, and why the folk of the Mounds have it in for us. The Call features a brutal competition where they get their revenge—what might that tell us about the world Peadar grew up in and the themes emerging from his work? The conversation turns to The Sword Garden, his new book, which takes inspiration from Irish legend to begin a new tale of sci-fi fantasy world collisions. Be sure to stay to the end to hear Peadar and Julia pick the best place to take part in a magical contest —though most may be best avoided for health and safety reasons… To dive deeper into Peadar’s various works, visit https://www.peadar.org/ (00:00) Introduction and Guest Overview (01:40) Language Evolution and Writing Systems (04:00) Ireland’s Influence on Fantasy Storytelling (06:00) Reimagining Fairies: The Aas Sídhe Explained (07:40) Irish Mythology and…

People in this episode

Host: Julia Golding

Guest: Peadar Ó Guilín

Topics covered

• Irish fantasy
• storytelling tradition
• Irish mythology
• fairy stories
• sci-fi fantasy
• folklore

Keywords

• Irish fantasy
• Sidhe
• Book of Invasions
• folklore
• storytelling
• sci-fi fantasy
• Peadar Ó Guilín

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Oxford Centre for Fantasy

Books & works: The Sword Garden

Places: Ireland

More episodes of Mythmakers

• Galahad and the Grail: Malcolm Guite Is on a Quest · May 7, 2026 · 53 min
• Nursery Toys, Their Fantastical Journeys and Which Is the Best Cinematic Universe · April 30, 2026 · 59 min
• Casting, Colbert and Contracts: Big News of Lotr Films and the Best Way to Get a Book Contract · April 23, 2026 · 1h 11m
• Notorious Virtues: Alwyn Hamilton and a 1920s Heiress Fantasy · April 9, 2026 · 41 min
• Mammoth Rider: SJ Poyton's Long Road to Publishing · April 2, 2026 · 31 min
• Celebrating King Arthur on Tolkien Reading Day · March 26, 2026 · 33 min