Legends

51 places across Britain and Ireland

• Arthur's StoneCefn Bryn, Gower · A giant capstone said to be a pebble from King Arthur's shoe.
• Bedd TaliesinNear Tre Taliesin, Ceredigion · The grave of Taliesin, the greatest of the ancient Welsh bards.
• Ben BulbenCounty Sligo · A table mountain where the hero Diarmuid was killed by a magic boar.
• Black ShuckBlythburgh, Suffolk · A demon dog bursts into two churches in a single storm.
• Cadair IdrisNear Dolgellau, Gwynedd · The giant's chair, where a night on the summit makes you a poet or a madman.
• Cadbury CastleSouth Cadbury, Somerset · Camelot, with King Arthur sleeping inside the hill.
• CarningliAbove Newport, Pembrokeshire · The 'Mountain of Angels', where a saint spoke with heaven.
• Cerne Abbas GiantCerne Abbas, Dorset · A 55-metre club-wielding giant, much younger than people thought.
• Chanctonbury RingSouth Downs, West Sussex · Run around it seven times at midnight and the Devil will appear.
• Croagh PatrickNear Westport, County Mayo · The holy mountain where St Patrick is said to have banished the snakes.
• Cú Chulainn's StoneClochafarmore, Knockbridge, County Louth · Where Ireland's greatest hero tied himself to a stone to die standing.
• Devil's BridgePontarfynach, Ceredigion · Three bridges stacked on top of each other, and an old woman who tricked the Devil.
• Dinas EmrysBeddgelert, Snowdonia · Where the red dragon of Wales fought the white dragon.
• Dozmary PoolBodmin Moor, Cornwall · Where Excalibur was thrown back to the Lady of the Lake.
• DunaddKilmartin Glen, Argyll · A royal fort with a carved footprint where kings were crowned.
• Eildon HillsMelrose, Scottish Borders · Where Thomas the Rhymer met the Queen of Elfland.
• Fingal's CaveIsle of Staffa, Inner Hebrides · A sea cave of giant stone columns that inspired an overture.
• Gelert's GraveBeddgelert, Snowdonia · A faithful hound killed by mistake, and a grave that may be a clever tale.
• Glastonbury TorGlastonbury, Somerset · The Isle of Avalon, where King Arthur was said to lie.
• Herne the HunterWindsor Great Park, Berkshire · A ghostly huntsman with antlers on his head, riding through Windsor Forest.
• KnocknareaNear Sligo · A mountain topped by the giant cairn of Queen Maeve.
• Lady GodivaCoventry, West Midlands · A noblewoman who rode naked through the streets to cut the people's taxes.
• Llyn LlydawSnowdon, Gwynedd · The lake where Sir Bedivere is said to have returned Excalibur.
• Loch NessHighlands, Scotland · The world's most famous monster hunt, in water deep enough to hide anything.
• Lough NeaghNorthern Ireland · The hole the giant Fionn left when he threw earth at a Scottish rival.
• LyonesseLand's End, Cornwall · A lost kingdom swallowed by the sea between Land's End and Scilly.
• Merlin's OakCarmarthen · 'When Merlin's tree shall tumble down, then shall fall Carmarthen town.'
• Navan FortEmain Macha, County Armagh · The ancient capital of Ulster, home of Cú Chulainn's Red Branch Knights.
• Pendle HillNear Clitheroe, Lancashire · The hill of the Pendle witches, England's most famous witch trial.
• Rhitta Gawr's GraveYr Wyddfa (Snowdon), Gwynedd · A giant who made a cloak from kings' beards, buried under Snowdon's summit.
• Rosslyn ChapelRoslin, Midlothian · A chapel of strange carvings, linked to the Templars and the Holy Grail.
• SchiehallionHighland Perthshire · The 'fairy hill of the Caledonians', used to weigh the Earth.
• St Govan's ChapelBosherston, Pembrokeshire · A tiny chapel wedged into the cliffs, where the steps never count the same.
• St Michael's MountMarazion, Cornwall · The island home of the giant Cormoran, slain by Jack.
• Tarr StepsExmoor, Somerset · A stone bridge the Devil sunbathed on, and swore to kill anyone who crossed.
• The Blowing StoneKingston Lisle, Oxfordshire · A holed stone that roars when blown, said to have summoned Alfred's army.
• The Children of LirLough Derravaragh, County Westmeath · Four children turned into swans by a jealous stepmother for 900 years.
• The Corryvreckan WhirlpoolBetween Jura and Scarba, Argyll · One of the world's great whirlpools, where a hag washes her cloak.
• The Giant's CausewayCounty Antrim, Northern Ireland · Forty thousand stone columns left by a giant's quarrel.
• The Hill of TaraCounty Meath · Seat of the High Kings of Ireland, with a stone that roared for the rightful king.
• The Hill of UisneachCounty Westmeath · The sacred centre of Ireland, where the great fires of Bealtaine were lit.
• The Laidly WormSpindleston Heugh, Northumberland · A princess turned into a dragon by her jealous stepmother.
• The Lambton WormPenshaw Hill, County Durham · A monstrous worm that coiled round a hill, and a curse that followed.
• The Major OakSherwood Forest, Nottinghamshire · The great oak where Robin Hood and his men are said to have hidden.
• The Mermaid of ZennorZennor, Cornwall · A mermaid who lured the best singer in the village into the sea.
• The Silent PoolNear Shere, Surrey · A clear spring-fed pool where a girl is said to have drowned fleeing King John.
• The Whittington StoneHighgate Hill, London · Where Dick Whittington heard the bells call him back to London.
• TintagelNorth Cornwall · A clifftop castle where legend says King Arthur was conceived.
• Twm Siôn Cati's CaveRhandirmwyn, Carmarthenshire · The hideout of the Welsh Robin Hood.
• Uffington White HorseVale of White Horse, Oxfordshire · A 3,000-year-old horse carved into the chalk, best seen from the sky.
• Wayland's SmithyNear Uffington, Oxfordshire · Leave your horse and a silver coin, and it will be shod by morning.