Founded fifteen centuries ago by the legendary Gaelic king Fergus Mór mac Eirc, Dál Riada was a most unusual ancient kingdom. From the Antrim Glens and Rathlin Island up through Kintyre, Argyll and the Inner Hebrides to the Isle of Skye, it was inhabited by Gaelic seafaring warriors and Viking raiders.With great skill and boundless courage, they navigated around the many islands and countless miles of treacherous coastline. They fought mighty battles, endured wild ...

Swept by strong ocean currents and ferocious storms, Rathlin Island is mysterious and hauntingly beautiful. Lying just six miles off the north coast of County Antrim, it is the most northerly inhabited island of Ireland. Once home to prehistoric hunter-gatherers, its inhabitants have endured Viking raids, medieval massacres, famine and emigration. As farmers, fishermen and seafarers, they are resourceful, independent and proud – and they have always enjoyed a good story.

A wild frontier of mighty headlands, sheer crags rising from the sea and miles of lonely golden sands – Ireland's coastline is foreboding, exhilarating and achingly beautiful.Men and women have lived and loved and died in this harsh but bountiful environment. Through it all they have told tales to entertain themselves, to pass on wisdom and to banish despair. It is little wonder that our richest folklore is woven into this island's rugged and romantic coastline.

The Madman's Window & Other Tales of the Antrim CoastThe Madman's Window is a collection of folk tales that transport the reader to times past when battles, shipwrecks, wolves, ghosts, faeries, shape-shifters and oral storytelling were all part of the everyday lives of native Glens folk. The stories are a mixture of original tales grounded in local legend and of folklore, history, and traditional stories re-imagined. The wonderfully talented Katherine Soutar has created ten hauntin...