In this episode, I'm at the newly established Celtfest to sit down with historical tattoo artist and musician Sean Parry. We dive deep into the ancient art of tattooing, tracing its roots from 90s tribal flash to the intricate, historically grounded freehand designs of today.

But that is just the beginning. We also explore the deeper cultural and spiritual roots that drive Sean's art, the formation of his band to revive ancient sung poetry, and his profound love for his homeland of Wales.

In This Episode, We Explore:

The Evolution of a Craft: How the tattoo industry has shifted from 80s and 90s generic flash art to deeply researched, historically authentic Norse and Celtic designs.

The Power of Freehand: Why Sean shuns stencils in favour of drawing directly onto the skin, allowing the ancient knotwork to flow organically with the human form.

Historical Evidence of Tattoos: Did the ancient Britons actually have tattoos? We discuss the accounts of the Greek explorer Pytheas and what La Tène type 3 art might tell us about ancient body modification.

Removing the Ego: The beauty of contributing to a continuous, historical art style where the individual artist's name is lost to time.

The Meaning of Hiraeth: Sean explains this uniquely Welsh concept—a deep, soulful longing for a past or a place that one might never have actually experienced—and how it called him back to North Wales.

Breathing Life into Ancient Myth: Why the open-ended nature of ancient myths, like the origin of the legendary bard Taliesin, holds so much more philosophical weight than modern Hollywood storytelling.

Living History & Feasting: The joy of experiential history, from feasting in a Bronze Age longhouse in Tanum, Sweden, to why Sean currently has a goat skull sitting in his kitchen (and why he'll be skipping the fermented shark next time).

Find Seans Work:

Website: https://www.sacredknottattoo.com/insular-celtic-tattoos/sean

https://www.instagram.com/sacred_knot_tattoo/?hl=en

https://www.instagram.com/taranau_official/?hl=en

https://open.spotify.com/artist/0AuQ3y9sCvQP2A3oTomSmS

For Viking age & Halfling recipes and ideas check out my 'Eat Like A Viking!' & 'Eat Like A Halfling!' cookbooks or visit my website www.saxonforager.co.uk

Get in touch about the show: Email saxonforager@pm.me

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Will I Vike It?, Craig talks to bushcraft expert and Stone Age living history instructor Sarah Day—widely known as Mema the Cavewoman—about the visceral reality of primitive skills and wilderness survival. Sarah shares the origin of her "Mema" persona, her transition from a kid obsessed with fossils to a veteran instructor at Woodlore, and the intense, year-long wilderness courses.

Craig and Sarah discuss the stark contrast between the "man vs. nature" tropes seen on TV and the reality of cooperative, group-based survival. Sarah gets real about the school system’s need for "feral" outdoor education, the evolutionary benefits of being "neurospicy" in a hunter-gatherer world, and the absolute horrors of eating fermented Japanese soybeans. Plus, stick around for a breakdown of what to expect at the upcoming deer butchery workshop at the Ancient Technology Centre this October.

Find Sarah's Work:

Website: https://www.prehistoricexperiences.com/?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio&fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAc3J0YwZhcHBfaWQPOTM2NjE5NzQzMzkyNDU5AAGnvdBEvCRydA3Tkl2T3NNxT0UqGskbGCEOMrSYmC-Zo91jR7wUGWA3roejQUA_aem_-eP_nKrlofZo-jXEQDuxEQ

https://www.instagram.com/memmathecavewoman/

For Viking age & Halfling recipes and ideas check out my 'Eat Like A Viking!' & 'Eat Like A Halfling!' cookbooks or visit my website www.saxonforager.co.uk

Get in touch about the show: Email saxonforager@pm.me

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Craig welcomes back Hamish for an update! Hamish talks about his work as a historical consultant on the new Pictish short film, Red Thistles, and his incredibly popular Ancient Caledonia Camp in Scotland, where next year you can learn to build a full-size coracle (19th-25th July 2026)!

We also dive deep into our must-book joint course for 2026: Butchery and Tanning at the stunning Ancient Technology Centre in Dorset (Easter 2026). This is the last chance to book this immersive Viking Longhouse experience!

Plus: Hamish's journey from historical leatherworker to tattoo artist, the economics of running courses, and the importance of a good hip-hop playlist in the workshop.

Butchery & Tanning at the ATC (£434.07, Longhouse stay included): https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/deer-butchery-cookery-bark-tanning-course-18-only-tickets-1357602739339

Ancient Caledonia Camp (July 2026): https://www.pictavialeather.co.uk/pictish (Check this link and Hamish's social media for tickets, which go live in December!)

Hamish (Pictavia Leaver): https://www.pictavialeather.co.uk

Instagram handle is @pictavialeather

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.