Fairy Tales for the Fearless

Creative workshops exploring the wisdom and provocations of wild wondertales

~ old tales with fresh insights for current times ~

~ Creative weekend residential: The House in the Wild Woods  - 13-15 Nov 2026

~ Online series 3: Earth Air Fire & Water - winter dates coming soon

MORE INFO BELOW

The House in the Wild Woods weekend 

 A whole weekend programme for exploring your own creativity inspired by wondertale wisdom, mystery and magic, in the dreamlike setting of Hill House Sanctuary, Gloucestershire, GL5 5AL UK.

From Friday night to Sunday afternoon there will be fairy tales told and creative journeys to take as we crack open the imaginative layers of the stories and go deep-sea diving into the metaphors, meanings, hopes, dreams, insights and creative inspirations to be found there.

Expect games, reflective practice, nature connection, rich conversation, creative writing, art making, dreaming, sharing, discovering, creating and feasting tables of sumptuous food. 

DATES:

Fri 13 - Sun 15 Nov 2026

PRICES (food included):

Private room: £490 (two rooms available - first come first served)

Shared room: £310

Weekend without accommodation: £230

~ If money is a barrier, please email to discuss.

More information below

Feedback from the last series:

“Just fabulous”

“I'm quite amazed that something so simple can do such deep work”
“An open and authentic and insightful experience - a complete joy, I hope it continues!”

“I will carry these story insights with me for a long time”

“I feel so connected and full of hope”

FURTHER INFO:  - The programme, venue, timings & food

The Programme:

These workshops are for storytellers and story lovers alike, those who work in therapeutic, social, relational and creative fields and might have a professional interest in the use of story, and those who have a purely personal interest or curiosity - people who consider themselves creatives, and those who don't.

Wondertales and Fairy tales, like the stories collected by the Brothers Grimms, can be disturbing, confusing, distasteful, wonderous, magical, mysterious, bewildering, upsetting, infuriating, delighting, entertaining, surprising, weird and all manner of perplexing. Much like life really. 

These stories don't necessarily please us.  Often they challenge us or turn us right off. They can be full of shadow, or feel outdated, simplistic or problematic.

And, there are veins of rich wisdom, provocation, grace, compassion, humanity, hope and understanding to be found in them, if we go in by the right doors and carry courageous questions made of fire, flowers and water in our hearts. 

Expect creative exercises, creative writing, discussion, reflection, games, storytelling, artistic activities and deep dives into the imagination. 

Fairy Tales for the Fearless is a space in which to explore what we might encounter in the deeper layers of meaning in wondertales - with all their harshness and hope - as we face challenges and triumphs in our own world. It may not be pretty, but it could be potent.

Each session will begin with a wondertale, followed by a variety of reflective exercises, creative responses and discussion points as ways of exploring what the story has to offer. 

Be warned! You may meet yourself in the process - these stories have a way of holding up mirrors to the parts of ourselves that we need to tend. Are you ready to shed some skins?

And be heartened! You may meet yourself in the process - a glorious traveller full of strengths and gifts you didn't even know you had. Are you ready to find treasure in the wild woods?

Enquiries to hannahmoorestoryteller@gmail.com

The Venue:  - Hill House Retreat, Amberley, Glos, GL5 5AL

A beautiful country house in Gloucestershire, Hill House is primarily used as a sanctuary and retreat space for refugees and asylum seekers. The charity help support this work by also hiring the space out to small groups for meaningful, creative retreats that focus on community, conversation, creative thinking and connection.

The  house sleeps up to 12 in a mixture of shared (2-3 people) and private rooms, with two spacious shared bathrooms.

The house has beautiful gardens and grounds, and you walk straight out the gate onto the stretching Common , with fields, woodlands, valleys and canal paths all within easy reach. The views look across the edge of the Cotswold hills to the Severn and Wales, with sunsets in splendour. There is also a fantastic country pub nearby- The Black Horse. 

With a lovely sociable kitchen space, welcoming dining room/writing room, art studio and two creative living room spaces with fires, plus the use of the grounds and beyond, Hill House is both home and holiday, workshop centre and retreat space.

> Timings & food

Arrival from  16:00 on Fri 13th Nov.

The course will start at 18:00 on Friday and run until 16:00 on Sunday 15th.

Food will be provided for all meals, beginning with dinner at 19:30 on Friday 13th.

Breakfasts will be  a help-yourself buffet. Lunches and dinner on Saturday will be a shared cooking experience, with all the necessary ingredients provided for some good feasting.

Tea and coffee will be available throughout.

PAST: Series 2: Monster Stories That Mirror

 4 sessions of creative exploration of powerful fairy tales that mirror and  speak to each other, on the themes of the monstrous and the human, the hidden and lost, found and recovered.

Two stories of grotesque skins, love and fear: 

Session 1: Allerleirauh (Thousand Furs) & Session 2: Bearskin

Two stories of monstrous twins and the power of transformation: 

Session 3: Prince Lindworm & Session 4:  Tatterhood

Each session is offered twice - a morning time slot and an evening time slot.  You can pick and choose which one you come to each time, depending on your schedule. A catch up offer is also available if you miss a session and want to watch the recording and do the exercises in your own time: 

PAST: Series 1

 The Handless Maiden 

Ivan, the Witch Baby and the Little Sister of the Sun

Jorinda and Joringel

Finist the Bright Falcon

The Fool of the World and the Flying Ship