Are you a playwright, novelist, or storyteller intrigued by Scottish history? Join Dr Louise Yeoman, broadcaster and historian, and Professor Julian Goodare, historian, for a discussion on the history of Scottish witchcraft and how to represent this in fiction. Book your place on Eventbrite Designed for authors, playwrights, and creatives in general, this workshop will broaden your knowledge of the Scottish witch hunts by drawing on historically grounded information. You will discover the reasoning behind the witch hunts, the accused, and the atmosphere of Scottish society at the time. Our historians have worked on this topic for more than two decades and are the creators of the Survey of Scottish Witchcraft and our recent student-created interactive map website to help share this knowledge with the public. They are eager to engage with all who wish to learn more about the topic and will be available for informal discussion and questions.Dr Louise Yeoman is a broadcaster and historian. She is co-director of the online Survey of Scottish Witchcraft. Her work on the radio includes the podcast series Witch Hunt, produced by BBC Radio Scotland, which explores the history of the Scottish witch trials. She has previously worked as a manuscripts curator at the National Library of Scotland and completed her PhD at St Andrews University. Her publications include Reportage Scotland: Scottish history in the voices of those who were there (Luath Press and National Library of Scotland, 2005).Professor Julian Goodare is a historian at the University of Edinburgh. He has published on a number of topics concerning sixteenth to eighteenth century Scottish history, including extensively on the witch trials. Titles include The European Witch-Hunt (Routledge, 2016). He is the director of the online Survey of Scottish Witchcraft.2pm – Event begins, introductory remarks.2:05pm – Professor Julian Goodare will speak about the various ideas of 'witchcraft' that appear in Scottish witchcraft trial records, and about the magical and religious world within which ideas of witchcraft made sense.2:20pm – Dr Louise Yeoman will speak on the religious context of Scottish society during the witch hunts, diving into the workings of the church courts and the misogyny that governed many beliefs about the accused witches.2:35pm – Ewan McAndrew will discuss the creation of the Survey of Scottish Witchcraft Interactive Map and how creatives can use it to enhance their work.2:45pm – Q&A and discussion.3:30pm – Event ends.Why come along?• Real historical context. This session explores the real social, legal, and religious context — why people were accused, who they were, and what 16th/17th-century Scottish society was actually like.• Direct access to expert historians. You can ask 'AMA' questions specific to your project (a character, a plot point, a setting detail) and they'll do their very level best to answer.• A genuinely useful research tool. We'll introduce how to navigate our interactive map and its glossary & further reading sections, AND the full Survey of Scottish Witchcraft database it is built from. • Inspiration from real cases. This is an opportunity to ask about real accused and real trial records which are often stranger and more compelling than fiction but may plant a seed for a great new idea. This article was published on Tuesday 18 August 2026
