Last day of Old Christmas period

Unusual traditional customs involving 'fiddlers and white mares'

Today (6 Jan) it's the final day of the 'foolish fortnight' or Kegeesh Ommidjagh, the end of the two weeks of old Manx Christmas.

On this, the last day of festivities it was traditional for friends and family to come together for a final party, and take part in some unusual customs, which Culture Vannin has explained on social media. 

These included 'cutting off of the fiddler's head', where a man would lay his head on somebody's lap and predict who will who marry in the new year.

The other is the Laare Vane, where a man concealed in a wooden white mare would be brought in to a house during supper, to snap the horse's mouth at guests, who, 'after much rough play', chased him from the room.

Image credit: http://www.americas-most-haunted.com/2015/12/16/weird-christmas-mari-lwyd/