Flights of fancy

The Victorians have a lot to answer for. Because of them, countless generations of children have grown up believing that fairies are mischievous little folk who flutter about on butterfly wings. Which, as anyone who has ever seen a fairy will tell you, is far from the truth.

Susan Hewitt, who runs Harmony Country Lodge, an intriguing octagonal house on a hilltop perch in Burniston, near Scarborough, has been a fairy friend for a number of years and is something of an expert on the subject.

"Lots of people imagine fairies are small people with insect wings," she said. "But that is just a throwback to Victoriana.

"I believe fairies are elementals, part of the spiritual world. They vibrate in a different dimension and are not immediately apparent to everyone.

"They are not physical beings, but they are all around us in nature and can be seen using clairvoyance."

Not everyone would agree with Susan's beliefs, but at least 1,060 people do: people who have joined her organisation The Fairy Ring (An International Association for Friends who love Fairies and Angels).

Most are adults, hailing from all around the world and from all walks of life, including a former naval commander. They receive newsletters - appropriately called Fairy Tales - throughout the year and meet annually for Fairy Day, when they gather at Susan's home for a tea party and to share and celebrate their experiences.

The Fairy Ring (www.fairyring.co.uk) was established five years ago after the founder of the National Fairy Appreciation Society folded her group - "she went away with the fairies," quipped Susan. "The society was very twee and not very serious," she continued. "It was predominantly for children. When it disappeared I had a strong surge of energy to start a group of my own."

Her interest in fairies began with a childhood copy of Enid Blyton's Book Of Fairies and developed in adulthood into work as a medium and healer, something she has now practised for 30 years.

This does not mean, however, that her belief in fairies has diminished over the years.

"I have seen two or three fairies on a couple of different occasions since we moved to this house eight years ago," she explained. "One was in a tree in our grounds. It was a little being. Not that I saw it as a person. It was more of a shimmering green light with a little figure in it."

This might sound like a lot of fairy dust to non-believers, but Susan is not seeking to convert anybody. Her own husband, Tony, a three-times world sidecar champion and MBE, did not believe her fairy tales when she first set up her non-profit making group. Now, however, after listening to members' stories, he says he can't discount the possibility.

"I don't expect everyone to believe," said Susan, "but I would like people to be open to asking questions. They might not believe in what we do, but that doesn't mean they can't appreciate why we do it."

The Hewitts have a pretty fairy meadow on their one-and-a-half acre spread of land, which is always a particular hit with younger visitors, and they also offer massage and healing for older guests. Their plans for the future of the lodge include a detached healing centre, offering a spiritual retreat in rural, coastal surroundings.

Unlike some anonymous letter-writers who have hurled homophobic abuse at Susan over the years, mistaking The Fairy Ring for something else entirely, her neighbours have been very supportive of her unconventional ventures. She concedes, however, that some local people, most notably members of nearby churches, might have misgivings about the healing centre.

"There may be a few eyebrows raised when they get to know about our own church idea," she said. "But they are welcome to come and talk through their concerns with us. We all work for God in our own ways. I have been working for him for more than 30 years."

The Christian church has had something of an uneasy relationship with fairies, encouraging dark tales about them in a bid to stamp out paganism.

"Whenever a cow's milk went sour or a baby died, people wanted to blame someone, so they blamed the fairies," said Susan. "The church tried to portray them as sinister beings with a dark, dangerous agenda."

She believes entirely the opposite is true, and that fairies are good spirits trying to balance out the damage we do to the natural world through pollution and deforestation.

"This is something very pure and innocent," said Susan. "We live in a very cynical world, full of anger and killing and war. Personally, I don't think it's such a bad thing to put a bit of light back into such a dark place.

"Fairies are a symbol of beauty and innocence that we can all enjoy. They are not just the preserve of children."

Updated: 08:37 Saturday, April 10, 2004