Who was Merlin, the character that emerges like a shadow from behind the Medieval invention of Arthur of Camelot? A wizard? An wise man of books? A reinvention? He is all of these, but who was the real Merlin?

This touring music and theatrical performance reveals the intriguing pre-Norman character that was transformed into the Merlin of the Arthurian romance. This is the story of The Real Merlin.

The Britons of the Old Northern Welsh speaking kingdoms called him Myrddin, The Gaels of Scotland called him Lailoken and in Ireland a similar story of a man driven mad by the horror of war exists in the tale of Mad Sweeney. In fact Sweeney’s story intertwines with Myrddin and Lailoken, as our ancient Irish manuscripts tell us that he meets with Lailoken in his exile in the woods of Caledonia.

The Real Merlin connects these three narratives together in a beautiful and tender exploration of a man driven to madness by his own hand, and his search for solace and forgiveness. It is an elegantly woven theatrical music telling of these strands of an ancient story shared by the pre-medieval Celtic countries of Ireland, Scotland, and Britton.

Welsh singer-poets Twm Morys and Gwyneth Glyn, both former Welsh Children’s Laureates, join Irish singer, Lorcán Mac Mathúna and musicians from the Celtic diaspora of Scotland and ‘The Old North’ to perform The Real Merlin, a story of the medieval Welsh legend of a sixth century chief bard and prophet, and his Irish counterpart, Suibhne Geilt (Mad Sweeney) once king of Dal Araidhe.

The concert is a Knockengorroch commission, and premiered at the 25th festival held in South West Scotland in May. The culmination of an online cross border collaboration, it features original music and narrative, Northumbrian pipes, percussion and multi-lingual harmonies in Irish, Gaelic and Welsh.

According to folklore, 'Myrddin' was bard and henchman to Gwenddolau ap Ceidio, a British king who ruled Arfderydd, a kingdom including parts of what are now Scotland and England in the area around Carlisle.

In the year 573 AD the king was killed in battle and Myrddin apparently went mad, acquired the gift of prophecy and lived as a wild man in the woods of Southern Scotland. In the twelfth century his character was recast and commonly known as Merlin, King Arthur's wizard.

Sweeney, according to the Old-Irish story, was a king of the northern Irish kingdom of Dal Araidhe, who was driven to madness at the battle of Magh Rath. In this extraordinary event he was transformed into a bird and lived as a recluse in the trees for many years, fleeing from the company of all humanity.

The Real Merlin features Twm Morys, Gwyneth Glyn, Maeve Mackinnon and Dave Tunstall from Scotland, Andy May from Northumbria and Lorcán Mac Mathúna from Ireland.

Twm says: ‘There’s a little bit of Myrddin Wyllt in everyone. We’re here to let it out for a while!’

Lorcán says: ‘This is a beautiful story of a person’s attempt to escape their tragic past, and of coming to terms with loneliness and grief, isolation and forgiveness.’