SurVision Magazine

Pull the Wool Over


The Unexplained magazine
I binged on while youthful,
from the coffee table rack,
its pages cited: eldritch ectoplasm;
men in black; stigmata
and the Kilakee cat.
But holding court,
the Cottingley Fairies:
brainchild of children,
princesses of dupe,
by a frill and a frump,
beautiful cousins
of such imagination.
Your photos, Elsie and Frances,
were sporting and playful,
and for a while – 
you pulled the wool over,
but along came science, officious,
measuring tape in hand,
causing havoc to the hoax,
disproving your opus—as hocus—
Just bits of paper – 
And like the shroud of Turin,
you were given
the Daz blue whiteness.






Conor Doonan was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1971, where he grew up. He also spent a number or years living in Spain. His degree is in Visual Arts practice. He has worked as an English Language teacher for over 20 years. This is his first publication.