Melbourne will host our 2026 Australian Fairy Tale Conference on August 15-16.

Theme: Witches in Fairy Tales: Wise Women or Evil Enchanters?

Who’s your favourite fairytale witch? Are they portrayed as the stereotypical evil enchanter, like Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty or the Evil Queen in Snow White; or more nuanced like Baba Yaga, who is often portrayed as the guardian between life and death, or the magical helper rather than a straight-up villain; or is it one of those sweet helper witches who morphed into a fairy over time, like Cinderella’s fairy godmother?

There will be so much to explore!