Fairies were genuinely believed in right the way across Europe in the not-too-distant past, and not only by little girls. For many adults, fairies were a part of everyday reality, and accounts of their alleged interaction with the world of humans are legion. But, when the 'realm of faery' did intrude upon our own, how did its inhabitants make their presence known? Apparently, they did so in a variety of different ways, by rapping, tapping and making loud noises around a person's home, by throwing pebbles about, by setting fires, moving furniture, breaking plates and speaking from out of thin air itself. In other words, then, they acted just like poltergeists are often said to do today.