We are family:
Everyone knows who you are when your surname is Petulengro!
Life as one of the famous Petulengros
Lee Petulengro, 42, from Cardiff
Opening my eyes, I spluttered. Yuck. I had a really disgusting taste in my mouth. I looked round at the people standing next to me, who were all staring at me. ‘What happened?’ I asked. They exchanged glances. ‘You’ve been possessed by the Baron,’ someone told me. ‘You’ve been drinking whisky and smoking cigars!’
Well, that explained the horrible taste. I don’t drink or smoke, so this was a bit of a shock – but that’s what happens when the loa, the Voodoo gods, possess you. They do what they want, and you don’t remember a single thing about it afterwards!
Baron Samedi is the Voodoo graveyard god, the god who accepts souls into the realm of the dead. He’s also a healer – but he’s certainly a character, famed for his love of whisky and cigars, as well as his outrageous behaviour, swearing a lot and making rude jokes. No wonder the people in my psychic circle in Haiti were avoiding my eye…
Family tradition
I’ve been practising Voodoo all my life
– I learnt it at my grandfather’s knee. He was Leon Petulengro, one of the Romany gypsy family who are famous for our clairvoyant and psychic ability.
He was an olive-skinned man, and I’ve often wondered if he had some Columbian or South American heritage. My great-grandfather Xavier ZDV WKH ¿UVW SHUVRQ LQ WKH IDPLO\ to launch us into the public eye in the 1930s; known as the ‘King of the Gypsies,’ he wrote astrology columns for magazines, as well as books on astrology and his own autobiography.
Since then, my grandfather Leon, cousin Claire and aunt
Eva are among the family members who’ve helped make Petulengro a household name. Everyone with an interest in the psychic world has heard of the Petulengros!
Actually, the name ‘Petulengro’ means ‘blacksmith’ – in Romany lore, blacksmiths or farriers were magic men, as knowledgeable about the stars and divination as they were about horses! Horses have always been part of gypsy culture, and I keep them too. I’m D ZHOO NQRZQ ¿JXUH LQ P\ ORFDO area, where I drive my traditional horse-pulled Romany wagon through the countryside. That never fails to make people smile.
I’ve inherited the family’s psychic and clairvoyant gift. I’ve been doing card readings since I was 11 years old and would charge ‘10 shillings’, or 50p, for a reading on Blackpool pier.
Awards
, QRZ OLYH LQ &DUGL DQG have won awards in Wales for my mediumship skills. I’ve travelled all over the world honing my craft, and that’s why I visited Haiti, to learn more about Voodoo. Channelling the Baron was an unexpected extra!
When I do readings, I start with the tarot, to get a sense of what’s going on in my client’s OLIH )URP WKHUH , R HU KHDOLQJ Santos (a Brazilian form of Voodoo) or whatever is needed.
I’m proud of my Romany heritage and the exciting gifts that come with it. Sharing this with the world is my honour and my privilege.
For more info on Lee or to book a reading, visit gypsy-lee.com
I learned Voodoo from my grandpa