Tradition / Region: Manx Folklore
Alternative names: The Night-Man
Category: Cave dweller
The Myth
The Dooinney-Oie, or Night-Man, is a supernatural being who lives in a lonely cave on the side of Cronk-y-Thonna overlooking Glen Roy. He is associated with the mountains and valleys around Laxey and is known for carrying a horn whose sound can be heard across the surrounding countryside. He is also said to help the local people and to perform work for them while they sleep.
No one willingly approached the Night-Man’s cave. Boys who ventured too close sometimes suffered sudden pains or sprained their wrists and ankles, while children gathering blackberries or hazelnuts were warned to keep away from the place.
Despite this, the Dooinney-Oie was considered useful to the people of Laxey. He warned fishermen when storms were approaching, helping them protect their lines, nets, and fishing pots and sometimes saving their lives. Farmers and crofters also benefited from his warnings, as they could bring their flocks down from the hills before dangerous weather arrived. Like the Fynoderee, he would sometimes perform work for people while they were asleep.
The Night-Man eventually devised a way to reach the breast of Lhergy Grawe so that his warnings could be heard across a larger area. After a month of planning, he built a strange chariot with two small wheels on one side and two large wheels on the other. The seat was suspended from the frame by strips of hide so that he would not be thrown about on the rough mountain paths. By moving the horses from one end of the chariot to the other, he could travel safely along the steep slopes.
From his position on Lhergy Grawe, the Dooinney-Oie would blow his horn to warn the people of Glen Roy, Granane, Glen Drink, and Laxey of approaching storms.
One September night, a young man named Joe Steveson was returning home beneath the bright moon when he heard the Night-Man’s horn. He saw something shining in the ling on the mountain and climbed up Lhergy Grawe to investigate. There he discovered the Dooinney-Oie’s horn lying on the ground. Although he was too frightened to take it away, he hid the horn before leaving.
When the Dooinney-Oie returned and discovered that his horn was missing, he became furious. His cries echoed through the valleys like thunder, and the people said that he was so enraged that fire flew from his mouth. Joe Steveson was terrified and never recovered from the fright.
On another night, a man from Baldhoon who had often mocked the Night-Man was returning home after drinking. When he heard the horn, he shouted insults across the valley. The Dooinney-Oie ignored him at first, but after hearing another insult, he leapt from his seat and rushed down Lhergy Grawe, shouting and stamping so violently that the ground seemed to shake.
The man ran for his life. When the Dooinney-Oie reached the river, however, the stepping-stones were covered by the water. He retreated slightly, took a run, gave a great shout, and leapt across.
The frightened man managed to reach the house of a religious man just as the Dooinney-Oie arrived. One enormous shout at the door shook the turfs on the rafters and rattled the thatch, but the Night-Man could do no more. The man remained inside for the night and never again shouted after the Dooinney-Oie.
Years later, when the sound of the Night-Man’s horn had become rare, a man from Grawe decided that the trees growing around his old position were preventing him from returning. He made a new road through the trees from the Chibbyry-Pherick road, but the Dooinney-Oie did not return.
The man then supposed that the Night-Man had died. Believing that such a faithful friend of the people deserved a monument, he hired quarrymen and masons to build a large round tower at the place where the Dooinney-Oie had once stood.
Before the tower was finished, the Night-Man came to see it. He did not like what he saw. He seized the tower, gave one enormous shout, and tore the entire structure down.
From that day onward, the Dooinney-Oie was never seen again. Yet on quiet evenings, when the sun sinks red behind the clouds over the grey sea, farmers still say that they can hear his horn sounding far away on Lhergy Grawe.
Sources
“Alux.” Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation. Accessed July 28, 2026. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alux