Kemp Owyne

[1][2] The heroine is turned into a worm (dragon), usually by her stepmother, who curses her to remain so until the king's son comes to kiss her three times.

When he arrives, she offers him a belt, a ring, and a sword to kiss her, promising the things would magically protect him; the third time, she turns back into a woman.

Joseph Jacobs has suggested that "The Laidly Worm of Spindleston Heugh" (which he collected for his English Fairy Tales with touches from the ballad of "Kempion") is a localised version of the ballad of "Kemp Owyne",[3] itself possibly a version of the Icelandic saga of Áslól and Hjálmtèr.

[1] "Dove Isabeau" (1989), written by Jane Yolen and illustrated by Dennis Nolan, shifts the title character to the transformed heroine but retains the narrative of the ballad, with the addition of a pet cat inhabited by the spirit of Isabeau's dead mother, who assists the hero in his rescue.

Frankie Armstrong included a recording titled "Kemp Owen" on her album The Garden of Love.