So Random & Weird Podcast

Sarah and Sheena explore the history of medieval and early modern torture, separating documented practices from later myths. They examine the Iron Maiden, the brazen bull, trial by ordeal, public-shaming devices, and real methods like the rack and strappado, while remembering people who suffered—including Anne Askew. The episode’s central takeaway: question the stories behind museum objects and re...

Blood, Beauty, & Bad PR is an episode of So Random and Weird . It runs about 81 minutes, and Sheena and Sarah co-host. Opening chat (0:39–17:30) They talk about Halloween trick-or-treating traditions, from Lancaster County to Florida. They also cover Sarah's family night out, Nightmare Before Christmas and Sheena's meal prep. Main topic: Elizabeth Báthory, "The Blood Countess" (17:30–1:13:35)...

Sheena and Sarah take turns telling scary stories. Sheena's stories Mount Pleasant Cemetery (Toronto): Her friend's dog freaks out at home after a cemetery walk. Weeks later, a neighbor is murdered by the cemetery's caretaker. Appalachia trail (Reddit): Two friends are chased by a mocking, toy-like voice in the woods. It ends with a terrifying scream. Wendigo encounter (Reddit): A Marine veteran a...

It's almost Halloween, and Sarah and Sheena are getting into the season with one of folklore's most feared creatures: the Wendigo. Sarah leads a researched deep dive into the winter spirit of Algonquian-speaking peoples. It's a gaunt, ice-hearted being that grows hungrier the more it eats. In this episode: Where the story comes from. The boreal forest, the harsh winters, and why the name carries t...

A haunted museum, a vanished follow-up, and a ghost story tied to one of New England’s most tragic shipwrecks. Sheena and Sarah unpack the season two finale of The Holzer Files and the case that still refuses to sit quietly. At the center is Hans Holzer, the prolific paranormal investigator whose methods helped shape modern ghost-hunting long before TV made it a genre. Sheena explores his backgrou...

A playful, history-rich Halloween episode tracing how the holiday evolved from Celtic Samhain through Roman and Christian influences into modern trick-or-treating. Sarah and Sheena explore bonfires, spirits, soul cakes, witches, masks, ghosts, Irish folklore, jack-o’-lanterns, mischievous pranks, candy, costumes, and Halloween in pop culture. Along the way, they connect the holiday’s darker origin...

coffin-shaped trunks, a shipload of pale young women, and one New Orleans legend that turned real history into vampire folklore. If you love haunted history, colonial-era mysteries, or the weird origins of famous ghost stories, this episode is for you. Sheena and Sarah unpack the Casket Girls, the French women sent to New Orleans in 1728 to help populate a rough colonial outpost, and trace how a p...

EPISODE DESCRIPTION - Ready to publish A Louisiana boogeyman with a moss-covered body, glowing amber eyes, and one bizarre weakness might not be as ancient as everyone thinks. This episode peels back the legend of Pierre Malfey to ask the question that changes everything: is he a real folk warning that grew into a monster, or a monster invented by television that the internet later turned into fol...

Old buildings might be doing more than standing there. If you have ever walked into a room and felt the air change, this episode gives you the eerie vocabulary for that feeling—and the case for why some places may be replaying trauma instead of simply being haunted. Sheena and Sarah take on the Stone Tape Theory, the idea that stone, brick, quartz-rich materials, and even water can hold onto emoti...

Eastern State Penitentiary was built to heal broken people through silence and isolation - instead, it became one of the most notorious soul-breaking machines in American history. If you think this is just another haunted prison story, Sarah and Sheena trace the real horror first: the Quaker reformers, Benjamin Rush's radical theory, the wagon-wheel design, the black hoods, the punishment cells, a...

Medieval Europe did not just punish people for crimes - it put animals on trial. A pig in men’s clothing. Rats served with a legal summons. Cats executed as agents of Satan. If you think history is boring, this episode will change your mind fast. Sheena and Sarah unpack the bizarre, surprisingly structured world of animal trials across France, Switzerland, Italy, and beyond - where courts treated...

This episode is a fog-drenched ride through werewolf history—part folklore, part true crime, part Hollywood myth-making. It starts with ancient wolf legends, dives into horrifying witch-trial-era scapegoats, and ends with the 1941 Wolf Man movie that basically invented the werewolf rules everyone thinks are ancient. It’s spooky, smart, and weirdly heartfelt.

A quiet small town, a trusted babysitting favor, and two classmates with a plan so cold it still chills Pocatello nearly two decades later. This case is a devastating reminder that the people who seem most ordinary can be hiding something horrific.

Join us for another AITA episode. Remeber to rate and review and tell us if we were wrong or right!

Before modern medicine kind of got their act together, doctors tried...a lot. This week we cover the wildest, most cringe-inducing treatments history has to offer-where the remedy was often worse than the disease, and nobdy stopped to ask if it should be done.

Just asking "what's your sign?" is so passe. What you really want is thier big three-sun, moon, and rising. This episode goes over how your not just "insert sign here," but a magical, mysitcal chaos more than that.

Most of us think walls are just for privacy or a bit of décor—turns out, they’ve played a much darker role in history, especially for women. This episode uncovers a shocking secret: centuries of women being walled up alive, buried alive, or held in tiny chambers as sacrosanct punishment, spiritual devotion, or political pawnage. Brace yourself—what you thought was just fairy tales and folklore was...

Unraveling the Mysterious Case of Casper Hauser: The Boy Who Could Be Royal or Just Really Good at Lying Get ready for a tale as tangled as your grandma's spaghetti. In this episode, we dive into the bizarre, spooky, and totally confusing story of Casper Hauser—a kid who popped up in 1828 Germany claiming to be a prince... or maybe just a serial liar? Either way, it’s a rollercoaster of royal theo...

Fall 1990, University of Florida students returned to campus only to find their college town had become a hunting ground. 5 students over a few days, 3 previously in Shrevesport, LA.

Buckle up Buttercups, because today we're diving into a topic as old as time—death photography! Whether it's Victorian postmortems, colorful Mexican Dia de los Muertos traditions, or modern memorial photos, this episode explores how humans have always used pictures to hold on to loved ones... even after they've gone. Plus, a few creepy family snaps and a dash of cultural weirdness. Resources &...

In this lively episode, Sarah and Sheena dive into a whirlwind of feel-good stories from around the globe. From a tool-using cow in Austria to the resurgence of sea turtles in Florida, the hosts celebrate the quirky and uplifting news that often goes unnoticed. They also share heartwarming tales of human kindness, like a teacher crafting quilts for her students and a firefighter heroically saving...

Most people think the real paranormal episodes are in haunted houses or creepy forests. But what if a talking stove in 1934 Spain is a sign that the unknown is listening—and maybe even watching? When residents of Zaragoza start hearing maniacal laughter from their kitchen, and their stove begins answering questions with perfect accuracy, things get seriously weird. And trust us, it’s more than jus...

In this episode of "So Random and Weird Pod," hosts Sarah Leitham and Sheena Olszewski dive into the quirky and fascinating aspects of Pennsylvania.

Most people think tarot and oracle cards are just mystical fluff—until they find themselves asking the real questions: Who was the mysterious woman behind the first influential decks? And how did a Black woman in Victorian England revolutionize divination while getting paid nothing? Spoiler: Turns out, tarot has got more scandal, history, and rebellious spirit than you ever imagined. Sheena and Sa...

Most people wake up each day not knowing that the White House might be haunted by ghostly presidents, wild ghost cats, or even the ghost of Abraham Lincoln doing a little midnight ghosting. Want to hear about Lincoln’s ghost sightings, the mysterious 'thing' haunting the White House, or the legendary ghostly pets that probably have a foot fetish? Then buckle up—your spooky history adventure starts...