After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal

Garden gnomes have a secret life all of their own. If you don't believe us, then go ask Paris Hilton. Today we discover the hidden history of garden gnomes and meet the eccentric aristocrat - Sir Charles Isham - who firmly believed that the mountains of the world really filled with little folk with pointy red hats and pickaxes. Our guest is Twigs Way author of Garden Gnomes: A History. Edited by T...

1847 was the darkest year in the spiralling horror of the Great Irish Famine. It is known in Ireland as 'Black '47'. The British Government withdrew its support, leaving famine and disease to stalk the land. Those who could leave Ireland did, sailing on board 'Coffin Ships'. Today Anthony concludes his two-part history of the Great Irish Famine with the help of special guest Professor Christine Ki...

***Warning: today's episode contains graphic description of violence*** In 1661 Oliver Cromwell was hung and beheaded...the only problem was he'd been dead two years already. Charles II had returned and revenge was in the air. It took many strange and gruesome forms. Anthony and Maddy are joined again today by Ronald Hutton - one of Britain's foremost historians who is working on a three volume bi...

One million people died. Two million emigrated. The Great Irish Famine was the world turned upside down. The darkest chapter in Ireland's past. It is not solely Ireland's history to bear. This is a piece of British history as well, one which needs to be faced. What really happened in the Great Irish Famine? Written by Anthony Delaney with special guest Professor Christine Kinealy, Director of Irel...

***Spoiler Alert: this episode contains spoilers for the Harry Potter books and films*** Giant snakes, winged horses and hooded demons. The world of Harry Potter is full of bizarre and terrifying beasts... but what are the origins of these mythical creatures? To discuss this, Anthony and Maddy met with Ceri Houlbrook, folklorist and lecturer at the University of Hertfordshire. Produced and edited...

Violence, sex, betrayal, death and ... SHIPS! This is the story of how a voyage that began with scientific aims and a regimented daily routine ended in all this drama. This is the story of mutiny on the  Bounty  in 1789. Maddy tells Anthony the story this week. Written by Maddy Pelling. Edited by Tom Delargy. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long. Enjoy unlimited ac...

In 1649, Charles I had his head chopped off for treason. It's a unique, divisive moment in English history. Was Charles a tyrant or a martyr? Was his trial justice or a kangaroo court? Did he deserve to die? Our guest to help tell this truly incredible piece of history is Ronald Hutton - one of Britain's foremost historians who is working on a three volume biography of Oliver Cromwell. Ronald will...

Horror struck the East End of London twice in December 1811. Two brutal sets of murders within a few days of each other. It became ground zero for True Crime as for the first time ever the press helped turn this murder case into a nationwide sensation. The whole country was hysterical and hooked, who was the killer? Would they strike again? Maddy tells Anthony the story this week. Written by Maddy...

According to legend, Sawney Bean and Agnes "Black" Douglas raised a clan of cannibals in a remote Scottish cave. They killed and ate unlucky travellers on lonely roads. This went on for decades with more than a thousand perishing. Who invented this gruesome story? Why? And why has Sawney Bean become a kind of cult hero in Scotland itself? Cat Byers is our guest today, a writer and historian based...

Did you know legendary mountaineer Edmund Hillary found evidence of the Yeti? Or that David Attenborough is on board with the idea it exists? Today we explore the history of the hunt for the Yeti. We're delighted to be joined by Pranaya Rana, a writer based in Kathmandu whose blog is at https://recordnepal.substack.com/ Written by Maddy Pelling. Edited by Tom Delargy. Produced by Freddy Chick. Sen...

Charles Hamilton allegedly had fourteen wives according to the newspapers, but the headline was that Charles used to be called Mary. In the 18th century newspaper stories about 'female husbands' were not uncommon; people assigned female at birth who assumed the legal, social and economic position reserved for men. Today we explore two stories with Jen Manion, author of Female Husbands: A Trans His...

Our second episode examining the very real history of Bigfoot. This time we're looking at ancient Native American rock art and meeting the extinct (or is it?) giant ape Gigantopithecus. Our returning guest is the wonderful Dan Schreiber - host of We Can Be Weirdos and co-host of No Such Thing As a Fish . Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long. Enjoy unlimited access to award-w...

When people think of Medieval diseases, hysterical dancing is not usually what first comes to mind. Yet in 14th and 15th century Germany, dozens of ordinary people claimed to be infected by the ‘dancing plague’. What was this mysterious phenomenon? What caused it? And was it even a real disease? Anthony and Maddy are joined by Dr. Eleanor Janega, co-host of History Hit podcast 'Gone Medieval'. Edi...

Does Bigfoot really walk among us? Today we start a three-part mini-series exploring the very real histories of Bigfoot and the Yeti. We begin with Bigfoot and the 1967 home-movie that lit the spark. Maddy & Anthony are joined by the one-and-only Dan Schreiber - host of podcast 'We Can Be Weirdos' and of co-host of 'No Such Thing As A Fish'. There can be no better guide into the world of weirdness...

What is it about this case that holds the imagination after all these years? When did that fascination with it begin? How early on did the myths of Jack the Ripper evolve? Anthony and Maddy look at how the newspapers and showmen were quick to pounce on this case, turning these tragic murders into the most infamous true crime story of all. Written by Anthony Delaney. Edited by Tom Delargy. Produced...

Malmesbury Abbey in Wiltshire was an institution of national significance from the late seventh century until the dissolution of the monasteries in 1539. It was home to eminent writers and had strong royal connections. It housed the tomb of Æthelstan, first king of all England, and Queen Matilda, wife of Henry I, took a close interest in its affairs. But it was also home to arguably the most...

‘If only walls could talk’ is a phrase which feels particularly relevant to mysterious murder cases throughout history. And in today’s episode, walls  do  have a story to tell. To celebrate Maddy’s book about Eighteenth-Century graffiti coming out this week, she’s sharing two intriguing murder cases where graffiti played an integral role. First case is a murderous midwife in London, foll...

This is the incredible history of Dracula, from medieval ruler Vlad the Impaler, to Bram Stoker and the Victorian theatre world. Get ready for a very bloody history indeed! Anthony tells Maddy the story this week. Written by Anthony Delargy. Edited by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long. Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE...

Inside the heavy walls of Lancaster Castle, the darkest & deadliest of English witch trials played out in 1612 - the Pendle Witch Trials. By the end ten people would be executed and many more lives ruined. At their heart was a little girl, Jennet Device, and a book, Daemonologie by King James VI & I. Maddy and Anthony's guest today is John Callow, historian and author of The Last Witches of Englan...

He wasn't Irish. He didn't wear green. There were no snakes. So who was the real St Patrick? How did his myth grow? And how did he invent the goatee? Podcaster and comedian Alison Spittle joins Maddy and Anthony today as we head back to 4th/5th century Ireland. Alison's tour dates (including Leake!) are here: http://alisonspittle.com/gigs/ Edited by Tom Delargy. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Pr...

This episode contains descriptions of execution and torture. To be Hanged, Drawn & Quartered. Put on the Rack. Impaled on a spike. This list paints a very dark picture. What was the reality of execution and torture in the Medieval world? Was it as bad as we think? Worse? Guiding us through this very grim history is Matt Lewis host of the History Hit podcast 'Gone Medieval'. Produced by Annie Coloe...

Mary Ann Cotton is known as the first British female serial killer. A trail of bodies, many her own children, followed her through life. Bodies she happened to have insurance policies out on. Arsenic appears to have been her poison. How very Victorian. But Mary Ann Cotton was only proved to be guilty of killing one of her alleged victims. So was she really a serial killer? How hard could life be f...

Mary Read and Anne Bonny are legendary female pirates from the golden age of piracy. Raised as boys, they sailed with captain Calico Jack and fought their enemies bare-breasted, if legends are to be believed. How much of it is true? How much piracy did they actually accomplish? And why do their breasts feature quite so often in this history? Anthony and Maddy are joined by Francesca de Tores autho...

In 1961 Betty and Barney Hill became the first people ever to be abducted by aliens. Their story of being taken and examined by extraterrestrials on board a spaceship became the blueprint that others would follow. Whether you believe it or not, their account would go on to change our world... Maddy tells Anthony the story this week. Written by Maddy Pelling. Edited by Tom Delargy. Produced by Fred...

Citizens of Paris in the 19th century could stroll down to the Morgue to try to identify the unknown dead or to gawp at celebrity murder victims. Though its most famous resident of all was perhaps not dead at all... Our guest today is the marvellous Cat Byers, who is a writer, photographer and historian based in Paris. She’s currently finishing a PhD on the nineteenth-century morgues of Paris and...