After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal

Sarah Dazley was one of the most infamous women in the world for a moment in 1843 when she was accused of poisoning not one but two former husbands. Our guest today is Nat Doig - creator of the podcast Weird in the Wade - a podcast about all that's weird and wonderful in/around the town of Biggleswade, Bedfordshire. You can now watch After Dark on Youtube! www.youtube.com/@afterdarkhistoryhit Sign...

From the spookiest corner of the British isles, comes two stories of witches. Stories of fairies and magical powers, of skeletons and haunted history. Our guest is the manager of Bodmin Jail in Cornwall - Jess Marlton - https://www.bodminjail.org/. This episode was edited by Tom Delargy and produced by Freddy Chick. The senior producer was Charlotte Long. You can now watch After Dark on Youtube! w...

Eugene Aram was an 18th century schoolmaster who got away with murder for fourteen years. Then a skeleton was unearthed and a case that had been forgotten burst into life & created a legend. Maddy Pelling tells Anthony Delaney the story this week. Research by Phoebe Joyce. Edited by Tomos Delargy. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long. You can now watch After Dark on Youtube!...

What did Medieval people think about rats? Did they have any idea that they were the cause of the Black Death? How did they use charms and poisons to try to get rid of them? Today we explore the world of the Black Death Rat with Kathleen Walker-Meikle, historian of Medieval pets and animals whose books include 'Medieval Pets', 'Cats in Medieval Manuscripts', 'Dogs in Medieval Manuscripts'. This ep...

Behind the current display of celebrity waxworks lies the dark and bloody history of Madam Tussauds. Join Anthony and Maddy as they go back to the 18th century, when Marie Tussaud escapes the guillotines of Revolutionary France to carve (and mould) her fortune and legacy in wax. This episode was edited by Tom Delargy and produced by Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte Long. You can...

The Tudor court was dangerous and high stakes at the best of times, where survival could often mean betraying others. Enter: Jane Boleyn, thrust into the Tudor limelight when her sister-in-law, Anne Boleyn, marries Henry VIII. Did she really contribute to the axe falling on Anne Boleyn's neck? Was she a spy for Thomas Cromwell? Was all of this just what it took to survive as a woman in this world?...

It's 1864 and the height of industrialisation. The thrill of railway travel is shattered with the first murder that takes place on it. Join Anthony and Maddy as they pick apart the murder of wealthy banker John Briggs, that takes them from a blood-stained first class carriage in London to a police chase to New York. This episode was edited by Tom Delargy, and produced by Stuart Beckwith. Research...

Dan Snow joins After Dark to reveal the brutal reality of life of sailors during the golden age of sail. From the cat o' nine tails, to the pressgang, from scurvy to mutineers. How did people survive the most extreme conditions imaginable? Edited by Tomos Delargy. Produced by Freddy Chick and Mariana Des Forges. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long. You can now watch After Dark on Youtube! www.youtub...

The end of Elizabeth I's life was shrouded in darkness and plots as powerful figures circled her throne. How did Elizabeth hold off contenders reaching for the crown? And did James VI & I steal it in the end? Our guest today is Dr Tracy Borman whose new book The Stolen Crown: Treachery, Deceit and the Death of the Tudor Dynasty is out now. Edited by Tom Delargy. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Pr...

We often think of Egyptian Pharaohs as a glamorous god-king of Ancient times, yet the truth of these people is a lot, lot darker. Who was the first Pharaoh? What shocking, violent stories surround some of these figures? How did their rule of Ancient Egypt come to an end? Joining Anthony and Maddy today is the always-fantastic Campbell Price, Egyptologist at University of Liverpool, and curator of...

There are a disturbingly high number of contenders for the title of Rome's Darkest Emperor - so as you can imagine, things get extremely disturbing in this episode. Joining Anthony and Maddy to introduce you to a couple of them, is Rome-based historian and tour guide, Alexander Meddings . Edited by Tom Delargy. Produced by Stuart Beckwith. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long. You can now watch After...

Join Anthony and Maddy as they spend a day - or should that be night? - in the life of a 19th century body snatcher. Find out which months they favoured for body snatching, why they never stole the dead body's possessions, and why they would never steal a body under a full moon - all referenced from a real-life grave robber's diary. Edited by Tom Delargy. Produced by Stuart Beckwith. Senior Produc...

Did she do it? Did serving girl Eliza Fenning poison the dumplings she served the Turner family? This is a true crime case from 1813 that brings together class tensions, sexism, the law. have a go hero forensics! It's easy to see why this trial gripped the nation. Maddy tells Anthony the story of Eliza Fenning and the poisoned dumplings. Edited by Tim Arstall. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Prod...

The Ancient Egyptians had a very different idea about death than most people do today. And the idea of mummification is (excuse the pun) wrapped up in so many modern ideas, that we can lose its real purpose. Joining Anthony and Maddy today to take us through the gory details of mummifying a body, and explaining where the term 'mummy' even comes from, is Dr. Campbell Price, author and Egyptologist...

On June 16, 1836, in New York City, Mary Jones stood in a courtroom that was a cauldron of hatred. Mary was African American and one of the first known transgender women in US history. Anthony Delaney tells Maddy Pelling the final story from his new book out now: Queer Georgians: A Hidden History of Lovers, Lawbreakers and Homemakers ( published as Queer Enlightenments in the US). Edited by Richie...

Hear a chapter of Anthony's new book, Queer Georgians: A hidden history of lovers, lawbreakers and homemakers. It's out now! For more information, click here. Anthony tells listeners why he wanted to write this book, and introduces a special chapter, exclusive for After Dark listeners! After Dark will return to its normal programming on Monday (Sunday for subscribers). Hosted on Acast. See acast.c...

In today's episode, we're taking you inside the towering walls of Ancient Rome's Colosseum to find out the dark reality of what happened there. From the sex appeal of gladiators, to the choreographed means of human sacrifice, and the eternal question: did they really have sharks in there?! Joining Anthony and Maddy today is historian and Rome-based tour guide, Alexander Meddings, to take us back t...

What price might a man pay for sex in the 18th century? Well, if it was with another man, he might pay with his life. In this episode, Anthony introduces us to 43-year-old milkman Gabriel Lawrence. Together, he and Maddy take us inside the Molly Houses of Georgian Britain, and through the criminal system from arrest, to imprisonment, to sentencing and execution. This story can be found in more det...

Jack the Ripper as we think of him, is an invention of the Victorian media. They took the complete absence of hard facts about the killer, and populated it with the period's anxieties, fantasies and fears. We're joined again by Dr Bob Nicholson, presenter of ‘Killing Victoria’ podcast on BBC Sounds. Edited by Tim Arstall. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long. Please vote for...

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...

Today we step into the shadowy world of W.T. Stead—a Victorian journalist whose life was as controversial as it was groundbreaking.  Hear how he uncovered a sex scandal which shocked the nation, dabbled in the supernatural, and also… predicted the Titanic disaster (and ultimately, his own death). Please vote for us for Listeners' Choice at the British Podcast Awards! Follow this link , and do...

This 1897 New York murder case that has it all - a villain, an incredibly useless police force, and a duck who saves the day. The incredible Dr Cat Byers (@heymorguegirl) joins Maddy and Anthony to tell this story. Edited by Tomos Delargy. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long. Please vote for us for Listeners' Choice at the British Podcast Awards! Follow this link , and don’...

Through the industrial fog of Victorian London, in one of the city's most notorious slums, a murder took place that shocked a nation. The Bermondsey Horror, as it was called at the time, centred around a young woman and her older partner, and a wealthy man who was lured to their home one night. How did the gruesome events unfold? What did Charles Dickens have to say about the public execution? And...

It was a murder mystery that gripped 19th century France and changed crime investigation forever. Who was the body in the trunk? What were the groundbreaking techniques used in the forensics investigation? And how did the murder case unfold from there? Taking Anthony and Maddy back to France in 1889 and through this story is historian and author Dr. Cat Byers. This episode was edited by Tom Delarg...

What happens when you're left on a desert island with a psychopath? This is a story so horrendous it would be hard to believe were it not for the skeletons left behind. Maddy Pelling takes Anthony Delaney through the shipwreck of the Batavia. Edited by Tim Arstall. Research by Phoebe Joyce. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long. Please vote for us for Listeners' Choice at the...