Some Other Sphere

For this episode my guest for is academic and author Shira Chess. Shira is Associate Professor of Entertainment and Media Studies at the University of Georgia. For a long time she was a Game Studies scholar but her recent focus has moved to the ‘Digital Uncanny', resulting in her new book The Unseen Internet: Conjuring the Occult in Digital Discourse. The book explores the magical thinking and occ...

My guest for this episode is psychologist and psychotherapist Michael Wilson, who joined me to discuss his recent book, Portals into Deep Imagination: Celtic Mythology, Nature’s Year, and the Quest for Soul. The book is an anthology of weekly contemplations and practices for spirituality through the lens of psychology, inspired by the culture and mythology of the Celts in Britain and Ireland and t...

My guest for this episode is historian and filmmaker Dean Bertram. Dean’s current project is The Man Who Invented Flying Saucers, a documentary about the relationship between science fiction pioneer Raymond A. Palmer and the writer Richard Shaver, whose stories about his encounters with terrifying subterranean beings called Deros captivated readers in the pages of the magazine Amazing Stories (whi...

My guest for this episode is Edward Tick. Ed is a therapeutic mentor, pilgrimage guide,educator and poet. He has been honoured for his groundbreaking work in the spiritual, holistic, and community-based healing of veterans and other survivors of severe violence who suffer Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and moral injury. He also conducts original and groundbreaking work in the Ancient Greek...

My guest for this episode is Dr Gavin Miller, who joined me to discuss his research on the history of UFOs in Scotland. In his work, Gavin doesn’t investigate what UFOs might be. Instead, he investigates the human side of the phenomenon in Scotland: the people, practices, cultures and organisations that have developed around them. He has given a number of presentations on this subject and was kind...

My guest for this episode is author and folklorist Hugh Williams, who joined me to discuss his new book The Horn of Mercia; The Wild Hunt and The Spectral Huntsman of Central England. In the book, Hugh explores the history of the legendary Wild Hunt, delving into the ancient origins of the idea, it’s emergence as a supernatural phenomenon in Medieval Europe and how it has been recorded and reporte...

My guest for this episode is paranormal author and researcher Fiona Dodwell, who joined me to discuss her new book A Cursed Collection of Haunted Dolls. Fiona has been passionate about the paranormal for many years. She has studied demonology, applied paranormal research, exorcism, and theology. In the interview we begin by talking about her background and interest in the subject of haunted dolls,...

My guest for this episode is artist, filmmaker, occultist and magical practitioner Francesca Way. Francesca is an expert Tarot reader and specialises in Ceremonial Magic and Witchcraft. Their practice is grounded in deep spiritual transformation and a life-changing connection with her Holy Guardian Angel, something which is only developed through an intense magical rite lasting many months known a...

My guest for this episode is author and researcher Tony Wright, who joined me to talk about his recent book Things Aren’t Right: The Disappearance of the Yuba County Five.  The book explores the strange and tragic 1978 disappearance of five friends in the Plumas National Forest in Northern California; Ted Weiher, Jack Madruga, Bill Sterling, Jackie Huett, and Gary Mathias. Four of these men had in...

 My guest for this episode is author and academic Alice Vernon. Alice is a Lecturer in Nineteenth-Century Literature and Creative Writing at Aberystwyth University and her research primarily involves the intersection between storytelling and the history of medicine, with a particular interest in sleep disorders, hallucinations and parapsychology. She has written two books connected to these subjec...

My guest for this episode is paranormal investigator, researcher and writer Kate Ray. In addition to scientific rigour, Kate’s approach to investigating hauntings is influenced by appreciating how these sorts of happenings were understood and described in pre-industrial societies and preserved in the local folklore. A good example of this is how what might be described as poltergeist activity in t...

My guest for this episode is writer and researcher Paul A.T. Wilson, who joined me to talk about his ongoing involvement in developments relating to a paranormal encounter that happened on the Isle of Wight in the UK over fifty years ago – that of Sam the Sandown Clown. To describe the events of the initial encounter as unusual is somewhat of an understatement. In 1973, two young children were out...

For this episode, I welcome back previous guest Laura Lewis-Barr. Laura first appeared on Some Other Sphere in episode 116, where we discussed her work as a stop-motion filmmaker, creating short movies inspired by myths, fairy tales and the ideas of people such as Carl Jung and Joseph Campbell. This time around, Laura joined me to talk about the relationship between states of illness and paranorma...

My guest for this episode is author Raphael Cormack, who joined me to talk about his new non-fiction book, Holy Men of the Electromagnetic Age. The book explores what it describes as a ‘golden age of the uncanny’ centered around the Eastern Mediterranean in the years following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire.  This was a time when Clairvoyants, fakirs, mind-readers, miracle-workers and jinn-sum...

My guest for this episode is folklorist and author Dagrún Ósk Jónsdóttir, who joined me to discuss her new book Ghosts, Trolls and The Hidden People; An Anthology of Icelandic Folk Legends. Dagrún Ósk’s research on the folklore and legends of Iceland has included the topics of cannibalism, Ouija board traditions, supernatural beings and, for her PhD thesis, women, femininity and gendered power rel...

Joining me for this episode is philosopher Kimberly S. Engels. Kimberly is Associate Professor of Philosophy at Molloy University and her research focuses on existentialism, phenomenology, and ethics. In 2023 she started a new research project on the UAP phenomenon, focusing on the lived conscious experience of individuals who report these kind encounters, and how they integrate these experiences...

My guest for this episode is author and historian Karl Bell, who joined me to talk about his new book, The Perilous Deep: A Supernatural History of the Atlantic. Karl is Associate Professor in Cultural and Social History and Co-Director of the Centre for Port Cities and Maritime Cultures at the University of Portsmouth. Prior to his latest work, he wrote The Legend of Spring-Heeled Jack, which was...

My guest for this episode is paranormal podcaster and author Jim Harold. Since 2005, Jim has built a global following with his flagship shows The Paranormal Podcast and Jim Harold’s Campfire. Jim’s podcasts have been downloaded over eighty million times and consistently rank alongside major networks on the podcast charts. Going full-time in 2012, he has also authored six books in his Campfire seri...

Joining me for this episode is returning guest Susan Demeter. Susan is a Canadian born author, artist, and witch. The themes of her writing, research and art incorporate a lifelong interest in exceptional human experiences, UFOs, nature, social history, mysteries, and magic. She was previously a guest back in 2021 for episode 62 of Some Other Sphere, where we discussed her book Cosmic Witch: Magic...

My guest for this episode is Clive Bloom, who joined me to talk about his new book, London Uncanny: A Gothic Guide to the Capital in Weird History and Fiction. Clive is Professor in Residence at Hull University, Emeritus Professor at Middlesex University and a Visiting Fellow at the University of Western Timisoara, Romania. He is a feature writer for several newspapers and the author of many books...

Joining me for this episode is research scientist and author Dr. Bob Davis. After receiving his doctorate in 1981 Bob served as a professor for the State University of New York for over thirty years, where he conducted extensive research in the behavioural and neurosensory sciences, taught, and held many high-level administrative roles. Following retirement, he published several articles in the Jo...

My guest for this episode is Nick Literski.   Nick is a Jungian scholar, spiritual guide, author, and retired attorney.  Dissatisfaction with a career working in law, together with the experience of coming out as part of the LGBTQ+ community, led them to rebuild their life and pursue their interest in the intersection of spirituality and psychology. After three years of training as a shamanic prac...

My guest for this episode is author Liz Williams, who joined me to talk about her new book Rough Music: Folk Customs, Transgression and Alternative Britain.  Liz holds a PhD in the History and Philosophy of Science from the University of Cambridge and is a widely published journalist and writer of both fiction and non-fiction. In Rough Music she examines the influence of themes such as transgressi...

Joining me for this episode is returning guest Dr. Josh Bullock. Josh is part of the team behind Weekday Worldviews, a sociological project which in 2023 began investigating the relationships between personal worldviews and psychological well-being amongst those attending public psychic events in the UK. He was my guest for episode 114 of the podcast, where we discussed the project, the subjects i...

My guest for this episode is archaeologist, explorer and educator Dr Ed Barnhart. Ed specialises in studying the ancient civilizations of the Americas and has over twenty years of experience working at archaeological sites in North, Central, and South America. Of particular interest to him during his career have been the Maya, who are is the main subject of the interview. In 1994, Ed discovered th...