The Ghoul Guides Association

Where do Golems come from? How can you create a Golem? And...what is a Golem? Find out all this and more as we dive into the theological, mystical and folkloric history of the Golem and discuss some of the similarities between the Golem legend and the Gothic story of Frankenstein. The Ghoul Guides Association, is a show where Dr Lauren Nixon and Dr Mary Going discuss all things Gothic (or more acc...

Hello -Goodbye - and welcome to the wonderfully mysterious world of Ouija! In this episode Lauren takes us through the origins of Ouija boards, discussing the links between Ouija and the Spiritualist movement in the 19th century as well as its corporatisation. Is this is simply child's game or is there something more nefarious and demonic at hand? Can you actually use the Ouija board to contac...

Is there a darker side of Dark Tourism? Join us as we discuss just this and consider the ethics and issues of ghost tours, visiting spooky tourist sites and haunted museums! In this episode Lauren also takes us through the rise and popularity of ghost hunting media through Ed and Lorraine Warren and recent ghost hunting shows like Ghost Adventures. SUPPORT THE GHOUL GUIDES! If you enjoyed this vid...

What's the mystery behind the Toynbee Tiles and who is making them? Should we be worried? And how are they connected to 2001: A Space Odyssey? Find out all of this and more in our bonus episode exploring this unsolved mystery. More about the tiles: https://www.pastemagazine.com/travel/toynbee-tiles/ The Ghoul Guides Association, is a show where Dr Lauren Nixon and Dr Mary Going discuss all things...

Should real life cases be used as the basis for horror films? What are the ethical issues (and the icks) when you base a supernatural horror film about possessions, hauntings, and paranormal activity on tragic and traumatic real life events. Join Lauren and Mary for this episode on real life horror to find out.   CW: discussions of true crime, violence and abuse. The Ghoul Guides Associa...

Is True Crime Gothic? In this Ghoul Guides Association episode, Lauren and Mary explore the Gothic aspects of True Crime, delving into its history, current obsessions and some recent ethical issues relating to the dramatisation (and Gothicisation) of serial killers.   SUPPORT THE GHOUL GUIDES!   If you enjoyed this video then why not subscribe to our channel? We love hearing from you so...

What's Gothic about unsolved mysteries? In this Ghoul Guides Association episode, Lauren and Mary delve into just that and explore the Gothic heart of unsolved mysteries as well as solved unsolved mysteries. We'll take you through the Gothic aspects of unsolved mysteries, how they relate to other True Crime genres, and also discuss the recent developments in some of histories biggest unsolved case...

This episode is all about Gothic Dance! And taking us on this journey into the world of Gothic ballet and body horror, Lauren and Mary are joined by Gothic experts and two of the three co-leads of the Danse Macabre: Ballet and the Gothic project: Dr Karen Graham and Dr Kaja Franck.  You can find more about the project on their website https://gothicballet.wordpress.com/ and don't forget to fo...

Mothman is my boyfriend, Mothman is a potentially supernatural possibly extra terrestrial maybe even interdimensional being. In this episode that was meant to be short special but ended up as long if not longer than a regular episode, Lauren and Mary tell each other all about their favourite cryptids. 

'Do the sin, in the bin': that age old adage that Slasher movies take to heart. Freddy, Jason, Michael Myers, they're all in on it. At least according to Lauren, who has never seen a slasher film. Luckily in this episode, Mary discusses the history of the beloved horror sub-genre, Slashers, and why their conventions - such as the final girl - can be considered Gothic.  Support us on Kofi: htt...

The Hellfire Club. Since the arrival of Hawkin's finest dungeon master, Eddie, to the world of Stranger Things the 'Hellfire Club' has been a pop culture hot topic. But what is - or rather, was - the Hellfire Club? Lauren takes us back once again to Britain's murky past to uncover the true history of the real Hellfire Clubs, what they stood for, and how they've seeped into our cultural consciousne...

In this Ghoul Guides Association episode, Mary takes us through final instalment of our 3 part series exploring the Gothic history of Heavy Metal. Picking up where part 2 left off, we explore the Gothic developments of and controversial reactions to Nu metal. And if you want to find out why Slipknot in particular are Gothic, or why "the Guy" is yet another monstrous addition to the Gothic family o...

Jane Austen: so misunderstood. Apparently?  Our good friends at The Rosenbach’s have a new biblioventure series, this time with 'Pride and Prejudice' by Jane Austen! Lauren will be joining Ed as a cohost once again : but before she does, she needs to get something of her chest. Jane Austen's novels? Perhaps not what you think they are. More about Austen Mondays: https://rosenbach.org/events/a...

Continuing with her history of heavy metal, Mary introduces one of *the* most popular and influential sub genres: Thrash. 

Kicking off a three parter, Mary takes us through the Gothic origins of Heavy Metal - uncovering the genre's spooky, occult, and camp foundations in the 60s and 70s and then some of its later Gothic developments in the 80s with British New Wave and Glam Metal. This is the first in a 3 part series exploring the Gothic history of Heavy Metal - so settle in and join us as we delve into iconic Metal b...

For today's meeting, Lauren takes us through the Gothic history of Gaslighting - exploring the term's Gothic foundations and the iconic 1944 film GASLIGHT as well as the contemporary usage of the term gaslighting.  The Ghoul Guides Association, or GGA if you will, is a show where Dr Lauren Nixon and Dr Mary Going discuss all things Gothic (or more accurately, why all things are Gothic.) Join...

The Ghouls are back from the depths of the abyss with to bring you the Ghoul Guides Association: membership now open! In this episode, Lauren explains why the history of the French Revolution is even more Gothic than we might think.  (Note re Napoleon: France had conquered Corsica at the time, so he was Italian but it had just become a French colony.) Edmund Burke's 'Reflections on the Revolu...