RedHanded

If someone told you they could read your mind, levitate, walk through walls, or make your heart explode in your chest, you’d probably say they were crazy. But for over 30 years, the US government spent tens of millions of dollars of taxpayer money attempting to create psychic super soldiers of the future, with all those skills and more. This is the ShortHand on Jim Channon, and the First Earth Bat...

After the search of Vancouver’s missing women finally brought them to the gates of Robert ‘Willie’ Pickton’s grisly pig farm, Canadian police faced the gigantic task of bringing the country’s most prolific serial killer to justice.  But with much of the evidence literally eaten by the pigs, how much would be left to piece together this puzzle?  And even long after the cell doors clanged shut on ol...

Long before the ‘90s cartoon version painted with all the colours of the wind, a real Native American woman named Pocahontas inspired a romantic tale that would endure for centuries… But how much of her story is fact – and how much is a convenient colonial fiction? Featuring gold-hunting colonists, grisly cannibalism and more than a splash of imperialist violence, let’s just say the true story isn...

As part of our virtual road trip around North America inspired by the 2026 World Cup, we're revisiting some of our most classic cases – with a stop in Massachusetts sparking spooky memories of our visit to the Lizzie Borden house... The brutal hatchet murders of Andrew and Abby Borden are still among the most infamous and hotly debated cases in true-crime history. Truly springing from the pages of...

Any moment now, we might experience an explosion that emits the power of 1,000 atomic bombs every second. An explosion so fierce that it would reduce the world’s most powerful country to an ash-covered wasteland – and, if it was feeling particularly gnarly, could lead to the extinction of the entire human race. This week we take a look at just how royally f***ed we’d be if the world’s largest abov...

For years, women were vanishing from Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside… But the police refused to admit it. In the first of a two-parter on the grisly crimes of Robert ‘Willie’ Pickton, we uncover the investigation into the missing women, the community whose cries for help went unheard, and the systemic failures that kept the authorities from discovering what was really going on at the pig farm from h...

People who seem to have suddenly burst into flames – leaving just a pile of ash, a foot or skull, and a puddle of strange grease – have left biologists and police stumped for hundreds of years. And as recently as 2010, a medical examiner in the UK was forced to write ‘spontaneous combustion’ on a real death certificate. But there are some very strong scientific theories, and they are… unpleasant....

The gold-lined, intact tomb of Tutankhamun is without a doubt the most important archaeological discovery in Egypt's history. But what if Tutankhamun, the teenage God King, took something in return?  After the young Pharaoh was found, several people connected to his discovery died in “mysterious circumstances”, including the man who had financed the whole operation. Was this King Tut’s price for g...

Tom Cressman’s brutal murder – beaten with a cricket bat by the ex-royal dresser to Sarah Ferguson, the ex-Dutchess of York – was a truly British tragedy. Jane Andrews’s act of violence dominated the headlines in the UK, and for good reason. The obsessive social climber had spent a lifetime getting herself into rooms with some of the richest and most influential people in the country. All she had...

Reliably living to 100 years old – a once unthinkable goal – is slowly creeping closer to becoming a reality. But there’s a catch: we’re still not entirely sure how it works… On the one hand, a healthy, stress-free, and activity-rich lifestyle (with a bit of actually-rich thrown in for good measure) does seem to have a legitimate effect on your mortality. However, some people seem to be able to ri...

You’re free falling towards the ground at 120mph, and below you all you can see is an expanse of open wilderness. What are you going to do? Had you not listened to this ShortHand, you’d most likely panic and die. Luckily for you though, we’ve decided to give you a comprehensive (without assuming any legal responsibility) guide to what to do if you find yourself in a spot of bother. From the best w...

They say money can’t buy happiness… And that certainly proved true in 1972, when Tony Baekeland – heir to the Bakelite plastic dynasty – plunged a knife into his mother Barbara’s heart in their London penthouse. But behind the lurid headlines lay a trail of dysfunctional family secrets, taboo mother-son incest and twisted DIY conversion therapy: all washed down by a toxic cocktail of wealth and ex...

From crypto scams to ‘diet tea’, intellectual property fraud and everything in between, clan Kardashian has set the blueprint for turning followers and influence into cold, hard cash. This is the run down on how Kim, Kylie, Kris and the rest of the gang have put their fame to work – and how a small “community church” in Los Angeles allows them to keep their finances well behind closed doors... --...

If someone told you they could read your mind, levitate, walk through walls, or make your heart explode in your chest, you’d probably either say they were crazy or wait to hear the punchline, and you’d be right to do so. But for over 30 years, the US government spent tens of millions of dollars of taxpayer money attempting to create psychic super soldiers of the future, with all those skills and m...

When Omar Mateen stepped into Orlando’s Pulse nightclub and fired into the crowd, 10 years ago this week, it was the start of three hours of unimaginable terror for the city’s gay community. The Islamic State claimed responsibility. The FBI rushed to explain it. The media searched for answers. But as investigators uncovered Mateen’s history, the picture only got more complicated. There were zero c...

Back in 1483, two young princes mysteriously vanished from the Tower of London… And more than 500 years later, we’re still arguing about what happened to them.  Were Edward V and his little brother Richard murdered on the orders of their dastardly uncle, Richard III? Or did they secretly survive – becoming pretenders to the throne amid the bloody War of the Roses? From Tudor propaganda to academic...

Netflix's new drama 'The Witness' and documentary 'The Murder of Rachel Nickell' have brought Rachel Nickell's case back into public attention. For the true story behind the murder that rocked the UK, we've resurfaced our episode from February 2023. -- Rachel Nickell’s brutalised body was found on Wimbledon Common with her two-year-old son Alex wiping her bloodied face and begging her to 'wake up'...

The 1994 excavation of curious buried ruins in southeastern Turkey might have chucked a big rock through the window of archaeological history – shattering everything we thought we knew about our ancient ancestors. With its intricate carvings, and towering megaliths built long before the wheel or even written language, Göbekli Tepe could rewrite the story of civilisation. But who built it? And why...

Two chainsaws and a paddling pool; a very public relationship; along with a litany of texts and Discord messages, all pointing to one thing: David “D4vd” Burke killed Celeste Rivas Hernandez. In the eyes of the public, it was that simple. And yet, it took prosecutors seven months to arrest and charge Burke with Celeste Hernandez’s death, even after her body was found decomposing in his car. Why? -...

Naked, clutching the telephone receiver, and with a stomach full of prescription meds, Marilyn Monroe was pronounced dead at 4:25am on the 5th of August 1962.  Today, a century after her birth, the iconic “blonde bombshell” is still one of the most famous people who has ever lived. She epitomised Hollywood: the fame, the fortune, and the chaos. Rumours placed her in bed with two Kennedys – and und...

The KKK are the OG far-right trolls: one of the most evil groups in US history, and the best-known purveyors of white racism in the United States.  They have been responsible for countless deaths and acts of discrimination – but where did it all begin? And what do wizards and dragons have to do with it? This is the ShortHand.  -- Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus Episodes YouTube - Full-length Video E...

Dismembered and stuffed into the “frunk” of David “D4vd” Burke’s Tesla: 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez's body was found more than four months after she visited the up-and-coming singer’s house in the Hollywood Hills. Immediately, the story exploded across the internet. Burke had always maintained that he’d only met Celeste once, and that he didn’t know that she was underage. However, Burke’s...

Shot and killed in front of a crowd of terrified onlookers, Harambe, a western lowland gorilla, will go down in history. His death – seemingly while trying to rescue a small boy who had fallen into his enclosure at the Cincinnati Zoo and Biological Gardens – caused ripples across the world. On the ten year anniversary of his death, we try to answer the million-dollar question: did Harambe need to...

She was days away from a major race. A rising star in cycling. Then, she was found shot to death in a friend's apartment. We're sharing an episode of Clues, a true crime podcast hosted by Morgan Absher and Kaelyn Moore. Each week, Morgan and Kaelyn take you deep into the world of the most notorious crimes, uncovering the hidden details, analyzing the overlooked evidence, and following the trail of...

What if we told you that the brand responsible for some of your favourite foods and drinks, has also been accused of being responsible for the deaths of over 10 million babies?  Yes, you read that correctly.  Nestlé, the biggest food and beverage company in the world, is also at the heart of one of the most heinous corporate crime cases in history.  This is the ShortHand. -- Patreon - Ad-free &amp...