Dark Histories

22/03/2024

ICYMI - this week we dive back into Victorian England for a murder that was worthy of the sensational headlines given by the press.

https://www.podbean.com/ep/pb-e7hqy-15b31c9

In Victorian England, the press were never shy of calling a crime the “sensation of the century” or a murder, “the most astonishing the world had ever seen.” When the body of a young woman showed up on the beach of a popular seaside resort town, no-one would have imagined it would provoke ju...

06/03/2024

The story of a British psychiatrist who wants to save the world. Sorta.

https://www.podbean.com/ep/pb-bc3sd-159e0c0

“As to the divination which takes place in sleep, and is said to be based on dreams, we cannot lightly either dismiss it with contempt or give it implicit confidence.” These were the words of Aristotle, written in 350 BCE, and taken very much to heart by a British psychiatrist in the 1960’s, w...

19/02/2024

Lies, a double life, bizarre allegations and a faked death - all in this week’s episode of DH!
https://www.podbean.com/ep/pb-pb4yy-1586923

Cases of stolen, mistaken and fraudulent identity were not an entirely uncommon thing in Victorian Britain. Somewhat more unusual was the bizarre allegation that an English aristocrat, the 5th Duke of Portland, had lived a double life and eventually faked his own death in order to escape the web of....

14/02/2024

This week’s episode is a bit grim, but interesting nonetheless. https://www.podbean.com/ep/pb-9vugv-157a4ea

Hungary during the first world war was a difficult place to live, especially if you happened to live in one of the many rural villages, far away from the grand city of Budapest, where the harsh conditions imposed on a country losing a war bit the hardest. Even if you managed to survive all the fight...

23/01/2024

Dipping into a bit of cryptozoology this episode! It’s a winged and wild!
https://www.podbean.com/ep/pb-6xdfs-155ae74

Sightings of winged creatures flying through the sky have long been a staple of folklore, mythology and legend across the world and across time and cultures. In the ancient world, Gods and monsters were depicted with enormous, scaled and feathered wings, whilst in modern times, sightings have become...

12/01/2024

We’re kicking off Season 8 with a banger of an episode! Thank you ALL for for listening!!

https://www.podbean.com/ep/pb-k94fm-15496a1

Since the 1960s California has always been a place associated with alternative beliefs, countercultural movements and alternative lifestyles. The hippy movement, with it’s summer of love, fueled by the west coast psychedelic music scene will always be a highlight from the era, but the truth is, th...

04/12/2023

A few more images from the 1982 Unexplained magazine with a piece in Gef. The article itself was quite brief but the images were fantastic. We have from left to right, Gef’s “footprints”cast in plasticine by James, Voirrey and Mona and the farmhouse at Doarlish Cashen where the whole story played out.

20/11/2023

It was just a matter of time before Gef made it to DH.

In the 1930s a peculiar story began filtering out from the towns and villages surrounding a small farm on the western coast of the Isle of Man. Reports of a talking animal, a local spook that could sing the Manx national anthem, engross itself in the local gossip and hunt rabbits better than any of....

20/11/2023

This weeks episode is digging into an old Fortean favourite with Gef, the very clever little mongoose. I was lucky enough to snag this old magazine off eBay that covered Gef way back in 1982. It turned out to not be that useful as a source, but you know, it’s good to be thorough and it had some really nice hi res photos which were great.

31/10/2023

This is one that I had been meaning to get to but kept putting off - seems Halloween is the perfect time to get it done.
https://www.podbean.com/ep/pb-kw5y2-14e634b

For over a century, 19th century criminal history has been dominated by a single name. With his murders so violent, his acts so senseless, his victims so vulnerable and his legacy so profound, Jack the Ripper is as synonymous with Victorian London as the Queen herself. But whilst Jack was busy rippi...

18/10/2023

It’s that time of year again, nights are drawing in, days getting colder and Halloween round the corner. I read this book every year in autumn and I never really get bored of it. Any autumn/fall favourites for you?

🍁

18/10/2023

Considered as the crime of the century and unparallelled in the fear and panic these murders provoked amongst the population of the city, it was only overshadowed by a group of five murders in Whitechapel during the summer and autumn of 1888, attributed to the elusive and infamous Jack the Ripper. Enjoy?!

https://www.podbean.com/ep/pb-suudg-14d3b22

In 1811 a series of brutal murders on the Ratcliffe Highway in the east end of London shook the locals to the very core with their unrivalled brutality and seemingly random, everyday targets. The murders exposed a fear in the city that had been bubbling away beneath the surface for several years and...

02/10/2023

I reckoned we should start October with nothing less than a good old-fashioned possession, exorcism and ex*****on!
https://www.podbean.com/ep/pb-rckjh-14bcb98 *****on *****on

In the late 1500s, Britain was, spiritually speaking, in something of a confusing place for the average citizen. With the protestant reform in full swing, many old traditions were being unceremoniously cast aside by the officials, whilst still being clung to by the public, leading to a thriving unde...

18/09/2023

This week we’re just outside Chichester, on the South coast of England at the HInton Ampner Manor House. Settle in for a ghost story that took place long before its time.

https://www.podbean.com/ep/pb-xv68q-14a9dd4

In an old estate situated just outside Chichester, on the South coast of England sits the HInton Ampner manor house. Rebuilt several times over its 1000 year existence, its current iteration is an innocuous brick building with little in common with the Tudor mansion that stood before and no hints to...

14/09/2023

Dark Histories has been shortlisted for the Independent Podcast Awards in the categories Horror/Supernatural & True Crime! So exciting! I’m super proud that the podcast has always managed to stay indie all these years, thanks to all the kind support of everyone who listens to the show, thanks a ton!!

06/09/2023

This episode we stay in France but do a 400 year time jump into hypnotism, murder & a pot of honey. 😏
https://www.podbean.com/ep/pb-nimw6-149a85e

Amid the opulence of Belle Époque France, a trial took place that threatened to unravel the very meaning of human legal justice. Michel Eyraud and Gabrielle Bompard, two French citizens living their lives quietly in Paris were launched into the spotlight following the discovery of a decomposing cor...

23/08/2023

For this episode we go back - WAY back - to the Medieval times with a surprisingly modern twist of an investigation.

https://www.podbean.com/ep/pb-9z7sc-1487fa8

On the eve of the worst winter for over a century and with France on the brink of war with the English, the 1400s in Paris were a tumultuous period. With a mentally unstable king and a collection of dukes, lords and nobles all vying for power in the background, catastrophe was only a single assassin...

10/08/2023

ICYMI - This week I have a little haunting for your earholes.
https://www.podbean.com/ep/pb-kcghh-1476d57

In the winter of 1922, a bizarre series of events fell across an isolated Nova Scotian farmhouse, leaving the locals grappling with a set of mysteries that were as terrifying as they were exciting. Unseen forces braided horses' tails and moved livestock, while bluish lights danced eerily around the....

26/07/2023

This week's episode may be the biggest yet! It's got psychics, Houdini and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle - what more could you need?

https://www.podbean.com/ep/pb-e96tx-1464ec9

In the 1920s as the world reeled from the first world war and the great flu pandemic, people in their collective grief turned to alternative systems of belief. Spiritualism, already making a new rise, was launched into the spotlight as proponents like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle waltzed around the globe....

19/07/2023

For those of you asking about the back catalogue on Spotify: Every other podcast platform has ALL DH episodes available to stream with no paid subscription required. You do not have to wait for Spotify to restore the episodes to listen - you can access them all on every other podcatcher. Spotify has not provided a date on restoring the back catalogue, so if you are dead set on using them (and them alone), you may be waiting a bit.

13/07/2023

As of now, Spotify should have the most recent DH episodes available on their feed. Thanks to all who made the effort to use a different platform so you could listen!

13/07/2023

Just an update on the situation with Spotify - there is no update. 😒 They are working on it, but cannot provide any estimate on when the feed will be restored.

NO DH episodes are showing up in Spotify’s feed as a whole, (irregardless of your Spotify subscription status) BUT, DH is literally available on *EVERY OTHER PLATFORM* so maybe it’s time to try a new podcatcher! Podbean, Apple Podcasts, Pocket Casts, Amazon Music, just to name a few. You never know what you like until you try!

11/07/2023

For those of you who listen on Spotify -they are working on some issues with DH’s feed not showing up, but you can always listen on every other platform! 😬

11/07/2023

DH is back from a brief break with a banger of an episode! Pack your picnic and head over to Arnold’s Arboretum, a lovely place with a not-so-lovely history - just ask the ghost.

Hi everyone! Thanks for bearing with me over the short summer break! It's good to be back and I've got a cracking episode to launch into the second half of the season. This one has it all, ghosts, murder... well alright, it's got ghosts and murder, but that's not bad! It is a darker one and has some...

27/06/2023

Whilst I take my usual mid-season break, I have narrated a pair of my favourite stories by M.R. James to fill your ears. DH will resume in 2 weeks time. Cheers!

It's time for a mid-season summer break and to tide us over I've got a couple of tales for you from the genius of M.R. James. I've picked two of my favourites to read, I hope you enjoy them! ------- This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp, check out betterhelp.com/darkhistories to get 10% off your f...

13/06/2023

This week we have a proper hunt for lost treasure! Or two... or three... and possibly a raptor or two. Grab a shovel and put on your adventure pants.

Deep in the Pacific Ocean, 350 miles off the coast of Central America sits a small, unimposing island, surrounded in natural beauty. One of the island's lesser known claims to fame is that its tropical climate and lost-world appearance were the original inspiration for Jurassic Park's fictional Isla...

01/06/2023

This week is a bit of true crime that reinforces the old adage of “you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover”.
https://www.podbean.com/ep/pb-u396h-14205c5

When a young woman was found lying on her hearth rug, foaming at the mouth on New Years Day of 1845, few would have guessed that the winding path leading up to her death would result in a mystery that would become entwined with one of the key moments in the history of communication as well as one of...

19/05/2023

Start the weekend with a banger of an episode! A murdered man comes back from the dead, or does he?

In 1812, in the Manchester settlement of Vermont, a local man named Russell Colvin mysteriously vanished, and despite extensive searches, no trace of him was found. Years later, rumours began to circulate that Russell had been murdered and buried in a cellar on a piece of local farmland. Ghosts were...

08/05/2023

By far, one of the strangest episodes I have done. Words simply cannot describe it.
https://www.podbean.com/ep/pb-m3wrx-1400493

19th century London saw two of the most sensational public scares in its long history when the enigmatic Spring Heeled Jack stalked the alleyways of the capital city and in 1888, when Jack the Ripper enacted his reign of the streets, bringing about an autumn of terror that has since become infamous....