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PODCAST

Dark Histories

Fortnightly narratives on the unsolved and the unexplained, mysteries, historical true crime, touches of the paranormal and cultural peculiarities.

history

All Episodes

61:58

Midway Atoll & The Wreck of the Wandering Minstrel

Dark Histories ·

2025/02/17

In the heart of the Pacific in the late 19th century, an expedition planned by Frederick and Elizabeth Walker, turned into a nightmare. In the dead of night, their ship, The Wandering Minstrel, struck the jagged reefs of Midway Atoll, splintering beneath their feet. With no way to escape, they were stranded on a barren, wind-lashed island, surrounded by endless water and lurking predators. Days stretched into weeks and then months, as hunger, fear, and desperation set in. Worse, it appeared they

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64:31

The Islandmagee Witch Trials of 1711

Dark Histories ·

2025/02/03

In the windswept town of Islandmagee, County Antrim, in the year 1711, fear took root, and hysteria fanned the flames of injustice. Eight women—healers, widows, and outcasts—stood accused of witchcraft, charged with tormenting a young girl through dark sorcery. In an Ireland largely untouched by witch trials, this case became an eerie echo of Salem’s horrors. As whispers turned to accusations, the trial unfolded with damning testimonies, spectral evidence, and the weight of superstition, as women

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76:29

Occult Rituals & Space Rockets: The Strange Life of...

Dark Histories ·

2025/01/20

Beneath the blazing Californian sun, in a world teetering on the edge of war and wonder, one man dared to ignite the stars. Jack Parsons, a visionary rocket scientist, fused the fiery realms of science and the esoteric, dreaming of propelling humanity into the cosmos. By day, he crafted engines that defied gravity; by night, he conjured rituals steeped in occult lore. A trailblazer, a heretic, and a dreamer, Parsons danced on the razor’s edge of genius and chaos, leaving behind a legacy as explosive

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54:24

Introducing: Southern Gothic

Dark Histories ·

2025/01/05

Whilst I'm finishing up my Winter holiday, i wanted to share with you all one of my favourite shows, from a good friend of mine, Southern Gothic! This episode is a really good example fo what they do over there, and I'm sure it's something you'd like if you're into Dark histories.If you'd like to subscribe, you can find his Podcast linked here: https://podfollow.com/southern-gothic Or just search Southern Gothic on your favourite podcast player. Here's a little blurb about the

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61:17

Christmas Campfire 2024 (Part 2)

Dark Histories ·

2024/12/31

Here is Part 2 of this years Christmas Campfire, more of a New Years Campfire, really. I hope you enjoy! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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59:28

Christmas Campfire 2024 (Part 1)

Dark Histories ·

2024/12/24

Hey everyone! Merry Christmas (Eve)! Here is this years Christmas Campfire, or at least the first half of it. Thanks for everyone for taking part, I hope you enjoy some spooky stories and have a wonderful Christmas Day! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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76:18

The Life and Hauntings of Violet Tweedale

Dark Histories ·

2024/12/17

The life of Violet Tweedale was one of some fantasy and interest. A Victorian woman, powerful and wealthy in a time when women were not often such, she spent her days writing, socialising and hobnobbing with the elite. Described in some gushing, and highly dated terms as “a woman of many parts. She can paint a landscape and cook a dinner, she can write a book and make a shirt, she can etch a sporting scene and embroider the finest designs, she is a brilliant pianist, and has the reputation of being

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83:47

The Murderous Life of Dr Thomas Neill Cream (Part 2)

Dark Histories ·

2024/12/02

Dr. Thomas Neill Cream, a physician with a respectable facade, became one of the most notorious figures in Victorian London’s dark history. Under the guise of providing medical care, he secretly dispensed deadly doses of strychnine, preying on vulnerable women, using his sinister charm and cunning to both administer poison and run from the effects. For years Cream operated in the shadows, his victims spanning across countries, borders and seas, until his insatiable thirst for power and cruelty

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67:10

The Murderous Life of Dr Thomas Neill Cream (Part 1)

Dark Histories ·

2024/11/20

Dr. Thomas Neill Cream, a physician with a respectable facade, became one of the most notorious figures in Victorian London’s dark history. Under the guise of providing medical care, he secretly dispensed deadly doses of strychnine, preying on vulnerable women, using his sinister charm and cunning to both administer poison and run from the effects. For years Cream operated in the shadows, his victims spanning across countries, borders and seas, until his insatiable thirst for power and cruelty

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96:31

The Porthole Mystery: James Camb & The Death of Gay...

Dark Histories ·

2024/11/04

On a misty night in October 1947, the luxury liner Durban Castle sailed smoothly across the dark waves of the Atlantic. Aboard was Gay Gibson, a young actress with dreams of stardom, and James Camb, a steward with a chequered past. When Gibson mysteriously vanished, and her lifeless body was allegedly pushed through the ship’s porthole, a dark tale of desire, deceit, and death unfolded in a mystery that would captivate the world.SOURCES Herbstein, Dennis (1991) The Porthole Murder Case. Hodder &

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67:16

Farrant, Manchester & The Highgate Vampire

Dark Histories ·

2024/10/20

In the 1970s, the shadowy depths of Highgate Cemetery, London became the centre of what would go on to become an enduring urban legend. As two men, both with their own views on what the cemetery was hiding, dug deep into their investigations of the grounds, reports spread of a dark, otherworldly figure stalking its overgrown graves. Sometimes tall, sometimes with glowing red eyes, and other times with a dark, top hat, the press reports of the unknown figure stoked a public fear of a secret occult

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64:05

The Case of Elizabeth Fenning & The Poison Dumplings

Dark Histories ·

2024/10/07

In the streets of Regency London,the young servant, Elizabeth Fenning, faced a sinister charge - attempted murder by poison. Accused of lacing her employer’s dinner with arsenic, the 21-year-old cook quickly found herself trapped in an increasingly lopsided courtroom, where any hope of the justice she had held whilst awaiting trial seemed to recede with every new witness brought to the stand. The case caused widespread public consternation and outrage that lasted months, coming close to sparking

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58:35

The Ghost Hunts of George Albert Smith: Mesmerist &...

Dark Histories ·

2024/09/22

The life and times of George Albert Smith are not particularly well known. Despite working for several years as a stage hypnotist and psychic, the owner of a popular pleasure park and then eventually a pioneering inventor and filmmaker, there are few who could reel off a biography based on nothing more than a name. Perhaps even more obscure, however, was his time spent as a ghost hunter for the Society for Psychical Research, which, whilst a relatively short career in comparison, was no less

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01:11:15

Sorcery, Witchcraft & Murder: The Affair of the Poisons

Dark Histories ·

2024/09/09

In France during the 17th Century, a string of unexpected deaths lead to a murder inquiry that uncovered the dark practices of a serial poisoner, who had plied her trade in the streets of Paris, using the popular alchemy and astrology social circles for cover. The eventual arrests shocked the nation, when it was discovered that far from common rabble, the poisoners had hailed from a more well bred class of citizen. Unfortunately, for the Royal Court, the case was only the start of what would turn

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54:11

Summer Holiday 2024 - Algernon Blackwood

Dark Histories ·

2024/08/26

This week I'm off on my Summer holiday for a trip in the woods, so what better episode to do than read a few stories from Algernon Blackwood, all about weird woods. What was I thinking...------- For almost anything, head over to the podcasts hub at darkhistories.com Support the show by using our link when you sign up to Audible: http://audibletrial.com/darkhistories or visit our Patreon for bonus episodes and Early Access: https://www.patreon.com/darkhistories The Dark Histories books are

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01:24:11

The Spectacular Life of Donald Omand, Exorcist...

Dark Histories ·

2024/08/11

When one thinks of exorcisms, it’s hard to get past the infamous imagery published to the world in 1973, of a young girl, floating above a bed, flanked by two priests, flinging holy water and yelling about the power of Christ. At the same time as the Exorcist movie was hitting the cinemas, however, there was one, real life exorcist doing very different work. With several decades of banishing evil under his belt, he was taking on far bigger tasks, with vampires, the Loch Ness Monster and even the

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46:56

Smuggling, Riots & The Sampford Peverell Ghost

Dark Histories ·

2024/07/28

In the heart of Devon, in the quaint village of Sampford Peverell, an information board refers the curious tourist to a now demolished building that had once been known as “The Ghost House.” The scene of an early 19th century haunting that had shook the walls for several months, before falling to a curious silence, the history of the ghost house told the story of a terrifying haunting. Or did it? It seemed the house had more history to it than the new owners liked to admit.SOURCES Colton, C. (1810)

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01:23:45

The Cleaver, The Fiend & The Axeman's Jazz of New...

Dark Histories ·

2024/07/19

In the humid nights of New Orleans in the early years of the 1900’s, a shadowy figure prowled the moonlit streets. “They have never caught me and they never will. They have never seen me, for I am invisible, even as the ether which surrounds your earth. I am not a human being, but a spirit and a fell demon from hottest hell. I am what you Orleanians and your foolish police call the axman.” Whilst almost certainly not written by any real Axeman, this letter, published in the press during the

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01:15:36

Murder Aboard the Herbert Fuller

Dark Histories ·

2024/07/02

In the eerie stillness of a moonlit Atlantic night in 1896, aboard the doomed Herbert Fuller, a savage cry pierced the darkness. What followed was a chilling discovery: The Captain, his wife, and the second mate lay brutally murdered in their blood-streaked cabins. Panic seized the crew as suspicions and paranoia grew, turning the once peaceful vessel into a floating nightmare, hundreds of miles from port. SOURCES Hiam, C. Michael (2019) Murder Aboard: The Herbert Fuller Tragedy and the Ordeal of

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01:16:49

The Wreck of the Wager

Dark Histories ·

2024/06/10

In 1741, amidst the treacherous waters of Cape Horn, on the southernmost tip of South America, the British warship HMS Wager pushed through a violent storm, hoping to carry out a mission against the Spanish to alleviate them of one it’s trade ships, enriched with gold and silver, and bring the bounty home to England. It was a time of great pomp amongst the British Navy, whose continual wars with the Spanish were prompting the great rise of British Sea Power. Surely nothing could possibly go wrong

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247 results

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