Fresh Hell Podcast

This week on Fresh Hell, we’re taking you to the heart of spooky fuckery month with a deep dive into witch lore and trials in Austria and Germany. You know Salem: twenty people, one tragic year! But compared to what happened in central Europe, Salem was just a footnote. We’ll explore the folklore that fed the fear: Walpurgisnacht on the Brocken, Frau Perchta and her terrifying entourage, witches blamed for storms and nightmares, and then the very real trials in Würzburg, Bamberg, Salzburg, and beyond. Tens of thousands of people, mostly women, were executed in brutal hunts that tore entire communities apart. And yet, centuries later, witches have gone from a death sentence to Halloween costumes, protest slogans, and pop culture icons.

witches, witch trials, Würzburg, Bamberg, Salzburg, Walpurgisnacht, Blocksberg, Brocken, Frau Perchta, Perchten, Druden, nightmares, weather magic, Hexe, Holy Roman Empire, Malleus Maleficarum, German folklore, Austrian folklore, spooky season, Halloween, Fresh Hell Podcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Crikey! This week we’re taking you to meet crocodiles. The largest living reptiles on Earth, creatures that inspire both awe and terror. We’ll talk about the late, great Steve Irwin, whose passion and humor showed millions of people why crocodiles deserve our respect.

We’ll also tell you the truth about the legend of the Ramree Island “crocodile massacre,” and explain the strange biological truth behind the phrase “crocodile tears.”

Crocodiles may be dangerous, but they’re also extraordinary survivors, and Irwin was right: they deserve our admiration.

crocodiles, saltwater crocodile, Steve Irwin, Crocodile Hunter, Australia Zoo, crocodile tears, Ramree Island massacre, crocodile myths, man-eating crocodiles, crocodile attacks, crocodile legends, Fresh Hell Podcast, reptile facts, conservation, crikey

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Cardinal de Rohan believes he’s secretly helping Marie Antoinette purchase the world’s most extravagant necklace, while Jeanne de la Motte and her accomplices quietly dismantle it and sell the diamonds across Europe. We’ll tell you all about the scheme, the dramatic arrest of Rohan at Versailles during the Feast of the Assumption, and the sensational public trial before the Parlement of Paris. Jeanne is punished, others are exiled, Rohan is cheered as a victim — and Marie Antoinette, though innocent, is left more despised than ever. From there, we trace how the scandal haunted her through the Revolution, the flight to Varennes, and her final days in the Conciergerie, all the way to the guillotine.

affair of the diamond necklace, marie antoinette, cardinal de rohan, jeanne de la motte, nicolas de la motte, rétaux de villette, nicole d’oliva, versailles, feast of the assumption, temple prison, conciergerie, louis xvi, princess de lamballe, varennes, french revolution, september massacres, guillotine, 18th century scandal, french history, trial of marie antoinette

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week we’re heading to Versailles for one of the most scandalous cons in French history. In Part 1, you'll hear all about the glittering worlds of Versailles and Schönbrunn, the childhood and marriage of Marie Antoinette, and her already fragile reputation as “Madame Déficit.” We’ll meet the main characters in this elaborate scheme: Cardinal de Rohan, desperate for the queen’s forgiveness; Jeanne de la Motte, a schemer with royal pretensions; her husband Nicolas; the forger Rétaux de Villette; and Nicole d’Oliva, a young woman who just happened to look like the queen.

will describe to you...in detail...this gaudy piece of jewelry!

affair of the diamond necklace, marie antoinette, cardinal de rohan, jeanne de la motte, nicolas de la motte, rétaux de villette, nicole d’oliva, versailles, schönbrunn, louis xvi, louis xv, madame du barry, french history, 18th century scandal, french revolution origins, con artists, diamond necklace scandal, diamonds

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the 16th to 18th centuries, hundreds of people across Central Europe engineered their own executions in the hope of dying “in a state of grace.” Suicide was a mortal sin, but murder was a capital crime, and execution after confession was seen as a path to salvation. In this episode we discuss several real cases of so-called “suicide by proxy,” including Agnes Catherina Schickin in 1704, Eva Lizlfellnerin in 1762, and Ursula Waserin in 1723. We’ll look at how religion, law, and despair combined to create a tragic pattern of crimes that were all eerily similar, and ask why authorities took so long to shut down the deadly loophole.

If you or someone you know is struggling, please know you’re not alone. In the US, dial or text 988 for the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. In Canada, call 988. In the UK & Ireland, call 116 123 for Samaritans. In Austria, dial 142, and in Germany call 0800 111 0 111 or 0800 111 0 222. In Australia, call 13 11 14 for Lifeline. You can also find international resources at findahelpline.com.

The State of Grace, suicide by proxy, Agnes Catherina Schickin, Eva Lizlfellnerin, Ursula Waserin, 18th century crime, Central Europe history, Austria history, Württemberg history, religious history, capital punishment, public execution, state of grace, salvation, absolution, Fresh Hell Podcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We're still on a summer break, but you know we couldn’t stay away from the horror for long. 

In this second Best of Fresh Hell special, we’ve got three more unforgettable true crime cases from the archives, all condensed for maximum dread in minimum time.

We start with the heartbreaking murder of Katharina Fellner, a young woman in 1920s Vienna whose brutal death was only kind of solved. 

Then we head to Maine for the deeply disturbing case of Sarah Ware, a mother of five found decapitated in 1898, and whose skull was kept as evidence for over a century. 

Finally, we revisit the 1958 murder of Malvina Krutz, who was killed in her own home while her son was just in the next room. Her killer was never found.

Three women. Three unsolved cases. And still no justice!

Katharina Fellner, Sarah Ware, Malvina Krutz, unsolved murder, cold case, historical true crime, Vienna crime, Maine true crime, 1950s murder, decapitation case, bathtub murder, female victims, women in history, forensic history, crime scene mystery, Fresh Hell Podcast, best of true crime, summer break episode, haunted Maine, justice denied, true crime podcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We might be on a summer break, but the mystery doesn’t stop. In this first Best of Fresh Hell special, we’re serving up three of our favorite cold cases in condensed form—perfect for when you want the unsettling highlights without the two-hour extra information.

First up: Owen Parfitt, a paralyzed man who vanished from his front porch in 1760s England...without a trace and without anyone seeing a thing.

Then we revisit the strange case of Nell Cropsey, a 19-year-old who disappeared from her front porch in North Carolina in 1901 and was found weeks later, floating in the river behind her house.

Finally, we cover the disappearance of New York heiress Dorothy Arnold, who went shopping on Fifth Avenue in 1910 and was never seen again.

Owen Parfitt, Nell Cropsey, Dorothy Arnold, missing person cases, unsolved disappearances, historical true crime, cold cases, Victorian mysteries, Edwardian era, front porch mystery, New York City socialite, North Carolina murder, unexplained vanishings, Fresh Hell Podcast, best of true crime, creepy history, summer break special, missing without a trace, strange disappearances, true crime podcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the third and final part of this Hollywood murder saga, we talk about the murder scene, all the possible suspects!

Who had a motive? And who may have been protected by the studio system at all costs?We’ll walk you through the possible killers — from studio insiders and jilted lovers to the ones no one saw coming — and look at how the investigation quickly fell apart under pressure from powerful forces. We also take a closer look at Margaret Gibson’s jaw-dropping deathbed confession, and what, if anything, it actually proves.And finally, we’ll tell you what happened to all the major players in the years and decades after the murder that shocked early Hollywood.

Keywords:william desmond taylor, hollywood murder, silent film scandal, margaret gibson, mary miles minter, mabel normand, charlotte shelby, early hollywood, unsolved mystery, true crime podcast, fresh hell podcast, hollywood forever cemetery, studio cover-up, 1920s hollywood, deathbed confession, classic hollywood, vintage true crime, film history, roscoe arbuckle era, murder mystery

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In part two of our three-part look at the mysterious murder of William Desmond Taylor, we pick up with the powerful (and possibly romantic) figures in Taylor’s life, and trace the final days leading up to his death.

You’ll hear about his complex relationship with set designer George James Hopkins, the bond he shared with Mabel Normand, and how the evening of February 1, 1922, played out—including what Mabel saw, what the neighbors heard, and what the valet found the next morning.

We walk you through the shock of Taylor’s death, the chaos at the crime scene, and the bizarre claim that silent film sweetheart Mary Miles Minter had been secretly engaged to him.

William Desmond Taylor, Mabel Normand, Mary Miles Minter, silent film, Hollywood murder, 1920s scandal, George James Hopkins, Charlotte Shelby, unsolved case, Taylor murder, Paramount Pictures, Hollywood Forever Cemetery, silent movie stars, Hollywood history, classic Hollywood, true crime, film noir, media circus, famous unsolved murders, Fresh Hell Podcast

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices