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Pretty Wicked
Pretty Wicked episodes
- 77. Lore & Legends | The Kelpie: A Dark Celtic FableDeep in the mist-laden glens of Scotland, where the lochs stretch dark and mysterious, a malevolent force of nature broods in wait under the inky waters. When a young man crosses the path of a creature both beautiful and terrible, the echoes of an older tragedy stir beneath the water’s surface. In this chilling retelling of a classic kelpie legend, the past does not rest, the loch does not forget, and those who seek to claim power may find themselves bound by it instead.
Macabrium is produced by Macabrium Creative and hosted by Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown, with writing and research by Chloë Kibbe, Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown.
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Episode Inspiration Material
Historic UK: The Kelpie
Scotland's Stories: Scottish Kelpie Legend
Folklore Friday: The Kelpie
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33 min - 76. Unbound: The Moors Murders Part Two: Wicked Beyond BeliefIan leaned over a map spread across the table, marking places with unsettling precision. Myra stood nearby, watching silently, her complicity etched into her steely gaze. Together, they had already taken lives, but their thirst for control and cruelty was far from sated.
Outside, their neighbors carried on with their daily lives, unaware of the evil living among them. Ian and Myra’s polite facades masked the horrors they orchestrated.
This chapter follows their final acts of violence and the unraveling of their plans. It tells the story of the dogged pursuit of justice, the cracks in their armor, and what it took to hold them accountable.
Macabrium is produced by Macabrium Creative and hosted by Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown, with writing and research by Chloë Kibbe, Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown.
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Episode Reference Material
Tribute to remember the victims of the Moors Murders by Moors Murders: A True Crime Deep Dive via Medium
Book by Moors Murders witness David Smith recalls horror by Naomi Cornwell
Murder on the Moors: The Ian Brady and Myra Hindley Story by Fiona Steel
The Guardian - The victims of Ian Brady and Myra Hindley
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/macabrium--6354060/support.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
48 min - 75. Lore & Legends | The 13th Child: The Jersey DevilIn the heart of the New Jersey Pine Barrens, where the trees grow dense and the roads give way to tangled wilderness, something stirs. The locals say you can hear it on the coldest nights—a high-pitched shriek, something not quite human, not quite beast.
The stories go back centuries. Some say it was a curse, an omen of misfortune that slithered into this world on a storm-wracked night. Others claim it was the child of a mother who, in her desperation or her rage, called upon the Devil himself. The details shift with time, but the warning remains the same: stay out of the pines after dark.
Because if you listen closely, past the rustling leaves and the distant howl of the wind, you might just hear the beat of leathery wings.
And by then, it’s already too late.
Macabrium is produced by Macabrium Creative and hosted by Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown, with writing and research by Chloë Kibbe, Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown.
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Episode Inspiration Material
Jersey Devil - Fact or Fiction?
The Jersey Devil and Folklore
The Legend of the Jersey Devil
The Jersey Devil
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/macabrium--6354060/support.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
42 min - 74. Unbound: The Moors Murders Part One: The GloveThe wind whipped across the barren moors, carrying a silence that felt heavy, unnatural. The ground was hard, unyielding, but as the police worked, a sickening truth began to reveal itself. The first body was found. A young girl. The weight of that discovery settled in like a stone, each officer grappling with the horror of what lay before them.
Staring out across the desolate expanse, they couldn’t yet fathom the depths of cruelty buried beneath that soil. But one thing became clear as the cold air pressed close around them—this wasn’t the end. It was only the beginning of uncovering a crime that would scar a nation and haunt generations to come.
Macabrium is produced by Macabrium Creative and hosted by Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown, with writing and research by Chloë Kibbe, Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown.
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Episode Source Material
Ian Brady Obituary by The Guardian
Crime Stories Extended: Glasgow roots of sadistic Moors murderer. by Norman Silvester
The link is established between serial killers and animal cruelty by The Independent
EXCLUSIVE: 'Myra was as ruthless as I was': Ian Brady's chilling beyond-the-grave confessions reveal for the first time how his peroxide-blonde 'soul mate' drew the first blood - and how the pair were 'surprisingly in tune' in their sheer enjoyment of kill by The Daily Mail
Coroner Commends Police After Moors Verdict by The Glasgow Herald
Ian Brady Death: The Five Victims of the Moors Murderers by the BBC
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/macabrium--6354060/support.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
47 min - 73. Lore & Legends | Hatred That Won't Rest: The Jiangshi CurseIn Qing Dynasty China, when a revered general's life comes to an abrupt and unceremonious end, his soldiers desperately attempt to bring him back with a dark ritual. But his is not the only restless soul haunting the blood-soaked battlefield that wants to return to the living world to complete its unfinished business. General Wei Cheng's body becomes inhabited by all the hatred of centuries of battle, turning him into a horrifying, undead monster and unleashing the legend of the jiangshi - the Chinese hopping vampire that terrorizes the lands.
Macabrium is produced by Macabrium Creative and hosted by Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown, with writing and research by Chloë Kibbe, Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown.
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Episode Inspiration Material
Gutenberg.org
Wikipedia
PBS
Ancient Origins.net
History Answers
Reddit
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/macabrium--6354060/support.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
59 min - 72. Permission to Kill: The Jolly Black WidowLaughter is supposed to be a comforting sound—warm, familiar, a reminder of love and home. But not all laughter is kind. Some laughter drips with something darker, a chilling undercurrent that makes the hairs on the back of your neck stand up.
They called her the Giggling Granny. A sweet-faced woman with a gentle Southern drawl, she charmed neighbors, doted on her grandchildren, and had a penchant for romance magazines. But beneath the floral dresses and the grandmotherly smile lay something monstrous. A woman who spun wedding vows into funeral hymns, who turned love into poison.
Nannie Doss wasn’t just a widow—she was a widow many times over. Husbands, children, even her own mother, all fell ill under her roof. And yet, when the authorities finally caught up with her, she never shed a tear. She simply laughed.
Macabrium is produced by SoundBite Studios and hosted by Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown, with writing and research by Chloë Kibbe, Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown.
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Episode Reference Material
Season 1 - Episode 11 – The Giggling Granny by Murderous Minds
Nannie Doss: Lonely Hearts Lady Loved Her Man to Death by Joseph Geringer
Nannie Doss by The Encyclopedia of Alabama
Deadlier Than the Male by Terry Manners
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1 hr 17 min - From the Archive: Romance, Marriage and Arsenic
🗄️ This episode originally aired on Haunted History / Macabrium, a co-hosted dark history podcast. The show has since been rebranded as Pretty Wicked, a solo true crime and mystery podcast hosted by Megan.
SHOW NOTES
In the fall of 1954, a man in Tulsa, Oklahoma, came home after a stay in the hospital, and he died soon after. His doctor was suspicious enough to order an autopsy, and what it found led police straight to his wife, a cheerful, smiling grandmother who had already buried three husbands before him. Today we're looking at how she got away with it for so long, the family members who died around her, and the giggle that earned her one of the most famous nicknames in true crime.
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This episode was written by Chloe Kibbe and hosted by Megan Alda.
🖤 SOURCES & FURTHER READING
Here is everything used to research this episode.
🔗 WEB SOURCES
Wikipedia - Nannie Doss
Encyclopedia of Alabama - Nancy "Nannie Doss" Hazle
Alabama Heritage - The Giggling Granny
Tulsa World - Only in Oklahoma: Black widow enjoyed the limelight
Oklahoma Gazette - Have you ever wondered why violent, suspicious, unusual, and unnatural deaths are investigated in Oklahoma?
Crime Library - Nannie Doss the Lonely Hearts Husband Killer: Recipe for Death
All That's Interesting - Nannie Doss, The Giggling Granny
The Line Up - Nannie Doss: The Giggling Granny Next Door Who Wiped Out Her Family
Albuquerque Journal - Holy Cow! History: The ghastly tale of the Giggling Granny
📚 BOOKS
Valpo Press - Black Widow: The True Story of Giggling Granny Nannie Doss by Ryan Green (2019)
🎬 DOCS
Apple TV - Murderous Minds: Nannie Doss, The Giggling Granny
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1 hr 16 min - 71. Lore & Legends | The Terror of Madam Koi KoiMadam Koi Koi is an extremely harsh, cruel boarding school teacher in 1970s Nigeria who terrorizes her students with verbal and physical abuse. One day, the children have had enough and take matters into their own hands. But they accidentally unleash an immortal hatred that will haunt them forever, unless they can break Madam Koi Koi’s supernatural tie to the very soil where she lies.
Macabrium is produced by SoundBite Studios and hosted by Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown, with writing and research by Chloë Kibbe, Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown.
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Episode Reference Material
Madam Koi Koi
Scary Nigerian Urban Legends- Madam Koi Koi
The legend of the dead teacher who haunts secondary ...
Madam Koi Koi: School Urban Legends | Newman Media
The Origin: Madam Koi-Koi
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/macabrium--6354060/support.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
56 min - 70. Blood and Brass: The Axeman of New OrleansThe year is 1918, and New Orleans trembles under the weight of unseen terror. A figure moves through the night, targeting innocent families with brutal precision, leaving only questions and fear in his wake. They call him the Axeman, a killer who claims to be more than mortal—a demon from hell.
Then comes the letter. A chilling promise to spare those who fill their homes with the sound of jazz on a designated night. The city's response is unprecedented, its streets alive with music and panic as the Axeman's legend deepens.
Who was he? Why did he kill? And how has his story lingered in the city’s dark memory for over a century? The answers remain elusive, but the tale begins here.
Macabrium is produced by SoundBite Studios and hosted by Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown, with writing and research by Chloë Kibbe, Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown.
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Episode Reference Material
The American Influenza Epidemic of 1918-1919 (The Influenza Encyclopedia) by The University of Michigan
The Axeman of New Orleans by Crime + Investigation
Fresh light on the Axeman of New Orleans by Mike Dash
The Axeman of New Orleans Preyed on Italian Immigrants by The Smithsonian
Axeman of New Orleans by Criminal Minds
The Axeman’s Letter by Tristan Zimmerman
Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/macabrium--6354060/support.Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
1 hr 6 min - 69. Lore & Legends | The Legend of Tamamo-No-Mae: The Killing StoneThe story of Tamamo-no-Mae, the basis for the Japanese legend of the "killing stone" and nine-tailed fox. Tamamo-no-Mae is a woman of extraordinary beauty and charm who becomes the center of a conflict in the imperial court when her true nature is called into question. Yasuchika, a skilled onmyōji, is tasked with investigating her mysterious origins, leading to escalating tension and danger.
Macabrium is produced by SoundBite Studios and hosted by Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown, with writing and research by Chloë Kibbe, Megan Alda and Derek Stephen Brown.
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Episode Reference Material
Sessho-seki
Japan's 'killing stone' splits in two, releasing superstitions ...
Sesshō seki
Tamamo no Mae
https://yokai.com/sesshouseki/
https://yokai.com/tamamonomae/
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55 min
About Pretty Wicked
From the publisher's feed
True crime, told like a mystery.
Every Wednesday I sit down and tell you one true story from start to finish - the crime scene, the clues, the lies, and a shocking truth that doesn’t come out until it has to. It’s all researched and sourced, with no filler. Just you, me, and the story.
Pretty Wicked is written, researched, and hosted by Megan Alda, and is part of the Southern Gothic Media network.
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✨ Instagram @prettywickedthepodcast
If you’re enjoying Pretty Wicked, leaving a rating or review helps other listeners find the show - it genuinely means the world!
⚠️ Pretty Wicked frequently covers sensitive and explicit subject matter, including descriptions of violence, sexual violence, crime scenes, and other disturbing content. Listener discretion is advised.