What if Nessie helped discover the influenza virus? Or if Bigfoot was a willing test subject on the futile quest to cure the common cold? It's a shame that mythical creatures can't really help us cure diseases...or can they?

On this month's bonus Seemingly Unrelated, guest presenter Phil W. Bayles will take us to the moon and back on the quest to find one cryptid that may have already saved your life...

Bibliography:

• Branch, M.P. (2022). On the Trail of the Jackalope. Simon and Schuster.

• ‌Mythology.net. (2017). Jackalope - Description, History, Myths & Interpretations. [online] Available at: https://mythology.net/mythical-creatures/jackalope/.

• Native-languages.org. (2020). Native American Indian Rabbit Legends, Meaning and Symbolism from the Myths of Many Tribes. [online] Available at: https://www.native-languages.org/legends-rabbit.htm [Accessed 29 Apr. 2026].

• Shope, R.E. (1937). IMMUNIZATION OF RABBITS TO INFECTIOUS PAPILLOMATOSIS. Journal of Experimental Medicine, 65(2), pp.219–231. doi:https://doi.org/10.1084/jem.65.2.219.

• Simon, M. (2014). Fantastically Wrong: The Disturbing Reality That Spawned the Mythical Jackalope. [online] Wired. Available at: https://www.wired.com/2014/05/fantastically-wrong-jackalope/. 

World Health Organization (2024). Human papillomavirus and cancer. [online] World Health Organization. Available at: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/human-papilloma-virus-and-cancer.

What if Nessie helped discover the influenza virus? Or if Bigfoot was a willing test subject on the futile quest to cure the common cold? It's a shame that mythical creatures can't really help us cure diseases...or can they?

On this month's bonus Seemingly Unrelated, guest presenter Phil W. Bayles will take us to the moon and back on the quest to find one cryptid that may have already saved your life...

Bibliography:

• Branch, M.P. (2022). On the Trail of the Jackalope. Simon and Schuster.
• ‌Mythology.net. (2017). Jackalope - Description, History, Myths & Interpretations. [online] Available at: https://mythology.net/mythical-creatures/jackalope/.
• Native-languages.org. (2020). Native American Indian Rabbit Legends, Meaning and Symbolism from the Myths of Many Tribes. [online] Available at: https://www.native-languages.org/legends-rabbit.htm [Accessed 29 Apr. 2026].
• Shope, R.E. (1937). IMMUNIZATION OF RABBITS TO INFECTIOUS PAPILLOMATOSIS. Journal of Experimental Medicine, 65(2), pp.219–231. doi:https://doi.org/10.1084/jem.65.2.219.
• Simon, M. (2014). Fantastically Wrong: The Disturbing Reality That Spawned the Mythical Jackalope. [online] Wired. Available at: https://www.wired.com/2014/05/fantastically-wrong-jackalope/. 

World Health Organization (2024). Human papillomavirus and cancer. [online] World Health Organization. Available at: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/human-papilloma-virus-and-cancer.

Seemingly Unrelated is a podcast all about exploring how everyday things connect to major movements in history, politics and culture.

🎵 Subscribe to the show everywhere

📽️ Find the videos on Youtube

🎰 Want even more? Get bonus episodes for as little as $2/month and a list of sources for this episode on our Patreon

Follow us on Substack Instagram TikTok

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We are tackling two, yes TWO unrelateds that have to do with the very unexpected connects of popular food stuffs.

Joining Andrew this month is the season 3 crew fresh off of recording it is of course Alicia Britt and Producer Naomi!

Up first we tackle the outsized influence that Scotch whiskey had on the establishment of the NHS. Along the way we get to the bottom of why Johnnie Walker has multi-coloured labels and how to best deal with snake oil salesmen...Red Dead Redemption style.

Then we head over to Japan in the 70s to seek out the truly disturbing event that took instant ramen from obscurity to global dominance. The mystery has a lot to do with left wing radicals and once again the Mitsubishi corporation

Bibliography:

Brickman, Sophie. “The History of the Ramen Noodle.” Culture Desk. The New Yorker, May 21, 2014. https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/the-history-of-the-ramen-noodle.

Bruce-Gardyne, Tom. “Dewar’s: A Brand History.” The Spirits Business, February 20, 2018. https://www.thespiritsbusiness.com/2018/02/dewars-a-brand-history/.

“Full Record for ‘HIGHLAND DOCTOR’ (0033) - Moving Image Archive - Catalogue.” Accessed April 5, 2026. https://movingimage.nls.uk/film/0033.

Master Of Malt. “Dewar’s Whisky.” Accessed April 5, 2026. https://www.masterofmalt.com/distilleries/dewars-branded-whisky/.

McCrae, Morice. The National Health Service in Scotland: Origins and Ideals, 1900-1950. Tuckwell Press, 2003.

McQueen, Craig. “Campaign to Celebrate Scot Who Laid Foundations of NHS 100 Years Ago.” Daily Record, July 2, 2012. http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/uk-world-news/campaign-to-celebrate-scot-who-laid-1115508.

Murai, Shusuke. “Cup Noodles Slurping Strong, 45 Years On.” The Japan Times, August 22, 2016. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/08/22/reference/cup-noodles-slurping-strong-45-years/.

“NRS Web Continuity Service.” Accessed April 5, 2026. https://webarchive.nrscotland.gov.uk/20230324104912/http://www.ournhsscotland.com/.

South China Morning Post. “What’s the Story behind Instant Ramen Noodles?” April 1, 2020. https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/news-trends/article/3077785/whats-story-behind-instant-ramen-noodles-and-how-did.

Seemingly Unrelated is a podcast all about exploring how everyday things connect to major movements in history, politics and culture.

🎵 Subscribe to the show everywhere

📽️ Find the videos on Youtube

🎰 Want even more? Get bonus episodes for as little as $2/month and a list of sources for this episode on our Patreon

Follow us on Substack Instagram TikTok

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

And on the third day, the podcast rose again!

Apologies for the delay and also welcome to the belated March bonus episode of Seemingly Unrelated!

We are tackling two, yes TWO unrelateds that have to do with the very unexpected connects of popular food stuffs.

Joining Andrew this month is the season 3 crew fresh off of recording it is of course Alicia Britt and Producer Naomi!

Up first we tackle the outsized influence that Scotch whiskey had on the establishment of the NHS. Along the way we get to the bottom of why Johnnie Walker has multi-coloured labels and how to best deal with snake oil salesmen...Red Dead Redemption style.

Then we head over to Japan in the 70s to seek out the truly disturbing event that took instant ramen from obscurity to global dominance. The mystery has a lot to do with left wing radicals and once again the Mitsubishi corporation

Thanks for being our awesome Patreon subscribers and let people know how lovely our bonus episodes are at the low low price of just 2 units of western currency.

Bibliography:

Brickman, Sophie. “The History of the Ramen Noodle.” Culture Desk. The New Yorker, May 21, 2014. https://www.newyorker.com/culture/culture-desk/the-history-of-the-ramen-noodle.

Bruce-Gardyne, Tom. “Dewar’s: A Brand History.” The Spirits Business, February 20, 2018. https://www.thespiritsbusiness.com/2018/02/dewars-a-brand-history/.

“Full Record for ‘HIGHLAND DOCTOR’ (0033) - Moving Image Archive - Catalogue.” Accessed April 5, 2026. https://movingimage.nls.uk/film/0033.

Master Of Malt. “Dewar’s Whisky.” Accessed April 5, 2026. https://www.masterofmalt.com/distilleries/dewars-branded-whisky/.

McCrae, Morice. The National Health Service in Scotland: Origins and Ideals, 1900-1950. Tuckwell Press, 2003.

McQueen, Craig. “Campaign to Celebrate Scot Who Laid Foundations of NHS 100 Years Ago.” Daily Record, July 2, 2012. http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/uk-world-news/campaign-to-celebrate-scot-who-laid-1115508.

Murai, Shusuke. “Cup Noodles Slurping Strong, 45 Years On.” The Japan Times, August 22, 2016. https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2016/08/22/reference/cup-noodles-slurping-strong-45-years/.

“NRS Web Continuity Service.” Accessed April 5, 2026. https://webarchive.nrscotland.gov.uk/20230324104912/http://www.ournhsscotland.com/.

South China Morning Post. “What’s the Story behind Instant Ramen Noodles?” April 1, 2020. https://www.scmp.com/magazines/style/news-trends/article/3077785/whats-story-behind-instant-ramen-noodles-and-how-did.

Everything from secret government experiments on aliens, implanted memories of sisters being kidnapped, extremely convenient bees...all of the things that filled the stories of the X-Files came from a 30+ year tradition of paranormal documentary style TV shows before it.

But what real world trends inspired THOSE TV shows?

Joining us this month to find out is the creator of the Accentricity podcast and University of Glasgow lecturer Dr. Sadie Ryan!

We'll be cowering under the blanket with a flashlight to find the answers to spooky questions such as: Was it a good idea for the Dallas, TX police to have their own TV show? Did Dr. Spock host a show brought on by represssed memory therapy? Does Robert Stack have the most haunting voice in all of TV history? OK, so the Air Force says UFOs aren't a threat but...what are they?

The answers to these questions might just get solved...or will they? On Seemingly Unrelated!

Bibliography:

“Alan Landsburg Biography (1933-).” Accessed February 21, 2026. http://www.filmreference.com/film/36/Alan-Landsburg.html.

“Baltimoresun.Com/News/Bs-Xpm-1993-04-04-1993094269-Story.Html.” Accessed February 21, 2026. https://www.baltimoresun.com/news/bs-xpm-1993-04-04-1993094269-story.html.

Blake, John. “Ghost Hunters Haunted by New Terror: Competition.” CNN, September 7, 2013. https://www.cnn.com/2013/09/07/us/ghost-hunters-haunted-by-new-terror-competition.

“ClassicTVHits.Com: TV Ratings > 1980’s.” Accessed February 21, 2026. https://web.archive.org/web/20150512024139/http://www.classictvhits.com/tvratings/1989.htm.

Gullotta, Daniel N. “The Last Time There Was a Craze About UFOs and Aliens.” April 3, 2025. https://www.thebulwark.com/p/the-last-time-there-was-a-craze-about-ufos-and-aliens.

Johnson, Greg. “Behind the Scenes of SAG Strike.” Los Angeles Times, October 30, 2000. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2000-oct-30-fi-44145-story.html.

Los Angeles Times. “In Past Strikes, Networks Turned to Reality TV. Now It’s More Complicated.” April 10, 2023. https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/business/story/2023-04-10/writers-strike-reality-tv-unions.

Mental Floss. “Alone in the Dark: An Oral History of MTV’s Fear.” October 29, 2018. https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/560475/mtv-fear-oral-history.

Muir, John (2001). An Analytical Guide to Television's One Step Beyond, 1959-1961. Jefferson, N.C: McFarland & Company.

Principe, Gabrielle. “Rethinking Repression − Why Memory Researchers Reject the Idea of Recovered Memories of Trauma.” The Conversation, March 24, 2025. https://doi.org/10.64628/AAI.gxh6h3369.

Michael D. Swords; "UFOs, the Military, and the Early Cold War Era", pp. 82–121 in "UFOs and Abductions: Challenging the Borders of Knowledge" David M. Jacobs, editor; 2000, University Press of Kansas

“Television: Incredible? Or Abominable? - TIME.” Accessed February 21, 2026. https://web.archive.org/web/20100729223252/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,950460-2,00.html.

The Pittsburgh Press (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania). “Article Clipped from The Pittsburgh Press.” February 15, 1959.

UPI. “TV Highlights for TUESDAY, JANUARY 20 - UPI Archives.” Accessed February 21, 2026. https://www.upi.com/Archives/1987/01/20/TV-Highlights-for-TUESDAY-JANUARY-20/6348538117200/.

Watters, Ethan. “Opinion | The Forgotten Lessons of the Recovered Memory Movement.” Opinion. The New York Times, September 27, 2022. https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/27/opinion/recovered-memory-therapy-mental-health.html.

Everything from secret government experiments on aliens, implanted memories of sisters being kidnapped, extremely convenient bees...all of the things that filled the stories of the X-Files came from a 30+ year tradition of paranormal documentary style TV shows before it.

But what real world trends inspired THOSE TV shows?

Joining us this month to find out is the creator of the Accentricity podcast and University of Glasgow lecturer Dr. Sadie Ryan!

Go to patreon.com/seeminglyunrelated for the complete episode

Seemingly Unrelated is a podcast all about exploring how everyday things connect to major movements in history, politics and culture.

🎵 Subscribe to the show everywhere

📽️ Find the videos on Youtube

🎰 Want even more? Get bonus episodes for as little as $2/month and a list of sources for this episode on our Patreon

Follow us on Substack Instagram TikTok

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Well...not entirely but...sort of?

Welcome back to Seemingly Unrelated, while the main feed is on hiatus the bonus feed is still racking up coins and smashing our heads inexplicably into floating bricks.

The full bonus episodes are available exclusively here on Patreon for the low price of $2/month sign up now to find out what Nintendo has to do with Arab oil cartels, tobacco giants, and the Yakuza themselves...

Our guest this month is the all time king of guest appearances himself the man behind the beers at Walkie Talky Brewing he's taught us about witches, he's defied the death curse of the Twinkie, and now he's back to ask: should we maybe be acting more like Nintendo...minus the crime? It is Michael Johnstone!

This month we're cleaning up the crumbs from last year's bonus episode on Donkey Kong to find out a bit more about the unexpected history of the Nintendo corporation including: Was Nintendo founded by the Yakuza? How much like Game of Thrones was the rise of Hiroshi Yamauchi? Did oil prices create Duck Hunt? and of course What would Mario look like if he played the villain in Casino Royale?

Thank you again for subscribing and enjoy more bonus episodes while we bring season 3 together here on Seemingly Unrelated.

Bibliography

Firestone, Mary (2011). Nintendo: the company and its founders. Technology pioneers.

Goldberg, Harold (2011). All Your Base Are Belong to Us: How Fifty Years of Videogames Conquered Pop Culture. Random House.

“Mego ‘Time-Out’ Toss-Up Commercial, Partial Color Restoration | Video Game History Foundation Library – Digital Archive.” Accessed January 29, 2026. https://archive.gamehistory.org/item/81ba08bf-58a0-4d2b-bb7a-27778e3159ff.

Nintendo before Mario. n.d. Accessed January 29, 2026. http://blog.beforemario.com/p/nintendo-before-mario.html.

Sheff, David (1994). Game Over: How Nintendo Conquered the World. Vintage Books

Well...not entirely but...sort of? Welcome back to Seemingly Unrelated, while the main feed is on hiatus the bonus feed is still racking up coins and smashing our heads inexplicably into floating bricks.

The full bonus episodes are available exclusively on Patreon for the low price of $2/month sign up now to find out what Nintendo has to do with Arab oil cartels, tobacco giants, and the Yakuza themselves...

go to http://www.patreon.com/seeminglyunrelated to get the rest of this episode

#nintendo  @NintendoJP  @beforemario  @GameHistoryOrg  #hanafuda #yakuza #darkhistory #videogamehistory

Seemingly Unrelated is a podcast all about exploring how everyday things connect to major movements in history, politics and culture.

🎵 Subscribe to the show everywhere

📽️ Find the videos on Youtube

🎰 Want even more? Get bonus episodes for as little as $2/month and a list of sources for this episode on our Patreon

Follow us on Substack Instagram TikTok

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If you're coming from the free sample episode you can subscribe to the show here on Patreon for just $2 and get access to the rest of our talk about Christmas Island with Alice Fraser and also check her excellent work out by clicking on her name right there.

The year is coming to a close and for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere that means gets your booties on cos it's cold out there. But on the other side of the planet, it's boiling hot and perfect for some tropical misadventures so let's flip things upside down for our last bonus episode of 2025.

Christmas Island is a really bad song, but not nearly as bad as what's been happening on Christmas Island. That means we needed to find someone extra good to help explore this history and we invited romance novelist, prolific podcaster, comedian/lawyer and all around good egg Alice Fraser to help us answer some questions about Christmas Island like:

How boring was the naming of islands in the 17th/18th century? Is the British military responsible for giving a bunch of people cancer? How important is it to introduce your toddler to Godzilla? And of course: If Batman funded his vigilante life style with his own poo would we be so mad about all the punching of poor people?

All this and more in our holiday bonus spectacular of Seemingly Unrelated

Bibliography:

Alexis-Martin, Becky. “The Atomic History of Kiritimati – a Tiny Island Where Humanity Realised Its Most Lethal Potential.” The Conversation, July 4, 2019. https://doi.org/10.64628/AB.uhxvuqp3p.

Australian Border Force Website. “Australian Border Force Website.” Accessed December 14, 2025. https://www.abf.gov.au/.

“Bird-Lore/Volume 01/No. 2/Suggestions for Bird-Day Programs - Wikisource, the Free Online Library.” Accessed December 14, 2025. https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Bird-Lore/Volume_01/No2/Suggestionsfor_Bird-Day_Programs.

“Bugbog.Com/Kiribati_line/Christmas_island.Htm.” Accessed December 14, 2025. https://www.bugbog.com/kiribati_line/christmas_island.htm.

“Christms Island.” Accessed December 14, 2025. https://www.thehistoricalsociety.org/history-online/christmas-island.html.

“Formerly Disputed Islands | U.S. Department of the Interior.” Site page. June 12, 2015. https://www.doi.gov/oia/islands/disputedislands.

Gómez-gallego, Tamara, Iván Sánchez-castro, Lázaro Molina, et al. “Phosphorus Acquisition by Plants: Challenges and Promising Strategies for Sustainable Agriculture in the 21st Century.” Pedosphere 35, no. 1 (2025): 193–215. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedsph.2024.05.002.

“Protecting Birds Where They Live and Migrate.” BirdLife International, March 22, 2021. https://www.birdlife.org/projects/ibas-mapping-most-important-places/.

The Andrews Sisters – The Vocal Group Hall of Fame. n.d. Accessed December 14, 2025. https://vocalgroup.org/inductees/the-andrews-sisters/.

“TimesMachine: July 25, 1856 - NYTimes.Com.” Accessed December 14, 2025. https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1856/07/25/77054566.html?zoom=14.61&pageNumber=8.

We Were but Sailing by – Early Impressions of Christmas Island. April 19, 2019. https://christmasislandarchives.com/we-were-but-sailing-by-early-impressions-christmas-island/.

Here is a little preview of our final bonus episode with Alice Fraser. Go to patreon.com/seeminglyunrelated to unlock the rest of the episode for as little as $2.

Also, you can book Alice Fraser to help you with your creative work just go to https://www.patreon.com/AliceFraser or https://www.alicecomedyfraser.com/ for details her workshops are exceptional and reasonably priced.

Christmas Island is a really bad song, but not nearly as bad as what's been happening on Christmas Island. That means we needed to find someone extra good to help explore this history and we invited romance novelist, prolific podcaster, comedian/lawyer and all around good egg Alice Fraser to help us answer some questions about Christmas Island like:

How boring was the naming of islands in the 17th/18th century? Is the British military responsible for giving a bunch of people cancer? How important is it to introduce your toddler to Godzilla? And of course: If Batman funded his vigilante life style with his own poo would we be so mad about all the punching of poor people?

All this and more in our holiday bonus spectacular of Seemingly Unrelated

Bibliography:

Alexis-Martin, Becky. “The Atomic History of Kiritimati – a Tiny Island Where Humanity Realised Its Most Lethal Potential.” The Conversation, July 4, 2019. https://doi.org/10.64628/AB.uhxvuqp3p.

Australian Border Force Website. “Australian Border Force Website.” Accessed December 14, 2025. https://www.abf.gov.au/.

“Bird-Lore/Volume 01/No. 2/Suggestions for Bird-Day Programs - Wikisource, the Free Online Library.” Accessed December 14, 2025. https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Bird-Lore/Volume_01/No2/Suggestionsfor_Bird-Day_Programs.

“Bugbog.Com/Kiribati_line/Christmas_island.Htm.” Accessed December 14, 2025. https://www.bugbog.com/kiribati_line/christmas_island.htm.

“Christms Island.” Accessed December 14, 2025. https://www.thehistoricalsociety.org/history-online/christmas-island.html.

“Formerly Disputed Islands | U.S. Department of the Interior.” Site page. June 12, 2015. https://www.doi.gov/oia/islands/disputedislands.

Gómez-gallego, Tamara, Iván Sánchez-castro, Lázaro Molina, et al. “Phosphorus Acquisition by Plants: Challenges and Promising Strategies for Sustainable Agriculture in the 21st Century.” Pedosphere 35, no. 1 (2025): 193–215. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pedsph.2024.05.002.

“Protecting Birds Where They Live and Migrate.” BirdLife International, March 22, 2021. https://www.birdlife.org/projects/ibas-mapping-most-important-places/.

The Andrews Sisters – The Vocal Group Hall of Fame. n.d. Accessed December 14, 2025. https://vocalgroup.org/inductees/the-andrews-sisters/.

“TimesMachine: July 25, 1856 - NYTimes.Com.” Accessed December 14, 2025. https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1856/07/25/77054566.html?zoom=14.61&pageNumber=8.

We Were but Sailing by – Early Impressions of Christmas Island. April 19, 2019. https://christmasislandarchives.com/we-were-but-sailing-by-early-impressions-christmas-island/.

Seemingly Unrelated is a podcast all about exploring how everyday things connect to major movements in history, politics and culture.

🎵 Subscribe to the show everywhere

📽️ Find the videos on Youtube

🎰 Want even more? Get bonus episodes for as little as $2/month and a list of sources for this episode on our Patreon

Follow us on Substack Instagram TikTok

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.