Strange Truths and Tall Tales: Product of Newfoundland

Part One: It Came From Outer Space

There's no shortage of Newfoundland and Labrador stories connected to outer space. There are Martian craters named for Gander, Nain and Nutak, local airports were alternate space shuttle landing sites for NASA, and there are plenty of unidentified flying object reports in the province including the much discussed 'Gander Incident' and the Random Island sighting that inspired a stamp from Canada Post.

My favourite Newfoundland space-ish story isn’t any of these.

It happened in October of 1936; a major meteor shower was seen on the southern and eastern portions of the island and it terrified people.

On the podcast we explore it in a story called “The Day The Sky Fell.”

Part Two: With Violet

With Violet is an alt-pop band from St. John’s, NL.

They are winning fans with catchy hooks, nuanced songwriting and an energy has to be heard to be believed.

In 2021 they released their debut album, Long Story Short, which included the popular track “With Money.’ They followed that up with two Christmas singles — ‘December Parade (Bow on Top)‘ and ‘Countdown (New Year’s Song)’— which, if you follow Product of Newfoundland playlists, you’ve definitely heard.

This year, they expanded their canon with two new EPs — Saturday Nights In and Your Sunday Best, the former of which gave us the track ‘Gravity’ and its dancing-astronaut filled video.

Band members Pete and Spencer FitzGerald are my guests on this episode. We chatted about Your Sunday Best and the ‘Gravity’ music video.

We also talked abut Addictions Anonymous (a book of poetry written by Pete and Spencer), and Pete’s solo music including his Halloween track ‘The Ghost Goes Boo’ (which you can hear right now on my Songs for a Spooky Season playlist).

Part Three: Monstrous Things

In the third instalment of ‘Monstrous Things’ we look at a hungry sea monster reported in Bonne Bay in 1943.

Was it a 'real' monster or a known creature? You decide!

Check out the episode page here for links, credits and further reading.

Part One: Newfoundland Devils

If you believe the tall tales, the devil has left his mark all over Newfoundland. There are hoof prints in the resettled community of Flat Islands, Bonavista Bay and more in Keels on the Bonavista Peninsula but, perhaps, his most celebrated scar is in Fortune Harbour where a rock supposedly bears his handprint.

Visit Product of Newfoundland to see pictures.

This episode presents the story ‘Mr. Kinchler and the Devil,’ a folktale that describes the night the Devil visited Fortune Harbour, tangled with a card prodigy and left his mark in stone.

Mr. Kinchler and the Devil is a Newfoundland variant on a classic folktale.

Not all stories of Newfoundland's devil and demon stories are old — some of them are being created right now.

The Duds are a musical duo comprised of Melanie O’Brien and Philip Goodridge. They have been creating compelling pop music for ten years.

Part Two: The Duds

After touring Atlantic Canada in 2019 they released their debut album, These Words I Can’t Forget. The record, which was produced by award-winning singer-songwriter Ian Foster, combined a folk-tinged roots sound with bright pop beats. The Duds were subsequently nominated for two MusicNL awards including Bell Aliant Pop Artist of the Year.

Separately, Melanie and Philip have each built solo careers in the entertainment industry. O’Brien’s debut solo album Shining in The Blue earned her three MusicNL Award nominations and, as a vocal coach, she holds the 2017 MusicNL Award for Music Educator of the Year. Goodridge is a multi-faceted artist, writer and seasoned professional theatrical performer, who has been thrilling audiences in Newfoundland for over 20 years.

As The Duds they create playful-yet-confessional music with plentiful hooks and big emotion.

On October 1st, 2023 they are turning their attention to Halloween, as they release two brand new spooky tracks. ‘When He Danced With Me’ and “Your Dead Heart’ were written with Halloween in mind and are inspired by dancing with devils and falling for demons!

O’Brien and Goodridge were kind enough to agree to appear on the podcast and discuss their new tracks as well as their current roles in the Terra Bruce musical The Wild Rovers which is running at the newly-renovated Majestic Theatre in St. John’s from September 22nd to October 1st, 2023, and from October 14th to November 4th, 2023 at the Winter Garden Theatre in Toronto.

When he returns from Toronto, Goodridge is set to appear in the latest production of the Ladies Who Lunch Three Tales of Terror VII: The Curiosity Shop. It’s a show designed to transport the audience to the Golden Age of Radio by performing original audio dramas live on the theatrical stage. Philip discusses the show and some of his inspirations when writing his segment. The show hits the stage on November 24th and 25th at the Elks Club Lodge in St. John’s.

Part Three: Monstrous Things

In the second instalment of ‘Monstrous Things’ I present the strange case of a sea monster attack reported in Hawke’s Bay, on Newfoundland's Great Northern Peninsula, in 1903.

Was it a 'real' monster or a known creature? You decide!

For links, sources and further reading, visit the episode page.

Bell Island, in Newfoundland’s Conception Bay, is full of mystery. Once home to an immense iron ore mine, the community drew people from all over the world.

Over the years its been home to many strange sightings, happenings and unexplained events. It has even been called one of the most haunted islands in North America.

This episode scratches the surface of some of Bell Island’s lore starting with a giant squid attack off the island’s coast, then a conversation with some paranormal investigators — the people behind the new T+E series History’s Most Haunted — who recently visited Bell Island.

History's Most Haunted follows paranormal experts Corine Carey, Leanne Sallenback and Kelly Ireland as they travel across North America meeting with those who have come face-to-face with the unknown. The series features an episode dedicated to Bell Island including dramatizations of eyewitness accounts and local history provided by experts, historians and citizens of the island.

The series debuts on September 8, 2023, 11:30pm NT.

The episode closes with the segment ‘Monstrous Things’ exploring a sea monster sighting off Fortune Harbour in the late 19th century.

Visit the Product of Newfoundland for more details, sources and links.

The story of a horrific lightning and hail storm over Lumsden (and the entire east coast of Newfoundland) in 1930. It resulted in smashed windows, the destruction of property and the death of several people.

Read the blog post here: Frightening Lightning & Horrific Hail in Lumsden

It was June 21st, 1720 and the sun was just rising over Trepassey, Newfoundland. The fishermen listened to the songbirds and gentle surf on the rocks as they readied their boats. Everything indicated a beautiful day ahead.

Then the birds stopped singing.

In the distance, there was a rumble of canon fire. On the breeze came the sound of trumpets and drums. Everthing was about to change…

Black Bart, the dreaded pirate, had come to town.

This episode explores the strange truth and tall tales of pirate Bartholomew Roberts and his time in Newfoundland.

Check out the podcast page: Black Bart in Newfoundland

Read the blog post: When Black Bart Burned Trepassey

This is the strange and semi-true story of a miraculous (?) iceberg that appeared outside the harbour of St. John's, NL in 1905.

Read the blog post: Like A Virgin: NL's Madonna Iceberg

This is the story of a riot at the Colonial Building in St. John's, NL that grabbed headlines around the world.

Read the blog post: Rant, Roar and Riot… Like True Newfoundlanders

In March 1826 two soldiers stationed in St. John’s, NL squared off in a pistol duel. One of them died. This is the story of that event… and the ghost story it spawned.

Get more content here: Duels Ghosts and Nose-Pulling in Newfoundland

Most Newfoundlander's can probably tell you Sheila's Brush is a March snowstorm but who Sheila is, and how the storm got named after her are trickier questions.  This episode digs into the mystery around Shiela's Brush.

For more info check out the blog post What The Heck is Sheila's Brush?

Winter in Newfoundland can be truly, awful; it’s cold and wet and even in the 21st century it can be miserable. That said, the winter of 1818 set the standard for just how bad a Newfoundland winter can get. Disasters, homelessness and extreme weather set the stage for a winter so bad Newfoundland's governor, Francis Pickmore, wound up going back to England in a barrel of rum.

More info including, pictures and maps at Product of Newfoundland.ca