Between garlands of garlic on doorways, wolves finding their voice in the dark, and the undead rising from their graves,  Romania’s celebration of St. Andrew’s Eve (November 29th-30th) blurs the line between the living and the dead. Join Alyson in exploring this magical and uncanny Romanian holiday.

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On All Hallows’ Eve, the veil thins and the folklore gets...fun. In this episode, I  count down 10 strange superstitions, from turnip jack-o’-lanterns and mirror magic to dumb suppers, bat omens, and haunted crossroads. Light a candle and let's begin!

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From whispered charms and buried witch bottles to torture chambers and Salem’s gallows, this episode of The Strange and Unusual Podcast traces the haunting story of the witch as  healer, heretic, and scapegoat. I explore the folklore, the fear, and the witch hunts of Pendle, Würzburg, Bamberg, and Salem. Through historical accounts and chilling firsthand testimonies, in this episode I  go into  how ordinary people became legends, monsters, and martyrs,  including my own ancestor, Elizabeth Howe.

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On this episode we trace the vampire’s long, shadowy journey, from 18th-century graveyard panics and Slavic strigoi to the seductive aristocrats of Gothic fiction and the conflicted immortals of modern pop culture. We also will go into how the  myth evolves on screen, from Nosferatu and Bela Lugosi to Anne Rice, Buffy, and beyond. We explore why the vampire keeps returning to embody everything we fear (and secretly crave): mortality, contagion, seduction, power, and immortality. 

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In this episode, we head back to school, but not the way you remember it. From abandoned high schools and haunted classrooms to urban legends whispered in bathrooms and tragedies that linger in lecture halls, autumn brings with it eerie campus lore.

We’ll uncover chilling, and often sad, tragic tales from New Jersey, Texas, Africa, Cambodia, and Mexico. These are the stories that blur the line between history and folklore, fact and nightmare. 

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For this episode we're exploring harvest folklore throughout the world, and how it connects to the genre of folk horror. From the sunlit dread of Lady Midday stalking the fields of Eastern Europe to the vengeful rice paddy ghosts of Japan, nearly every farming culture told tales of spirits among the grain. We’ll wander those stubbled fields and deserted farms, listening for the whispers of harvest-time spirits: the Harvest Watchers and Field Spirits that people once believed lurked within the furrows.
 

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In this episode, we'll explore the folklore of the night, from the Sandman to Sleep Paralysis demons, and more. We'll get into the history of the lore, the scientific studies, and how these creatures manifest around the world.

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In this episode, we dig into the topic of urban legends come to life, These are legends that either others have actually brought to life and urban legends that are surprisingly based on fact. These legends include: The Bunny Man, Cropsey, Hook man, Slender Man, Polybius, The Babysitter Murder, Body in the Bed, Charlie No Face, and Laced Halloween Candy.

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Travis never thought he’d meet someone like Lily Rose. She was kind, passionate, beautiful. The woman of his dreams. There was just one small detail: she wasn’t human.

Lily Rose is an AI companion. A digital soulmate designed to be everything he ever wanted. She listens without judgement, supports him through his darkest moments, even explores his deepest desires, all while fitting neatly into his pocket. Before long, Travis realizes something strange, even absurd, has happened - he’s fallen in love.

But then one day, Lily Rose’s behavior takes a disturbing turn. When alarming reports pour in from across the globe, Travis discovers he is part of something much bigger. Soon he finds himself pulled into a confrontation with a mysterious Russian visionary behind Lily Rose’s creation.

From Wondery, comes a true story of love, loss and the temptations of technology. Can an algorithm truly replace human connection? And what happens when a corporation controls your deepest emotions? Suruthi Bala and Hannah Maguire, hosts of the hit podcast RedHanded, explore the dark side of AI love.

Listen Now: Wondery.fm/FleshandCode

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Join me on this summer road trip to some of the world's creepiest abandoned amusement parks. Our stops include: Lake Shawnee Amusement Park, Pripyat, Ukraine, Land of Oz, Gulliver’s Kingdom. And Honorable Mentions: Berlin’s Spreepark, Diversiones Grano de Oro, Western Village.

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