After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal

Inside A Medieval Leper Colony

22 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Come back with us to a Medieval leper colony.What was life really like for patients inside the gates? What did it mean when the 'leper bell' rang? And...

The Victorian's Dark Obsession with Ancient Egypt

19 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The Victorians had a lot of twisted fascinations, but their fixation on Ancient Egypt might be the darkest of the lot.From 'mummy unwrapping parties' ...

The Deadly Arctic Witch Trials

15 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

It all started when a huge storm drowned 40 men on Christmas Eve, 1617.The people of Vardø, northern Norway, needed someone to blame.What followed we...

Great Fire of London As It Happened

12 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

The Fire that struck London in 1666 was one of the city's darkest chapters. In this episode, Anthony and Maddy examine the accounts of people who witn...

Day in the Life of a Salem Puritan

08 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

What did it feel like to wake up Salem Village during the darkest days of the witch trials? Would you be able to swallow down your beer and pottage br...

Inside the Victorian Asylum

05 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

One of the dark symbols of the Victorian age is the asylum. It struck fear into the mind but what was the reality of life inside its walls? Maddy Pell...

The Truth about the Conjuring's Ghost Hunters

01 Jan 2026

Contributed by Lukas

Ghost hunting couple Ed and Lorraine Warren transformed twentieth century America into an enchanted land dotted with haunted houses, cursed objects, a...

Banshees: Herald of Death

29 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today we're delving back into the After Dark vaults to revisit our episode on Banshees...Siobhan McSweeney (Derry Girls) joins Anthony Delaney and Mad...

Ghosts of Henry VIII's Palace

25 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We’re re-running this episode because it’s one of our favourites — and it’s worth another listen!The ghost of Catherine Howard, fifth wife of ...

Dark Truth About Sweeney Todd

22 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Sweeney Todd - the demon barber of Fleet Street who beheads people and then sends their bodies through a trapdoor to be made into pies. It's just a st...

The Most Notorious Viking Raid

18 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Viking attack on the monastery at Lindisfarne, a remote tidal island in North East England, sent psychological and cultural shockwaves through the...

Oscar Wilde's Very Victorian Scandal

15 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In 1895, the world witnessed its first true celebrity trial when Oscar Wilde was charged with “Gross Indecency". To tell the powerful story of Wilde...

Does Every Family Hold A Dark Past?

11 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Maddy and Anthony dig into their own family history in collaboration with Ancestry! They find stories from the darker side of the past in their own fa...

What Happened The Day Pompeii was Destroyed?

08 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We all know the story of Pompeii: the Roman town reduced to ash when Mount Vesuvius erupted. Roughly two-thousand years later, archaeologists have bee...

The Dark Side of the Vikings

04 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

How dark really were the Vikings? How much of a part did human sacrifice play in their world? And what was their relationship with magic?Joining Antho...

The Only Prime Minister Ever Assassinated

01 Dec 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Was this moment the closest Britain came to revolution? When Prime Minister Spencer Perceval lay dying on the floor of the Parliament, many feared it ...

Who Was Medieval Europe's Most Evil Monarch?

27 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Who was the very worst of all the Medieval monarchs? No spoilers but we've got monarchs driven psychopathic by love, terrible sadists, and egos that s...

Who was the Last Witch of Scotland?

24 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

With the nights closing in, what better time to re-visit a favourite episode of ours.In 1727, Janet Horne of the Highland community of Dornoch became ...

Could you Survive the Medieval Apocalypse?

20 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

For Medieval Europe, the Apocalypse wasn’t just a metaphor - it was very real and very imminent.We are talking about the four horsemen, locusts the ...

Why Did Henry VIII Kill Catherine Howard?

17 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In 1540 Henry VIII was getting old, and his eyes turned to teenager Catherine Howard.He fell hard and fast for Catherine - his "rose without a thorn" ...

Who Was Nostradamus?

13 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Did Nostradamus really predict everything from the Great Fire of London to the rise of Hitler?We predict that you'll find out in this episode...Join A...

Day in the Life of a Tudor Executioner

10 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Did they wear black hoods? Whose axe did they use? How did you get the job in the first place? Today Anthony Delaney takes Maddy Pelling inside the wo...

Henry VIII's Murderous Reign

06 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Henry VIII was a monarch everyone was excited for, and turned into someone who weaponised his powers for murder.What happened in his life that caused ...

The Perfume Poisoner Who Killed 500 Men

03 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Deep in Renaissance Rome, it is said that a woman called Giulia Tofana supplied poison to kill some 500 abusive men.Is this the stuff of myth and folk...

Introducing a chilling new podcast: TWISTED TALES WITH HEIDI WONG

01 Nov 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Reality is the real horror.Every Monday, poet and paranormal obsessive Heidi Wong unearths the chilling true stories behind the world’s most terrify...

Truth About Irish Funeral Beliefs

30 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

What are the origins of keening for the dead? What is the history of Irish wakes? And why must you never put a coffin down on the way to the funeral?A...

'She Devil' Serial Poisoner of Victorian England

27 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Sarah Dazley was one of the most infamous women in the world for a moment in 1843 when she was accused of poisoning not one but two former husbands. O...

Witches of Cornwall

23 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

From the spookiest corner of the British isles, comes two stories of witches. Stories of fairies and magical powers, of skeletons and haunted history....

Britain's Coldest Murder Case

20 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Eugene Aram was an 18th century schoolmaster who got away with murder for fourteen years. Then a skeleton was unearthed and a case that had been forgo...

Day in the life of a Black Death Rat

16 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

What did Medieval people think about rats? Did they have any idea that they were the cause of the Black Death? How did they use charms and poisons to ...

The Dark Truth About Madam Tussauds

13 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Behind the current display of celebrity waxworks lies the dark and bloody history of Madam Tussauds.Join Anthony and Maddy as they go back to the 18th...

Who Was The Ultimate Tudor Traitor?

09 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Tudor court was dangerous and high stakes at the best of times, where survival could often mean betraying others.Enter: Jane Boleyn, thrust into t...

The Railway Murder That Shook Victorian Britain

06 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It's 1864 and the height of industrialisation. The thrill of railway travel is shattered with the first murder that takes place on it.Join Anthony and...

The Dark Reality of Life at Sea

02 Oct 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Dan Snow joins After Dark to reveal the brutal reality of life of sailors during the golden age of sail. From the cat o' nine tails, to the pressgang,...

Dark Side of Elizabeth I

29 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The end of Elizabeth I's life was shrouded in darkness and plots as powerful figures circled her throne. How did Elizabeth hold off contenders reachin...

Who Was Ancient Egypt's Most Evil Pharaoh?

25 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

We often think of Egyptian Pharaohs as a glamorous god-king of Ancient times, yet the truth of these people is a lot, lot darker.Who was the first Pha...

Who Was Ancient Rome's Darkest Emperor?

22 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

There are a disturbingly high number of contenders for the title of Rome's Darkest Emperor - so as you can imagine, things get extremely disturbing in...

Day In The Life Of A Body Snatcher

18 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Join Anthony and Maddy as they spend a day - or should that be night? - in the life of a 19th century body snatcher.Find out which months they favoure...

Georgian England's Notorious Dumpling Poisoner

15 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Did she do it? Did serving girl Eliza Fenning poison the dumplings she served the Turner family? This is a true crime case from 1813 that brings toget...

Dark Truth About Ancient Egypt's Mummification

11 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The Ancient Egyptians had a very different idea about death than most people do today.And the idea of mummification is (excuse the pun) wrapped up in ...

Who was the 'Man-Monster' Of New York?

08 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

On June 16, 1836, in New York City, Mary Jones stood in a courtroom that was a cauldron of hatred. Mary was African American and one of the first know...

BONUS: Hear a chapter of Anthony's new book, Queer Georgians

05 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Hear a chapter of Anthony's new book, Queer Georgians: A hidden history of lovers, lawbreakers and homemakers. It's out now!For more information, clic...

Dark Side of Ancient Rome's Colosseum

04 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In today's episode, we're taking you inside the towering walls of Ancient Rome's Colosseum to find out the dark reality of what happened there.From th...

Gay Sex Scandal that Outraged the Georgians

01 Sep 2025

Contributed by Lukas

What price might a man pay for sex in the 18th century? Well, if it was with another man, he might pay with his life.In this episode, Anthony introduc...

Jack the Ripper: Invention of a Monster

28 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Jack the Ripper as we think of him, is an invention of the Victorian media. They took the complete absence of hard facts about the killer, and populat...

The Dark Side of Medieval England

25 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This episode contains descriptions of execution and torture.To be Hanged, Drawn & Quartered. Put on the Rack. Impaled on a spike. This list paints a v...

The Darkest Scandal in Victorian Britain

21 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today we step into the shadowy world of W.T. Stead—a Victorian journalist whose life was as controversial as it was groundbreaking. Hear how he...

New York's Wildest Murder Case

18 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

This 1897 New York murder case that has it all - a villain, an incredibly useless police force, and a duck who saves the day. The incredible Dr Cat By...

Victorian Love Triangle Murder

14 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Through the industrial fog of Victorian London, in one of the city's most notorious slums, a murder took place that shocked a nation.The Bermondsey Ho...

The Body In The Trunk: France's Shocking 19th Century Murder Case

11 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It was a murder mystery that gripped 19th century France and changed crime investigation forever.Who was the body in the trunk? What were the groundbr...

Bloodiest Mutiny & Shipwreck in History: Batavia

07 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

What happens when you're left on a desert island with a psychopath? This is a story so horrendous it would be hard to believe were it not for the skel...

Britain’s Most Prolific Executioner

04 Aug 2025

Contributed by Lukas

For Albert Pierrepoint, execution was a family affair. His father and uncle were hangmen and from the 1940s until the late 1950s Albert was Britain's ...

Could You Survive The Victorian Workhouse?

31 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today we’re going behind the foreboding doors of the Victorian workhouse to ask - ‘Could we survive it?’. From Oliver Twist's gruel to songs abo...

Day In The Life Of A Plague Doctor

28 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

If you think your job is bad, have you tried being a plague doctor in 17th century Venice?Join Anthony and Maddy as they wake up on a quarantine islan...

Final Days of Napoleon

24 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Conspiracy theories swirl about the final days of Napoleon. Was he poisoned by a friend? By the British? By his wallpaper? Did he cologne himself to d...

The Great Plague of London

21 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

What was it like living in London, 1665, when the plague first crept in?Within weeks, the gruesome symptoms were being spotted around London, crosses ...

Dark History of the Luddites

17 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Would you have joined the OG Luddites? In 1811 and 1812 across the midlands and north of England which were the Silicon Valley of the day, Luddites sm...

The Plague That Shook The Roman Empire

14 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In the 6th century, the Roman Empire was split and its future hung in the balance.Emperor Justinian dreamed of restoring it to its former glory. That ...

The Truth About Frankenstein

10 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Against a time of radical change, a gothic masterpiece was written by the teenage Mary Shelley.Published in 1818, Frankenstein takes us into a dark wo...

How Bloody Was 'Bloody Mary'?

07 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Last week we heard about Mary's formative years. Today we get to her reign, the infamous burnings and ask ourselves if Bloody Mary was as bad as peopl...

The Final Days of Anastasia Romanov

03 Jul 2025

Contributed by Lukas

In the aftermath of the bloody Russian revolution, the Romanovs went from being a glittering royal family, to vulnerable everyday citizens who were so...

Bloody Mary: The Real Woman in the Mirror

30 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary, Bloody Mary. Mary I is known as a brutal tyrant. But what was the reality? In the next two episodes Anthony and Maddy will e...

Poison in the Tower of London

26 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Today’s story is one that takes us to a very familiar setting - the Tower of London - but shows it in a new light. Edward Francis was an enslaved ma...

Stonehenge: 10 Strangest Facts

23 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It wasn't made by Druids (or Aliens or Merlin the wizard). But it was a garden centre. Get ready for the 10 strangest facts (mostly) about Stonehenge!...

Could You Survive Victorian Surgery?

19 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

You're laid out on the surgeon's table. Wide awake. He stands over you knife in hand and behind him, in the stands, is a noisy crowd all joking, smoki...

Murder at Stonehenge

16 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A body is found at Stonehenge. It's the skeleton of a man - an archer - who lived at the time when it was built. How did he die? What secrets does his...

Dark Side of Ancient Mesopotamia

12 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A four thousand(ish) year old murder trial. A procession of the dead. Kings who believed they could escape the gods by dressing gardeners in royal clo...

Final Days of Sir Walter Raleigh

09 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

'Strike, man, strike!' were the last words of Sir Walter Raleigh as his neck lay on the block. After thirteen years in the Tower of London, (multiple)...

Inside the Paris Catacombs

05 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Beneath the streets of the French capitol lurks a city of the dead: the Paris Catacombs.Why they were piled up there is a dark and fascinating story, ...

Victorian England's Most Gruesome Murder

02 Jun 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It was one of the most gruesome crimes of the Victorian era... and it ended up in David Attenborough's garden! Kate Webster, a servant, killed and dis...

The Ghost of Mary Queen of Scots

29 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

*TW: This episode contains references to sexual violence.*Mary Queen of Scots' life was defined by violence, heartbreak and ultimately, betrayal.Since...

The Truth About the Knights Templar

26 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Why are the Knights Templar surrounded by myths and legends? Is there any truth to the tales of the Holy Grail or that the Knights survived? Why does ...

Final Days of Abraham Lincoln

22 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

One split second - and one individual - can upturn an entire nation.This was definitely the case when John Wilkes Booth shot President Abraham Lincoln...

Lost Colony of Roanoke: the Untold Story

19 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The lost colonists left behind one clue, the word "Croatoan" carved into a tree. Who were the Croatans? What were their lives like? How can we see thi...

The Dark Side of Ancient Egypt

15 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

When people talk about Ancient Egypt, they often focus on the amazing pyramids, mummies, and the advanced civilisation.At After Dark, we love to ex...

Lost Colony of Roanoke: Mystery of Virginia Dare

12 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

WTF happened to Virginia Dare, America's first English child? How did her and her mother's legend grow over time? Did mysterious carvings found on sto...

The Murder That Shocked Edwardian Britain

08 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It was a murder that shook Edwardian Britain, and became a media sensation around the world.Joining Maddy and Anthony today is the best-selling histor...

The Dark Side of Ancient Rome

05 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

As a lot of new listeners have joined us, and it's a bank holiday in the UK, we thought we'd re-run one of our earliest, goriest episodes. Trust us, t...

Spring-Heeled Jack: Terror of Victorian London

01 May 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The grimy streets of Victorian London were stalked by a shadowy menace: Spring-Heeled Jack! He had glowing eyes and blue flames came out his mouth. He...

England's Darkest Folklore

28 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

A spectral Black Dog with hellish eyes; a homicidal water spirit who drowns children; a mermaid who takes revenge on a vile cad. Maddy Pelling takes A...

Final Days of 'Mad' George III

24 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

How did George III die? Was it raving in a straightjacket? Who stayed with him at the end of his long illness? Today we uncover the truth about George...

Hammersmith Ghost: How to Murder a Poltergeist

21 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Can it be murder if you think you're killing a ghost? In 1804 the London suburb of Hammersmith was being terrorised by a ghost. One man set out to hun...

Wales' Darkest Folklore

17 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Wales is set apart from a lot of countries, with one of its folk tales - the Red Dragon - featuring in its flag. What are the mythical origins of...

Ireland's Darkest Folklore

14 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

*TW: This episode contains discussions and themes of infertility.*Fairies have long been part of Irish folkloric history, with its landscape dotted wi...

Tudor England's Dumbest Murder

10 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Alice Arden wanted her husband Thomas dead. So did the rest of the village of Faversham. What followed was a twisted dance of passion, poison, insane ...

Scotland's Darkest Folklore

07 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

From misty mountains to deep-sea caves, we explore the dark side of Scottish folklore. Tales of Selkies - seal folk caught between sea and shore - Kel...

Easter Rising: First World War In Dublin

03 Apr 2025

Contributed by Lukas

(Part 2/2) On Easter Monday in 1916, Irish rebels read a proclamation of independence that sparked a week-long battle with the British army.Over the n...

Black Death: Scapegoats & Persecution

30 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

***This episode contains a description of mass murder***As the Black Death moved across Europe, something darker and more insidious spread ahead of it...

Easter Rising: Build-Up To Irish Rebellion

27 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

(Part 1/2) With Britain engaged in the First World War in Europe, Irish rebels sensed an opportunity.Irish revolutions had fought for independence fro...

Black Death: 5 Strangest Cures

24 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

It was a plague like no other. It provoked strange cures like no other. Anthony Delaney takes Maddy Pelling in search of the oddest cures concocted in...

Final Days of Joan of Arc: Trial & Execution

20 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

(Part 2/2) Joan of Arc, mystic leader of a French army, was captured and sold to the English who tried her as a witch. What do the final days of this ...

Black Death: Inside Medieval Lockdown

17 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Around 50% of everyone in Europe died during the Black Death. It's very hard to make sense of that. What did it look and feel like to live through thi...

Final Days of Joan of Arc: Rise to Fame

13 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

(Part 1/2) So many things make Joan of Arc iconic. The fearless, crossdressing warrior saint who dies a martyr's death. Today Maddy begins a two-part ...

Black Death: The Origin Story

10 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

The myth goes thus: the Black Death reached Christendom at the Siege of Caffa when Mongols catapulted diseased bodies over the walls. Where did we get...

Death at the Savoy Mansions: Post-War London's Drug Underworld

06 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

During the victory celebrations of World War One, a rising star is found dead in her bed after a suspected overdose.22-year-old Billie Carlton’s dea...

The Servants' Revenge: Arsenic & a Poisoned Pint of Beer

03 Mar 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Why did two servants living in Plymouth, England, poison their whole household in 1675? How did they sneak arsenic into the food? And what on earth is...

The Curse of King Tutankhamun's Tomb

26 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

Untimely deaths followed the opening of Tutankhamun's tomb by Howard Carter. Coincidence or ancient curse? When the tomb of King Tutankhamun was seale...

Final Days of Thomas Cromwell

24 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

From ruthless schemer to pragmatic hero - who is the real Thomas Cromwell? And how did he meet his end? Today Anthony Delaney tells Maddy Pelling the ...

Glencoe Massacre: Haunted Highlands

20 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

(Part 2/2) On the 13 February 1692, Scottish government troops slaughtered between 30-40 members of Clan MacDonald in their home in Glencoe, in the Sc...

Peasants' Revolt: Murder in the Tower of London

17 Feb 2025

Contributed by Lukas

(2/2) A boy King, a rebel army, and the first ever execution at Tower Hill. Maddy Pelling tells Anthony Delaney the days in the summer of 1381 when re...