Weird Christmas Podcast
Episodes
2025 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction ConThology (ex-Contest/Anthology)
26 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Please check WeirdChristmas.com for the text of all the stories along with links to the authors' bios, other works, and all the show notes. Please hel...
Benito and Christkindlmarkt Travel PART TWO
22 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
If you’re looking for any of the links mentioned in the show, they're all at WeirdChristmas.com on the post for the first part of this conversation,...
Benito Cereno and Christkindlmarkt Travel (Christkindlemarkets in English for the searches)
21 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Craig talks with Benito Cereno about Benito's tour of Christkindlmarkets (Or Christkindlmärkte to be accurate, but we're also gonna call them Christ...
Weird Christmas Baking with Linda Raedisch
14 Dec 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Baking: Recipes & Stories from Tomb Offerings to Gingerbread Boys. Talk about disgusting food and wondrously delicious treats, along with some of...
2024 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction Contest/Anthology Results Show
07 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
2024 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction Contest Winners: Weird Card Winner: “The Study of Owls and the Christmas Contronyms” by Daniel Roop Unreal Ho...
2023 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction Contest Results Show
31 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Please see WeirdChristmas.com for text and info on all the stories and writers.
Nisser and Tomtar (Scandinavian Elves) with Benito Cereno
23 Dec 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Craig talks with the ever knowledgeable and jolly Benito Cereno about Scandinavian elves, which you're starting to see more and more places in decorat...
2022 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction Contest (5th Annual Results Show)
31 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The best show of the year: 19 stories of Christmas Weirdness from the annual Weird Christmas Flash Fiction Contest. Please visit WeirdChristmas.com to...
Ancient Christmas with Earl Fontainelle of the SHWEP
24 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
I talk to Earl Fontainelle of the SHWEP (Secret History of Western Esotericism Podcast). We try to trace down any textual evidence that would connect ...
Mari Lwyd with Benito Cereno
19 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Benito and I discuss the traditions surrounding the Mari Lwyd, getting into similarities with other European wassailing and hobby horse traditions. A ...
The Ghost Story of Christmas 2021ish ”A Strange Christmas Game” by Charlotte Riddell
01 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
SURPRISE CHRISTMAS IN JULY PODCAST! I never quite got this show finished during the season, so my humble apologies. All is now well. Thank you to Meg...
Christmas Past, American Xmas Literary History with Thomas Ruys Smith
10 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
I chat with Thomas Ruys Smith, editor of Christmas Past: An Anthology of Seasonal Stories from Nineteenth Century America and Professor of American Li...
2021 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction Contest (4th Annual Results Show)
03 Jan 2022
Contributed by Lukas
It’s out later than I would have preferred, but like the inevitability of New Year’s following Christmas, it is here. To read the stories, get bio...
Ghost Stories, Weird Poetry, and All Manner of Old Xmas Weirdness with Christopher Philippo
21 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Talking with Christopher Philippo, editor of Volumes 4 and 5 of the Valancourt Book of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories. Chris' Goodreads site Valanc...
The Perchten with Al Ridenour
09 Dec 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Al Ridenour is back after talking to us last year about Krampus, but this time to help unpack the lore and traditions around the Perchten, Krampus-es...
Christmas Murder Ballads with James Wynn
25 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
Happy Thanksgiving! We dive deep into the history of Christmas murder ballads with my friend (and cohost from the ReReading Wolfe Podcast) James Wynn....
Christmas Witches with Benito Cereno
15 Nov 2021
Contributed by Lukas
La Befana, Perchta, Holda, and so many more! We chat with the always encyclopedic Benito Cereno about all the Christmas witch folklore in Christmas hi...
2020 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction Contest Results Show
23 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Full text of all the winners are at WeirdChristmas.com along with bios, information, and links for all the authors. All fiction copyright 2020 by the ...
Philosophy, Christmas, and Does Santa Exist by Eric Linus Kaplan who wrote Big Bang Theory which I mentioned here totally for clicks
21 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Sometimes when you have a podcast, you talk to people who interest you and you don’t worry so much about how it relates to the show or your topic or...
The Ghost Story of Christmas 2020 "Between the Lights" by EF Benson
15 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
“…And scary ghost stories of Christmasses long, long ago!” Ghost stories from previous years if you’re in a spooky mood: 2019, 2018, 2017 N...
Weird Christmas Food with Glen Warren of the Season's Eatings Podcast
04 Dec 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Time to destroy your appetite! I talk to Glen Warren from the Season's Eatings Podcast about weird Christmas food throughout history. Links: Seas...
Santa is NOT St Nick - Tom Jerman and Santa Claus Worldwide
26 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
As a Thanksgiving treat, enjoy a deep dive down the rabbit hole of Santa history with Tom Jerman, author of Santa Claus Worldwide: A History of St. N...
Mumblecore Christmas with Stefanie Davis about her film The Christmas Ride
17 Nov 2020
Contributed by Lukas
I'm not usually your go-to source for new movies. But this one is worth your time. The Christmas Ride is a mumblecore (improvised dialogue) film abou...
Krampus with Al Ridenour
31 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Krampus. Seems like I should have done a show on Krampus years ago, but I was waiting for the right person. And that person is Al Ridenour, author of ...
Christmas Werewolves with Benito Cereno
15 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
Christmas werewolves are a thing. I mean, I don't know if they're REAL real. But people really used to believe they were a thing. So Christmas expert ...
Halloween Postcard Collecting with Eric Hinton
02 Oct 2020
Contributed by Lukas
The first podcast episode of the 2020 {shiver} season. We do a bit of deep diving into the world of Halloween postcard collecting which, if you follow...
WC# 25 Christmas and Zen Buddhism, a talk with Brad Warner
09 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
A talk with Brad Warner, author of the new book Letters to a Dead Friend About Zen. How Buddhism can help calm holiday stress, and just stuff about Br...
WC #24 Medieval Christmas with Misty Schieberle and Scott Smith
04 Jan 2020
Contributed by Lukas
What do we know about Christmas during the Middle Ages? Turns out it's kinda hard to find very much information. I talk to two medievalists, Misty Sch...
WC #23 The Ghost Story of 2019, M.R. James' "The Story of a Disappearance and an Appearance"
30 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The 2019 Weird Christmas ghost story is "The Story of a Disappearance and an Appearance" by M. R. James. I also get some help with background on Jame...
WC #22 Underground Christmas Music with Christmas Underground
19 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Weird Christmas talks to the indie music blog Christmas Underground about the world of Christmas mixes and how he finds great, unknown Christmas music...
WC #21 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction 2019 (Contest results show)
15 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
The annual Weird Christmas Flash Fiction show with the results of the 2019 contest. Fourteen odd stories of Christmas uncanniness to get you out of th...
WC #20 Yule Lads and Icelandic Christmas
12 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Who are the Yule Lads, and why does Iceland have a bunch of trolls instead of Santa Claus? I talk to author Heidi Herman and Christmas expert Benito C...
WC #Bonus Christmas Pickles with the Christmas Podcast Network
08 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Bonus episode with Brian Earl of Christmas Past, Tim Babb of Can't Wait for Christmas, and Richard Parks III of Richard's Famous Food Podcast. This on...
WC #19 (Almost) Unwatchable Christmas Movies with Alonso Duralde
03 Dec 2019
Contributed by Lukas
I chat with film critic Alonso Duralde about his book Have Yourself a Movie Little Christmas, especially the chapter about the worst Christmas movies ...
WC #18 Christmas Elves and Linda Raedisch
24 Nov 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Craig Kringle talks with Linda Raedisch about Christmas elves, winter and solstice folklore surrounding fairies and elves, and even a bit of Halloween...
WC #17 Lisa Morton and Halloween History
31 Oct 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Weird Christmas Podcast #17, a discussion of Halloween History with Lisa Morton. We discuss her three books about the history of Halloween along with ...
WC #16 Christmas Summer Comet and Patreon Plug
28 Aug 2019
Contributed by Lukas
A bonus summer episode! Professor (and Sir) Colin Humphreys of Cambridge discusses the evidence putting Christmas in the spring or summer rather than ...
WC #15 Christmas with MST3K, Rifftrax, and Connor Lastowka
01 Jan 2019
Contributed by Lukas
Weird Christmas explores the Christmas offerings of Mystery Science Theater 3000, Rifftrax, and Cinematic Titanic with Rifftrax writer Connor Lastowka...
WC #14 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction
18 Dec 2018
Contributed by Lukas
The results show from the 2018 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction contest. 12 very, very short stories that will make you laugh, cringe, and fear Santa.
WC #13 The Old Magic of Christmas with Linda Raedisch
12 Dec 2018
Contributed by Lukas
I talk to author Linda Raedisch about her book The Old Magic of Christmas: Yuletide Traditions for the Darkest Days of the Year. We discuss ancient pa...
WC #12 Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories and Algernon Blackwood's "The Kit Bag"
04 Dec 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Why did Victorian England love Christmas ghost stories? Why does Andy Williams sing about them? Why is Algernon Blackwood's "A Kit Bag" so freakin' aw...
WC #11 Xmas Comics with Benito Cereno
30 Nov 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Weird Christmas Podcast #11. A discussion with Benito Cereno about the unlikely world of Christmas and comic books.
WC #Bonus Thanksgiving Gift of the Christmas Podcast Network
22 Nov 2018
Contributed by Lukas
Weird Christmas is part of a new thing: the Christmas Podcast Network. So this is a sampler of a bunch of the things you can find there. Different sho...
WC #10 Christmalloween (or How I Mixed Up My Holidays)
31 Oct 2018
Contributed by Lukas
How many Christmas carols are actually about Halloween? Or vice versa? However many there are, they aren't very good...with a couple of exceptions.
WC #9 Christmas Music Junkies and Interview with Mitchell Kezin, Director of Jingle Bell Rocks!
21 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Talking about the underground world of Christmas music collectors with Mitchell Kezin, the director of Jingle Bell Rocks!, a documentary about people ...
WC #8 HP Lovecraft Christmas Poems (and one story)
15 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
All of HP Lovecraft's Christmas Poetry, with only minor bits of mind-bending terror. And his one "Christmas" story read by WC listeners, who are all a...
WC #7 Santa's a Magic Mushroom
11 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode, I delive into the world of shamanism, magic mushrooms, and Santa Claus. Travel with me on a trip to strange holiday destinations!
WC #6 Drunken Christmas Music
07 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Christmas songs full of the best tradition of the season: drinking! Country misery, drunk singing, and, believe it or not, some actually good stuff th...
WC #5 Weird Christmas TV and Movies with Joanna Wilson
01 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
Episode #5 of the Weird Christmas Podcast! Kicking off the 2017 Christmas season talking to Joanna Wilson, author of numerous books about Christmas tv...
WC #Bonus Episode, The House of Seven Santas, Part 5
01 Dec 2017
Contributed by Lukas
SPECIAL BONUS EPISODE! Join the Weird Christmas Podcast and six other podcasts for a multi-part holiday special retelling of the story "The House of S...
WC #4 Thanksgiving Podcast 2017
22 Nov 2017
Contributed by Lukas
It's the first episode of 2017 for Weird Christmas! I'm confused about Thanksgiving! I don't know what the hell it means!
WC #3 Weird Science Fiction Christmas Music Podcast
12 Dec 2016
Contributed by Lukas
Weird Christmas' science fiction extravaganza! Santa on the moon, Mars, rockets, your bachelor pad, and a bit of theramin for fun. Noel!
WC #2 Weird Christmas Annoying Music Show
01 Dec 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The Weird Christmas Annoying Music Show. A variety of some of the strangest, most annoying Christmas music available. Check out WeirdChristmas.com for...
WC #1 Weird Christmas Podcast: Christmas Myths Debunked
22 Nov 2016
Contributed by Lukas
The first episode of the Weird Christmas podcast where we find all the strangest vintage, musical, and historical things about your favorite holidays....