238 – The Grand Guignol

A look at the brief but influential “life” of the Grand Guignol theater, a Paris stage venue that specialized in gore and terror. We interview Professor Richard Hand, who has co-authored four volumes about this amazing little production company that for a brief while made much of true-crime and visceral nightmarish plots to present gore, horror and terror to Paris audiences. With less than 300 seats but with thousands of performances, the screams that came from its stage still echo through the world of theater to this very day.

237 – Lord Dufferin and the Ghost

We’re joined by the Spooky Science Sisters to talk about one of our favorite ghost stories, the psychic/omen/folklore/horror story that has haunted Karen and me since we were kids – the tale of Lord Dufferin and his encounter with the beyond.  Lord Dufferin: Hans Conried as Wrong-Way Feldman (Gilligan’s Island) Links:The Signalman by Dickens – Radio Drama version (Suspense) Room […]

236 – Carnivorous Plants

In this episode, Blake and Karen dive into the world of monstrous plants, with Peter D’Amato as their guide. Having grown them for over 40 years, Peter D’Amato is the authority on carnivorous plants. He also authored the book, The Savage Garden: Cultivating Carnivorous Plants, which has been reprinted over 25 times.

235 – Hungarian Ghoulish: The Elizabeth Bathory Mystery

Was Elizabeth Bathory the most vicious serial killer of all time? We’re joined by historian Kayla of Historical AF to talk about the facts behind the brutal legend of the blood countess.  [EXPLICIT WARNING] Links to stuff mentioned (or relevant to) this episode: The Historical AF podcast by Kyna Celtic chieftain sometimes credited with inspiring Dracula – Abhartach Books about […]

234 – Toby Ball and Strange Arrivals S2

Blake and Karen speak with Toby Ball, author and host of the Strange Arrivals, a podcast that presents a historical UFO event within a social and scientific context. They deep dive not just on the UFO phenomenon, but also on ufology, aspects of which Blake has strong feelings about, as he ardently shows throughout this episode.

Bonus: Chaosium and the Malleus Monstrorum

We’re making big changes in MonsterTalk, joining up with the AirWave podcasting network. This should mean more regular release schedules!  Karen and I have been banking content and I’ve been working my arse off with behind-the-scenes administrative work.   So our next regular episode is about UFOs and I’m excited about it because there is a lot of really interesting […]

232 – Bacteria

They’re everywhere. They’re inside you. You can’t escape them – and can’t live without them: Bacteria! We’re joined by microbiology experts Maddy Love and Kurt Jude to talk about the fascinating (but sometimes disgusting) lifeforms we call “bacteria.”   What is bacteria?  Bacterial vs Viral infections  CDC on antibiotics  Additional Links: The impact of thawing bacteria   Should I freak out […]

231 – Asian Monsters with Sapphire Sandalo

Sapphire Sandalo is the host of the web series Stories with Sapphire. She’s a writer, animator, podcaster, TV personality, and part-time university instructor. Her series tells stories with distinctive music and animation and has a strong representation of many monsters, ghosts and creatures that come from Asian folklore from multiple cultures and stories submitted by her audience. Sapphire Sandalo’s YouTube […]

#230 – Otter King & Other Things

Karen and Blake are joined by the hosts of MonsterFuzz, Eamonn O’Neill and Rob Billington, to discuss monsters and folklore of Ireland. Well, that’s what we were supposed to talk about but we wandered a bit because it was obvious we all loved talking about monsters. So… that’s on brand right?  Giant Otter Irish cryptid/folklore Human occupancy of Australia is […]