Weird Darkness: Paranormal & True Crime Stories

A clerk at the American consulate in Hong Kong turns down a marriage proposal from the wealthy woman who's been bankrolling his roulette system in Macau, then agrees to one last ride with her in the big yellow rickshaw her family has kept for years.

CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…
00:00:00.000 = Show Open
00:01:30.028 = CBS Radio Mystery Theater, “The Power Of Evil” (December 22, 1978) ***WD
00:45:41.645 = The Black Museum, “Calibre Bullet” (January 08, 1952) ***WD
01:09:49.608 = Mysterious Traveler, “The Accusing Corpse” (April 16, 1944) ***WD
01:39:31.376 = CBC Nightfall, “Buried Alive” (October 17, 1980)
02:04:14.112 = Nightmare, “Coincidence” (November 26, 1953)
02:25:56.696 = Obsession, “Raised From The Dead” (February 19, 1951) ***WD
02:49:34.633 = Origin of Superstition, “Picking Up a Pin” (1935) ***WD
03:03:24.598 = Pat Novak For Hire, “Geranium Plant” (May 14, 1949) ***WD
03:32:59.307 = Peril, “The Sidewalk Empire” (May 15, 1947) ***WD
03:58:43.627 = Mystery Playhouse, “Death Is Caused” (October 12, 1945) ***WD
04:23:01.946 = Price of Fear, “Family Album” (June 13, 1983) ***WD
04:50:11.046 = Beyond The Green Door, “Tyner And The Ape” (1966)
04:55:56.317 = Tales From The Tomb, “The Lick” (1960s)
04:59:17.885 = Show Close

(ADU) = Air Date Unknown
(LQ) = Low Quality
***WD = Remastered, edited, or cleaned up by Weird Darkness to make the episode more listenable. Audio may not be pristine, but it will be better than the original file which may have been unusable or more difficult to hear without editing.

More episodes, additional podcasts, books, original music, in-depth paranormal and true-crime articles, and much more at https://weirddarkness.com.

CUSTOM WEBPAGE: https://weirddarkness.com/WDRR0801

What really happened aboard the Mary Celeste — the ghost ship found drifting at sea with no crew, no lifeboat, and no answers?

EPISODE BLOG PAGE (includes sources): https://weirddarkness.com/MaryCeleste

READ or DOWNLOAD the full transcript of this episode: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/mxz7xmku

FEATURED STORIES IN THIS EPISODE: The Mary Celeste was discovered abandoned near the Azores Islands on December 5, 1872 — and to this day, experts are unsure about what happened to its crew. (The Mystery of the Mary Celeste) *** On April 29, 2022, a female corrections officer snuck a convicted felon out of Lauderdale County Jail, kicking off an 11-day manhunt that would end in the prisoner’s re-arrest and the death of the woman he loved and who broke him out. (A Match Made In Prison) *** The Ark of the Covenant, a sacred chest believed to hold the original Ten Commandments. In the 1980s, Ron Wyatt claimed to have found this legendary relic beneath Jerusalem. Did he truly find it? We’ll some of the theories that captivate believers and skeptics alike. (Did This Adventurer Locate The Ark of the Covenant?) *** A young girl's fishing trip turns into a tragic mystery when she vanishes without a trace. As the community searches for answers, a shocking confession leads to a murder trial that left many questioning the truth. (Disappearance at Duck River) *** The Beast of Gévaudan, a mysterious creature that terrorized a small French province in the 1760s with gruesome attacks. Believed by many to be an actual werewolf, it resulted in a frantic hunt for the monster – and even now, over two centuries later, the story still captivates us. But is there any truth to the tale? (The Beast of Gévaudan – Fact or Fiction) *** Frederick Fisher, an English shopkeeper, vanished in 1826 – only to reappear as a ghost to help solve the mystery of his disappearance and death. (The Ghost That Solved Its Own Murder) *** The puzzling case of Sherri Papini’s 2016 kidnapping shocked northern California and led to years of speculation. After her sudden return and subsequent arrest in 2022 for faking the incident, many questions remain unanswered. (The Mysterious Vanishing And Reappearing Of Sherri Papini)

CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…
00:00:00.000 = The Foreboding
00:01:34.943 = Show Open
00:04:33.644 = The Mystery of the Mary Celeste
00:22:47.637 = The Mysterious Vanishing And Reappearing of Sherri Papini
00:30:34.570 = The Ghost That Solved Its Own Murder
00:38:37.169 = A Match Made In Prison
00:46:18.862 = Did This Adventurer Locate The Ark of the Covenant?
00:53:50.235 = Disappearance at Duck River
01:03:12.671 = The Beast of Gévaudan – Fact or Fiction
= Show Close
*** = Begins immediately after inserted ad break

*No AI Voices Are Used In The Narration Of This Podcast*

SOURCES and RESOURCES:
“The Mystery of the Mary Celeste” source: Austin Harvey, All That’s Interesting:https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/44ax8rzt
“The Mysterious Vanishing And Reappearing Of Sherri Papini” source: Jacob Shelton, Graveyard Shift:https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/ycku4txj
“The Ghost That Solved Its Own Murder” source: Kaushik Patowary, Amusing Planet: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/2p842mvn
“A Match Made In Prison” source: Hannah Reilly Holtz, All That’s Interesting: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/2py46xzu
“Did This Adventurer Locate The Ark of the Covenant?” source: Kerry Sullivan, Ancient Origins:https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/yckj9xrf
“The Beast of Gévaudan – Fact or Fiction” source: Jake Carter, Anomalien: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/4f7uhhjk
“Disappearance at Duck River” source: Robert Waters, KidnappingMurderAndMayhem.com: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/57xwj9n7(Over time links may become invalid, disappear, or have different content. I always make sure to give authors credit for the material I use whenever possible. If I somehow overlooked doing so for a story, or if a credit is incorrect, please let me know and I will rectify it in these show notes immediately. Some links included above may benefit me financially through qualifying purchases.)

WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.

Originally aired: June 18, 2024

More episodes, additional podcasts, books, original music, in-depth paranormal and true-crime articles, and much more at https://weirddarkness.com.

A classic tale by M.R. James adapted for radio theater. On a stormy night by the fire, a grandmother forbids her grandchildren to pick a single blackberry in the little lane past Collins's cottage, and when they beg for the reason, she tells them about the hill at the top of it.

CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…
00:00:00.000 = Show Open
00:01:30.028 = CBS Radio Mystery Theater, “It Has To Be True” (December 20, 1978) ***WD
00:46:09.566 = The Black Mass, “An Evening’s Entertainment” (October 31, 1964)
01:17:10.741 = Michael Shayne, “Museum Theft” (July 30, 1945)
01:48:19.048 = Beyond Midnight, “Hobart” (May 09, 1969) ***WD
02:15:32.318 = MindWebs, “When We Went To See The End Of The World” (November 12, 1976)
02:38:15.669 = Hollywood Theater, “Sitting Duck” (December 17, 1952) ***WD
03:07:11.952 = Mystery In The Air, “Horla” (August 21, 1947) ***WD
03:38:06.693 = Molle Mystery Theater, “Kenny Angles And The Queen of Diamonds” (April 18, 1947)
04:06:58.224 = Mr. Keen, “The Man Who Invented Death” (October 06, 1949) ***WD
04:36:14.018 = Murder at Midnight, “Red Wheels’ (September 13, 1946)
05:03:21.642 = Show Close

(ADU) = Air Date Unknown
(LQ) = Low Quality
***WD = Remastered, edited, or cleaned up by Weird Darkness to make the episode more listenable. Audio may not be pristine, but it will be better than the original file which may have been unusable or more difficult to hear without editing.

More episodes, additional podcasts, books, original music, in-depth paranormal and true-crime articles, and much more at https://weirddarkness.com.

Elliot leaves his phone charging on the kitchen counter and takes the stairs down from his fifth-floor Chicago apartment to pick up a package in the lobby, and there's no door at the bottom.

EPISODE BLOG PAGE (includes sources): https://weirddarkness.com/TheStairway

SOURCES and RESOURCES: “The Stairway” by Keith Conrad (originally published at http://www.auditoryanthology.com)

WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.

Midnight In The Macabre (MITM), originally aired: October 15, 2026

More episodes, additional podcasts, books, original music, in-depth paranormal and true-crime articles, and much more at https://weirddarkness.com.

In 1894, Will Purvis dropped through the trapdoor at Columbia, Mississippi, and the noose let go, leaving him alive on the ground. The crowd voted to postpone the hanging, and in 1917 a dying farmer confessed to his part in the murder and said Purvis had nothing to do with it.”

From the book “BOTCHED EXECUTIONS: Four Centuries Of Failed Hangings, Electrocutions, Gassings, Injections And Firing Squads” by Darren Marlar at https://weirddarkness.com/botchedexecutions

WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2026, Weird Darkness.

Originally aired: October 14, 2026

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0HM3LZM9M/