Podcasts about Victorian

Westminer's most famous landmark, Big Ben, bongggged for the first time on 13th November, 1856, outside the not-yet-finished House of Commons. Londoners gathered to hear what would become Britain's most iconic sound; a spectacle so loud and unsettling that some spectators literally ran away.  But the first bell didn't last long: after just eleven months of impressive Saturday tolls, it cracked under the strain of its own colossal hammer. The whole thing was melted down and recast by the Whitechapel Bell Foundry… but the second bell also cracked and broke! But, after a bit more tinkering - rotating the bell slightly and fitting a lighter hammer - Big Ben finally settled into its iconic almost-but-not-quite-E natural tone.  In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how the BBC struggled to adapt its chimes for radio broadcasts; reveal why the Elizabeth Tower leans ever so slightly; and consider a potential Victorian euphemism for pants-pissing… Further Reading: • ‘When Did Big Ben First Bong?' (Londonist, 2022): https://londonist.com/london/history/when-did-big-ben-first-bong • ‘This History Might Ring a Bell' (WIRED, 2011): https://www.wired.com/2011/10/1014big-ben-lifted/ • ‘Big Ben - 5 Secrets About London's Famous Chimes | Most Iconic Buildings' (DW Euromaxx, 2022): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J6Jo8hHsFXA #London #Victorian #Design #Mistakes Love the show? Support us!  Join 

Reporting live from the newly DIY'ed stu, Julia is joined by beautiful Nick, the king of DIY, to chart the chaotic history of "doing it yourself." From ancient Greeks assembling Ikea-style furniture to TikTokers accidentally creating mustard gas in their homes, they uncover how the urge to DIY is fundamentally human. Along the way, they discuss Victorian men who couldn't do shit, 1950s dads working through PTSD by tinkering in their garages, the health benefits of working with your hands, and the scientific proof that gay people are superior at home improvement. Digressions include Nick's evil brother's latest crimes against humanity, the life-saving potential of eliminating daylight savings times, and a new candy that awakens something ancient within us. This episode was produced by Julia Hava and edited by Livi Burdette. To support the podcast on Patreon and access 50+ bonus episodes, mediasodes, and more, visit patreon.com/binchtopia and become a patron today. SOURCES A brief history of DIY, from the shed to the maker movement | Science Museum A New Generation of Influencers Has Discovered DIY on a Tiny Budget Barry Bucknell | | The Guardian Despite a Pandemic Remodeling Boom, Aging US Homes Require Additional Investment Dig for Victory! New histories of wartime gardening in Britain - ScienceDirect Do It Yourself...and the Movement Beyond Capitalism Do-It-Yourself: Constructing, Repairing and Maintaining Domestic Masculinity First episode of Bucknell's House Homeownership by Selected Demographic and Housing Characteristics How the lesbian squats of London Fields influenced queer DIY culture   In These D.I.Y. Groups, 'You Don't Have to Prove That You Belong' - The New York Times Make Do and Mend, 1943 Man makes nuclear reactor in garage  Men change tires: Lesbians unfazed by flat packs  Psychological benefits of the "maker" or do-it-yourself movement in young adults: A pathway towards subjective well-being. The King of D.I.Y. Dwellings - The New York Times The new crisis of masculinity The Strange Allure of Watching Other People Tear Up Their Homes - The New York Times Think DIY Saves Money? Here's What Really Happened When I Tried It Understanding the do-it-yourself consumer: DIY motivations and outcomes | AMS Review Was punk DIY? Is DIY punk? Interrogating the DIY/punk nexus, with particular reference to the early UK punk scene, c. 1976–1984 - George McKay, 2024 What's the Matter with Men?

I am so excited to say that my guest on the GWA Podcast is the esteemed curator, author, and expert in photography, Madga Keany. Currently the Head Curator of International Art at the National Gallery of Art, Canberra, Magda was most recently Curator at the National Portrait Gallery, Canberra, and before that, Senior Curator, Photographs at the National Portrait Gallery London, where she lead the realisation of a major re-presentation of the Photographs Collection as part of the museum's rehaul. Keany has curated shows and published texts on Australian art, design and social history, photography that ranges from the Victorian period to fashion, conflict and portraiture, solo presentations of portraits by Irving Penn, among many others. She has written for the groundbreaking Know My Name project, that put women artists in Australia on a global stage as well as for Cindy Sherman, A World History of Women Photographers, and more. …but it was her exhibition last year that really grabbed my attention: Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron: Portraits to Dream in', that brought together the two photographers working 100 years apart, from very different worlds, circumstances and contexts, but which showed how these pioneering women shaped the medium, with their dreamlike pictures imbued with beauty, symbolism, classicism, transformation and more… So today, I couldn't be more excited to delve into the life of the 19th century photographer, Julia Margaret Cameron, who, aged 49 in 1863, picked up a camera and, largely self-taught, crafted her distinct bohemian style pictures with that hazy sepia glow, that proved to not only be influential in Victorian Britain, but have a huge impact on photography at large. As Cameron once said: “My aspirations are to ennoble Photography and to secure for it the character and uses of High Art by combining the real & Ideal & sacrificing nothing of Truth by all possible devotion to poetry and beauty.” And I can't wait to find out more. People mentioned: Julia Margaret Cameron (1815–1879) Francesca Woodman (1958–1981) John Herschel (1792–1871) Artworks: Julia Margaret Cameron, Annie, 1864; https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O81145/annie-photograph-cameron-julia-margaret/ Julia Margaret Cameron, Pomona, 1872; https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1433678/pomona-photograph-cameron-julia-margaret/ Julia Margaret Cameron, Thomas Carlyle, 1867; https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/269434 Julia Margaret Cameron, The Astronomer, 1867; https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1433637/the-astronomer-photograph-cameron-julia-margaret/ Julia Margaret Cameron, Ellen Terry, at the age of sixteen, 1864 https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/269433 -- THIS EPISODE IS GENEROUSLY SUPPORTED BY THE LEVETT COLLECTION: https://www.famm.com/en/ https://www.instagram.com/famm_mougins // https://www.merrellpublishers.com/9781858947037 Follow us: Katy Hessel: @thegreatwomenartists / @katy.hessel Sound editing by Nada Smiljanic Music by Ben Wetherfield

Our friend Tarra (who is definitely not a vampire) returns to tackle the fifty-second chapter of Varney the Vampire, wherein the chapter title promises The Interview Between the Mob and Sir Francis Varney, the Mysterious Disappearance, and the Wine Cellars. Varney the Vampire is a genuine penny dreadful, read aloud one chapter per week just like the original Victorian audience would do for the authentic 1840s coffeehouse experience. To instantly unlock over a hundred more chapters (literally), check out our Patreon.

Super excited to welcome my next guest, Amanda D. Paulson to the Necronomicast!  She is a paranormal investigator, public speaker, and medium based in the Pacific Northwest, with over 17 years of experience and tens of millions of views across multiple social media platforms. You can find Amanda's work featured in Season 1 and 2 of Ghost Files, in publications Apartment Therapy, The Inlander and the 2025 Official Spokane Visitor Guide and her writing published in Haunted Magazine and The Feminine Macabre Vol. 1. Amanda wrote the Paranormal Emotive Touchpoint theory in 2022 and now delivers lectures and workshops about her work on Odd Emotions and spirit communication across the US. ​You can watch Amanda D. Paulson star in the paranormal-true crime documentary The Lady of the Lake, on Amazon Prime. She is also a featured investigator in the documentary Surrounded by Spirits, on Amazon Prime and the upcoming series, Historically Haunted. Amanda's other work includes the creation of the Dark History Tour Series, an educational program about Victorian spiritualism which she wrote for the Campbell House in collaboration with the Northwest Museum of Arts & Culture. Visit Amanda Paulson online here! New opening theme music "Brand New Graveyard" by Nate Barber, Brian Corey, Jim Dodson, and Scott Zimmerman. Closing music courtesy of Andrew Vogt

November is Nol-vember here on ⁨@wedrinkandwewatchthings⁩ and we're kicking off the month by pulling apart the cinematic mechanism that is Christopher Nolan's 2006 masterpiece of deception, "The Prestige." Grab your favorite drink...maybe our featured Danton's Obsession cocktail? Because this movie is as dark, rich, and endlessly complex as the rivalry it depicts. Get ready to dive into the world of Angier and Borden, where dedication to the craft becomes a blood-soaked obsession.This week, we are dissecting every stage of the illusion: The Pledge, The Turn, and most importantly, The Prestige. We'll be talking about the breathtaking performances by Christian Bale and Hugh Jackman, the incredible mood created by the Victorian setting, and the film's central, terrifying question: What are you willing to sacrifice for greatness? We also touch on the genius of David Bowie as Nikola Tesla, the unforgettable—and deeply unsettling—role of technology, and which magician, in our opinion, paid the heavier price for their art.If you love puzzle-box narratives, cinematic sleight-of-hand, and dark psychological thrillers, this is the episode for you. Join us as we try to discover the secrets hidden within the secrets, mixing our usual casual commentary with a deep appreciation for a film that proves sometimes, the most horrifying magic trick is the one you play on yourself. Now, let the rivalry begin!This episode VIDEO is live on YouTube AND Spotify!Follow us on Instagram and TikTok to get ep sneak peaks and find out what's coming next. DM us what you want to hear about next or email us at wedrinkandwewatchthingspod@gmail.com.

Former CFMEU boss John Setka has been arrested and charged over allegedly threatening and harassing emails sent to a union administrator; The Victorian government has announced a major crackdown on youth crime, proposing laws that could see children face life sentences for violent offences; Menulog has announced it will cease its Australian operations in two weeks, after nearly two decades in the country; In the midst of the long-awaited Oasis tour in Australia, frontman Liam Gallagher has taken to X to admit the band’s current tour “saved his life”. Support independent women's media CREDITS Host/Producer: Gemma Donahoe Audio Production: Lu HillBecome a Mamamia subscriber: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribeSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In her new book, Ghosted: A History of Ghost Hunting and Why We Keep Looking, Alice Vernon sets out to chase the one thing she isn't even sure exists—and discovers that the search for ghosts says more about the living than the dead. What begins as a skeptic's experiment becomes a haunting journey through centuries of belief. From candlelit Victorian séances to ghost hunts streamed on YouTube, she explores how our obsession with the afterlife has evolved—but never disappeared. Each new invention, from telegrams to EMF meters, becomes another way to reach across the void, to prove that love, grief, or even guilt can outlast death. As she moves deeper into Britain's most haunted places—churchyards, crumbling estates, and lonely moors—she begins to feel the same pull that's gripped believers for generations. Maybe the ghosts aren't what we think they are. Maybe they're reflections of everything we've lost… and everything we still hope to find. Part history, part investigation, Ghosted is a chilling, intimate exploration of why we keep trying to prove what we can't explain—and why our search for the dead may really be a search for meaning among the living. This is Part Two of our conversation. #Ghosted #AliceVernon #ParanormalPodcast #HauntedHistory #GhostHunting #WhyWeBelieve #ScienceAndTheSupernatural #VictorianSpiritualism #HauntedBritain #TrueGhostStories #LifeAfterDeath #CulturalMystery Love real ghost stories? Don't just listen—join us on YouTube and be part of the largest community of real paranormal encounters anywhere. Subscribe now and never miss a chilling new story:

Nathan Schmook and Michael Whiting bring you the latest footy news on AFL Daily. The Giants have brought in Clayton Oliver to help them in the midfield next year. He will no doubt add to the depth of the side and relish being outside the Victorian bubble. The club will re-sign Jake Stringer through the rookie draft to support Jesse Hogan again but 2026 is shaping as the year Aaron Cadman announces himself. Subscribe to AFL Daily and never miss an episode. Rate and review wherever you listen to podcasts.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In her new book, Ghosted: A History of Ghost Hunting and Why We Keep Looking, Alice Vernon sets out to chase the one thing she isn't even sure exists—and discovers that the search for ghosts says more about the living than the dead. What begins as a skeptic's experiment becomes a haunting journey through centuries of belief. From candlelit Victorian séances to ghost hunts streamed on YouTube, she explores how our obsession with the afterlife has evolved—but never disappeared. Each new invention, from telegrams to EMF meters, becomes another way to reach across the void, to prove that love, grief, or even guilt can outlast death. As she moves deeper into Britain's most haunted places—churchyards, crumbling estates, and lonely moors—she begins to feel the same pull that's gripped believers for generations. Maybe the ghosts aren't what we think they are. Maybe they're reflections of everything we've lost… and everything we still hope to find. Part history, part investigation, Ghosted is a chilling, intimate exploration of why we keep trying to prove what we can't explain—and why our search for the dead may really be a search for meaning among the living. #Ghosted #AliceVernon #ParanormalPodcast #HauntedHistory #GhostHunting #WhyWeBelieve #ScienceAndTheSupernatural #VictorianSpiritualism #HauntedBritain #TrueGhostStories #LifeAfterDeath #CulturalMystery Love real ghost stories? Don't just listen—join us on YouTube and be part of the largest community of real paranormal encounters anywhere. Subscribe now and never miss a chilling new story:

⁠A Short History of Ancient Rome⁠ - the debut book from the Noiser Network is out now! Discover the epic rise and fall of Rome like never before. Pick up your copy now at your local bookstore or visit ⁠⁠noiser.com/books⁠⁠ to learn more. Oscar Wilde is remembered as one of the greatest Victorian writers, with diverse works including comedies, morality tales for children, biblical dramas and even a gothic novel. Wilde was also the originator of any number of witty quotes that can still be found adorning everything from posters, to mugs, to t-shirts. Alongside his literary renown, Wilde is revered as a martyr for LGBTQ+ rights. How did a young man from Dublin become such a famous author in England and beyond? What inspired Wilde's plays and poems? And how did he fall foul of Victorian moral sensibilities – and yet still come to enjoy the legacy he does today? This is a Short History Of Oscar Wilde. A Noiser podcast production. Hosted by John Hopkins. With thanks to Sos Eltis, Professor of English and Theatre Studies at Oxford University, and a fellow at Brasenose College. Written by Emmie Rose Price-Goodfellow | Produced by Kate Simants | Assistant Producer: Nicole Edmunds | Production Assistant: Chris McDonald | Exec produced by Katrina Hughes | Sound supervisor: Tom Pink | Sound design by Oliver Sanders | Assembly edit by Anisha Deva | Compositions by Oliver Baines, Dorry Macaulay, Tom Pink | Mix & mastering: Cody Reynolds-Shaw | Fact check: Sean Coleman Get every episode of Short History Of… a week early with Noiser+. You'll also get ad-free listening, bonus material and early access to shows across the Noiser podcast network. Click the subscription banner at the top of the feed to get started. Or go to noiser.com/subscriptions Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Our hosts, with special guest Tanner Vogelgesang, discuss A Knight's Tale (2001) and Tanner proves the fact that while Jock Jams might have destroyed a Victorian child, the Middle Ages would have loved them. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sunday, 9 November 2025   But when Herod's birthday was celebrated, the daughter of Herodias danced before them and pleased Herod. Matthew 14:6   “And being Herod's birthday, she danced, the daughter of Herodias, in the midst. And she pleased Herod” (CG).   In the previous verse, it was noted that although Herod wanted to put John the Immerser to death, he feared the multitude because they reckoned him to be a prophet. It next says, “And being Herod's birthday.”   A new word is seen: genesia, birthday. It is the plural of genesis, which means birth, origin, and genealogy. It signifies one's recurring birthday or the ceremonies accompanying it. Despite being plural, rendering it in the singular is to accommodate the standard usage in English. On his birthday, “she danced, the daughter of Herodias.”   This was Salome, the daughter of Herodias by her former husband. Victorian-era commentaries on this condemn the matter as if it were the most inappropriate event imaginable, remarking how sensual and voluptuous the scene must have been. Ellicott's comments reflect their general sentiment –   “Dances in filmy garments that but half concealed the form, commonly of an impure or voluptuous nature, were common enough both at Eastern and Roman banquets, the guests being simply spectators. But the dancers were, for the most part, women who made it their calling, like the nautch-girls of India; and it was a new thing, at which every decent Jew would shudder, for the daughter of a kingly house to come-thus into a shameless publicity and expose herself to the gaze of the banqueters.” Charles Ellicott   One must wonder what such scholars do with the contents of the Song of Songs! Dances have been common at public and private gatherings for all of human history. Cultural norms set the parameters for such things, and it is only the most prudish sort that would condemn such things without considering them in more than their own limited context. Of Salome's dancing, it next says it was “in the midst.”   The meaning is that she would have been in the midst of the room, hall, etc., with those in attendance gathered around. When dances or performers came in, the people would direct their attention to the event. In the case of Salome's dancing, it next says, “And she pleased Herod.”   Another new word is seen, areskó. It signifies to be agreeable and thus, to please. In Romans 8:8, Paul says that those who are in the flesh cannot please [areskó] God. Herod saw the dance and found it satisfying.   Life application: One of the ridiculous standards set forth in the Jehovah's Witnesses is that they do not celebrate birthdays. Their reasoning is that only two birthday celebrations are noted in Scripture, and both are held by bad guys, Pharaoh and Herod.   Therefore, they illogically deduce that God finds the celebration of birthdays unacceptable. Such a conclusion is based on several fallacies. One of them is what is known as an argument from silence.   An argument from silence is when one makes a faulty conclusion based on it not being stated in a source. Yes, there are two examples of birthdays in the Bible, but they merely present the basis for what occurs in the surrounding narrative. There is no need to mention other birthdays, but because no other birthdays are mentioned, the supposedly obvious conclusion is that nobody else observed them, and those who did were bad people.   Another fallacy that accompanies their inane logic is known as a slippery slope. There are various types of slippery slope fallacies, such as the causal, precedential, and conceptual. The conceptual argument is that because no clear line between two concepts on a spectrum exists, there is no meaningful difference between them.   So if Pharaoh and Herod had birthdays and they resulted in negative events or had negative effects, then all birthdays must result in negative outcomes. This is also known as the fallacy of the beard. A person doesn't shave for 12 hours, and he develops a shadow on his face. By the next morning, he has stubble. In two days, he will have bristly hairs.   At what point is it called a beard? The argument is ridiculous, whether it is based on a birthday or a beard. The thought process is unclear and has no basis in reality. Unfortunately, such fallacies are not limited to the Jehovah's Witnesses. They permeate the thinking of the people of the world, including those in the church.   Because of this, all sorts of legalism creep into churches. That is as harmful as a liberal attitude toward Scripture. Whether adding in rules and regulations that have nothing to do with biblical intent, or ignoring things made explicit in Scripture because they don't suit personal mores, the results will always be unhealthy, even detrimental.   Learn about fallacies and remember to think clearly and critically when evaluating the reasons why people come to conclusions. Quite often, you will see where the faulty thinking lies, and you will be able to avoid it.   Lord God, may we learn to think clearly and critically about what Your word presents. Help us not get caught up in things that pull our hearts and minds away from focusing on You. At the same time, may we live our lives in the manner that will bring You glory while also enjoying the lives You have given us here in this world. Amen.  

Today marks what would have been the 30th birthday of Eurydice Dixon, the Melbourne comedian, daughter, and friend who was stalked, raped, and murdered in a city park seven years ago. Her murder, like those of Jill Meagher and Samantha Murphy, highlights the quiet fear shared amongst women across Australia. We remember Eurydice, share a message from her father on this difficult day, and call for a reckoning in policy and prevention to stop violence against women. And in headlines today, The Victorian government has announced a pilot of the "green whistle" inhaler for IUD insertions in response to the Australian first inquiry into women's pain; Israel has received the remains of a deceased hostage held in the Gaza Strip that Palestinian militant group Hamas says are of Hadar Goldin, a military officer killed in an ambush in the Gaza Strip during the 2014 Israel-Hamas war; The one-time biggest name in Australian talkback radio, John Laws, has died aged 90; Weeks after thieves made off with hundreds of millions of dollars worth of crown jewels from the Louvre museum in Paris, fedora man has finally been unveiled as 15 year old French boy Pedro Elias Garzon Delvaux, who simply loves dressing chic THE END BITS Support independent women's media Check out The Quicky Instagram here GET IN TOUCHShare your story, feedback, or dilemma! Send us a voice note or email us at thequicky@mamamia.com.au CREDITS Hosts: Taylah Strano & Claire Murphy Audio Producer: Lu Hill Become a Mamamia subscriber: https://www.mamamia.com.au/subscribeSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Victorian government has released the final report of an inquiry into women's experiences of pain - and it's made for some uncomfortable reading. Shaped by the experiences of 13,000 women and girls, the report has revealed gender health gaps, experiences of medical bias, sexism and misogyny, and feelings of being ignored or dismissed by clinicians are rampant throughout the Victorian health system.

Solve crimes with the great detective in "Sherlock Holmes Short Stories." Featuring classic tales by Arthur Conan Doyle, this podcast brings you the brilliant deductions and thrilling adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. Whether you're a longtime fan or new to the world of Holmes, these timeless mysteries will keep you captivated.

Friends, this week I'm introducing you to Mari Reisberg, who, you'll hear, is just one spectacular human being! Growing up in a very psychic household, Mari was into labyrinths (her Mom built one in the yard) and telepathy (she and her Mom just had this THING going on!) and all sorts of other spooky events (Victorian ghosts in the basement anyone?) so that everyday, it was, ho hum, there's another weird thing happening...and it became a joke for Mari and her friends. But it was the day she had this dream, y'all...THIS DREAM...that changed everything for her. Mari has her very own groovy pod called "Sustaining Creativity" which you can access here! and then, her Insta is here! I encourage you all to check both out because Mari is a GEM! Please consider rating and reviewing because IT MAKES ME HAPPY!! WHEEEEE! Your bit of beauty is this: this super-duper cool oldest-maze-in-the-UK, Hampton Maze! And I found this story/quotation hilarious, "We'll just go in here, so that you can say you've been, but it's very simple. It's absurd to call it a maze. You keep on taking the first turning to the right. We'll just walk around for ten minutes, and then go and get some lunch.'" Ahem. The passage above is taken from Jerome K. Jerome's Three Men in a Boat (1889). The character, Harris, leads the tourists into the maze and they subsequently get lost for hours. Now who's laughing?

Friends, this week I'm introducing you to Mari Reisberg, who, you'll hear, is just one spectacular human being! Growing up in a very psychic household, Mari was into labyrinths (her Mom built one in the yard) and telepathy (she and her Mom just had this THING going on!) and all sorts of other spooky events (Victorian ghosts in the basement anyone?) so that everyday, it was, ho hum, there's another weird thing happening...and it became a joke for Mari and her friends. But it was the day she had this dream, y'all...THIS DREAM...that changed everything for her. Mari has her very own groovy pod called "Sustaining Creativity" which you can access here! and then, her Insta is here! I encourage you all to check both out because Mari is a GEM! Please consider rating and reviewing because IT MAKES ME HAPPY!! WHEEEEE! Your bit of beauty is this: this super-duper cool oldest-maze-in-the-UK, Hampton Maze! And I found this story/quotation hilarious, "We'll just go in here, so that you can say you've been, but it's very simple. It's absurd to call it a maze. You keep on taking the first turning to the right. We'll just walk around for ten minutes, and then go and get some lunch.'" Ahem. The passage above is taken from Jerome K. Jerome's Three Men in a Boat (1889). The character, Harris, leads the tourists into the maze and they subsequently get lost for hours. Now who's laughing?

Husky voice, Friday night whiskey, and a mountain of cheese from the book launch. In this episode I lift the lid on what really happens inside a print judging room. The rotation of five from a pool of seven. Silent scoring so no one nudges anyone else. How a challenge works, what the chair actually does, and why we start with impact, dive through craft, then finish on impact again to see what survives. Layout over composition, light as the whole game, and a final re-rank that flattens time drift so the right image actually wins. If you enjoy a peek behind the curtain, you will like this one. You can grab a signed copy of the new Mastering Portrait Photography at masteringportraitphotography.com and yes, I will scribble in it. If you already have the book, a quick Amazon review helps more than you know. Fancy sharpening your craft in person? Check the workshops page for new dates and come play with light at the studio.  The book: https://masteringportraitphotography.com/resource/signed-copy-mastering-portrait-photography-new-edition/ Workshops: https://masteringportraitphotography.com/workshops-and-mentoring/   Transcript [00:00:00]  Hey, one and all. How are you doing? Now? I'll be honest, I still have the remnants of a cold, and if you can hear that in my voice, I do apologize, I suppose you could call it slightly bluesy, but you can definitely hear that I'm ever so slightly husky. It's Friday night, it's eight 30, and I was, I've been waiting a week to record this podcast, hoping my voice would clear it hasn't, and so I've taken the opportunity having a glass of whiskey and just cracking on. So if you like the sound of a slightly bluesy voice, that's great. If you don't, I'm really sorry, but whichever, which way I'm Paul. And this is the Mastering Portrait Photography podcast. So it's been a busy month or two. You can always tell when it's busy [00:01:00] 'cause the podcasts. Get, don't really get delivered in quite the pace I would like. However, it really has been a busy couple of weeks the past few. Let me, I'm gonna draw your attention to it. The past couple of weeks, we've, there's a ton of stuff going on around us for a moment. I was up in Preston. I've been up in Preston twice over the past couple of weeks. The first one was working as a qualifications judge for the BIPP, the British Institute Professional photographers. Um. Which I love judging. I love judging. It's exhausting, but I love it. And that was qualifications, panels. Then last week was the launch. Of the updated edition of Mastering Portrait Photography, the book, which is where it all started, where Sarah Plata and I published this book that seems to have been incredibly popular. 50,000 copies translated from English into four other languages. Chinese, Korean, German. And Italian, do not ask me, do not ask me the logic on why the book is in those [00:02:00] particular languages. To be fair, we only found out about the Chinese and Korean when we were trying to get some marketing material together to talk about the new book Nobody had told us. I'm not even sure the publisher knew, to be honest. Uh, but we have found copies. We have a Chinese copy here in the studio. I'm still trying to get a Korean version. So if you are listening to this. Podcast in Korea. Please tell me how to get hold of a version in Korean because we'd love to complete the set. There's, in fact, there's two Italian versions. We knew about that. There's a German version we knew about that hardback version. It's great. It's really beautiful. Very I, like I, I don't live in Germany and I don't like to stereotyping entire nation, but the quality of the book is incredible. It's absolutely rock solid, properly engineered. Love it. We have a Chinese version here but the Korean version still alludes us. However, this week the new version, mastering portrait photography is out. And as you know, I, Sarah interviewed me for the podcast last week to talk about it. Well, it's out. We've had our launch party, uh, we invited everybody who [00:03:00] has featured in the book who, everybody, every picture in the book that we asked the person in it to come to the studio for a soiree. And it was brilliant. I've never seen so much cheese in all my life, and by I don't mean my speech, I mean actual cheese. We had a pile of it, still eating it. So it's been a week and I'm still eating the cheese. I dunno quite how, well, quite by how much we vacated, but probably by several kilos. Which I'm enjoying thoroughly. I've put on so much weight this week, it's unreal, but I'm enjoying the cheese. And then on Sunday we had an open day where we had set the studio out with some pictures from the book and some notes of the different people. Who featured and what I might do, actually, I'd, I wonder if I can do a visual podcast. I might do a visual podcast where I talk about those images, at some point on the website, on masteringportraitportraitphotography.com. I will do the story and the BTS and the production of every single image that's in the book, but it's gonna take me some [00:04:00] time. There's nearly 200 images in there. Um, and every one of them, bar one is a new image or is, is. It is, it is a new image in the book, and it has been taken in the 10 years or the decades subsequent to the first book, all bar one. Feel free to email me. Email me the image you think it might be. You'll probably guess it, but it's it's definitely in there. Um, and so it's been really busy. And then at the beginning of this week, I spent two days up in Preston again, judging again, but this time it was for the British Institute of Professional Photographers print Masters competition. Ah, what, what a joy. Six other judges and me, a chair of judges. Print handlers, the organizers. Ah, I mean, I've seen so many incredible images over those 48 hours, and in this podcast I want to talk a bit about how we do it, why we do it, what it feels like to do it, [00:05:00] because I'm not sure everybody understands that it's it, it's not stressful, but we do as judges, feel the pressure. We know that we are representing, on the one hand, the association as the arbiters of the quality of the curators of these competitions, but also we feel the pressure of the authors because we are there too. We also enter competitions and we really, really hope the judges pay attention, really investigate and interrogate the images that we've entered. And when, when you enter competitions, that heightens the pressure to do a good job for the authors who you are judging. So in this podcast, I'm gonna talk through some of the aspects of that. Forgive me if it sounds like I'm answering questions. It's because I wrote myself some questions. I wrote some [00:06:00] questions down to, how I structures the podcast usually, uh, the podcast rambles along, but this one I actually set out with a structure to it, so forgive me if it sounds like I'm answering questions. It's 'cause I'm answering my own questions. What does it feel like? How do you do it? Et cetera, et cetera. Anyway, I hope it's useful. Enjoy. And it gives you an insight into what it's like to be a competition judge. Okay. As you walk into the judging room. For me at least, it's mostly a sense of excitement. There's a degree of apprehension. There's a degree of tension, but mostly there's an adrenaline rush. Knowing that we're about to sit and view, assess, score these incredible images from photographers all over the world, and let's remember that every photographer when they enter a print competition, which is what I'm talking about primarily here. Every photographer [00:07:00] believes that print that category that year, could win. Nobody enters an image thinking that it doesn't stand a chance. Now you might do that modest thing of, I don't know, you know? Oh no, I don't. I I just chance my arm. No one enters a print they don't think has a chance of doing well. That just doesn't happen. It's too expensive. It takes too much time. And as judges. We are acutely aware of that. So when you walk into the room, lots of things are going in your on, in your heads. Primarily, you know, you are there to do a job. You are there to perform a task. You are going to put your analytical head on and assess a few hundred images over the next 48 hours. But as you walk in, there's a whole series of things. You, you are gonna assess the room. You see that your fellow judges, you're gonna see the print handlers. You're going to see the chair, you're gonna see the people [00:08:00] from whichever association it is who are organizing it, who or who have organized it. You'll see stacks of prints ready to be assessed. There's a whole series of things that happen. A lot of hugging. It's really lovely. This year the panel of judges, uh, had some people in it I haven't seen for quite a few years, and it was beyond lovely to see them. So there's all of that, but you, there's this underlying tension you are about to do. One of the things you love doing more than anything else in as part of your job. So there's the excitement of it and the joy of it, but there's always this gentle underlying tone of gravitas of just how serious it is. What we are doing. So there will be plenty of laughter, plenty of joy, but you never really take your eye off the task in hand. And that's how it feels as you go to take your seats on the judging [00:09:00] panel. So the most important thing, I think, anyway, and I was chair of qualifications and awards for the BIPP for a number of years, is that the whole room, everybody there is acting as a team. If you are not gonna pull as a team, it doesn't work. So there has to be safety, there has to be structure. There has to be a process and all of these things come together to provide a framework in which you assess and create the necessary scores and results for the association, for the photographers, for the contestants. So you take your seats, and typically in a room, there are gonna be five judges at any one time assessing an image. It's typically five. I've seen it done other ways, but a panel of judges is typically five. The reason we have five is at no point do all of the judges agree. [00:10:00] We'll go through this later in more detail, but the idea is that you have enough judges that you can have contention, you can have. Disagreements, but as a panel of judges, you'll come up with a score. So you'll have five judges sitting assessing an image at any one time. To the side of the room, there'll be two more judges typically. Usually we have a pool of seven, five judges working, two judges sitting out every 10 prints or 10 minutes or whatever the chair decides. They'll we'll rotate along one, so we'll all move along one seat and one of the spare judges will come in and sit on the end and one of the existing judges will step off. And we do that all day, just rotating along so that everybody judges, broadly speaking, the same number of images. Now, of course there is a degree of specialism in the room. If a panel has been well selected, there'll be specialists in each of the categories, but you can't have, let's say there's 15 categories. You [00:11:00] can't have five specialist judges per category. That's simply impractical. Um, you know, having, what's that, 75 judges in a room, just so that you can get through the 15 categories is. A logistics task, a cost. Even just having a room that big, full of judges doesn't work. So every judge is expected to be reasonably multi-talented, even if you don't shoot, for instance, landscapes. You have to have a working knowledge of what's required of a great landscape. Because our job as a panel isn't that each of us will spot all of the same characteristics in an image, all of the same defects, all of the same qualities. Each judge has been picked to bring their own. Sort of viewpoint, if you like, to the image. Some judges are super technical, some judges, it's all about the atmosphere. Some judges, it's all about the printing and there's every bit of image production is [00:12:00] covered by each of the individual specialisms of the judges. And so while there is a degree of specialism, there will be a landscape. Specialist in the room or someone who works in landscape, there will be plenty of portrait photographers, wedding photographers, commercial photographers. The idea is from those seven, we can cover all of those bases. So we have seven judges all at fellowship level, all highly skilled, all experienced. And then there's the chair. Now the chair's role is not to affect the actual score. The chair's role is to make sure the judges have considered everything that they should be considering. That's the Chair's job, is to make sure the judges stay fresh, keep an eye on the scores, keep an eye on the throughput. Make sure that every image and every author are given a. The time and consideration that they are due. What do I mean by that? Well, I just mean the photographers spent a lot of time and effort and [00:13:00] finance putting this print in front of us, and so it's really important that we as judges give it due consideration. The chair, that's their role is to make sure that's what really happens. So the process is pretty simple, really. We will take our seats as a panel of judges and when we are settled. The chair will ask for the print, one of the print handlers. There's normally a couple of print handlers in the room, one to put the image on, one to take the image off. The print handler will take the first image or the next image off the pile and place it in front of us on the light box. They will then check the print to make sure there's no visible or obvious dust marks, um, or anything, and give with an air blower or with the back of a a handling glove, or very gently take any dust spots away. They will then step back. Now, the way the judges are set, there are five seats in a gentle arc, usually around the light [00:14:00] box. The outer two judges, judges one and five will step into the light box and examine or interrogate the print carefully. They will take as much time as they need to ascertain what they believe the score for that image should be. They will then take their seats. The next two judges in, so let's say Judge two and four, they will step in to interrogate the print and do exactly the same thing. When they're ready, they'll step back and sit down. And then the middle judge, the final judge in seat three, they will step up and interrogate the print. And the reason we do it that way is that everybody gets to see the print thoroughly. Everybody gets to spend enough time. Examining the print. And at that point, when we all sit down, we all enter our scores onto whatever the system is we're using either using iPads or keypads. There's all sorts of ways of doing it, but what's really important is we do all of this in total silence and we don't really do it because we need to be able to [00:15:00] concentrate. Though that has happened, sort of distracting noises can play havoc. Um, we really do it so that we are not influencing any other judge. So there's no, oh, this is rubbish, or, oh, this is amazing. Or any of this stuff, because the idea is that each judge will come to their own independent score. We enter them, and then there's a process as to what happens next. So that's the process. If at some point a single judge when the image appears, says, I can't judge this for whatever reason, usually it's because they've seen the image before. I mean, there's one this week where I hadn't directly influenced the image. But the author had shown me how they'd done it, so they'd stepped me through the Photoshopping, the construction, the shooting, everything about the image. I knew the image really well, and so when the image appeared on the light box, I knew while I could judge it, it wasn't fair to the author or to the other [00:16:00] competitors that I should. So I raised my hand, checked in with the chair, chair, asked me what I wanted. I said, I need to step off this. I'm too familiar with the work for me to give this a cold read, an objective read. So I if, if possible, if there's another judge, could they just step in and score this one image for me? And that means it's fair for all of the contestants. So that's that bit of process when we come to our score. Let's assume the score's fine. Let's assume, I dunno, it gets an 82, which is usually a merit or a bronze, whatever the system is. The chair will log that, she'll say that image scored 82, which is the average of all five of us. She'll then check in with the scores and the panel of judges. He or she rather, uh, they, so they will look at us and go, are you all happy with that result? That's really important. Are you all happy? Would that result? Because that's the opportunity as judges for one of us, if we're not comfortable that the image is scored where we think it probably should. And [00:17:00] remember with five of you, if the score isn't what you think, you could be the one who's not got your eye in or you haven't spotted something, it might well be you, but it's your job as a judge to make sure if there's any doubt in your mind about the scoring of an image that. You ask for it to be assessed again, for there to be discussion for the team to do its job because it might be that the other members of the panel haven't seen something that you have or you haven't seen something that they have, that both of those can be true. So it's really important that you have a process and you have a strict process. And this is how it works. So the chair will say you are happy. One of the judges may say. No, I'm not happy or may say I would like to challenge that or may simply say, I think this warrants a discussion. I'm gonna start it off. And then there's a process for doing that. [00:18:00] So the judge who raises the challenge will start the dialogue and they'll start in whichever direction it is that they think the scoring is not quite right. They will start the dialogue that way. So let's say the score, the judge who's raising a challenge says the score feels a little low. What happens then is raise a challenge and that judge will discuss the image or talk to the image in a way that is positive and trying to raise the score. And they're gonna do that by drawing attention to the qualities that they feel the image has, that maybe they're worried the other judges haven't seen when they're done, the next judge depends, depending on the chair and how you do it. The next judge will take their turn and he goes all the way around with every judge having their say. And then it comes back to the originating judge who has the right of a rebuttal, which simply means to answer back. So depending on how the [00:19:00] dialogue has gone it may be that you say thank you to all of the judges. I'm glad you saw my point. It would be great if we could give this the score that I think this deserves. Similarly, you occasionally, and I did do one of these where I raised a challenge, um, where I felt an image hadn't scored, or the judges hadn't seen something that maybe I had seen in the image, and then very quickly realized that four judges had seen a defect that I hadn't. And so my challenge, it was not, it's never a waste of a challenge. It's never ever a waste because it's really important that every image is given the consideration it deserves. But at the end of the challenge that I raised, the scoring stayed exactly the same. I stayed, I said thank you to all of the judges for showing me some stuff that I hadn't noticed. And then we moved on. More often than not, the scores move as the judges say, oh, do you know what, you're right, there is something in this. Or, no, you're right. We've overinflated this because we saw things, but we missed these technical defects. It's those kinds of conversations. So that's a, a chair, that's a, a judge's [00:20:00] challenge. Yeah, this process also kicks in if there's a very wide score difference between the judge's scores, same process, but this time there's no rebuttal. Every judge simply gives their view starting with the highest judge and then working anywhere on the panel. Um, and then there's a rare one, which does happen which is a chair's challenge, and the chair has the right in, at least in the competitions that I judge, the chair has the right to say to the panel of judges. Could you just give this another consideration? I think there might be things you've missed or that feels like you're getting a little bit steady in your scoring. 'cause they, the chair of course, has got a log of all the scores and can see whether, you know, you're settling into like a 78, 79 or one judge is constantly outta kilter. The chair can see everything and so your job as the chair is to just, okay guys, listen, I think this image that you've just assessed. Possibly there's some things one way or the [00:21:00] other that you might need to take into consideration. It doesn't feel like you have. I'd like you to discuss this image and then just do a rescore. So those are the, those are the mechanisms. So in the room you've got five judges plus two judges who are there ready to step in when required either on the rotation or when someone recuses themself and steps out. Usually two print handlers and then usually there's at least one person or maybe more from the association, just doing things like making sure things are outta their boxes, that the scores are recorded on the back of the prints, they go back into boxes, there's no damage because these prints are worth quite a lot of money. And so, there's usually quite a few people in the room, but it's all done in silence and it's all done to this beautiful process of making sure it's organized, it's clear it's transparent, and we're working as one team to assess each image and give it the score that it deserves. so when the print arrives on the box. It has impact. Now, whether you like it or not, [00:22:00] whether you understand it or not, whether you can define it or not, the print has an impact. You're gonna see it, you're gonna react to it. How do you react to it? Is it visceral? Does your heart rate climb? Do you. Do you explore it? Do you want to explore it? Does it tell a clear story? And now is when you are judging a competition, typically the association or the organization who are running the competition will have a clear set of criteria. I mean, broadly speaking, things like lighting, posing layout or composition storytelling. Graphic design, print quality, if it's a print competition. These are the kinds of things that, um, we look for. And they're listed out in the competition guides that the entrant, the author will have known those when they submitted their print. And the judges know them when we're assessing them, so they're kind of coherent. Whatever it is that the, the entrance were told, that's what we're judging [00:23:00] to the most important. Is the emotional connection or the impact? It's typically called visual impact or just impact. What's really important about that is that it's very obvious, I think, to break images down into these constructed elements like complimentary colors or tonal range or centers of interest, but they don't really do anything except create. Your emotional reaction to the picture. Now, we do use language around these to assess the image, but what we're actually looking for is emotional impact. Pictures tell stories. Stories invoke emotions. It's the emotions we're really looking for. But the trick when you are judging is you start with the initial impact. Then you go in and you in real tiny detail, look at the image. Explore it, interrogate it, [00:24:00] enjoy it, maybe don't enjoy it. And you look at it in all of the different categories or different areas, criteria that you are, that the judges that the organization have set out. And then really, although it never gets listed twice, it should do, impact should also be listed as the last thing you look at as well. Because here's the process. You look at the image. There's an impact. You then in detail investigate, interrogate, enjoy the image. And then at the very end you ask yourself, what impact does it still have? And that's really important because the difference between those two gives you an idea of how much or how well the image is scoring in all of the other areas. If an image has massive impact when you, let's put 'em on the light box, and then you explore it and you [00:25:00] enjoy it, and you look at it under the light, and then at the end of it you're still feeling the same thing you did when it came on the light box, that's a pretty good indicator that all the criteria were met. If on the other hand, as you've explored the image, you've realized. There are errors in the production, or you can see Photoshopping problems or blown highlights or blocked blacks, or things are blurred where they should be sharp or you name it. It's these kinds of things. You know, the printing has got banding in the sky, which is a defect. You see dust spots from a camera sensor. These gradually whittle away your impact score because you go back to the end and you ask, what impact does the image now have? And I've heard judges use terms like at the end of the process, I thought that was gonna be amazing when it first arrived on the light box. I just loved the look of it from a distance, but when I stepped in, there were just too many things that [00:26:00] weren't quite right. And at the end of it, I just felt some would, sometimes I've heard the word disappointed you. So that's certainly how I feel. When an image has this beautiful impact and the hair stand up on the back of your neck and you just think, I cannot wait to step in and explore this image in detail. 'cause I tell you one thing, most authors don't own a light box. When you see a print on a beautiful light box, the, there's something about the quality. The way the print ESS is you actually get to see what a print should look like. So when you step in, you are really excited to see it. And if at the end of that process you're slightly disappointed because you found defects in the printing or problems with the focusing or Photoshop or whatever it is. You really are genuinely disappointed. So that's how you approach it. You approach it from this standpoint of a very emotional, a very emotional connection with the image to start with, and then you break [00:27:00] it down into its elements, whatever those elements are for the competition. And then at the end, you ask yourself really, does it still have the impact? I thought it would because if it does, well, in that case, it's done really, really well. one of the things that's really interesting about judging images is we, we draw out, we write out all of these criteria and. Every image has them really. I mean, well, I say that of course every image doesn't have them. If you are, if you're thinking about landscape or a picture of a shampoo bottle, it doesn't have posing, for instance, if that's one of your criteria. But typically there's a standard set of criteria and every image has them layout, color uh, photographic technique, et cetera. So if we look at let's say composition, let's talk about composition. Personally, I like to use the term layout rather than composition because it [00:28:00] feels a little bit more like a verb. You lay the image out, you have all of the bits, you lay them out. I like that because when we are teaching photography when we say to someone, right, what are all of the bits that you have in front of you? How are you gonna lay them out? It feels a lot more, to me, at least more logical than saying, how are you gonna compose the image? Because it allows. I think it allows the photographer to think in terms of each individual component rather than just the whole frame. So we are looking for how the image is constructed. Remember that every photographer really should think about an image. As telling a story, what's the story that you want somebody else? Somebody that you've never met. In this case a judge, but it could be a client or it could just be somebody where your work is being exhibited on a wall. What do you want them to look at? What do you want them to see? Where do you want that eye to go? And there are lots of tricks to [00:29:00] this, and one of them is layout or composition. So we've got through the initial impact, boom. And the excitement. And then you start to think, is the image balanced? I like to think of an image having a center of gravity. Some photographers will use center of interest, which is a slightly different thing, but I think an image has a center of gravity. The component parts of the image create balance. So you can have things right down in the edges of the frame, but you need something to balance it like a seesaw. You can't just. Throw in, throw parts of the puzzle around the frame. So you are looking for where do they land? And of course, as photographers, we talk about thirds, golden ratios, golden spirals, all of these terms. But what we are really looking for is does the image have a natural flow? Does it feel like everything's where it should be? Does your eye go to the bit that the author probably wanted you to look at? Have they been effective in their [00:30:00] storytelling? And by storytelling, I don't necessarily mean storytelling as in photojournalism or narrative rich photography. What I mean is what did they want you to see, and then did you go and see it? Separation? Is the background blurred? And let's say the, the subject is sharp. That's a typical device for making sure you look at the subject. Is the color of the background muted in a way that draws your attention? Again to whatever it is in the foreground. So layouts one of those tools. So we work our way around it and try and figure out does the positioning of all of the elements of the image does their positioning add or distract from the story? We think that author was trying to tell. Let's remember that it's not the judge's job to understand the story. It's the author's job to tell the story in a way that the judges can get it. Too often, you know, when I, when I've judged [00:31:00] a competition, someone will come and find me afterwards and say, did you understand what that was about? I was trying to say this, and it's like, well, I didn't see that, but that's not my fault. You know, it's, it's down to you to lead me pictorially to. Whatever it is you're trying to show. Same with all judges, all viewers, clients. It doesn't really matter. It's the author's job, not the judges. So at the end of that, you then move on to whatever's the next criteria. So you know, you assess these things bit by bit, and by the way, every judge will do it in a slightly different order. There'll be written down in an order. But each judge would approach it in a different manner. For me, typically it's about emotional connection more than anything else, it's about the emotion. I love that genuine, authentic connection of a person in the image. To me, the viewer. I will always go there if, if it's a portrait or a wedding or fashion image, if there's a person in it or a dog, I suppose, [00:32:00] then I will look for that authenticity, that, that visceral, it feels like they're looking at me or I'm having a dialogue with them. That's my particular hot button, but every judge has their room and that's how you approach it. So when it comes to a photograph in the end, you don't really have anything other than light when you think about it, right? That's, you pick up a camera, it's got a sensor, it's got film, it's got a lens on the front, and a shutter stopping light coming, or it goes through the lens, but the, the shutter stops it hitting a sensor. And at some point you commit light to be recorded. And it's the light that describes the image. There's nothing else. It's not something you can touch or hear, it's just light. And of course light is everything. I think, I think the term pho photography or photograph is a mix of a couple of words, and it's a relatively recent idea. I think [00:33:00] it was Victorian and it's, isn't it light and art photographic or photograph, um. So that's what it is. It's capturing light and creating a reaction from it. So the quality of light is possibly the most important thing. There is too much of it, and you're gonna have blown highlights, nasty white patches on your prints, too little of it. You're gonna have no detail in the shadows and a lot of noise or grain, whether it's film or whether it's off your sensor. And then there's the shape of the light. The color of the light, and it doesn't really matter whether it's portrait, wedding, landscape, product, avant garde, it's light that defines things. It's light that can break an image. So with portraiture, for instance, we tend to talk about. Sculpting or dimensionality of light. We tend to talk about the shape of the subject. We talk about flattering light. We talk about hard and soft light, and all of these things [00:34:00] mean something. This isn't the podcast to talk about those in detail, but that's what we're looking for. We are looking for has the light created a sense of shape, a sense of wonder, a sense of narrative. Does the lighting draw your eye towards the subject? And when you get to the subject, is it clear that the lighting is effective and by effective, usually as a portrait photographer anyway. I mean flattering. But you might be doing something with light that's counterintuitive, that's making the subject not flattered. That's maybe it's for a thriller style thing, or maybe it's dark and moody. Harsh, as long as in tune with the story as we are seeing it, then the lighting is assessed in that vein. So we've seen some incredible beauty shots over the past couple of days where the lighting sculpted the face. It had damaged ality, but it was soft. There were no hard shadows, there were no [00:35:00] blown highlights. The skin, it was clear that the texture of the skin, the light, it caught the texture. So we knew exactly what that would be. It had. Captured the shape. So the way the gens or shadows ripple around a body or a face tell you its shape. They haven't destroyed the shape. It's it's catch shape, but it hasn't unnecessarily sculpted scars or birthmarks or spots, you know? And that's how lighting works. So you look for this quality, you look for control, you look for the author, knowing what they're doing. With landscapes, typically it's, it is very rare, in my opinion, for a landscape. To get a good score if it isn't shot at one end of the day or the other. Why? Well, typically, at those points of the day, the light from the sun is almost horizontal. It rakes across the frame, and you get a certain quality to the way the shadows are thrown. The way the [00:36:00] light, sculpts hills, buildings, clouds, leaves, trees, the way it skips off water, whether it's at the beginning of the day or the end of the day. It's quite unusual though we do see them for an amazing photograph of escape to be taken at midday. But you can see how it could be if you have the sun directly overhead, because that has a quality all of its own. And you know, if when an author has gone to the effort of being in the right place to shoot vertical shadows with a direct overhead son, well maybe that's so deliberate that the, the judges will completely appreciate that and understand the story. So it's looking for these things and working out. Has the lighting been effective in telling the story? We think the author was trying to tell? Lighting is at the heart of it. So when we've been through every criteria, whatever they are, lighting, composition, color, narrative, et cetera, et cetera, et cetera, [00:37:00] we've assessed every image, hundreds of them. We've had challenges, we've had conversations. We have a big pile of prints that have made it over the line. To whatever is your particular association scoring, whether it's merit or bronze or whatever. The puzzle isn't quite complete at that stage because there is of course, a slight problem and that problem is time. So if you imagine judging a section of images might take a couple of hours to do 70 prints, 60, 70 prints might take longer than that. In fact, it might take the best part of an afternoon. During that time. There's every chance the scores will wander. And the most obvious time is if a category spans something like a lunch break. We try to make sure categories don't do that. We try to complete categories before going for a break. We always try to be continuous, but [00:38:00] you've still got fatigue. You've got the judges rotating. So all of these things are going on. It sometimes it depends what images come up in what order could conceivably affect the scoring. For instance there's an image that came up this year where I think probably I was the judge that felt the strongest about it. There was something about this particular image that needed talking about, and so when it came up and it was scores that I raised a challenge and my heart rate, the minute the print hit the stand, my heart rate climbed through the roof. It was. Something about it that just connected with me. And then when I explored the image on the lights, on the light box, to me, there was very little that was technically holding it back. There were a couple of bits, but nothing that I felt warranted a lower score. And so I raised a [00:39:00] challenge. I said my point, I went through it in detail. I asked the other judges to consider it. From my viewpoint, they gave their views as to why they hadn't. But each of them understood where I was coming from and unlike the challenge I talked about earlier where no one changed their mind on this one, they did on this one. They also saw things that I saw when we went through it. But at the end of the process, the image was got a higher score, which is great, but. I didn't feel that I could judge the next image fairly because whatever came in, my heart rate was still battering along after seeing this one particular image. And that happens sometimes. It's not common, but I felt I needed to step off the panel before the next image came up. Which I did in work, working with the chair and the team. I stepped off for a couple of prints before stepping back on [00:40:00] just to let my eye settle and let myself get back into the right zone. But during the day, the zone changes. The way you change your perception of the images, as the images come through is so imperceptible, imperceivable, imperceptible. One of those two words is so tiny that you don't notice if there's a slight drift. And so there's every opportunity for an image to score a couple of points lower or a couple of points higher than it possibly could have done. If it had been seen at another point in the day. Maybe it had been, maybe if the image was seen after a series of not so strong images, maybe it would get a higher score. Or of course, the other way round. Maybe after seeing a series of really, really powerful, impactful images that came up, maybe it scored be slightly diminished. Both of those can be true. And so it's really important that we redress that any possible imbalance and every competition I've ever done has a final round. And the [00:41:00] way this is done is that we take the highest scoring images, top five, top 10, depending on the competition, and we line them up. And all of the judges now, not just the judges who are the five on the panel, all seven judges. Get an opportunity to bring each image back onto a light box if they wish, if they haven't seen them already. Because remember, some of those images may not have been assessed by the, well. It cannot have been assessed by all seven of the judges, so there's always gonna be at least two judges who haven't seen that image or seeing it for the first time as a judge. So we bring them back, we look at them, and then we rank them using one of numerous voting mechanisms where we all vote on what we think are the best images and gradually whittle it down until we're left with a ranked order for that category. We have a winner, a second, a third, a fourth, sometimes all the way down to 10 in order, depending on the competition. And that's the fairest way of doing it, because it means, okay, during the judging, [00:42:00] that image got, I dunno, 87. But when we now baseline it against a couple of images that got 90 something, when we now look at it, we realize that that image probably should have got a 90 as well. We're not gonna rescore it, the score stands, but what we are gonna do is put it up into there and vote on it as to whether it actually, even though it got slightly lower, score, is the winning image for the category. And every competition does something similar just to redress any fluctuations to, to flatten out time. It takes time outta the equation because now for that category, all seven judges are judging the winner at the same time, and that's really important. We do that for all the categories, and then at the end of that process, we bring back all of the category winners and we vote on which one of those. Wins the competition. Now, not every competition has an overall winner, but for the one we've just done for the print masters, for the BIPP print masters, there is an overall winner. And so we set them all out [00:43:00] and we vote collectively as a winner on the winner. And then, oh, we rank them 1, 2, 3, 4, or whatever. Um, really we're only picking a winner, but we also have to have some safety nets because what happens if for instance. Somebody unearths a problem with an image. And this has happened, sadly, this has happened a couple of times in my career where a photographer has entered an image that's not compliant with the rules but hasn't declared it. And it's always heartbreaking when it does happen, but we have to have a backup. So we always rank one, two, and three. So that's some backups, and that's the process. That's how we finish everything off. We have finished, we've got all the categories judged, the category winners judged, and then the overall one, two, and three sorted as well. at the end of the process? I can't speak for every judge. I can speak for me, I feel, I think three things. Exhaustion. It's really hard to spend 48 hours or longer [00:44:00] assessing images one by one, by one by one, and making sure that you are present and paying attention to every detail of every image. And you're not doing an author or an image a disservice. You pay each image or you give each image, you pay each image the due attention it deserves. I feel exhilaration. There's something energizing about assessing images like this. I know it's hard to explain, but there's something in the process of being alongside some of the best photographers that you've ever met, some photographers that you admire more than any others, not just as photographers, but as human beings. The nicest people, the smartest people, the most experienced people, the most eloquent people. There's something in that. So there's this [00:45:00] exhilaration. You are exhausted, but there's an exhilaration to it. And then finally, and I don't know if every photographer feels this or every judge feels this, I do. Which is massively insecure, I think. Can't think of the right words for it. There must be one. But I come away, much like when you've been out on the beers and you worry about all the things you've said, it's the same process. There was that image I didn't give enough credit for. There was this image I was too generous on. There were the things I said in a challenge when it gets a little bit argumentative or challenging. 'cause the clues in the title, you know, maybe I pushed too hard, maybe I didn't push hard enough. There are images you've seen that you wished you'd taken and you feel like. I'm not good enough. There's an insecurity to it too, and those are the three things I think as you leave the room, it's truly [00:46:00] energizing. Paradoxically, it's truly exhausting, but it's also a little bit of a head mush in that you do tend to come, or I do tend to come away a little bit insecure about. All the things that have gone on over the two days prior, and I've done this a long time. I've been judging for, I dunno, 15, 16, 17 years. And I've got used to those feelings. I've got used to coming away worrying. I'm used to the sense of being an underachiever, I suppose, and it's a wonderful , set of emotions that I bring home. And every time I judge. I feel better for it. I feel more creative. I feel more driven. I feel more determined. I feel like my eyes have been opened to genres [00:47:00] of photography, for types of imagery, for styles of posing or studio work that I've never necessarily considered, and I absolutely adore it every single second. So at the end of that, I really hope I've described or created a picture of what it's like to be a judge for this one. I haven't tried to explain the things we saw that as photographers as authors, you should think about when you are entering. I'm gonna do that in a separate podcast. I've done so many of those, but this one was specifically like, what does it feel like to be a judge? Why do we do it? I mean, we do it for a million reasons. Mostly we do it because people helped us and it's our turn to help them. But every photographer has a different reason for doing it. It's the most joyful process. It's the most inspiring process and I hope you've got a little bit of that from the podcast. So [00:48:00] on that happy note, I'm gonna wrap up and I'm gonna go and finish my glass of whiskey which I'm quite excited about if I'm honest. 'cause I did, it's been sitting here beside me for an hour and I haven't drunk any of it. I do hope you're all doing well. I know winter is sort of clattering towards us and the evenings are getting darker, at least for my listeners in the north and the hemisphere. Don't forget. If you want more information on portrait photography or our workshops we've announced all of the upcoming dates or the next set of upcoming dates. Please head across to mastering portrait photography.com and go to the workshop section. I love our workshops and we've met so many. Just lovely people who've come to our studio. And we've loved being alongside them, talking with them, hopefully giving a bit of inspiration, certainly taking a little bit of inspiration, if I'm honest, because everyone turns up with ideas and conversations. Uh, we would love to see you there. The workshops are all are all there on the website and the workshop section. You can also, if you wish, buy a signed copy of the book from mastering portrait photography.com. Again, just go to the [00:49:00] shop and you'll see it there on the top. Amazon has them for sale too. It is great. Amazon typically sells them for less than we do, but we have a fixed price. We have to buy them from the wholesaler at a particular price, whereas Amazon can buy many, many more than we can, so they get a better deal if I'm honest. However, if you want my paw print in there, then you can order it from us and it's supports a photographer and it's really lovely to hear from you. When you do, uh, one thing, I'd love to ask anyone who has bought the updated edition of the book, if you are an Amazon customer. Please could you go on to amazon.com and leave us a review? It's really powerful when you do that, as long as it's a good review. If it's a rubbish review, just email me and tell me what I could have done differently, and I'll email you back and tell you, tell you why I didn't. But if it's a half decent review, a nice review. Please head over to Amazon. Look for mastering portrait photography, the new version of the book, and leave us a review. It's really important particularly in the first couple of [00:50:00] weeks that it's been on sale. Uh, it would be really, really helpful if you did that. And on that happy note, I wish you all well. I've grabbed my glass of whiskey and I'm gonna wrap up and whatever else you do. Until next time, be kind to yourself. Take care.   

Solve crimes with the great detective in "Sherlock Holmes Short Stories." Featuring classic tales by Arthur Conan Doyle, this podcast brings you the brilliant deductions and thrilling adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. Whether you're a longtime fan or new to the world of Holmes, these timeless mysteries will keep you captivated.

A funeral is one of those rare occasions where you don't really need to think too much about your choice of outfit. After all, everyone wears black to funerals as a sign of grief, don't they? Well, that might be true in the Western world, but it's not necessarily the case everywhere, which is what we're going to talk about today.  In the Western world, funeral customs have long been intertwined with strict dress codes. The tradition of "mourning attire" became widespread across Europe from the Middle Ages onwards, and was particularly stringent during the Victorian era in England. Queen Victoria herself mandated that widows wear black mourning attire, including jewellery, for at least a year.  Has that always been the case? What about in other parts of the world then? In under 3 minutes, we answer your questions! To listen to the last episodes, you can click here: ⁠Should you sleep with socks on?⁠ ⁠How can I get the most out of daytime napping?⁠ ⁠How quick is premature ejaculation?⁠ A podcast written and realised by Joseph Chance. First Broadcast: 3/5/2024 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As far as the dragons are concerned it's still spooky season and this week, they are featuring one of the most beloved 'universal monsters' - the Mummy. From Ancient Egypt to Victorian obsession to post war film era, the Mummy has been a symbol for secrets and forbidden knowledge, often reflecting discomforting truths back at us. Jules and Madeleine take a look at why this is a universal monster - what are its origins? When did it first start appearing in fiction? And what does the creature mean to us today? On the slab this week - Lok No 249 - Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, The Beetle - Richard Marsh, Ramses the Damned - Anne Rice and many more. Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic

The Victorian parliament has passed the treaty for Indigenous people.Legislation to enact the treaty had already passed through the lower chamber of Victoria's parliament, and the upper chamber has now passed it into law.Under the treaty, Victoria would establish a First Peoples' Assembly to help develop policy that affects the state's Indigenous residents as well as oversee "truth telling" in the community.This is just my opinion:Intro song is ‘⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Bring Me Down⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠'⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Buy Me a Coffee⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Slippery Slope Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠J Fallon Spotify⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Slippery Slope Apple Podcasts⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Slippery Slope YouTube⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

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Solve crimes with the great detective in "Sherlock Holmes Short Stories." Featuring classic tales by Arthur Conan Doyle, this podcast brings you the brilliant deductions and thrilling adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. Whether you're a longtime fan or new to the world of Holmes, these timeless mysteries will keep you captivated.

Bryan Lipmann  has been named the 2026 Senior Australian of the Year for Victoria and in this edition of The Conversation Hour he speaks with Justin Smith about his work advocating for homeless older people. Also in this edition former premier of Victoria Steve Bracks, shares his reflections on the Whitlam dismissal in the lead up to the 50th anniversary, plus we also talk music memoirs and why local content quotas on streaming platforms matter.

The boys discover a peculiar cult boasting not one, but two Jesuses. Yowzah! Must be pretty awkward at Christmas. James whisks Alasdair off to the commune of the Agapemonites: a scandalous Victorian sect nestled in the sauciest region of Somerset. (Well, a few miles north of Taunton.) There's a little extra spice in the mix, because James has noticed that the word "sects" sounds a bit rude. See Alasdair On Tour in 2026! Edited by ⁠Laurence Hisee⁠ Join the LoreFolk at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/loremenpod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ko-fi.com/loremen⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Check the sweet, sweet merch here... ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.teepublic.com/stores/loremen-podcast?ref_id=24631⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ @loremenpod ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠youtube.com/loremenpodcast⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.instagram.com/loremenpod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.facebook.com/loremenpod⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We talked all things Halloween — from our trip to Kennywood's Fall Fest to the now-iconic footage of Nick passing out on a roller coaster. Plus, Matteo learns Nick has no idea when the Victorian era was. Visit https://plannedparenthood.org/defend Ready to say yes to saying no? Make the switch at https://mintmobile.com/INEVERLIKEDYOU

Solve crimes with the great detective in "Sherlock Holmes Short Stories." Featuring classic tales by Arthur Conan Doyle, this podcast brings you the brilliant deductions and thrilling adventures of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. Whether you're a longtime fan or new to the world of Holmes, these timeless mysteries will keep you captivated.

Recorded October 7th, 2025. A seminar by Prof Jarlath Killeen (School of English, TCD) as part of the English Staff-Postgraduate Seminar Series. "Time is jealous of you, and wars against your lilies and your roses."  The Picture of Dorian Gray opens in the studio of Basil Hallward in which the smells of an English garden at the start of summer mingle with the smoke of Lord Henry Wotton's opium-tinged cigarettes. This scent puts Dorian into a trance in which it is difficult, if not impossible for him, to resist the temptations offered: one located in Basil entrancing portrait, the other in Lord Henry's mind-numbing peons to ever-blossoming youth and beauty. In this noxious atmosphere a new plant will grow, one even more dangerous than those that Hallward already has in the garden: the plant that is Dorian Gray. This talk will look at the ways in which Wilde has carefully used a Victorian language of the flowers throughout his novel as a way to dramatise the struggle between the forces of good and evil over Dorian's soul.  English Staff-Postgraduate Seminar Series is a fortnightly meeting which has been integral to the School of English research community since the 1990s. The aim of the seminar series is to provide a relaxed and convivial atmosphere for staff and students to present their research to their peers. The series also welcomes distinguished guest lecturers from the academic community outside Trinity College to present on their work. It is a fantastic opportunity to share ideas and engage with the diverse research taking place within the School.  Learn more at www.tcd.ie/trinitylongroomhub

On today's episode of Turtle Time - "We Need to Talk About Todd" - we discuss our thoughts on the Vanderpump Rules season 12 trailer, the RHOBH trailer, Brittany Cartwright's Victorian vampire party, and JT Thomas getting the hell out of the county. (00:00 - 35:25) We then quickly discuss this week's episode of the Real Housewives of Potomac - season 10, episode 5 - "Alexander Hamilton's House". (35:25) And finally, we recap this week's episode of the Real Housewives of Salt Lake City - season 6, episode 8 - "Making Out and F***ing". (54:40) If you enjoyed this episode and need more Turtle Time in your life, join the ⁠Turtle Time Patreon⁠ and become a Villa Rosa VIP to hear exclusive bonus content! We're recapping the Vanderpump Rules series from the beginning each week and uncovering all of its secrets. And if you need even more Turtle Time in your life, follow us on ⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠ or ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠. And please, if you want to watch some of the fun things we do, subscribe on YouTube. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Alex Hawke unloads on the PM in a fiery Question Time, Albanese splashes $1 billion on his green gala. Plus, another Dan Andrews promise goes up in smoke as Victorian power prices rise.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

What if the best way to raise capable kids is to let them work and create beside you?  Casey and Jason Cashell share how restoring their 1859 Virginia estate has shaped their family through hands-on learning, hard work, and entrepreneurship.  They talk about giving kids real responsibility, letting them learn through mistakes, and helping them turn their skills into small businesses.  Their story offers practical encouragement for parents who want to raise hardworking kids and homes full of purpose and partnership. In this episode, we cover: - How Jason and Casey found and restored an 1859 Victorian home and 37-acre estate to serve as a hub for family, business, ministry, homeschool, and hospitality all under one historic roof - How their kids have been hands-on in every home renovation since toddlerhood and what they've learned from real responsibility - Why kids often rise to higher expectations when given meaningful work and trust - Practical ways to raise capable, competent kids even if you don't have a homestead by simply inviting them into what you are already doing - The heart behind raising “humble leaders” instead of entitled adults in an over-psychologized culture - Why letting children experience struggle and failure leads to humility and long-term success - The difference between confidence built on praise versus confidence built on true competence - Restoring old-fashioned trades and hands-on creativity as an antidote to modern tech dependency - Encouragement for parents who feel unequipped to teach skills– how learning with your kids is often the best approach - Practical examples of entrepreneurship in childhood and how the Cashell kids have turned their skills into online classes - What restoring this historic Virginia estate has meant to their family: living among the birthplaces of America's founders and making history come alive View full show notes on the blog + watch this episode on YouTube. Thank you for supporting the sponsors that make this show possible! RESOURCES MENTIONED Check out the Cashells' Mayhurst Estate B&B here Explore the Cashells' hands-on workshops offered at the Artisan Kids Hub  Join my FREE masterclass to learn my 4-step framework for making money on YouTube Master the rhythm of sourdough with confidence in my Simple Sourdough course Gain the sewing knowledge and skills every homemaker needs in my Simple Sewing series Turn your content creation dreams into a profitable business with my YouTube Success Academy Keep all my favorite sourdough recipes at your fingertips in my Daily Sourdough cookbook CONNECT Casey & Jason Cashell | Website | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube Lisa Bass of Farmhouse on Boone | Blog | YouTube | Instagram | TikTok | Facebook | Pinterest Do you have a question you'd like me to answer on the podcast?  A guest you'd like me to interview?  Submit your questions and ideas here: bit.ly/SFLquestions.

In February 1842, a dingo unearthed a shallow grave near Ironstone Bridge, revealing the decomposing body of an Irish immiKearns Landregan was twenty-seven years old when he died on a dusty colonial road seven miles from Berrima. An Irish immigrant who'd traveled halfway around the world seeking opportunity in Australia, Landregan worked as a carrier—hard labor that required strength, reliability, and trust. On February 19th, 1842, he was driving his cart to market when he accepted what seemed like innocent companionship from a fellow traveler. He had no way of knowing that the man walking beside him had already murdered at least eight people. Among Lynch's victims was thirteen-year-old Mary Macnamara, a child who watched her entire family die before being assaulted and killed herself. There was Thomas Smith, a skilled plowman respected for his agricultural expertise. And there was an unnamed Aboriginal boy whose murder was barely recorded in colonial documents—a child whose name we'll never know but whose life mattered just as much.Why This Case MattersJohn Lynch's killing spree across colonial New South Wales exposed the brutal vulnerabilities of frontier justice and the systematic devaluation of certain lives in 1840s Australia. His 1836 acquittal for Thomas Smith's murder—despite clear evidence—taught him he could kill with impunity in a justice system stretched impossibly thin across vast wilderness. The case reveals how colonial authorities treated crimes differently based on victims' race and social status: a white child's murder shocked the colony, while an Aboriginal boy's death warranted barely a sentence in court records. The 2019 memorial plaque installed at All Saints Anglican Church in Sutton Forest represents a crucial shift toward victim-centered historical narrative, finally naming those whose stories were nearly lost to history.Content WarningThis episode contains descriptions of violence against children and references to sexual assault. Listener discretion advised.Key Case DetailsLynch's methodical approach to murder began after his 1836 acquittal emboldened him. Operating along isolated bush tracks in the Razorback Range, he targeted travelers with money or goods, striking them from behind with a tomahawk before stealing their possessions and assuming their identities.Timeline & Investigation:March 1836: Thomas Smith murdered at Oldbury Farm; Lynch tried and acquitted1836-1837: Multiple murders in Razorback Range (exact count unknown)November 1841: Mulligan family massacre (four victims including 13-year-old Mary)February 19, 1842: Kearns Landregan murdered near Ironstone BridgeFebruary 21, 1842: Lynch arrested after Landregan's body discovered by Hugh TinneyResolution: Chief Constable James Chapman's investigation connected Lynch to Landregan's distinctive felt hat, which Lynch had been wearing openly around Berrima. Excavation of the Mulligan property revealed four shallow graves. Lynch confessed to all murders during questioning, showing no remorse. He was tried, convicted of Landregan's murder, and hanged at Berrima Jail on April 22nd, 1842 at age 29.Historical Context & SourcesThis episode draws on colonial court records from the 1842 Supreme Court trial proceedings in Sydney, contemporary newspaper accounts from the Sydney Morning Herald, and historical research from the Berrima District Historical and Family History Society. The case documentation reveals the challenges of frontier policing in 1840s New South Wales, where vast distances and limited communication made coordinating murder investigations exceptionally difficult. Sergeant James Wilson's creation of a primitive geographic profile to track disappearances along the Berrima-Campbelltown Road represented early criminal investigative innovation. The 2019 memorial plaque commemorating Lynch's victims by name marks an important shift toward victim-centered historical narrative, particularly significant in finally acknowledging the unnamed Aboriginal child whose murder colonial authorities barely recorded.Foul Play CreditsFoul Play is hosted by Shane Waters and Wendy Cee. Research and writing by the Foul Play production team. For more historical true crime stories from the Victorian era and beyond, subscribe to Foul Play wherever you listen to podcasts.Our Sponsors:* Check out Secret Nature and use my code SHANE for a great deal: https://secretnature.comSupport this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/foul-play-crime-series/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brands

We're stepping into the lap of Disney luxury for another epic round of Resort Wars — and this time, it's an all-out battle between elegance and refinement as Disney's Riviera Resort goes head-to-head with Disney's Grand Floridian Resort & Spa. From European artistry to Victorian grandeur, we're diving deep into what makes each of these Deluxe destinations truly magical in its own right.We'll explore every corner and category, starting with theming and atmosphere — is it Riviera's intimate boutique charm or Grand Floridian's timeless opulence that captures the crown? Next, we'll unpack the rooms, from Riviera's clever Tower Studios and sprawling villas to Grand Floridian's newly refreshed spaces inspired by Mary Poppins Returns. Both deliver comfort and class, but in very different ways.Then it's on to dining — and let's be honest, this round alone could fill an entire podcast. We're comparing Topolino's Terrace and Primo Piatto to Victoria & Albert's, Citrico's, Narcoossee's, and more. From rooftop character breakfasts to Michelin-worthy cuisine, the food fight is fierce. We'll also talk transportation, where the Skyliner's breezy charm goes up against the monorail's Magic Kingdom convenience, and recreation, where Riviera's quiet sophistication faces Grand Floridian's live music, fireworks, and full-service spa.Finally, we'll weigh in on value. Whether you're planning a romantic couples' getaway or a bucket-list family stay, this showdown helps you figure out which resort best matches your Disney style, budget, and vibe.So grab your latte from Le Petit Café or a cocktail from Enchanted Rose, and join us as we debate, laugh, and share insider stories from two of Walt Disney World's most stunning resorts. It's Riviera versus Grand Floridian — modern European charm versus classic Disney royalty — and the results just might surprise you.

Lizzie Borden, the young woman accused of butchering her father and stepmother with an axe in their quiet Fall River, Massachusetts home in 1892. What began as a shocking local crime quickly became a national obsession, filled with gruesome details, strange inconsistencies, and a courtroom spectacle that would forever cement Lizzie's name in true crime history.We explore the tense family dynamics simmering inside the Borden household — the jealousy, resentment, and whispers of inheritance that may have fueled the rage behind the murders. Listeners will follow the chilling timeline of that August morning: the locked doors, the missing handle on the supposed murder weapon, and Lizzie's oddly calm demeanor in the hours after her parents were found slain. We break down the police investigation, early forensic blunders, and the testimony that both condemned and confused.Then came the trial of the century, where Victorian ideals of femininity collided with brutal reality. Could a well-bred Sunday school teacher really commit such a violent act? Or was Lizzie the scapegoat of a town desperate for answers? From her shocking acquittal to the eerie legacy that followed, Sean, Jorge, and Eric walk through the full story — from the family tensions and blood-stained evidence to the enduring myths, nursery rhymes, and ghost stories that keep the legend of Lizzie Borden alive more than a century later.www.patreon.com/theconspiracypodcast

LISA FRANKENSTEIN is funny, goofy, heartwarming, and delightfully weird. It's also a really deep trans allegory that speaks to transness in a lot of ways, and very specifically to transmasc folks. So let's talk about how the filmmakers might have made an unintentionally intentional allegory, the meaning of names, the metaphoric use of color, and start examining by timestamps! Production assistant, writer, and artist Kent Eigengrau joins us to discuss marrying film and literature, and Victorian gentlemen! KENT EIGENGRAU Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kent-eigengrau-444447268/ GoFundMe: https://gofund.me/83ea7687f Art: https://www.dmsguild.com/en/browse?artist=%22Kent%20Eigengrau%22 Tabula Rasa game: https://wildestworlds.itch.io/tabula-rasa-discovery TEXT VERSION https://www.tillystranstuesdays.com/2025/11/04/the-unintentionally-intentional-trans-allegory-of-lisa-frankenstein-part-1/ FURTHER READING (topics discussed with essays available at https://TillysTransTuesdays.com ) The Trans Allegories of The Matrix, The Trans Allegory of Barbie, The Trans Allegory of Silo s1, The Trans Allegory of I Saw the TV Glow, The Erasure of Trans Men, Trans Roles and Stories, The False Dichotomy, Gendered Childhoods, Trans Trauma 2: Societal Gaslighting, Gender Dysphoria REFERENCE MATERIAL Begin Transmission: The Trans Allegories of The Matrix - https://www.amazon.com/Begin-Transmission-trans-allegories-Matrix/dp/B0BY2FCSVX/ Everything queer in 'Lisa Frankenstein' according to Diablo Cody - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l05TPtyK5tQ Zelda Williams Talks 'Dead of Summer' Transgender Role - https://www.etonline.com/tv/192811_zelda_williams_talks_dead_of_summer_transgender_role_memories_of_dad_robin_williams In ‘We're All Going to The World's Fair,' Director Jane Schoenbrun Found Their Voice and Their Identity - https://www.indiewire.com/features/general/were-all-going-to-the-worlds-fair-jane-schoenbrun-trans-film-1234717052/ Progressively Horrified: We're All Going to the World's Fair! w/ Katie, Sian, Tilly, and Tomi - https://shows.acast.com/progressively-horrified/episodes/worlds-fair Special thanks to Daisy and Jane for the use of "Sorry Not Sorry" as our show's theme music. Please stop by and show your support at https://daisyandjane.bandcamp.com and https://soundcloud.com/daisyandjane --Please leave us a rating on Apple Podcasts/iTunes!-- Website: pendantaudio.com Bluesky: @pendantaudio.bsky.social‬

Today's episode of The Jeff Dornik Show is one you can't afford to miss. Pastor Ken Peters, founder of The Church at Planned Parenthood and pastor of Patriot Church, joins me to break down Tucker Carlson's explosive interview with Nick Fuentes and what it reveals about the spiritual decay within both church and culture. Then investigative journalist Patrick Howley exposes how major corporations are secretly using underground job boards to secure foreign labor through the H-1B program, bypassing American workers. Truth, courage, and conviction—live at 1pm ET only on The Jeff Dornik Show.Check out Patrick Howley's reporting at https://patrickreporting.comSupermassive Black Coffee is crafted from organic, gourmet beans fire-roasted in an antique Victorian-era roaster, delivering the rich, smooth, non-acidic taste that reminds you this is how coffee was always meant to be. Use code JEFF50 for 50% off your first order. https://supermassiveblackcoffee.com/?ref=JEFFTune into The Jeff Dornik Show LIVE every Tuesday and Thursday at 1pm ET. Subscribe on Rumble and never miss a show. https://rumble.com/c/jeffdornikSubscribe to my Pickax account today and get my hard-hitting, uncensored email newsletter delivered straight to your inbox.https://pickax.com/jeffdornikBig Tech is silencing truth while farming your data to feed the machine. That's why I built Pickax… a free speech platform that puts power back in your hands and your voice beyond their reach. Sign up today:https://pickax.com/?referralCode=y7wxvwq&refSource=copy

Animal Justice Party MP Georgie Purcell says The Melbourne Cup represents the worst parts of our society, from animal cruelty to gambling harm and rising family violence rates. Calling the racing industry the ‘most visible display of animal cruelty’ pointing to the deaths of 175 racehorses linked to the sport. The Victorian politician has been a vocal critic of the horse racing industry, which generates around $9.5 billion dollars a year and employs up to 80,000 people from jockeys to stable hands. In this episode of The Beefing, Helen Smith unpacks why Georgie wants to ban jumps racing and whip use, and what Racing Australia is doing to improve welfare standards for racehorses. Follow The Briefing: TikTok: @thebriefingpodInstagram: @thebriefingpodcast YouTube: @TheBriefingPodcastFacebook: @LiSTNR Newsroom See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this darkly fascinating episode of The Box of Oddities, Kat and Jethro explore the bizarre world of Victorian starvation contests and the tragic tales of the Starving Brides of Blackpool—young women who became public spectacles in a disturbing blend of endurance, showmanship, and societal obsession with purity. Then, Jethro takes us back to 17th-century England for the unsettling trials of Thomas Hogg and George Spencer, where superstition and Puritanical paranoia turned alleged sin into criminal conviction. Were these men victims of early witch-hunt hysteria—or living symbols of a community's moral panic? Expect laughter in the darkness, uncomfortable truths, and that signature Box of Oddities blend of macabre history, weird culture, and unexpected humor. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

World Health Organisation figures say one in six people are affected by infertility. Fertility Matters at Work, who provide training for fertility support in the workplace, have published a cost analysis. They have explored the economic impact of not providing time off for fertility treatment - not only on those people directly involved in seeking help, but on businesses and the economy more widely. To discuss further, Nuala McGovern is joined by Alice Macdonald, MP for Norwich North, who will be asking MPs if they agree that a legal right should be given to people to take paid time off work to attend medical appointments for fertility treatment, and Natalie Silverman, co-founder of Fertility Matters at Work.Bella Culley was freed by the Tbilisi City Court today. The 19-year-old, who is eight months pregnant, is from Billingham in Teesside. She was arrested at Tbilisi airport after police found drugs in her luggage and had been held in Georgia on drug trafficking charges since May. Before news of her release, Nuala spoke to Rayhan Demytrie, BBC News Caucasus correspondent, outside the court.The case of Luigi Mangione, the man accused of killing US health insurance CEO Brian Thompson, is one of the most closely followed legal cases of recent years. The 26-year old-was arrested in December and accused of shooting Mr Thompson, a father of two, outside a Manhattan hotel. He faces the charges of murder and stalking, charges which Mangione denies. While the case continues, something else has been happening. Mangione has attracted an intense, mostly female online following: people sharing pictures of him, writing letters, posting fan edits and memes, and debating his appearance and behaviour in forensic detail. So why does a man accused of violence become the object of fascination and even desire to some women? And what does that say about the digital age we're living in? Nuala talks to Professor David Wilson, criminologist and former prison governor, and Faye Curran, journalist at The New Statesman, who has immersed herself in Mangione's online fandom.Anyone watching Celebrity Traitors at the moment, or indeed the previous Traitors series, has probably noted Claudia Winkleman's iconic looks that seem to sum up both chilly Scottish castle chic and punk power dressing with a smidge of sinister gothic Victorian melodrama thrown into the mix. Claudia's stylist, Sinead McKeefry, has a huge following online by people keen to pick up tips. The power of social media is such that when items are worn by Claudia and flagged online, it can have quite an impact, as small-business owner Lauren Aston found when one of her designs appeared on the show. She joins Nuala to explain what has happened, as does Alison Lynch, head of content at Good Housekeeping Magazine, who has not only written about the Claudia fashion phenomenon, but has even dressed as Claudia in the Traitors herself for a week.Presenter: Nuala McGovern Producer: Andrea Kidd

Lords: * John * Kevin * https://www.youtube.com/@kevin_hainline Topics: * Asking for help / Dealing with the slightest criticism/suggestions/etc * Roger Rabbit and Marvel vs. Capcom were big deals. How long until multiverse & crossover shit is exciting again? * Update on media that makes me feel things vs. media that doesn't * "Bell's Theorem"", a poem that I wrote, and then, at a poetry reading someone suggested the next poem and it demonstrated how good poets are pretty amazing and I am not a good poet * https://docs.google.com/document/d/1CkNH-KlDCAMRNsI6hDZjlyvOpAgM2TsP8x-lIp5TeqQ/edit?usp=sharing * We're in a golden age of new official localizations and rereleases of old games (and why am I not playing them?!) Microtopics: * Some guy on the internet. * Transparent aluminum ukuleles. * Hurting your fingers because your ukulele action is too high. * Do you still call them cowboy chords when you play them on a ukulele? * An astronomer making a series of Youtube videos about Jurassic Park. * The history of Mr. DNA. * How much kids in the early 90s loved Jamaicans. * Solving a 30 year old Internet mystery. * Suing Michael Crichton to make him put you in the Jurassic Park acknowledgements section. * The Ancient DNA Study Group. * Ian Malcolm just saying a bunch of lines from James Gleick's "Chaos." * Going into slow motion to show all the Victorian era pickpocketing. * Asking an august astronomer to critique your work and squirming as he critiques your work. * Therapy-style processing via Topic Lords. * People who like being asked for help because it gives them an opportunity to help. * The German word for being a person. * Being so overly polite that people feel obligated to reassure you that you don't need to be so polite, which is a big pain. * After someone helps you, asking for clarification on whether they wanted to help or if they felt obligated. * How to save Jim a lot of time and effort. * Two people coming from the same gross Internet soup. (Not 4chan) * The friends you made on the Pokey the Penguin mailing list. * Swearing to kids these days that the internet was good once. * Finding the exact right gif for your animated profile picture. * Pretend socialization: it's still socialization. * Knowing a guy by his Internet handle for decades and suddenly having to call him his birth name. * When crossovers started being a thing. * The Supreme Court ruling that corporations are people, saying the stage for the world depicted in Bio Freaks for the N64. * Daffy and Donald playing rival pianos. * Detective Munch's cameo in Fortnite. * Konami Wai Wai World. * Vib Ribbon n Astro Bot. * Why am I on this show when I could be playing Vib Ribbon? * Burning episodes of Topic Lords to CD-R so you can play them in Vib Ribbon. * Extremely pixelated vector art. * The save the cat moment on Topic Lords. * Mind-blowing crossover media events where the mind-blowing part is how much they paid all the lawyers to negotiate the deal. * Why the indie game scene hadn't produced a League of Extraordinary Gentlemen with public domain characters like Robin Hood, Santa Claus, Mickey Mouse and Abraham Lincoln. * Reagan-Gorbachev. * Which president was kidnapped by ninjas. * Choosing to let the ninjas keep Ronald Reagan. * Ape Out: Get Back In There! * Pushing the left stick to lean and pushing the triggers to lift either foot. * Trying to play a video game in which you dislike the protagonist. * A guy whose defining trait is that he tries to get out of every conversation as quickly as possible. * Playing with the mismatch between what the player wants and what the player character wants. * Upsetting the apple cart of how video games work. * A minimap that takes up the top fifth of the screen but is nonfunctional until you unlock it halfway through the game. * Which Jurassic Park video game is most interesting and which is most fun. * Looking down at your cleavage to see your health meter. * Saying the secret word and screaming real loud. * A poem based on a physics thing. * Forgetting your ex girlfriend's face, along with all the state capitals. * Time pointing an arrow at your back, and you walk. * The New Physicality of Long-Distance Love. * Sending a poet up on the spaceship to drain buckets from downtown. * A poem written sometime between 1936 and 1992. * Off-Topic Lords, a place for people who shout answers at podcasts in grocery stores. * A collection of Double Dragon and Kunio-kun games. * Kid Dracula. * Mother 3's copyright nightmare. * Mario Paint on the Switch 2. * Who was the Terry that Chris Houlihan replaced in Nintendo World Cup? * Satellaview games ported to the Switch. * Batman Loves Him a Parallelogram. * Joining the discord for the best PicoSteveMo experience. * KevinHainlineOnYoutube.com * Naming a distant galaxy after yourself and other astronomers mocking you mercilessly.

It started like any normal night in a quiet London flat — until things began to vanish. First, small items: CDs, jewelry, trinkets. Then, the cold certainty that something unseen was moving between rooms. When one flatmate screamed in terror, the truth revealed itself — a Victorian woman in full 19th-century dress, standing silently behind her.   The spirit of the lady looked directly at her — holding open a book with a secret letter inside, pleading for someone to find it. When morning came, a hollow wall revealed what might have been the ghost's lost fireplace… and her final message. Meanwhile, across the ocean in rural Kentucky, two brothers fishing at night discovered something monstrous lurking in the trees — a massive, brown-furred creature that stalked their home and knocked in rhythmic threes. It wasn't a bear. It wasn't human. And when they threw a Bible at it, the thing fled on two legs. From the haunted parlors of London to the dark woods of Appalachia, these are real encounters that defy explanation — ghosts, cryptids, and the shadows between. #ghoststory #haunting #realghoststories #bigfoot #cryptid #paranormal #hauntedhouse #victorianghost #apparition #scarytales #supernatural #realghoststoriesonline Love real ghost stories? Don't just listen—join us on YouTube and be part of the largest community of real paranormal encounters anywhere. Subscribe now and never miss a chilling new story:

Making a Grade: Victorian Examinations and the Rise of Standardized Testing (U Toronto Press, 2025) takes historiographic and sociological perspectives developed to understand large-scale scientific and technical systems and uses them to highlight the standardization that went into "standardized testing." Starting in the 1850s achievement tests became standardized in the British Isles, and were administered on an industrial scale. By the end of the century more than two million people had written mass exams, particularly in science, technology, and mathematics. Some candidates responded to this standardization by cramming or cheating; others embraced the hope that such tests rewarded not only knowledge but also merit. Written with humour, Making a Grade looks at how standardized testing practices quietly appeared, and then spread worldwide. This book situates mass exams, marks, and credentials in an emerging paper-based meritocracy, arguing that such exams often first appeared as "cameras" to neutrally record achievement, and then became "engines" to change education as people tailored their behaviour to fit these tests. Taking the perspectives of both examiners and examinees, Making a Grade claims that our own culture's desire for accountability through objective testing has a long history. James Elwick is Associate Professor at the Department of Science, Technology and Society, for which he is also Chair. He has written on the history of the life sciences and scientists including John Tyndall, Herbert Spencer, and T.H. Huxley, and is currently writing a history of academic integrity, viewed through the lens of students who cheat on their tests and other school assessments. Jacob Ward is a historian at Maastricht University, the Netherlands. He has written in the history of science and technology, environmental history, business and financial history, and political history. He recently published Visions of a Digital Nation: Market and Monopoly in British Telecommunications (MIT Press, 2024) and he's currently working on a history of futurology in the United Kingdom and Europe from 1945 to the present day. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Laci welcomes Alaska Thunderfuck (RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars Season 2) to discuss a Victorian era beauty influencer who peddled deadly beauty products and was a full-time criminal. Plus, a bride and groom planned a wedding at a venue they didn't own or rent because the Lord told them so. Stay Schemin'! (Originally Released 05/17/2021) CONgregation, catch Laci's TV Show, Scam Goddess, now on Freeform and Hulu!Did you miss out on a custom signed Scam Goddess: Lessons from a Life of Cons, Grifts and Schemes book? Look no more, nab your copy here on PODSWAG Follow on Instagram:Scam Goddess Pod: @scamgoddesspodLaci Mosley: @divalaciAlaska Thunderfuck: @theonlyalaska5000 Research by Sharilyn Vera SOURCES:https://apnews.com/article/bride-groom-crashers-illegal-wedding-130c7270d0d206f61e08f1b197779815https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/who-was-madame-rachel-scamhttps://www.express.co.uk/expressyourself/170084/Victorian-con-artist-Madame-Rachel-Fortune-from-fake-beauty-products Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes of Scam Goddess ad-free and a whole week early. Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

It's a spooky season special! Brittany celebrates Halloween by sharing her family's costume plans, sensory-friendly trick-or-treating hacks for Cruz, and details on her over-the-top Victorian vampire masquerade party. She also opens up about life after her mommy makeover — from recovery and mom guilt to fan questions about surgery, healing, and confidence. Plus, Brittany takes listeners back to her Kentucky roots with ghost stories from her real-life haunted childhood home.

Happy Halloween! Today on Sense of Soul we have Dr Kate Cherrell, she is a writer and broadcaster specialising in paranormal history, 19th-century Spiritualism and British folklore. She is the author of the gothic novel Begotten (2025) and a forthcoming work of non-fiction, Buried England (2026). She writes commercially on supernatural history and has worked with museum and cemetery trusts nationwide. As a paranormal historian, she has co-hosted Haunted Homecoming with Jack Osbourne and Jonathan Ross, Unexplained: Caught on Camera, The Yorkshire Exorcist II and has provided historical expertise on Paranormal: Britain's Last Witch, Weird Britain and Spectre or Spectacle. She received the GPN Top Investigator award in May 2025 for her work in paranormal investigation. She has blogged under the name Burials and Beyond since 2017 and – when not exploring cemeteries or haunted locations – she can usually be found in some dark, dusty corner with a big glass of wine and a good book. She is the author of ‘Begotten' a neo-Victorian novel set in the fictional county of Duncain, spiritualism impacts an Anglo-Irish family. Following the death of her father, Alice Crofton returns to her family's crumbling house, believing she will settle the estate and leave. But nothing in Duncain ever truly leaves. In her absence, spiritualism has gripped the rural county and charismatic mediums have encroached into the household, setting their sights on Alice's family - and her inheritance. Alice tries to hold on to her family and her sanity as hysteria and hauntings take over all she once knew. Written in gothic and ghost story traditions, Begotten's dark - and sometimes humorous - narrative raises questions about the trustworthiness of one's senses and the very nature of ghosts. https://katecherrell.com https://burialsandbeyond.com https://www.facebook.com/burialsandbeyond/ www.instagram.com/burialsandbeyond www.twitter.com/burialsbeyond Book Link: https://www.collectiveinkbooks.com/roundfire-books/our-books/begotten-gothic-novel Visit: www.senseofsoulpodcast.com

In the spring of 2022, Jacke dropped everything to plummet into one of the strangest poems he had ever read, "Goblin Market" by Christina Rossetti (1830-1894). The result was a two-part episode that never quite found its home. In this special Halloween episode, we've combined the best parts of both of those episodes to bring you the full story of an idiosyncratic Victorian poet and her bizarre tale of two sisters seduced by the fruits being sold by a pack of river goblins. Enjoy! Join Jacke on a trip through literary England (signup closing soon)! The History of Literature Podcast Tour is happening in May 2026! Act now to join Jacke and fellow literature fans on an eight-day journey through literary England in partnership with ⁠⁠⁠⁠John Shors Travel⁠⁠⁠⁠. Scheduled stops include The Charles Dickens Museum, Dr. Johnson's house, Jane Austen's Bath, Tolkien's Oxford, Shakespeare's Globe Theater, and more. Find out more by emailing jackewilsonauthor@gmail.com or masahiko@johnshorstravel.com, or by contacting us through our website ⁠⁠⁠⁠historyofliterature.com⁠⁠⁠⁠. Or visit the ⁠⁠⁠⁠History of Literature Podcast Tour itinerary⁠⁠⁠⁠ at ⁠⁠⁠⁠John Shors Travel⁠⁠⁠⁠. Help support the show at ⁠⁠⁠⁠patreon.com/literature ⁠⁠⁠⁠or ⁠⁠⁠⁠historyofliterature.com/donate ⁠⁠⁠⁠. The History of Literature Podcast is a member of Lit Hub Radio and the Podglomerate Network. Learn more at ⁠⁠⁠⁠thepodglomerate.com/historyofliterature⁠⁠⁠. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In 1656, Croatian stonemason Jure Grando was buried alive after defying powerful monks, only to rise from his grave and terrorize his village for sixteen years—knocking on doors that meant death would soon follow, violating his widow night after night, and when villagers finally opened his coffin in 1672, they found him grinning with tears streaming down his face, immune to wooden stakes, screaming as they sawed through his neck in what became Europe's first documented case of vampirism.Support our Halloween “Overcoming the Darkness” campaign to help people with depression: https://weirddarkness.com/HOPEIN THIS EPISODE: Before Dracula ever set foot in Transylvania, the village of Kringa, Croatia, was haunted by Jure Grando—the first recorded vampire in European history. For sixteen years, his undead reign brought terror to the living and torment to his widow. But when the villagers finally rose against him, they unearthed a horror beyond imagination. (Jure Grando: The First Vampire) *** For nearly a millennium, a monstrous black dog with eyes like burning coals has stalked the foggy coastlines and ancient churches of East Anglia, leaving death and terror in its silent wake. From its first recorded appearance in 1127 where it led a spectral hunting party through Peterborough, to its most infamous attack in 1577 when it allegedly killed four churchgoers, the creature known as Black Shuck has become far more than just another ghost story. Through centuries of sightings and evolving folklore, this massive demon hound has transformed from a Viking guardian spirit into one of Britain's most enduring legends - one that some locals insist still prowls the shadows of Norfolk and Suffolk to this day. (Black Shuck: East Anglia's Demon Hound) *** In 1857 London, the Bacon family's home became the center of supernatural chaos when mysterious sounds and flying objects drew crowds of over a thousand spectators to their modest Bermondsey residence. But when thirteen-year-old Caroline confessed to creating the ghostly disturbances using strands of hair to topple objects, her deception was revealed as an act of rebellion against her father and new stepmother. This tale of a fake haunting offers a poignant glimpse into Victorian family dynamics and the desperate measures one girl took to assert her independence. (The Bermondsey Poltergeist) *** In October 1975, what began as a late-night drive for two young men in rural Maine turned into an encounter that would haunt them forever. David Stephens had no memory of being taken aboard a massive UFO by mushroom-headed beings until months later, when hypnosis sessions revealed the terrifying truth about the hours he lost that night – an experience so profound that it would drive his friend Glen to flee the state and change both their lives forever. (Night of the Mushroom Men) *** Could the Moon's perfect positioning—exactly 400 times smaller than the Sun and precisely placed for total eclipses—be more than cosmic coincidence? Authors Christopher Knight and Alan Butler propose a mind-bending theory: that future humans (or their advanced robots) traveled back in time 4.6 billion years to construct the Moon, creating the exact conditions needed for life on Earth to emerge. Their provocative hypothesis suggests we might be caught in an infinite loop, with humanity traveling to the past to ensure its own creation, much like the ancient symbol of Ouroboros—a snake eternally consuming its own tail. (Did Time Travelers Build The Moon?)CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…00:00:00.000 = Lead-In00:01:30.774 = Show Intro00:05:48.071 = Jure Grando: The First Vampire00:16:50.110 = ***The Bermondsey Poltergeist00:29:33.917 = Black Shuck: East Anglia's Demon Hound00:45:53.712 = ***Night of the Mushroom Men00:52:53.165 = Did Time Travelers Build The Moon?01:03:18.763 = Show Close*** = Begins immediately after inserted ad breakSOURCES and RESOURCES:“Jure Grando: The First Vampire” sources: Husain Sumra, Medium: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/ykfdupbh; Wu Mingren, Ancient Origins: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/2p8n3k68; Secret Dalmatia: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/y69r8e4k; Total Croatia News: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/yckt77m2“Black Shuck: East Anglia's Demon Hound” sources: William De Long, All That's Interesting:https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/cyts9syd; Max Darbyshire, The Shoe Box: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/mryw3kr9“The Bermondsey Poltergeist” source: Karen Ellis-Rees, London Overlooked: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/3bzvsu52“Did Time Travelers Build The Moon” sources: Marcus Lowth, UFO Insight: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/2p9686wm, Donald B. DeYoung, Institute for Creation Research: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/2p98w7et“Night of the Mushroom Men” source: TheNightSkyii.org: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/ymnmpadc=====(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.)= = = = ="I have come into the world as a light, so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness." — John 12:46= = = = =WeirdDarkness® is a registered trademark. Copyright ©2025, Weird Darkness.=====Originally aired: November 18, 2024EPISODE PAGE (includes sources): https://weirddarkness.com/JureGrandoABOUT WEIRD DARKNESS: Weird Darkness is a true crime and paranormal podcast narrated by professional award-winning voice actor, Darren Marlar. Seven days per week, Weird Darkness focuses on all thing strange and macabre such as haunted locations, unsolved mysteries, true ghost stories, supernatural manifestations, urban legends, unsolved or cold case murders, conspiracy theories, and more. On Thursdays, this scary stories podcast features horror fiction along with the occasional creepypasta. Weird Darkness has been named one of the “Best 20 Storytellers in Podcasting” by Podcast Business Journal. Listeners have described the show as a cross between “Coast to Coast” with Art Bell, “The Twilight Zone” with Rod Serling, “Unsolved Mysteries” with Robert Stack, and “In Search Of” with Leonard Nimoy.DISCLAIMER: Ads heard during the podcast that are not in my voice are placed by third party agencies outside of my control and should not imply an endorsement by Weird Darkness or myself. *** Stories and content in Weird Darkness can be disturbing for some listeners and intended for mature audiences only. Parental discretion is strongly advised.#WeirdDarkness #JureGrando #FirstVampire #RealVampireStories #CroatianVampire #VampireFolklore #HistoricalVampires #BeforeDracula #TrueParanormalStories #DarkHistory

From ghostly prankster to urban legend, Spring-Heeled Jack terrorized Victorian London with blue flames, metallic claws, and impossible rooftop leaps—so much so that a Ripper-era letter in 1888 claimed his name. This Short Suck traces the 1838 panic through hoaxes, aristocratic “bets,” and mass hysteria to ask what Jack revealed about a rapidly modernizing empire's fears. Along the way, we connect the legend's cultural footprint to later monsters—think Dracula—and even to cape-and-cowl vigilantes.For Merch and everything else Bad Magic related, head to: https://www.badmagicproductions.com  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.