THE LIVING WHO HUNTED THE DEAD: A True History of Vampire Slayers

There’s something deeply unsettling about the idea that your dead neighbor might climb out of their grave at night and knock on your door. But for communities across Europe and America throughout history, this wasn’t just a scary story – it was a genuine fear that drove them to take drastic action.

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IN THIS EPISODE: Throughout centuries, ordinary people became vampire slayers when mysterious deaths plagued their communities, armed with stakes, shovels, and a terrifying determination to stop the undead.
CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)…
00:00:00.000 = Lead-In
00:03:27.944 = Show Open
00:05:32.271 = Part One: When Governments Hunted Vampires
00:21:37.443 = Part Two: Born To Hunt The Dead
00:38:00.129 = Part Three: The Science of Hunting Vampires
= Show Close
SOURCES AND RESOURCES FROM THE EPISODE…
Real Vampire Slayers: https://weirddarkness.com/real-vampire-slayers/
=====(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: September 23, 2025
EPISODE PAGE at WeirdDarkness.com (includes list of sources): https://weirddarkness.com/RealVampireSlayers
ABOUT 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.
#VampireHunters #RealVampires #TrueHistory #WeirdDarkness #VampirePanic
NOTE: Some of this content may have been created with assistance from AI tools, but it has been reviewed, edited, narrated, produced, and approved by Darren Marlar, creator and host of Weird Darkness — who, despite popular conspiracy theories, is NOT an AI voice.