What It Was Like
Conversations with people who have lived through extreme events. Some stories are dark and twisted, others are light and funny. In all cases, we get an intimate portrait of 'what it was like' to be there. Find us on TikTok: @whatitwaslikepodcast Find us on Youtube: @whatitwaslikepodcast Follow us on Instagram: whatitwaslikepodcast Hosted by Julian Morgans This is a Superreal production Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episodes
In 2022, Samantha Stites was abducted by Christopher Thomas, a man who’d been stalking her for 13 years and had secretly built a soundproof bunker to imprison her. In this episode, Samantha shares how she escaped and what the ordeal taught her about survival.
Support Samantha's initiative to protect victims of stalking and domestic violence: Beekeepers Advocacy
Find us on TikTok: @whatitwaslikepodcast
Thomas Hargrove was an investigative reporter when he had an idea: use open-source FBI data to spot patterns in unsolved murders. That idea became an algorithm that highlights locations where serial killers might be operating. In this episode, Thomas talks us through the cases it’s uncovered and why data can reveal what people miss.
Visit Thomas' organisation the Murder Accountability Project at www.murderdata.org.
In 2001, Detective Hugh Lockerby found a woman and two children murdered inside a burning home in Scottsdale, Arizona. The missing husband, Robert William Fisher, became the prime suspect and has sat on the top of the FBI's most wanted list for 24 years. Lockerby explains why he believes Fisher is alive and why he can't let this case go.
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High in the Himalayas lies Roopkund Lake: a frozen pond surrounded by the remains of around 700 people. Were they victims of an ancient disaster, a lost army, or something stranger? We speak with anthropologist William Sax and geneticist Éadaoin Harney to unravel one of India’s most haunting archaeological mysteries.
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At 35, Gregory Smith walked into the rainforest of northern NSW, addicted, lost, and ready to disappear. He spent the next decade living as a hermit. When he finally walked out, he got sober, went to university, and built a new life. We talk about how nature can strip you bare before healing you.
Check out Dr. Gregory Smith's website and charity.
Find us on TikTok: @whatitwaslikepodcast
You might’ve seen 'Woman of the Hour' on Netflix but this is the real story. In 1979, a 12-year-old girl vanished from Huntington Beach and Detective Craig Robison was assigned to the case. He tells us how he tracked down her killer, a man who had already murdered at least seven women, and how they eventually identified him on national TV as a dating show contestant.
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This week we're re-running a favourite episode. In 1985, a 17-year-old girl named Shari Smith was abducted from her driveway and the family's phone started to ring. It was the kidnapper, his voice electronically distorted. He called repeatedly and it fell on Shari's 21-year-old sister Dawn to answer. In this episode, Dawn Smith Jordan recalls what she learned that week about her her sister's courage and her own resilience.
Today, we’re speaking with a man who lost his foot in a motorcycle accident and then served it to 10 friends for brunch. It’s a conversation about curiosity, taboos—and yes, we ask the question you want to know: what does human meat actually taste like?
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In 2004, a man named Marvin Heemeyer turned a bulldozer into a homemade tank and tore through Granby, Colorado, targeting people he believed had wronged him. One was local newspaper editor Patrick Brower, who barely escaped as the “Killdozer” demolished his office. Patrick recalls the rampage and what it revealed to him about vigilante revenge.
For more of Patrick's story, check out his book Killdozer: The True Story of the...
Chris Smith started experimenting with ChatGPT in 2024 and quickly became hooked. Soon he’d customised the chatbot into a flirty persona he named “Sol.” What began as curiosity evolved into a full-blown romantic relationship. One that nearly derailed his real-life partnership. In this episode, Chris opens up about how his AI “affair” began, why it became so intense, and how it affected his family.
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Jill Dodd was a 21-year-old model when she started dating one of the world's richest men. Adnan Khashoggi made billions selling arms to Saudi Arabia and lived in mansions, superyachts, and among an entourage of women. Jill tells what it was like to live inside that fairy tale and the hidden costs that it entailed.
Check out Jill's memoir: The Currency of Love: A Courageous Journey to Finding the Love Within
In the late 1980s, Steve was a teenage firefighter in a small Australian coastal town. Lonely and looking for connection, he discovered that if he lit a fire in the nearby national park, he could impress the other firefighters by being the first on the scene. In this ep, Steve explains how getting caught and charged with arson saved his life, and possibly countless others.
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On September 11, 2001, Stanley Praimnath was on the top floor of the South Tower when he saw the second plane heading straight for his office. Against impossible odds, he survived and became one of a tiny number of people to escape from above the impact zone. In this 9/11 anniversary episode, Stanley recounts what it was like to be at the top of the World Trade Centre that morning.
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With Brad Pitt back in the spotlight thanks to F1, we’re revisiting a classic episode from 2022. Casting director Lauren Lloyd recalls meeting a young, pimply Pitt in the 1980s and instantly knowing he’d become a star. In this episode, we unpack the making of Brad Pitt as an actor and as a Hollywood institution. Stay listening at the end for a sneak peek of this week's subscriber bonus episode.
Find us on TikTok: @whatitwas...
In 2003, a Wall Street trader named John Rusnak was convicted of bank fraud and sentenced to more than seven years in prison. In this episode, John explains how a series of bad bets snowballed into one of the biggest white-collar crimes in US history and why he kept doubling down.
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A family moves into a new home in rural Pennsylvania and starts renovating. Only there's something in the walls that doesn't make sense. What they uncover upends their lives and reveals a fascinating piece of America’s history.
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This is a Superreal production
In 2009, motivational speaker James Arthur Ray hosted a multi-day retreat in Arizona. On the final day, three participants died. In this episode, the property’s owner, Amayra Hamilton, tells us what happened and what she learned about the dark side of the wellness industry.
For more, please check out Amayra's book: Transformation at Angel Valley
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For decades, David Magna worked as a safety supervisor in Canadian slaughterhouses. But then a crisis of conscience turned him from an industry insider to vegan activist. In this episode, we tackle the thing most people would rather ignore: what really goes on inside the meat industry—all through the lens of David’s personal journey.
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As a child, April Balascio noticed that people would often vanish. One time it was a labourer working for her dad, another time it was a young couple in town. Then as an adult, April started googling cold cases in her childhood towns. In 2009 she got a match and called the police. In this episode, April shares the journey of realising (and accepting) her dad was a serial killer.
Check out April's incredible memoir, Rai...
In 1995, Carlos de Yarza spent 90 minutes remixing a catchy Spanish song without giving it much thought. That version became 'The Macarena' the world knows today. Carlos joins us to talk about how a quick remix changed his life and created a dance craze known everywhere.
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