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September 30, 2024 77 mins

19th Century spiritualism is at the heart of this episode which we'll explore through the exploits of a Biggleswade medium who believed he was in direct contact with the spirit of William Shakespeare. John Francis Hunt, who we met in the previous episode, was an extraordinary man, he pursued justice, sought out buried treasure and was a constant correspondent with the newspapers, the social media of his day. 

We'll explore spiritualism's roots in A

merica with the Fox sisters. How spiritualism became a kind of culture war in the mid 19th century as well visiting an 1875 séance held in Bedford and described by the press as bogus.

There's also a brief update at the end of the episode about Weird in the Wade's win of Gold for best history podcast at the British Podcast Awards! 

Find show notes and further reading on the blog at weirdinthewade.blog 

Support Weird in the Wade and get exclusive bonus episodes every month by joining Team Weird on Patreon. patreon.com/WeirdintheWade

Find us on social media at: https://linktr.ee/weirdinthewade

Weird in the Wade is researched, written, presented and produced by Nat Doig

Joint cracking in this episode provided by Jason Doig, Tess Savigear and David Stephenson

Theme music by Tess Savigear

All additional sound effects and music from Epidemic Sound. 

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