Our Curious Past

Our Curious Past

Our Curious Past features fascinating, mysterious and moving tales from history.

Episodes

30: Two Years in Isolation: The Biosphere 2 Saga

May 24, 2024 • 37 mins

Get ready for an amazing yet totally true adventure from the 1990s, when on a warm Arizona morning, four men and four women left the earths atmosphere…and did not return for 2 years and 20 minutes.

Yet their feet never left the ground.

This is the incredible story of Biosphere 2, a bold and controversial American experiment to see if human beings could survive in a sealed environment. If they could, then perhaps we might b...

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29: Tears on the Dance floor: The Tragic Love and Heartbreaking Fate of Lavinia Schulz & Walter Holdt

March 15, 2024 • 30 mins

A unique couple meet in 1920s Germany, and fall in love. Their relationship is fiery, but they become famous dancers, dazzling audiences in Germany…

Yet their commitment to their art will lead them both to a heartbreaking tragedy.

I’m Peter Laws and tonight I give you ‘Tears on the Dancefloor: The Tragic Love and Heartbreaking fate of Lavinia Schulz & Walter Holdt.

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28: Crashed In The Amazon Jungle: The Astonishing 40 Day Search for Four Lost Children

March 1, 2024 • 23 mins

A plane crashes into the Amazon Jungle, on board are four terrified children who somehow survive the wreck. But their ordeal has only just begun. I’m Peter Laws and tonight on Our Curious Past we explore ‘Crashed in the Amazon Jungle: The Astonishing 40 Day Search for Four Lost Children’.

Visit me online,

To learn more details on this remarkable story, do check out my main source, this excellent and lengthy article by Will...

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27: Guided by Spirits? The Strange Case of the Snettisham Ghosts

February 2, 2024 • 29 mins

A woman moves into a house known to be haunted and one night encounters ghosts who tell her to visit a small village in England. When she gets there, she finds that everything the spirits have told her, comes true.

Was this a hoax, or did she have an authentic encounter with the supernatural like mane researchers into the case claim.

I’m Peter Laws and tonight on our Curious Past we dive into spooky supernatural encounter ...

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Welcome to Our Curious Past

January 12, 2024 • 1 min
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26: The Man Who Legally Killed 55 Men & Women Single Handedly

January 5, 2024 • 31 mins
Chavoret Jaruboon was paid by the Thai prison service, to single-handedly kill 55 people. That’s 54 men, and one woman. He did this during his 19 year career at the notorious Bang Kwang Prison, aka the Bangkok Hilton. In Thailand, he was best known as ‘The Last Executioner’ before they switched over to lethal injection. But up to that point, Chavoret’s job was to carry out each killing with a submachine gun. What were th...
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    25: The Final Witness: Can a Murder Victims Eyeballs Reveal Their Killer?

    December 8, 2023 • 23 mins
    In the late 1800s, the worlds of biology, photography and criminology came together to ask a tantalising question….might the human retina retain the final image a person sees before death…If so, with careful examination of the eyeball, surely this was a sure fire way of solving every murder…because the killers image would be imprinted in the victims eyes…if only investigators discovered the body within 24 hours. Tonight, ...
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    24: Crop Circles, Boardgames and The KLF

    November 24, 2023 • 22 mins
    In the summer of 1990, Operation Blackbird was launched, to investigate the curious (and then growing) appearances of Crop Circles across the world. These mysterious, geometric shapes would appear in crops, prompting some to claim UFOs were at work, and others to cry 'hoax'. On the second night of Operation Blackbird, researchers were excited to see a crop circle emerge…but when they examined closer, the plot thickened. T...
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    Maze of Secrets

    October 27, 2023 • 87 mins
    ...1 eerie corn maze... ...9 haunting figures... ...9 spine-tingling tales... ...Will YOU find your way out? This holiday season, step into a labyrinth of shadows and suspense with Shane Waters as your guide. In this chilling collaboration, you'll encounter the hosts of 9 acclaimed true crime podcasts, each offering a dark tale and a life lesson to send shivers down your spine. This is not just a special episode; it's an i...
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    23: The Strange Story of ’The Toronto Blessing’

    September 29, 2023 • 27 mins
    On January 20th, 1994, the congregation in The Toronto Airport Vineyard Church stood to pray…then all 120 of them fell to the floor, convulsing with tears of joy and uncontrollable laughter. It happened again the next night and the next. It carried on almost every night…for twelve years. Word spread across the world that God was at work, yet critics were horrified to see believers rolling in the aisles and roaring like ani...
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    22: The Curious History of the Ouija Board

    August 18, 2023 • 37 mins
    I made a Ouija board in woodwork at school. Some of my friends said I was messing with evil but my teacher didn’t seem that bothered. Who had the right approach? Join me as I explore the life story of the ‘talking board’, which was wildly popular in the early 1900s, until something happened that would tarnish it’s reputation for good. This is the Curious History of the Ouija Board. Note: This episode has three bonus se...
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    21: The Man Who Stole Albert Einstein’s Brain

    July 21, 2023 • 29 mins
    Albert Einstein was one of the most influential physicists of the 20th century. This Nobel Prize winning scientist famously developed the ground-breaking theory of relativity, and helped reshape our understanding of modern physics. He was such an advanced thinker that the world was in awe of his mind. Tonight, we will learn that this obsession would not stop with his death…far from it. Because for one doctor, it would be...
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    20: Thomas(ine) Hall - The Remarkable Life of an Intersex Person in 16th Century Virginia

    June 8, 2023 • 22 mins
    One of the most controversial topics in our culture today…is gender identity. In that debate people often say that ‘gender confusion’ is a modern phenomena, and that up until recently, it’s always been very clear a person can only ever be male or female There are, however, intriguing examples from history of people whose gender has caused confusion to others, and even lead to a court case. We see this in the fascinating ...
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    Deadly Devotion: Motherhood and Mayhem, Part 2

    May 10, 2023 • 76 mins
    [Part 2] This Mother’s Day, join Shane Waters on a chilling adventure featuring 14 podcasters as they share sinister stories of motherhood. Mother’s Day is typically a time to honor the love and sacrifices of mothers, but today we’ll be exploring the twisted tales that lurk behind the shadows.  It’s an extra special, two parts, more than two-hour, Mother’s Day event.  Podcasts are listed here in order of appearance: ...
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    Deadly Devotion: Motherhood and Mayhem, Part 1

    May 9, 2023 • 70 mins
    This Mother’s Day, join Shane Waters on a chilling adventure featuring 14 podcasters as they share sinister stories of motherhood. Mother’s Day is typically a time to honor the love and sacrifices of mothers, but today we’ll be exploring the twisted tales that lurk behind the shadows.  It’s an extra special, two parts, more than two-hour, Mother’s Day event.  Podcasts are listed here in order of appearance: Part 1:
  • ...
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    19: The Lady From the Black Lagoon: Milicent Patrick and the Sexism of Hollywood

    April 14, 2023 • 17 mins
    When it comes to the monster movies of classic Hollywood, we might picture Frankenstein's creature, The Wolfman or Dracula…but alongside them we often see another monster that had a huge impact on the pop culture of that era: The Creature from the Black Lagoon, with a stunning design by Universal Studios make-up artist Bud Westmore…but as the decades rolled by, a scandalous ommission became evident. That Westmore did not d...
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    Deceptions & Resurrections, Part 2

    April 4, 2023 • 68 mins
    This Easter, join Shane Waters on a whimsical adventure featuring 13 podcasters as they share true stories of con artists and fake deaths. Delve into the magical world of the Enchanted Easterlands, where you’ll encounter peculiar characters and captivating true crime tales. Discover the history and origins of Easter, and experience a journey like no other.  It’s an extra special, two part, more than two-hour, Easter even...
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    Deceptions & Resurrections, Part 1

    April 3, 2023 • 72 mins
    This Easter, join Shane Waters on a whimsical adventure featuring 13 podcasters as they share true stories of con artists and fake deaths. Delve into the magical world of the Enchanted Easterlands, where you’ll encounter peculiar characters and captivating true crime tales. Discover the history and origins of Easter, and experience a journey like no other.  It’s an extra special, two part, more than two-hour, Easter even...
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    18: Murder in Paris...by Hypnotism? The Strange Case of Alexandre-Toussain Goufee

    March 17, 2023 • 23 mins
    A Parisian widower is lured to an apartment, with the promise of sex with Gabrielle Bompah. Hers is the last face he will see…but was she responsible for the killing, or did hypnotism drive her to it. Set against a growing debate in French psychiatry at the time, this is a murder case that would change the law of France… I’m Peter Laws, and today on Our Curious Past we explore Muder in Paris…by Hypnotism? The Strange Cas...
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    17: Was Fashion Model and Author Candy Jones a victim of CIA Mind Control?

    February 17, 2023 • 32 mins
    It’s New Years Eve, 1970, and in a lavish apartment block in New York City radio presenter 'Long' John Nebel gets married to the highly successful fashion model and entrepreneur, Candy Jones. Yet, during the reception Candy starts acting strangely, changing her posture and speaking in a lower voice. When it keeps happening, Nebel tries to hypnotise her…and his horrified at what he learns. Was his new wife Candy Jones, ...
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