Ep 29: Admiral Benbow Penzance: Haunted Pubs in Cornwall, Smuggler Tunnels & Peepholes

Ep 29: Admiral Benbow Penzance: Haunted Pubs in Cornwall, Smuggler Tunnels & Peepholes

Grab your eye patches, hide your contraband, and try your absolute best to ignore the eyeballs watching you from the woodwork, because this week our paranormal and true crime podcast is heading straight to the southwest coast of England. We are doing a massive historic deep dive into one of the most famous haunted pubs in Cornwall: the legendary Admiral Benbow Penzance on Chapel Street. While literature nerds know this exact tavern as the iconic opening inspiration for Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic Treasure Island, we are looking at the building through a much more judgmental lens. We unpack the actual history of the "Benbow Brandy Men"—the local 18th-century criminal gang that utilized an extensive labyrinth of secret smuggler tunnels snaking entirely underneath Chapel Street straight to the Penzance harbour to dodge the tax collectors. We also break down the verified hauntings, the spectral activity, and the ghost of the lady in white roaming the property. But the absolute star of the episode is our official safety and privacy critique of the pub's interior architecture. We look inside the bar to investigate the historic, deeply unsettling lookout points—literal peepholes built directly into the walls so pirates could keep an eye out for the local authorities. We discuss the sheer psychological horror of trying to enjoy a quiet pint of cider while a sweaty, 17th-century criminal is hiding inside the actual drywall insulation, staring directly at the back of your head. Grab a drink, check the corners of the room, and join us for a wildly funny slice of haunted UK history! Share your stories with us so we can read them during Listener Week!   @thecoldspotconfessions@gmail.com Instagram - The_Cold_Spot_Confessions  https://www.instagram.com/the_cold_spot_confessions?utm_source=qr&igsh=aTBsejd2b3k2Ynpv [https://www.instagram.com/the_cold_spot_confessions?utm_source=qr&igsh=aTBsejd2b3k2Ynpv] Tiktok - The Cols Spot Confessions Podcast https://www.tiktok.com/@the.cold.spot.con.pod?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc  Facebook - The Cold Spot Confessions Podcast  https://www.facebook.com/share/1KjTVh7t51/ [https://www.facebook.com/share/1KjTVh7t51/]

Ep 28: Thames Torso Murders (1800s vs 2000s): London’s River Mysteries and Moving Letters

Grab your life jackets and a dictionary, because this week our UK true crime podcast is bypassing the mainstream media distractions to jump straight into the deep end of London's most baffling river mysteries: The Thames Torso Murders. We are unlocking a massive, comparative serial killer deep dive spanning two completely different centuries of unsolved British crime. First, we head back to the late 1880s to break down a series of highly calculated, anonymous cold cases where dismembered remains kept washing up along the muddy banks of the River Thames, completely humiliating Scotland Yard. Then, we fast-forward all the way to 2001 to look at a chillingly similar modern London serial killer mystery, breaking down how forensic science tried to piece together a case that perfectly echoed the city's dark, historic past. But let's be entirely honest—the most chaotic crime scene this week is right inside the studio (vikkis front room). It is a certified, weapons-grade high-dyslexia day for your hosts. The words on the script are actively running a marathon, the alphabet is playing musical chairs, and attempting to pronounce basic British street names has devolved into absolute comedic ruins. Grab a drink, brace your ears for some premium comedy true crime linguistic disasters, and let's try to survive some true crime podcast history! Share your stories with us so we can read them during Listener Week!   @thecoldspotconfessions@gmail.com Instagram - The_Cold_Spot_Confessions  https://www.instagram.com/the_cold_spot_confessions?utm_source=qr&igsh=aTBsejd2b3k2Ynpv [https://www.instagram.com/the_cold_spot_confessions?utm_source=qr&igsh=aTBsejd2b3k2Ynpv] Tiktok - The Cols Spot Confessions Podcast https://www.tiktok.com/@the.cold.spot.con.pod?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc  Facebook - The Cold Spot Confessions Podcast  https://www.facebook.com/share/1KjTVh7t51/ [https://www.facebook.com/share/1KjTVh7t51/]

Ep 27: H.H. Holmes Murder Castle: Kidnapping, Fraud, and Bad Santa’s Acid Baths

Hide your kids, lock up your insurance policies, and guard your skeletons, because this week our true crime podcast is doing a welfare check on the absolute worst businessman of the 19th century. We are unleashing a massive H.H. Holmes serial killer deep dive to look inside the absolute architectural fever dream that was the Chicago Murder Castle. Most comedy true crime podcasts will tell you he was a criminal genius, but we are exposing him as a wildly chaotic serial fraudster who desperately needed a hobby. We break down the construction of his hotel, his custom gas chamber vaults, and his horrific business plan of hiring builders to construct a secret maze and firing them before payday just so he wouldn't have to fork over any cash. Talk about a toxic boss. It gets even more unhinged as we dive into his multi-state life insurance scams. We unpack how his entire empire of lies collapsed alongside his side hustle as a weird entrepreneur—specifically his macro-economy strategy of bleaching bodies in acid baths to sell clean bones directly to local medical schools. To top it all off, we officially crown him the ultimate Bad Santa because he apparently decided December was the prime month for a festive holiday homicide spree. Grab a drink, lock your doors, and join us for a wildly chaotic roast of America's first con-artist monster! Share your stories with us so we can read them during Listener Week!   @thecoldspotconfessions@gmail.com Instagram - The_Cold_Spot_Confessions  https://www.instagram.com/the_cold_spot_confessions?utm_source=qr&igsh=aTBsejd2b3k2Ynpv [https://www.instagram.com/the_cold_spot_confessions?utm_source=qr&igsh=aTBsejd2b3k2Ynpv] Tiktok - The Cols Spot Confessions Podcast https://www.tiktok.com/@the.cold.spot.con.pod?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc  Facebook - The Cold Spot Confessions Podcast  https://www.facebook.com/share/1KjTVh7t51/ [https://www.facebook.com/share/1KjTVh7t51/]

Ep 26: The False Prophet Samuel Bateman (Pt. 2) & Spilling the Pol-Tea-Geist!

The traps are set, the cameras are rolling, and the mouse is about to snap. Welcome back to Part 2 of our massive deep-dive into the wild world of Netflix’s Trust Me: The False Prophet. Last week, we set the stage with the origins of FLDS splinter cult leader Samuel Bateman and the accidental undercover sting operation cooked up by Christine Marie and Tolga Katas. This week, it’s time for the grand finale. We are breaking down exactly how Bateman’s massive ego completely blinded him to the fact that his "Hollywood documentary crew" was actually building an airtight federal case right under his nose. We go over the chaotic raids, the dramatic FBI takedown, and the incredible bravery of the survivors who broke free from Short Creek. But stick around after the cult collapse, because we are pulling up a chair and brewing a fresh pot for a highly classified Pol-tea-geist session. We have been sitting on a massive, secret for weeks, and it is finally time to spill the tea with the class. Grab a drink, brace yourselves, and let's close the book on a false prophet! Share your stories with us so we can read them during Listener Week!   @thecoldspotconfessions@gmail.com Instagram - The_Cold_Spot_Confessions  https://www.instagram.com/the_cold_spot_confessions?utm_source=qr&igsh=aTBsejd2b3k2Ynpv [https://www.instagram.com/the_cold_spot_confessions?utm_source=qr&igsh=aTBsejd2b3k2Ynpv] Tiktok - The Cols Spot Confessions Podcast https://www.tiktok.com/@the.cold.spot.con.pod?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc  Facebook - The Cold Spot Confessions Podcast  https://www.facebook.com/share/1KjTVh7t51/ [https://www.facebook.com/share/1KjTVh7t51/]

Ep 25: The False Prophet Samuel Bateman (Pt. 1): Warren Jeffs and the Accidental Spy Sub

Put on your oversized sunglasses and blend into the background, because this week we are kicking off a massive two-part deep-dive into one of the most wild true crime docuseries on television: Netflix’s Trust Me: The False Prophet. In Part 1, we are looking at the origins of self-proclaimed FLDS cult leader Samuel Bateman. We unpack his childhood, his history within the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, and the massive leadership vacuum left behind when the notorious Warren Jeffs went to prison.  But the real stars of this episode are cult psychology expert Christine Marie and her filmmaker husband Tolga Katas. We break down how this dynamic duo originally moved to Short Creek just to help out with a local flood, but ended up pulling off the ultimate undercover operation—using Bateman's own massive ego against him by filming a "documentary" that was secretly building a federal case. Grab a drink, lock your doors, and get ready for part one of a masterclass in how to accidentally spy on a cult. Share your stories with us so we can read them during Listener Week!   @thecoldspotconfessions@gmail.com Instagram - The_Cold_Spot_Confessions  https://www.instagram.com/the_cold_spot_confessions?utm_source=qr&igsh=aTBsejd2b3k2Ynpv [https://www.instagram.com/the_cold_spot_confessions?utm_source=qr&igsh=aTBsejd2b3k2Ynpv] Tiktok - The Cols Spot Confessions Podcast https://www.tiktok.com/@the.cold.spot.con.pod?is_from_webapp=1&sender_device=pc  Facebook - The Cold Spot Confessions Podcast  https://www.facebook.com/share/1KjTVh7t51/ [https://www.facebook.com/share/1KjTVh7t51/]