MonsterTalk

S05E33 - The Devil Went Down to Devon

On the morning of February 9, 1855, residents across south Devon, England, discovered strange hoof-shaped tracks in the snow. The prints - about 4 inches long, 3 inches wide, and spaced roughly 8 inches apart in single file - appeared to have been left by a biped with a donkey-like hoof. Reports came in from more than 30 locations across the county. Within days, the Illustrated London News published a letter from a correspondent calling himself "South Devon" that would define the legend for generations: a continuous 100-mile trail, identical prints in every parish, passage over rooftops and through haystacks, a crossing of the two-mile-wide River Exe. The Devil, some locals whispered, had walked through Devon. In this episode, Blake, Karen, and Matt dig into the original sources, trace how the story was embellished over 170 years of retelling, and examine the many theories - from wood mice to Romani conspiracies - that have been offered to explain the Great Devon Mystery.  EXTENSIVE show notes at https://monstertalk.org Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support [https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss]. Some product links may be affiliated with Amazon revenue sharing.

S05E32 - Monsters of the Deep with Dr. Darren Naish

Darren joins Blake and Karen to discuss his new article in Geology Today, which grew out of his work on the Monsters of the Deep museum exhibition. That exhibition originally opened at the National Maritime Museum in Falmouth, Cornwall in 2020, traveled to two additional venues, and most recently ran at the Aberdeen Art Gallery in Scotland. Darren describes how each venue's unique architecture required a complete redesign of the exhibition, changing both the visual layout and the narrative flow. Extensive show notes at monstertalk.org [https://www.monstertalk.org/s05e32-monsters-of-the-deep-with-dr-darren-naish/] Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support [https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss]. Some product links may be affiliated with Amazon revenue sharing.

S05E31 - From Loup Garou to Rougarou (pt 2) with Louisiana Dread's Kyle Crosby

This is part two of our conversation with Kyle Crosby, creator and host of Louisiana Dread [https://www.louisianadread.com]. In Part 1, we covered the history of the Acadians and how they carried the loup-garou [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loup-garou] legend from France to the bayous of Louisiana. Now, in Part 2, Kyle walks us through the transformation of the loup-garou into the Rougarou [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rougarou] - from strict werewolf to all-purpose shapeshifting boogeyman - and takes us on a tour of Louisiana's other legendary creatures, from the Axeman of New Orleans [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Axeman_of_New_Orleans] to the feu follet to the Grunch. Extensive show notes at MonsterTalk.org [https://www.monstertalk.org/?p=2987] Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support [https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss]. Some product links may be affiliated with Amazon revenue sharing.

S05E30 - From Loup Garou to Rougarou with Louisiana Dread's Kyle Crosby

This is part one of a two-part conversation. Blake and Karen are joined by Kyle Crosby, filmmaker, historian, and founder of Louisiana Dread [https://www.louisianadread.com], a multimedia project dedicated to documenting the dark history, folklore, and culture of the Pelican State. Kyle is a native of Larose, Louisiana, who grew up in Lafourche Parish and on Grand Isle [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grand_Isle,_Louisiana]. He spent years working in the film industry before returning home to preserve the stories he felt were being lost to time. Through his popular YouTube channel and social media platforms, he bridges the gap between scholarly history and regional folklore - covering everything from the legend of the Rougarou and the Honey Island Swamp Monster [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honey_Island_Swamp_monster] to the real-life mysteries of the Cajun Coast. Kyle is currently adapting his historical deep dives into a scripted horror anthology series, with one episode in the festival circuit and a second in pre-production. Blake met Kyle at the second Gods and Monsters conference at Texas State University [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Texas_State_University], where Kyle's presentation on Louisiana's history and folklore inspired Blake and Karen to finally tackle the Rougarou as a proper episode. In this first part, the conversation digs into the history of the Acadian expulsion [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expulsion_of_the_Acadians], the cultural forces that produced Cajun and Creole Louisiana, and the Old World roots of the Rougarou [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rougarou] legend. In part two, they'll get into what the Rougarou actually became - a shape-shifting boogeyman with regional variants, plus feux follets, and a monster that might have been born from a traveling circus. Extensive show notes at MonsterTalk.Org [https://www.monstertalk.org/?p=2981] Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support [https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss]. Some product links may be affiliated with Amazon revenue sharing.

S05E29 - Science of the Supernatural with Melissa Maffeo

Neuroscientist Dr. Melissa Maffeo joins Blake and Karen to discuss her new book Science of the Supernatural: Critical Thinking for the Mind and Brain [https://amzn.to/4urBM3t] (Cambridge University Press, 2026). Melissa is an associate teaching professor of psychology at Wake Forest University, where she also serves as Associate Director of the Neuroscience Program. In this episode, Melissa talks about using paranormal topics as an accessible entry point for teaching psychology and neuroscience, and shares her view that most supernatural experiences can likely be explained by what's happening in our brains - even if we don't yet have all the answers. The conversation covers a wide range of topics from the book, including the God Helmet experiments, the neuroscience of out-of-body experiences, how parasites can hijack behavior, and whether prior belief shapes what we experience.  Extended show notes at our website. [https://www.monstertalk.org/?p=2976] Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support [https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/monstertalk--6267523/support?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rss]. Some product links may be affiliated with Amazon revenue sharing.