Fresh Hell Podcast

In Part 3, we follow Friedrich after Küstrin. This episode looks at what Friedrich became once he held absolute power: the military strategist, the administrator, the enlightened absolutist who read philosophy while sending tens of thousands to their deaths. We talk about Sanssouci as a deliberate retreat, his devotion to animals over people, his refusal...... Continue Reading →

After being arrested and imprisoned at Küstrin, Friedrich is stripped of rank, freedom, and is forced into isolation, surveillance, and humiliation, while the fate of his closest friend, Hans Hermann von Katte, hangs over everything. Friedrich knows exactly what’s at stake. He’s seen how this ends for other crown princes. Only a few years earlier,...... Continue Reading →

Friedrich II of Prussia is remembered as “the Great.”But before he became the most famous Prussian king, he tried to run! In this first part of a two-episode series, we go back to the beginning: to Friedrich II von Preußen’s childhood under the rule of his father, the so-called Soldier King. We talk about Prussia...... Continue Reading →

In 1920s Vienna, a woman calling herself Baroness Cadvé ran what appeared to be a private language school for children. Behind the polite advertisements and the respectable address in the city center was something much darker. This episode tells the story of Edith Kadivec, the woman at the center of the 1924 Vienna "Sadist Trial,”...... Continue Reading →

If you want to watch Henry's wonderful documentary, you can find the English version here: https://www.henryhauck.de/en-us and the German version here: https://www.henryhauck.de/de In this episode we speak with filmmaker Henry Hauck, a cousin of one of the "Missing Children of Pirmasens", a series of missing person cases from the 1960s, that have never been resolved...... Continue Reading →

On December 24th 1996, in Minneapolis, a series of escalating disturbances unfolded across the city, leading to an explosion during the city’s Christmas celebrations. What began as isolated incidents at shopping centers and local businesses quickly revealed themselves to be connected, linked by the same individuals. 

In November 1995, 16-year-old Ruth Wilson vanished after leaving her home in Surrey. She didn't go to school as planned though. Instead she ordered some flowers, and took a taxi to a quiet rural lane near Box Hill. Then...she disappeared without a trace. Thirty years later, her family and investigators are still searching for answers....... Continue Reading →

In the final part of our Dr. Crippen series, we’re heading into the Old Bailey for one of the most sensational trials in Edwardian history. We’ll walk you through the courtroom, the personalities, the evidence, the theatrics, the “Saul Goodman–before-Saul-Goodman” defense strategy, and the moment the jury returned in just twenty-seven minutes. Part 4 brings...... Continue Reading →

In Part 3 of our Crippen series, we follow the case across the Atlantic and back again. After the dramatic arrest aboard the Montrose, Inspector Dew brings Crippen and Ethel to Québec, where the crowds are already waiting and the extradition machinery kicks into motion. We cover their guarded return voyage, the secrecy, and the surprisingly...... Continue Reading →

In Part 2 of our Crippen series, Scotland Yard finally agrees something isn’t right with Dr Crippen. Inspector Dew talks to Crippen, listens politely, and then decides he needs another look inside the house on Hilldrop Crescent. What he finds there ends any hope that Belle simply packed up and left. At the same time,...... Continue Reading →

London, 1910: Dr. Hawley Harvey Crippen and his wife, music-hall performer Belle Elmore, seem to have built the perfect Edwardian life... a tidy house in Holloway, polite manners, and a place in London’s social circle. But behind the facade of 39 Hilldrop Crescent, the marriage is falling apart. In this first part of the story,...... Continue Reading →

They’ve delivered love letters and war messages, carried microfilm across battlefields, worn tiny backpacks full of XTC, and been accused of international espionage! Yet somehow, pigeons have become one of the most hated animals in modern cities. In this episode we take a closer look at the humble pigeon...a bird that’s been by our side...... Continue Reading →

On Halloween night, 1973, nine-year-old Lisa Ann French left her home in Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, dressed as a hobo and planning to trick-or-treat with a friend. She never made it back. What followed would not only shatter their community, but also forever change Halloween for American families, and spark one of the most shocking...... Continue Reading →

This week, Johanna takes us back to 18th-century Austria, when terrified villagers were convinced the dead were refusing to stay buried...and the Habsburg Empire responded the only way it knew how: with paperwork! Hear all about Petar Blagojević and Arnold Paole, and how it lead to Maria Theresia’s no-nonsense vampire ban. This is the true...... Continue Reading →

For our 300th episode, we’re boarding one of the most famous ships in the world: the RMS Queen Mary. Once the epitome of 1930s luxury and wartime resilience, she now sits permanently moored in Long Beach, California… and she’s said to be home to over 150ghosts. We talk about the tragic story of Door 13...... Continue Reading →

This week on Fresh Hell, we’re taking you to the heart of spooky fuckery month with a deep dive into witch lore and trials in Austria and Germany. You know Salem: twenty people, one tragic year! But compared to what happened in central Europe, Salem was just a footnote. We’ll explore the folklore that fed...... Continue Reading →

Crikey! This week we’re taking you to meet crocodiles. The largest living reptiles on Earth, creatures that inspire both awe and terror. We’ll talk about the late, great Steve Irwin, whose passion and humor showed millions of people why crocodiles deserve our respect.  We’ll also tell you the truth about the legend of the Ramree...... Continue Reading →

Cardinal de Rohan believes he’s secretly helping Marie Antoinette purchase the world’s most extravagant necklace, while Jeanne de la Motte and her accomplices quietly dismantle it and sell the diamonds across Europe. We’ll tell you all about the scheme, the dramatic arrest of Rohan at Versailles during the Feast of the Assumption, and the sensational...... Continue Reading →

This week we’re heading to Versailles for one of the most scandalous cons in French history. In Part 1, you'll hear all about the glittering worlds of Versailles and Schönbrunn, the childhood and marriage of Marie Antoinette, and her already fragile reputation as “Madame Déficit.” We’ll meet the main characters in this elaborate scheme: Cardinal...... Continue Reading →