It was so popular last year that we decided to do it again! Join us this holiday season as we introduce you to twelve of our favourite podcasts in the 12 Days of Podmas. Debbie Attwell takes a look at Uncanny.
The highly successful BBC podcast Uncanny investigates real-life stories of paranormal encounters, UFOs, and all things spooky. Host Danny Robins talks to the people that experienced these events first-hand, and tries to find answers.
If you’re not yet familiar with Uncanny, you may have heard of one of Danny Robins’s other podcasts: The Battersea Poltergeist, which was wildly successful and nominated for several awards, or The Witch Farm – both of which are worth binging. Or you might have spotted the three Uncanny TV specials on the BBC this autumn (catch up with them on iPlayer!). There’s also been a national tour of a stage version of the podcast this year, but with added effects, bells and whistles.
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Uncanny aims to be the “biggest investigation into the paranormal, ever”, and seeks to get to the truth behind the stories. Experts from ‘believer’ and ‘sceptic’ camps – usually parapsychologist Evelyn Hollow, and psychologist Ciarán O’Keeffe – analyse the events told, giving possible explanations, and listeners are asked for their input. There are several successful podcasts where people tell their real-life spooky stories, but you’re often left feeling a bit deflated, as you want to know a little more… Did anyone else who lived in that house have a weird experience? What else could have caused that? But Uncanny delves deep.
What else makes Uncanny particularly brilliant is that no investigation is ever finished – updates are added as new theories are put forth and new evidence is found, such as a listener contacting them who also had a weird experience in that particular haunted room… and as the series goes on, more of the ghostly jigsaw is pieced together, and we’re drawn in, tagging along with our British version of Fox Mulder as he slowly tries to uncover the truth.
We were also recently treated to some celebrity Uncanny fans presenting their favourite episodes: Laurence Rickard from BBC’s comedy Ghosts, Daisy May Cooper, and Reece Shearsmith all talked about which episode they’d found the most interesting and chilling.
Uncanny has just completed three seasons and we’re told a Christmas special is on its way, so it’s a perfect time to catch up and make up your own mind about that age-old question: “Do ghosts exist? If not, why do we see them?”.
Uncanny is a Bafflegab and Uncanny Media production for BBC Radio 4 and all episodes are available to stream for free on BBC Sounds, Spotify, or your usual podcast provider.