Episodes
Mystery, mayhem, and death followed Michael X all the way back to Trinidad.Hacked to death and left in shallow graves, the bodies of Gale Benson and Joseph Skerritt were found at Michael X’s house. Whispers of black magic and rumours of espionage rippled through the island.How could a young, wealthy British socialite like Gale Benson end up buried alive in the Caribbean? And why would Michael X want her dead?--Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus EpisodesYouTube - Full-length Video EpisodesTikTok / Instagram
Intimate and explicit images of A-list celebrities – that’s what the world woke up to on the 31st of August 2014. “The Fappening” saw thousands of leaked celebrity nudes dumped onto 4chan, Reddit, and Twitter. It gave unprecedented access to the most overtly private images anyone could imagine – but how on earth did it happen? This week on ShortHand we’re taking a deep dive into the grubby world of AnonIB and leaked-nude “collectors”: users who hoard and circulate explicit images without the subject’s consent – celebrity or not. So how do these images come to be online? And how do we stop i...
Malcolm X was a true revolutionary, Michael X was an imposter.This con man realised that politics was a lot easier than poetry and rose to the top of the British Civil Rights Movement. All the while violently exploiting the Windrush generation he claimed to be fighting for.John Lennon and Leonard Cohen were his biggest fans. They donated thousands to Michael X's projects that never actually happened. The press hung on his every word, quoting him as the most powerful black man in Europe.By the time Michael X's ego unravelled, it was too late for socialite Gale Benson to escape from his web. ...
On the night of 14th April 1912, the ‘unsinkable’ RMS Titanic struck an iceberg and sank into the icy depths of the Atlantic Ocean – killing almost all of its passengers. But the real question is: would you make it through that fateful night? In this special 114th-anniversary ShortHand, we walk through your realistic chances of survival after boarding the doomed ship… And with your sex, class and circumstances all tipping the balance on some seriously sketchy odds, you’d better grab a life jacket just in case.--Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus EpisodesYouTube - Full-length Video EpisodesTikTok / I...
When two fighter jets came to check on the unresponsive Helios Flight 522, they were stunned at what they saw: all 115 passengers, lying motionless in their seats. Even worse – the pilot’s seat was empty, and the co-pilot lay slumped over the control panel. The commercial plane was drifting along at 34,000 feet, on autopilot – and fuel was running out. This is the ShortHand.--Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus EpisodesYouTube - Full-length Video EpisodesTikTok / Instagram
The lead suspect in the Gilgo Beach Killings - 62 year old former architect Rex Heuermann - has now pleaded guilty.So, with a trial off the table in the Long Island Serial Killer saga, join us for an update on what investigators found that finally nailed Heuermann - forcing him to confess. Then stick around and revisit our two-part episode on this harrowing case that haunted Long Island for decades.Plus, join us on next week’s Under the Duvet - over on Patreon - for a look at the impact this has all had on Heuermann’s own family.--In 2010, Shannan Gilbert made a series of frantic 911 calls ...
When Rhode Island native Nicholas Rossi found himself wanted by the FBI and Interpol for a string of assaults and large-scale frauds, he didn’t just run away. He faked his death, fled to Scotland, disguised himself as a wheezing British academic called Arthur Knight, and went on the attack – loudly claiming his innocence in wilder and wilder TV appearances across the international press.And that isn’t even the half of it. Before the story finally wrapped up a few months ago, Rossi’s winding tale had covered satanic ritual abuse, incel smear campaigns, and somehow, the September 11th attacks...
With Netflix's new documentary on the modern fundamentalist Mormon church coming out today – we thought it was the perfect time to revisit our episode on Warren Jeffs's FLDS, to give some much-needed context... Last week, we looked at the formation of the ultra-obedient, bigamist Mormon cult, the FLDS – in which plural marriage to pregnant preteen girls is just the tip of the fundamentalist iceberg. In this second part, we look at how its new prophet, Warren Jeffs, took his so-called religion to ever stricter and more terrifying depths. With followers so beaten down that they were banned fr...
With Netflix's new documentary on the modern fundamentalist Mormon church coming out today – we thought it was the perfect time to revisit our episode on Warren Jeffs's FLDS, to give some much-needed context... According to Warren Jeffs’ thousands of followers, he was the leader of a secretive but devoted religion – their prophet, and the representative of God on Earth. But according to US law, he was a dangerous, totalitarian, child-molesting horror with over 80 wives – some married off as young as 12. Still, according to the church, Earthly laws are no match for the voice of God.In this e...
A relentless barrage of oil that killed anything in its path, the disaster that befell the Deepwater Horizon oil rig took the lives of eleven crew members, destroyed an entire oceanic ecosystem, and is still severely affecting the livelihoods of coastal communities to this day. Described as “the largest ecocide in history”, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the response of BP, the company responsible, serves as a testament to corporate greed and profit over people. Hard working crew members lost their lives, fishing towns lost their income, and billions of oceanic organisms perished, al...
The Holy Grail is the most sought-after object in human history. The legend goes that the grail could bring whoever finds it unbelievable power, influence, youth and even eternal life. Which is why the hunters have included everyone from the knights of King Arthur to full-blown Nazis, hunting for a secret weapon to win them the war.We trace the whole story back to the Last Supper, via the Crusades, Heinrich Himmler, Dan Brown and Indiana Jones.--Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus EpisodesYouTube - Full-length Video EpisodesTikTok / Instagram
Kouri Richins brazenly murdered her husband Eric, lacing a drink with a lethal dose of fentanyl, hoping to cash in on his business, home, and life insurance policies. The only hitch was that Korui Richins’ ‘girl math’ didn’t add up. Most of Eric Richins’ wealth was going to end up nowhere near his wife Kouri, and it was going to be very hard to spend from prison. In this concluding part of our two-part series on the murder of Eric Richins, we pull apart the trial and discuss how Kouri Richins unwittingly destroyed her own defence, all while trying to outwit the prosecution.--Patreon - Ad-fr...
Jesus of Nazareth: Messiah, Emmanuel, King of Kings, and probably the most widely recognisable figure in human history. So why do so many people believe in the ultimate sacrilege: that he never even existed?We take a look through all the evidence we have of a historical Jesus, bridge the gap between circumstance and scripture, and go on a journey to find the Gospel truth. This is the ShortHand.--Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus EpisodesYouTube - Full-length Video EpisodesTikTok / Instagram
Sudden mental break or hunted by a pack of mysterious men? The disappearance of 28-year-old Lars Mittank has left authorities and armchair sleuths alike, dumbfounded. The only record of his last twenty-four hours being some mysterious calls with his mum suggesting he was being followed, and edited heavily CCTV footage showing him sprinting out of Varna Airport, hopping a fence, and running off into the woods, never to be seen again.Why did Lars suddenly sprint away? Was he really being followed by some strange men? Where could he be now? Find out on this week’s episode of ShortHand!--Patreo...
After Kouri Richins’ husband Eric died suddenly in what was ruled to be a tragic accidental overdose, the Utah mum bravely published a children’s book about grief to help their kids cope…But just a month after appearing on local TV to promote it, Kouri was arrested and charged with murdering Eric herself.So who is Kouri Richins? A grieving wife trying to rebuild her family’s life? Or a Black Widow who plotted to poison her husband for his money, so she could run off with her secret lover?We’re reading between the lines of this sensational case: and it’s anything but a cosy bedtime story. --...
They said she'd mastered a Chinese sex technique that could "make a matchstick feel like a Havana cigar". Top Nazi Joachim Von Ribbentrop allegedly sent her 17 carnations for each night they slept together. After three botched facelifts, she became a bed-bound recluse scammed by her evil French lawyer. Wallis Simpson – the woman King Edward VIII famously abdicated the crown for in 1936 – was no stranger to wild rumours: from exotic bedroom secrets to her not-so-secret love of fascism. But how much of the gossip was actually true? In this week's ShortHand, we're uncovering the real story of ...
“The Kinsey Reports” – Alfred Kinsey’s 1950s studies into how people like to have sex, and with who – did a lot more than ruffle a few feathers. Even acknowledging that some of us like a bit of light biting or partner-swapping was enough to make headlines. The rest was enough to blow conservative America’s minds…--Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus EpisodesYouTube - Full-length Video EpisodesTikTok / InstagramSources and more available on redhandedpodcast.com
In 2017, British glamour model Chloe Ayling went through a terrifying ordeal: abducted from a fake modelling shoot in Italy, held hostage for days by an obsessed stalker, and told she’d been put up for sale into sex slavery on the dark web…Against all the odds, Chloe escaped – and lived to tell the tale. The only problem? No one believed her.With headlines declaring her story a hoax and dismissing her as a fame-hungry wannabe, Chloe was only vindicated when her captors were convicted. But even now, the doubts still haven’t gone away.--Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus EpisodesYouTube - Full-length ...
As long as a walking stick. A billiards cue. Thin as a nub of wax at the base, thick as a man’s fist at the tip.These are just some of the eye-watering descriptions of what King Ferdinand VII – Spain’s worst ever king – was allegedly hiding beneath his britches...This week, H&S are lifting the sheets of the royal bedroom to meet a king who wrecked an empire, traumatised his young brides, and left the Spanish court buzzing with scandal – all because of his deeply unfortunate anatomical affliction. --Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus EpisodesYouTube - Full-length Video EpisodesTikTok / InstagramSourc...
With great esoteric power, comes great esoteric responsibility.Aleister Crowley was considered many things, a poet, an artist, a master of the dark arts, and a prophet of Thelma. But who was the man behind the mask? And how did he go from being a leading figure and social commentator to dying in relative obscurity?--Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus EpisodesYouTube - Full-length Video EpisodesTikTok / InstagramSources and more available on redhandedpodcast.com
Bodies unearthed in the desert seemed like the final piece in the puzzle for McStay Family Murders. However, the four years that had passed left more questions than answers, and a whole lot of people with a whole lot in their pockets.Despite all the mystery, Chase Merrit found himself firmly on the stand. Rightly or wrongly? Listen to find out.--Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus EpisodesYouTube - Full-length Video EpisodesTikTok / InstagramSources and more available on redhandedpodcast.com
In October 1993, River Phoenix crashed out of Johnny Depp’s exclusive club, fell onto the pavement, and died. An hour earlier, the 23-year-old rising star had snorted a lethal combination of cocaine and heroin known as a ‘speedball’ in the toilets. As he staggered around the club, no one offered Phoenix anything more than a valium to "take the edge off”. How did Johnny Depp’s club become such a den of iniquity and excess? And more importantly, how did it survive after the death of Hollywood’s golden boy?--Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus EpisodesYouTube - Full-length Video EpisodesTikTok / Instagr...
The year was 1917, and revolution was in the air in Russia. After sustaining heavy losses in WW1, the fall of the House of Romanov seemed inevitable. And one night the Tsar, his wife, and their five children, were shot, stabbed, burned with acid, set on fire, blown up with grenades and buried deep in Koptyaki forest. But then, rumours began to circulate that there had been survivors of the massacre… And over the years, numerous women came forward claiming to be the Grand Duchess Anastasia. What follows is a story of “delusion, fabrication, sham, romance, burlesque, travesty and humbug”. Pre...
How does a family completely vanish? That was the question that plagued investigators after Michael McStay reported his brother Joe McStay missing on the 15th of February 2010, along with Joe’s wife Summer, and their two children, Joe Jr and Gianni. It took four years to discover the fate of the McStay family: a fate that cast a lens across their entire lives. Everyone from Joe’s business associates Chase Merrit and Dan Kavanaugh, to Joe’s own brother Michael, had something to gain from the family’s disappearance – but who had the mentality to kill them for it?--Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus Ep...
Turning lead into gold and living forever: that’s about the summation of our modern understanding of Alchemy. Informed by high-fantasy films and pop history, it now brings to mind dark, arcane ceremonies in castle ruins, playing God in the pursuit of limitless riches and immortality. However, the reality is that Alchemy spanned thousands of years and countless cultures. It was the precursor to modern science, and undoubtedly changed humanity’s understanding of the world around us. This is the ShortHand.–Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus EpisodesYouTube - Full-length Video EpisodesTikTok / Instagram...
Alien autopsies, flying saucers, and top secret government programs: three things alleged to be hiding in ‘Area 51’. Officially known as Homey Airport or Groom Lake, this secret government testing facility in Nevada has been the epicentre of UFO folklore for over a century – yet the CIA only admitted its existence in 2013.So what’s really going on behind those big metal gates? Listen to this week’s ShortHanded to find out!--Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus EpisodesYouTube - Full-length Video EpisodesTikTok / InstagramSources and more available on redhandedpodcast.com
Amid the chaos now unfolding in Mexico after the February 2026 assassination of drug cartel boss El Mencho, we’re throwing it back to the 1985 torture and murder of American DEA agent Enrique ‘Kiki’ Camarena at the hands of the ruthless Guadalajara Cartel… and how Kiki's death triggered the chain reaction that led to the drug wars raging in Mexico today.With whispers of a Cold War CIA conspiracy that still refuse to die, was Kiki on the brink of uncovering an inconvenient truth about the USA’s War on Drugs? And if so, was he silenced by the very country he dedicated his life to protect?We'r...
In the darkest hour of WWII, as bombs threatened Europe’s historic cities, a small unit was sent to the front lines – not to fight, but to save art history itself. The 'Monuments, Fine Arts, and Archives' section of the US Army, known as the Monuments Men, was tasked with protecting Europe's centuries of culture from destruction.And then, when Hitler was cornered, the Monuments Men had a new mission: track down the vast hoards of looted Nazi treasure, and stop them from blowing it all up.–Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus EpisodesYouTube - Full-length Video EpisodesTikTok / InstagramSources and mor...
“On that day, there were no flies on the dead. The flies were dead too.” On the 21st of August 1986, 1746 people and 3500 livestock died in the Cameroonian village of Nyos, died suddenly, and all at once. Ancient folklore had long cautioned the inhabitants of Nyos about evil spirits that lurked deep within their crater lake, but the grim reality far exceeded the unsettling myths.What took place that evening, was one of two natural disasters ever recorded of its kind, and the next one could claim the lives of millions. --Patreon - Ad-free & Bonus EpisodesYouTube - Full-length Video Episodes...
In December 2006, the town of Ipswich was rocked by a spree of brutal murders targeting sex workers in its notorious red light area. But the story didn’t end with the capture of the so-called ‘Suffolk Strangler’, Steve Wright… The murders of Tania Nicol, Gemma Adams, Anneli Alderton, Annette Nicholls and Paula Clennell would go on to transform policing strategies for prostitution in the UK (and even inspired a tone-deaf musical).And with killer Steve Wright back in the news in February 2026 after pleading guilty to the murder of schoolgirl Victoria Hall in 1999, this decades-old case still ...