• Murder at Stonehenge
    Jun 16 2025

    A body is found at Stonehenge. It's the skeleton of a man - an archer - who lived at the time when it was built. How did he die? What secrets does his skeleton reveal about his life and the purpose of Stonehenge?


    In today's episode, Anthony and Maddy investigate a 4,000 year-old murder mystery, as well as exploring the big questions that surround Stonehenge: how was it built? Who built it, and why?!


    A special thanks to Adrian Green, Director at Salisbury Museum.


    Edited by Tomos Delary. Produced by Stuart Beckwith. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.


    You can now watch After Dark on Youtube: www.youtube.com/@afterdarkhistoryhit


    Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.


    You can take part in our listener survey here.


    All music from Epidemic Sounds.

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    41 mins
  • Dark Side of Ancient Mesopotamia
    Jun 12 2025

    A four thousand(ish) year old murder trial. A procession of the dead. Kings who believed they could escape the gods by dressing gardeners in royal clothes...then killing them. Welcome to the Dark Side of Ancient Mesopotamia! Guiding Maddy and Anthony through this most ancient and most fascinating civilisation is the incredible Professor Amanda Podany, author of 'Weavers, Scribes and Kings: A New History of the Ancient Near East'.


    Edited by Tomos Delarggy. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.


    You can now watch After Dark on Youtube: www.youtube.com/@afterdarkhistoryhit


    Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.


    You can take part in our listener survey here.


    All music from Epidemic Sounds.

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    47 mins
  • Final Days of Sir Walter Raleigh
    Jun 9 2025

    'Strike, man, strike!' were the last words of Sir Walter Raleigh as his neck lay on the block. After thirteen years in the Tower of London, (multiple) expeditions to find a city of gold, and a plot to kill the king, Walter Raleigh finally met his end. Maddy Pelling tells Anthony Delaney the story of how it all played out.


    Edited by Tomos Delargy. Research by Phoebe Joyce. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.


    You can now watch After Dark on Youtube: www.youtube.com/@afterdarkhistoryhit


    Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.


    You can take part in our listener survey here.


    All music from Epidemic Sounds.



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    30 mins
  • Inside the Paris Catacombs
    Jun 5 2025

    Beneath the streets of the French capitol lurks a city of the dead: the Paris Catacombs.


    Why they were piled up there is a dark and fascinating story, that includes everything from the bloody days of the French Revolution, to the making of 'corpse candles' and a mystery man found amongst its passageways.


    Joining Anthony and Maddy for today's episode is the fantastic Cat Irving, Human Remains Conservator for Surgeons’ Hall in Edinburgh, to take us down to this underworld.


    Edited by Tomos Delargy, Produced by Stuart Beckwith. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.


    You can now watch After Dark on Youtube: www.youtube.com/@afterdarkhistoryhit


    Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.


    You can take part in our listener survey here.


    All music from Epidemic Sounds.

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    39 mins
  • Victorian England's Most Gruesome Murder
    Jun 2 2025

    It was one of the most gruesome crimes of the Victorian era... and it ended up in David Attenborough's garden! Kate Webster, a servant, killed and dismembered her mistress, Julia Martha Thomas in 1879. It's a story that show us the everyday life of Victorian Londoners, and how that world can be turned upside down.


    Edited by Tomos Delargy, Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.


    You can now watch After Dark on Youtube: www.youtube.com/@afterdarkhistoryhit


    Produced by Stuart Beckwith. Edited by Tom Delargy. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.


    Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.


    You can take part in our listener survey here.


    All music from Epidemic Sounds.


    After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal is a History Hit podcast.

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    40 mins
  • The Ghost of Mary Queen of Scots
    May 29 2025

    *TW: This episode contains references to sexual violence.*


    Mary Queen of Scots' life was defined by violence, heartbreak and ultimately, betrayal.


    Since her bloody death at the hands of her cousin, Elizabeth I, many have claimed to have seen chilling sightings of her ghost.


    What are these sightings like? And what do they say about the tragic events of her life? And what do they say about the history of Scottish ghost culture?


    You can now watch After Dark on Youtube: www.youtube.com/@afterdarkhistoryhit


    Produced by Stuart Beckwith. Edited by Tom Delargy. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.


    Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.


    You can take part in our listener survey here.


    All music from Epidemic Sounds.


    After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal is a History Hit podcast.

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    41 mins
  • The Truth About the Knights Templar
    May 26 2025

    Why are the Knights Templar surrounded by myths and legends? Is there any truth to the tales of the Holy Grail or that the Knights survived? Why does this medieval order, which disappeared in the 14th century, continue to enthral us today?


    To uncover the real history of the Knights Templar we are joined by Dan Jones - historian, author, podcaster and host of This Is History, whose series The Iron King is all about man who destroyed the Templars - King Philip the Fair.


    Edited by Tomos Delargy. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.


    You can now watch After Dark on Youtube! www.youtube.com/@afterdarkhistoryhit


    Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.


    You can take part in our listener survey here.


    All music from Epidemic Sounds.


    After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal is a History Hit podcast.

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    38 mins
  • Final Days of Abraham Lincoln
    May 22 2025

    One split second - and one individual - can upturn an entire nation.


    This was definitely the case when John Wilkes Booth shot President Abraham Lincoln at Ford's Theatre on the night of 14th April 1865.


    What were the final days leading up to this huge moment like? How did the nation, and the future of enslaved African Americans, hang in the balance? And how did that long night after the gun was fired unfold?


    You can now watch After Dark on Youtube: www.youtube.com/@afterdarkhistoryhit


    Produced by Stuart Beckwith. Edited by Tim Arstall. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.


    Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.


    You can take part in our listener survey here.


    All music from Epidemic Sounds.


    After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal is a History Hit podcast.

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    44 mins
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