Torture: A Dark History
Torture: A Dark History is a podcast that examines grim and macabre moments from human history, blending dark historical topics with humor. Hosts Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan cover torture devices, execution methods, true crime, historical atrocities, and the people behind them. Each episode focuses on a different piece of dark history, exploring the facts, figures, and real stories behind cruelty, crime, and punishment. The show is aimed at listeners who enjoy dark history, true crime, and unsettling historical anecdotes.
Episodes
Impalement: Translation Problems
What's the worst thing you can do with a stick?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the brutal history of impalement, a method of execution designed not just to kill, but to make the suffering last as long as possible. From ancient Babylon and Assyria to the Persian Empire, medieval Europe, and colonial Indonesia, impalement was used to punish crimin
Guatemalan Syphilis Experiment: Consent Is Not A Thing
What happens when a group of doctors decides that the best way to study a sexually transmitted disease is to make absolutely sure their patients have it?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan uncover one of the darkest chapters in the history of American medicine: the Guatemalan Syphilis Experiments. Beginning with historian Susan Reverby’s discovery of John Cutle
Elephants: It's Always The People
What happens when one of the largest and most intelligent animals on Earth is trained to become an executioner?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel through more than two thousand years of history to explore the horrifying use of elephants in torture, punishment, and execution.We’ll begin in India, where elephants became symbols of royal power and terrifyi
Castor Oil: White Pants Brown
What happens when something sitting in your grandmother’s medicine cabinet becomes a weapon of humiliation, punishment, and political terror?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the surprisingly long and disturbing history of castor oil, a medicine that has been used for thousands of years and eventually found a very different purpose in the hands of peo
Flaying: Human Skin Straw Men
What happens when the punishment isn’t simply death, but having your own skin turned into a warning for everyone else?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the horrifying history of flaying, the deliberate removal of a person’s skin, and the very different reasons people throughout history chose to use it.We’ll begin with Baha-ud-din Gurshasp, a powerful
Trail of Tears Episode 3: Damn Mudbloods
What happens when the courts say you have the right to your land, but the government decides it doesn’t matter?In the final episode of our three part journey through the Trail of Tears, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan follow the Cherokee, Seminole, Creek, and Chickasaw as the fight over Native sovereignty reaches its breaking point.We’ll look at the Supreme Court battles that put the Cherokee Nation
Trail of Tears Episode 2: Rinse and Repeat
What happens when years of broken treaties, stolen land, and political pressure finally turn into forced removal?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan continue their journey through the history of the Trail of Tears, following the rise of Andrew Jackson, the Creek War, the growing pressure on the Five Civilized Tribes, and the discovery of gold on Cherokee land.W
Trail of Tears Episode 1: Treaty After Treaty After Treaty
What happens when the land you’ve lived on for generations is taken from you and given to someone else?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan begin a three part journey into one of the darkest chapters in American history, the Trail of Tears and the forced removal of Indigenous peoples from their ancestral homelands.We’ll start by getting to know the Five Civilize
Spanish Donkey: Poor Poor Perineum
What happens when getting drunk, picking a fight, or stepping out of line in the military could land you on a wooden horse with weights hanging from your feet?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the strange and surprisingly widespread history of the Spanish Donkey, also known as the Wooden Horse, Chevalet, or Mule.We’ll travel back to the armies of 17th
The Zorg Massacre: Slave to Weight Ratio
What happens when a series of catastrophic mistakes leaves hundreds of enslaved people trapped at sea with nowhere to go and almost no water left?Season 5 of Torture: A Dark History begins with one of the most horrifying events in the history of the Atlantic slave trade, the Zorg Massacre of 1781.Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel back to the Caribbean Sea and aboard the Zorg, a British slave shi
Christmas Time True Crime.... 33 1/3 with Phil Better
On this episode Dan, Kevin, and special guest Phil cover: who's Dixon?, an introduction, holiday vacation, death for Christmas, bad present overreaction, Dan's calendar, Rob Reiner, horrible roommates, breaking out in song, a very real story, a Candy Cane Gingerbread Baked Alaska Pie with Cranberry Coulis, a yuletide Top 10, John Cena, Kevin's calves, Happy New Year, and much more!!Ple
Cat's Paw: Oooooooh, The Claw
What happens when the thing being used to interrogate you looks less like a torture device and more like a garden tool?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the horrifying history of the Cat’s Paw, also known as the Iron Claw, a deceptively simple device designed to tear into the human body.We’ll travel from the Roman Empire and the persecution of Christi
Lethal Injection: Midazolam (Do do do-do do)
What happens when an execution method designed to be cleaner, more humane, and more scientific turns out to have a very ugly history?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the disturbing history of lethal injection, from its origins in the late 19th century to the botched executions that have continued into the modern era.We’ll meet Paul Warner Powell, who
Stocks & Pillory: Think About What You Did
What happens when breaking the rules means being locked into a wooden frame while your entire town gets invited to make fun of you?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the history of two of Europe’s most infamous instruments of public punishment, the stocks and the pillory.We’ll travel from ancient Judah and Rome into medieval Europe, following the evolu
Werewolf Trials: Strange Salve
What happens when your neighbors stop seeing you as a strange old man and start believing you’re a monster?For this special Halloween episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel back to the forests of medieval and early modern Europe to explore the terrifying history of the Werewolf Trials.We’ll follow the fear, superstition, and paranoia that turned missing children, d
Buried Alive: Quite Efficient
What happens when the punishment for breaking the law is being lowered into a grave while you’re still alive?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the horrifying history of being buried alive, a punishment used across different cultures for crimes ranging from adultery and infanticide to heresy, sacrilege, and treason.We’ll travel from ancient Rome and th
Lead Sprinkler: Receive Now Your Blessing
What happens when a religious blessing becomes one of the most horrifying torture myths in history?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel back to the world of the Inquisition and explore the infamous Lead Sprinkler, a supposed torture device designed to turn a priest’s blessing into a weapon.We’ll step into the dungeon, where the familiar instruments of tor
Hanging Cage: Dick Seamen Cox Oort
What happens when your punishment doesn’t end with your execution, but with your body being locked inside an iron cage and left hanging for everyone to see?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the disturbing history of the hanging cage, a punishment designed not only to kill, but to turn the dead into a warning for everyone who passed by.We’ll travel acr
Nero Episode 2: Over Dramaticus
What happens when an emperor becomes so obsessed with power, performance, and being adored that Rome finally decides it has had enough?In the second and final episode of Torture: A Dark History on Nero, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan pick up where we left off as Nero’s reign descends into paranoia, violence, excess, and chaos.We’ll follow the emperor through the Great Fire of Rome, the persecution o
Nero Episode 1: I'm A Star, Mommy
What happens when a young boy is groomed from birth to become emperor, only to grow into one of the most infamous rulers in Roman history?In the Season 4 premiere of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel back to Imperial Rome to explore the rise of Nero, the family that shaped him, and the political machinations that put him on the throne at just sixteen years old.We’ll foll
Scavenger's Daughter: Do The Skevington's Gyves
What happens when a torture device is designed to crush your entire body into a position you were never meant to survive?In the Season 3 finale of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel back to Tudor England to explore the horrifying history of the Scavenger’s Daughter, one of the most infamous torture devices ever used inside the Tower of London.We’ll begin with Luke Kirby,
Nazino Island: The Very Hungry Games
What happens when thousands of people are dumped onto a remote Siberian island with almost no food, shelter, supplies, or hope of survival?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel back to Stalin’s Soviet Union and the horrifying story of Nazino Island, a failed resettlement experiment that quickly became a nightmare of starvation, disease, violence, cannibali
Electrocution: Poor Old Burger Head
What happens when electricity, something we use every day, becomes a weapon designed to make someone talk?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the disturbing history of electrocution, from secret police and military dictatorships to execution chambers, interrogation rooms, and even psychiatric hospitals.We’ll begin in Argentina during the Dirty War with
The Death of Fan Man-yee: Hello Kitty
What happens when a teenage girl walks into a police station claiming she is being haunted by the ghost of a woman she helped torture and murder?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan tell the horrifying story of Fan Man Yee, a 23 year old woman whose disappearance in Hong Kong in 1999 would uncover one of the most disturbing cases in the city’s history.We’ll foll
Crucifixion: Unfortunate Wood
What happens when death isn’t the punishment, but the spectacle?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the brutal history of crucifixion, from the ancient world and the Roman Empire to Japan, modern executions, and one infamous case that ended in a very different kind of crucifixion.We’ll look at how crucifixion evolved, why Rome used it as a weapon of ter
Iron Maiden: Sounds Cool
What happens when one of history’s most terrifying torture devices turns out to be almost entirely a lie?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan take on the Iron Maiden, the infamous spiked sarcophagus supposedly used to slowly torture and kill prisoners during the Middle Ages.Except there’s a problem. Almost none of that is true.We’ll travel from ancient legends a
Necklacing: People's Court
What happens when a tire, gasoline, and a mob become instruments of vigilante justice?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the horrifying history of necklacing, a form of mob execution that became infamous during the final years of apartheid South Africa.We’ll follow the fear, anger, and political violence that helped create an environment where accusati
Unit 731 Episode 3: The Diarrhea Is Increasing
What happens when one of the most horrifying secret programs of World War II is finally exposed, and many of the people responsible manage to walk away?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan bring the story of Unit 731 to its conclusion. We’ll follow the organization’s final days as the Soviet invasion of Manchuria forces its members to destroy evidence and flee,
Unit 731 Episode 2: Surgery Game
What happens when the walls of Unit 731 close behind you, and there is no way back out?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan go inside Unit 731 and tell the horrifying story of the prisoners who disappeared behind its walls.We’ll meet the people who were sent to Pingfan, the prisoners labeled “maruta,” and the doctors and soldiers who became part of a system wher
Unit 731 Episode 1: Bacteria Factory
What happens when a Japanese army doctor becomes obsessed with biological warfare and builds one of the most secretive military operations of World War II?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel to Imperial Japan and follow the rise of Shiro Ishii, the man who would become the driving force behind Unit 731.We’ll follow Ishii from his early career in medicine
The Breaking Wheel: Call Me Floppy
What if the justice system decided the best way to get a confession was to introduce you to a very determined wheel?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan take a look at one of history’s most brutal methods of torture and execution: the Breaking Wheel. From 18th century Paris to ancient Greece, the Breaking Wheel was used in a variety of horrifying ways, from crus
Heretic's Fork: Totes Converted
What if they tried to get you to confess with a glorified kitchen utensil?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan take a look at the Heretic’s Fork, a medieval torture device supposedly used against heretics and witches during the Spanish Inquisition and later witch trials across Europe and colonial America. With sharp prongs pressing beneath the chin and into the
Scaphism: Milk & Honey
What happens when the punishment for treason is being sealed inside a pair of boats, covered in milk and honey, and left for nature to slowly finish the job?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel back to ancient Persia to explore scaphism, one of the most horrifying forms of execution ever attributed to the ancient world.We’ll break down the gruesome proces
Attica Episode 2: Glorious Catastrophe
What happens when a prison uprising turns into a standoff, negotiations break down, and the state decides to take the prison back by force?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan continue the story of the Attica Prison uprising, picking up with the prisoners in control of D Yard and negotiations beginning with Commissioner Russell Oswald and a group of outside obse
Attica Episode 1: Foreshadowing
What happens when years of overcrowding, abuse, neglect, and growing tension finally push thousands of prisoners to the breaking point?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan begin the story of the Attica Prison uprising, one of the most infamous prison revolts in American history.We’ll travel back to the late 1960s and early 1970s to look at the conditions inside
The Boot: Money Shot
What happens when someone decides that the best way to get a confession is to slowly smash your feet?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the brutal history of the Boot, a family of torture devices designed to crush, break, burn, and otherwise make the victim very interested in confessing.We’ll begin in 17th century Scotland with James Mitchell, whose at
Strappado: The Ropes w/ Sam Brears
What happens when the simplest way to torture someone is to tie their hands behind their back and let gravity do the rest?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan are joined by Patreon supporter and super fan Sam Brears to explore the brutal history of the strappado, a torture method designed to put incredible stress on the shoulders, arms, nerves, and entire upper
The Wrath of Saint Olga: Cold Blooded
What happens when a woman who becomes a widow decides that revenge is best served with a little creativity?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan tell the story of Olga of Kyiv, one of the most fascinating and ruthless rulers of medieval Europe. But before we get to Olga, we have to go back to the Varangians, the rise of the Kievan Rus’, and the man whose death wo
Horses: Makeshift Centaur
What happens when one of humanity’s most beloved animals becomes a weapon of punishment, torture, and execution,?Season 3 of Torture: A Dark History kicks off with Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan exploring the surprisingly brutal history of horses and the many ways humans have used them to hurt, kill, and punish other humans.We’ll travel from 18th century Chile and the alleged dragging of a Francisca
Robert Ben Rhoades Episode 2: The White Thread
What happens when a woman survives nearly two weeks of torture and sexual violence, only to be so terrified that she can’t identify her attacker when police finally catch him?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan continue the story of Robert Ben Rhoades with the horrifying ordeal of Shana Holt, an 18 year old woman who accepted a ride from Rhoades and soon found
Robert Ben Rhoades Episode 1: The Club
What happens when a seemingly ordinary truck driver hides a horrifying secret inside the sleeper of his tractor trailer?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan tell the story of Robert Ben Rhoades, the truck driver suspected of kidnapping, torturing, and murdering women across America while using the highways as his hunting ground.We’ll follow Rhoades from his trou
Judas Cradle: Shimmy You Down
What do you get when a Renaissance lawyer decides that the best way to keep someone awake is to slowly shove a pyramid up their ass?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the disturbing history of the Judas Cradle, one of the most infamous torture devices ever associated with interrogation, confession, and punishment.We’ll travel back to Renaissance Italy
Blanche Monnier: Coprophilia
What happens when a woman supposedly disappears for 25 years, only to be discovered locked away in her family’s home, naked, starving, and living in her own filth?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the infamous story of Blanche Monnier, the French woman whose discovery in 1901 shocked the world and created one of the most disturbing captivity stories i
Scold's Bridle: False Measures
What happens when a woman talks back, spreads gossip, or simply refuses to stay quiet in the medieval UK?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the disturbing history of the scold’s bridle, also known as the branks, a punishment designed to silence people, particularly women, by physically restraining the tongue and publicly humiliating the wearer.We’ll lo
Schwedentrunk: Add It To The Bucket
What happens when an invading army wants your money, but you refuse to tell them where you hid it?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel back to the chaos of the Thirty Years’ War and explore one of the most infamous tortures associated with the conflict, the Schwedentrunk, or “Swedish Drink.”We’ll take a quick trip through the Thirty Years’ War, from the D
Gary M. Heidnik Episode 2: The People Collector
What happens when one kidnapped woman becomes several, and a basement prison turns into a nightmare of torture, murder, and cannibalism?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan continue the horrifying story of Gary Michael Heidnik and the women he held captive beneath his Philadelphia home.We’ll follow the arrival of Sandra Lindsay, Lisa Thomas, Deborah Dudley, and
Gary M. Heidnik Episode 1: All The Gonorrhea
What happens when a man who claims he wants a family decides that the best way to build one is to kidnap women and keep them locked in his basement?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan begin the horrifying story of Gary Michael Heidnik, a deeply disturbed man whose childhood, military career, mental illness, obsession with control, and bizarre attempt to create
Chinese Water Torture: Too Much Blood
What happens when a doctor decides the cure for your insomnia is to strap you down and drip cold water onto your forehead for hours?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the strange and surprisingly murky history of Chinese water torture, a method that is far less Chinese than its name suggests.We’ll travel back to Renaissance Italy and the stories surrou
The Treadmill: Grinding Air
What happens when the punishment for going to prison is being forced to walk up an endless staircase for hours every single day?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the bizarre and brutal history of the treadmill, a machine that turned prisoners into human engines and became one of the most notorious forms of hard labor in 19th century Britain.We’ll foll
Pol Pot & The Cambodian Genocide Episode 2: Fuch A Duch
What happens when a government promises to create a perfect new society, then decides millions of people have to suffer, disappear, or die to make it happen?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan continue the story of Saloth Sar, better known as Pol Pot, as the Khmer Rouge takes control of Cambodia and begins transforming the country into its horrifying vision of
Pol Pot & The Cambodian Genocide Episode 1: A Lot Of Acronyms
What happens when a country exhausted by war welcomes a new government, only to discover that the people who claim to be saving them have something much more horrifying planned?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan tell the story of Saloth Sar, the man who would become known to the world as Pol Pot, and trace his rise from a quiet Cambodian student to the leader
Clip Show: Straight From The Extended Cuts
A bonus, clip show, episode. Spots picked straight from our extended cuts, found exclusively on our Patreon. Please like, subscribe, and follow where ever you listen.The Beard StrugglePatreonMerchBuy Us A CoffeeYouTubeInstagramTwitterTiktokThe Sassholes Insta!!Music from Uppbeat (free for Creators!):https://uppbeat.io/t/all-good-folks/curiosityLicense code: 7QU9IW0B2IJBFZJYPlease give us a 5 star
Christmas Time True Crime....Part Deux w/Phil Better
On this episode Dan, Kevin, AND PHIL cover: Dayton Ohio murder spree, bad shooting, Assy McGee, teenagers aren't smart, Japanese game shows, being humiliated in front of the world, going crazy, Ashland murders, story changes, riverboat chases, lynching mobs, noisy cats, Torturizing a yule time classic, and much much more!Please like, subscribe, and follow where ever you listen.The Beard Strug
Poena Cullei: Turducken From Hell
What happens when you cram a guy into a bag full of animals?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore poena cullei, the infamous Roman punishment for parricide. From a condemned prisoner being sealed inside a sack to the eventual addition of snakes, dogs, roosters, and monkeys, we trace how this strange execution evolved across centuries of Roman and European
Flagellation: Non-Lethal, Mostly
What happens when the punishment for breaking the law is being tied down and beaten until your back is covered in blood?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the long and brutal history of flagellation, from ancient civilizations to the modern world.We’ll look at the weapons used to inflict punishment, including the Roman flagellum, the Russian knout, the
Pyatak Prison: Shawshankski Boredemption
What happens when your death sentence is commuted, only to discover that your new life may an even worse punishment?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel to Ognenny Ostrov, Russia, better known as Fire Island, home to one of the country's most notorious correctional facilities: Prison No. OE 256/5, or Pyatak.We’ll follow the story of Vyacheslav Sharoye
Gertrude Baniszewski & The Murder of Sylvia Liken: Dumb Bitch
What happens when a teenage girl is sent to live with another family, only to become the target of an escalating campaign of torture that eventually turns an entire neighborhood against her?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan tell the horrifying true story of Sylvia Likens, the 16 year old Indiana girl whose 1965 murder became one of the most infamous cases of
Force Feeding: Crazy Straw
What happens when refusing to eat becomes an act of political protest, and the government decides it would rather force food into you than let you starve?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the disturbing history of forced feeding, from Irish political prisoners and British suffragettes to psychiatric institutions, prisons, and modern detention centers.
Paul Bernardo & Karla Homolka Episode 3: Cream Colored Camaro
What happens when two people who have already gotten away with murder realize the police still have no idea who they are looking for?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan bring the story of Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka to its horrifying conclusion.After the discovery of Leslie Mahaffy’s body, you might think the couple would finally keep their heads down. Inst
Paul Bernardo & Karla Homolka Episode 2: National Lampoon's Murder Investigation
What happens when the line between sexual obsession, torture, and murder disappears completely?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan continue the disturbing story of Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka as their relationship becomes increasingly violent and their crimes take a horrifying turn.We pick up with Bernardo walking into a police station and somehow walking b
Paul Bernardo & Karla Homolka Episode 1: Snuffles
What happens when two people with very different childhoods come together and create something unimaginably horrific?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan begin the disturbing story of Paul Bernardo and Karla Homolka, one of the most infamous criminal couples in Canadian history.We follow Karla's childhood in St. Catharines and Paul Bernardo's troubled up
Drunkard's Cloak: Old Steve Cooper
What happens when getting a little too drunk earns you a very public walk of shame?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel to 17th century England to explore the strange and humiliating punishment known as the Drunkard’s Cloak.Instead of chains, whips, or the usual medieval collection of unpleasantness, repeat offenders could find themselves trapped inside a
Danny Goldberg and The Crocodile Sheers w/ Deb Norman: Face Of The Demogorgon
What happens when a true crime podcaster sit down with two torture history podcasters and somehow end up talking about kidnapping, the mob, Dungeons & Dragons, and a device designed specifically for the male anatomy?In this special collaboration with Dying to Be Found, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan sit down with Deb for a conversation about the origins of Torture, how Kevin and Dan became cohos
Boiling: Season Your Water
How do you punish someone when hanging, beheading, or burning just isn't brutal enough?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan dive into the horrifying history of boiling alive, a punishment that has been used across centuries and continents against criminals, political enemies, religious dissenters, and anyone unfortunate enough to find themselves on the wrong
The Cult of Yerba Buena: Estúpidos Agricultores
What happens when a small Mexican farming community falls under the control of a self proclaimed goddess who demands sex, drugs, blood, and human sacrifice?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel to rural Mexico in 1963 to uncover the disturbing story of Magdalena Solís, the woman who became known as the “High Priestess of Blood.”What began as a con involvin
Blood Eagle: Unzip The Ribs
What happens when revenge becomes one of the most infamous executions in Viking history?Season 2 of Torture: A Dark History kicks off in 9th century England, where King Aella of Northumbria finds himself facing the Great Heathen Army and the sons of the man he supposedly killed: Ragnar Lothbrok.We’ll explore the legendary story of Ragnar’s death, the Viking invasion of Northumbria, and the horrify
The Rack: Never Go Full Catholic
How much pain could a human body actually withstand before it finally broke?On the Season 1 finale of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan finally tackle one of the most infamous torture devices in history: the Rack. We travel through medieval and early modern Europe to explore how this infamous device was used to extract confessions, information, and sometimes the names of other
Pau de Arara: The Perch
What happens when an interrogation turns into one of the most infamous torture methods in Brazilian history?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel to Brazil during the military dictatorship to explore the brutal history of the Pau de Arara, also known as the Parrot’s Perch.We’ll look at how prisoners were suspended in this painfully contorted position and t
Jesse H Pomeroy Episode 2: An Almost Serial Killer
What happens when the boy known as the “Boy Torturer” gets out of reform school and immediately finds himself back in the headlines?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan continue the disturbing story of Jesse Pomeroy as his brief return to freedom leads to a new series of attacks, a shocking murder, and an investigation that uncovers far more than police expected
Jesse H. Pomeroy Episode 1: Boston Butt Bitter
What happens when a 12 year old boy becomes one of the most feared criminals in Boston?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the disturbing early life of Jesse Pomeroy, the boy who became known as the “Boy Torturer.”Born in Massachusetts in 1859, Jesse's troubled childhood, abusive home life, cruelty toward animals, and growing fascination with violen
Vietnamese Booby Traps: Bridgey Snappy Spikey Stabby
What happens when the jungle itself seems determined to kill you?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan are doing something a little different. Instead of focusing on one person, one torture device, or one historical event, we're counting down 15 of the most terrifying, painful, ingenious, and deadly booby traps used during the Vietnam War.We'll take a ver
Idi Amin: Habitual Liar
How does a man with almost no formal education rise from a colonial soldier to become one of the most feared dictators in modern African history?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan dive into the bizarre, brutal, and often unbelievable life of Idi Amin Dada, the Ugandan dictator whose eight year reign became synonymous with murder, torture, political repression,
Starvation: Birger King
How long could you survive if someone simply decided you weren't allowed to eat anymore?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore one of the oldest and most horrifying forms of punishment imaginable: starvation. We begin in medieval Sweden with King Birger Magnusson, whose Christmas banquet at Nyköping Castle ended with his brothers locked in a dungeon an
Rats: Little Murder Machines
What could possibly make rats one of the most terrifying weapons in the history of torture?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan take a trip through history to uncover the disturbing ways rats have been used to torture, terrorize, interrogate, and kill people. From the infamous rat torture supposedly used in medieval and early modern Europe to the horrors of poli
Pitchcapping: Grab And Pull
What happens when simply wearing your hair too short can get you arrested, tortured, and permanently scarred?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel to Ireland during the Rebellion of 1798 to uncover the horrifying history of pitchcapping, one of the most brutal punishments used against suspected rebels during the conflict.We start with the United Irishmen,
Rape Of Nanking Episode 3: Subject To Change
How many people actually died in Nanking, and what happened after the Japanese Army took control of the city?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan return to Nanking in 1937 for the third and final chapter of one of the darkest stories we've ever covered. We examine the chaotic Chinese retreat, the collapse of the city's defenses, and the devastating after
Rape Of Nanking Episode 2: Dead Bodies Don't Talk
How do you survive when an entire city becomes a hunting ground and nowhere is safe?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan return to Nanking in 1937 to examine the horrifying campaign of sexual violence that became one of the defining atrocities of the Nanking Massacre.Women and girls of virtually every age and background were targeted. We explore the widespread r
Rape Of Nanking Episode 1: It's Only Going To Get Worse
What happens when an invading army enters a city already surrounded by war, and the rules of warfare seem to disappear?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel to China in 1937 as the Second Sino Japanese War brings the Japanese Imperial Army to the gates of Nanking, the capital of the Republic of China.We follow the Japanese advance from the brutal fighting
Ducking/Swimming: Town Karen
What happens when being a little too outspoken could get you strapped to a chair and dropped into a river?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan travel back to early 19th century England to explore the strange and humiliating history of the ducking stool. We begin with Jenny Pipes, who was publicly paraded through Leominster in 1809 before being strapped to a chai
Gilles de Rais: No Kids Left
Was Gilles de Rais the world's first serial killer, or one of history's most infamous victims of a political and religious conspiracy?In this episode of Torture: A Dark History, Kevin Young and Dan Hourigan explore the disturbing life of Gilles de Rais, the wealthy French nobleman, Marshal of France, and companion of Joan of Arc who went from celebrated war hero to one of the most notoriou
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The Bread and Banter Podcast
The Church of What's Happening Now: The New Testament
Busted Open
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Crickets Corner
History of the Earthquake and Fire in San Francisco
Fox news
K-Drama Obsessed Mamas | Beyond “Just One More Episode!”
True Crime Classics
