(1/2) London's Burning! London's Burning! Disaster strikes in 1666 as the dense, mostly wooden, city of London begins to burn. Who started the fire? Why did it spread like none before or since?

Maddy Pelling tells Anthony Delaney the story, including a special contribution from Pete Zymanczyk, a retired LFB firefighter who is now a City of London Guide. They offer dozens of historical tours of the City of London. Find out more: https://www.cityoflondon.gov.uk/

Edited by Matt Peaty. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.

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

Grigori Rasputin, Russian mystic, survived multiple assassination attempts on the same night. He was poisoned, he was shot, he was drowned in a freezing St Petersburg river. His corpse was emasculated. What is myth here and what is truth? Who was the real Rasputin? Why did so many people want him dead?

Our guest today is Douglas Smith, author of the acclaimed biography Rasputin: The Biography

Edited by Tomos Delargy. Produced by Sophie Gee. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.

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All music from Epidemic Sounds/All3 Media

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

What lurks beneath the dark waters of Loch Ness? The legendary monster? A piece of Celtic folklore? A warning of the Nazis' rise to power? A fraudster?

Today Anthony and Maddy are examining grainy photographs, picking over descriptions of monsters and trying to work out what it all means.

Written by Anthony Delaney. Edited by Tom Delargy. Produced by Freddy Chick. Senior Producer is Charlotte Long.

This episode contains sound effects from Zapsplat.

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

In 1872 the ghost ship Mary Celeste is found sailing across the Atlantic without a single crew member left on board. Theories over what happened on the Mary Celeste range from insurance fraud to a violent mutiny... this week, Maddy and Anthony discuss what they think happened to the ship's crew.

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

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

The life of Joseph Merrick, the man they dared to call "The Elephant Man", will fill you with pain and anger. He was treated so cruelly by society that he found becoming a freak show exhibit preferably to the life available to him elsewhere. Yet alongside darkness there is light and love in his story, and a sense of his own indomitable spirit throughout it all.

Visit https://www.changingfaces.org.uk/ to learn more about living with visible difference today.

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

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

(2/2) We find out what life inside the Foundling Hospital was like as we complete the heartbreaking and heartwarming history of London's first orphanage. We discover a building that contained so many stories, so much of London's life in all its rich complexity.

Maddy tells Anthony the story this week.

Mixed and produced by Freddy Chick. Senior producer is Charlotte Long.

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All music from Epidemic Sounds/All3 Media

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

Today Anthony and Maddy look into the heartbreaking history of the Foundling Hospital, now London’s saddest museum.

Starting in the 18th century, hear the story of Thomas Coram, the hospital's founder, and the tragic circumstances that led to the establishment of this institution.

From the brutal streets of Georgian London, to the moments desperate mothers tried to admit their children; the history of the Foundling Hospital will stay with you for a long time.

Thanks to: Coram and the Foundling Hospital.

This episode was mixed by Tomos Delargy, and produced by Freddy Chick. The senior producer is Charlotte Long.

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All music from Epidemic Sounds/All3 Media

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

Can we see beyond the veil, glimpse the future before it arrives? John Barker, a psychiatrist with a fascination for the unexplained, thought maybe we could. In 1966, he created a bureau for people who claimed to foresee disaster.

Maddy and Anthony are joined by Sam Knight, writer for the New Yorker and author of the book tells this incredible history: The Premonitions Bureau.

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

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