Weird in the Wade
Natalie Doig
Do you like your spooky stories with some historical context? Do you like your history with a pinch of the paranormal? Then Weird in the Wade is the podcast for you. Weird in the Wade is about all that’s weird, wonderful and a little off kilter in a small English town called Biggleswade and its surrounding area. Each episode we explore a story that will make you pause and ponder, whether its a haunting, flying saucers, witches, poisoners or body snatchers. Social history meets the unexplained in Weird in the Wade.
24. The Mystery of Pegnut Wood's Creepy Bridge
There's a wood between the Bedfordshire town of Potton and the ancient hamlet of Sutton, which has spooked many locals including Nat. The creepiness seems to coalesce around an ancient bridge along an equally venerable footpath which has possibly been in use for over 1000 years.
After Nat encountered this strange part of the woods nearly three years ago, she's been trying to piece together it's history and to find a cause of the unsettling feelings walkers have described.
Why do few birds sing
23 Haunted Cinema's with Danny Robins
In this festive special episode Nat chats with Danny Robins of Uncanny, the Witch Farm, the Battersea Poltergeist and 2:22 A Ghost Story Fame. They chat about haunted cinemas, theatres and doppelgangers.
But before their chat, Nat explores the creepy tales from one of Bedford's former cinemas. There's phantom monks and an old Priory to explore along the way.
Special guest Owen Staton returns with a confession about a haunted cinema he worked in!
And Nat learns why an ambulance and priest were s
New Witness to the most haunted pub in Biggleswade
This stocking filler of an episode is packed full of new witnesses and updates to previous cases.
In today’s episode we’ll hear from a new witness to the haunting of the Golden Pheasant. It's a chance to set the story straight about one of the hauntings I covered in that episode.
There’s new information about Thelma Roberts the 1950s UFO investigator and some medical evidence which could shed new light on the Potton Poisoner case.
And at the end of today’s episode I will reveal who the special
22. Haunted Theatres
They say every theatre has a ghost. Nat embarks on an investigation to see if this is true. Starting with the newest theatre in Biggleswade, the Bigg Theatre. Once a town hall, then a petrol station, department store and a restaurant, it seems the Bigg Theatre building has a long history associated with performance and more recently ghostly happenings.
Three actors share their stories of uncanny occurrences within theatres from Brighton, to Swansea and northern towns.
Why do performance spaces
21. Haunted Henlow Camp
In this episode we travel to RAF Henlow where phantom footsteps in the snow, and a poltergeist are said to be linked to a daring pioneer of parachuting in the 1920s. We'll learn about the hauntings, and this airman's dare devil antics which tragically led to his untimely death.
Nat Doig also shares some of her eerie memories of living at RAF Henlow as a child in the 1980s, including ghost stories, creepy world war II buildings and a haunted landscape.
There's also some exciting updates about BB
20. JF Hunt The Victorian Medium Who Worked With Shakespeare's Ghost
19th Century spiritualism is at the heart of this episode which we'll explore through the exploits of a Biggleswade medium who believed he was in direct contact with the spirit of William Shakespeare. John Francis Hunt, who we met in the previous episode, was an extraordinary man, he pursued justice, sought out buried treasure and was a constant correspondent with the newspapers, the social media of his day.
We'll explore spiritualism's roots in A
merica with the Fox sisters. How spiritualism b
19. Solved: The Haunting of Murder Bridge
I'd almost given up on discovering how murder bridge between Biggleswade and Sutton, got it's name. Until completely by accident I stumbled across a ghost story, reported as part of the minutes of a meeting of the Biggleswade Hospital Board in 1922. That led me on a twisty path to the truth, involving a libel case, a notorious Biggleswade spiritualist who believed he was the ghost of Shakespeare's secretary, and two tragic and mysterious deaths. At the heart of this tragic story was the reason w
18. The Night Hag (with guest Ciaran O'Keeffe)
The Night Hag, is an old name for sleep paralysis. A sleep condition or disorder that has led to some of the most terrifying stories and folktales from around the world. From encounters with demons, witches and ghosts, to alien abductions sleep paralysis has spawned many scary stories. Likewise many paranormal experiences have been explained by sceptics as being caused by sleep paralysis.
In this episode I explore my own terrifying experience of sleep paralysis, consider what might cause it, dis
17. The Haunted Tunnels
Find out how terrifying sighting of a Cavalier ghost in the 1930s links to Biggleswade's mysterious tunnels. I explore the cellar below where the phantom was seen, discover hidden passageways, bricked up tunnel entrances, and much more. I take you on a trip down the river, and to the Camden House school room, we explore the history of Biggleswade's brewing industry, and I visit the Bedfordshire archives all in an effort to solve the riddle of what these tunnels were built for, and why they were
16. The Haunting of Camden House
Today's episode follows a ghost story over three centuries. We start in the 1880s with school children terrified by a ghost in a garden. Then we explore a newsagents bothered by paranormal activity in the 1960s. In the present day we discover a secret tunnel entrance and hear rumours of a helpful spirit where the garden once bloomed. Linking all these hauntings is the building of Camden House. Once a Victorian school, then a newsagents for over 50 years, more recently it has been a succession of
15. Weird Wanders Two: My night in York's Most Haunted Inn
As part of my haunted house challenge I spent the night at the Golden Fleece Hotel in York. The pub is renowned for being the most haunted pub in the city and maybe even Britain. No fewer than 15 ghosts have been reported to haunt the 17th century pub.
Listen to my live recordings during the night, as well as interviews with fellow guests over breakfast, all of whom had strange stories to tell.
I investigate one of the pubs most enduring ghost stories and find out one of the strangest tales I'
14. Weird Wanders One: Blind George Ghost of Anstey
We take a short wander away from Biggleswade, over the county border into Hertfordshire in this episode. Nat Doig tells the tale of Blind George of Anstey. It's a folktale with a bit of everything, a secret tunnel, a blind fiddle player, a faithful dog, the devil, and a ghost.
Nat also explores myths and legends around blindness including busting some modern myths with her guest Paul Day.
Nat and Paul discuss a neurological condition which affects many blind people, and could hold a clue to sol
13. Ghostly Crime Part 2: Biggleswade Body Snatchers and Things That Go Bump in the Night
In this episode Nat Doig explores the tale of Biggleswade's body snatchers. As is often the case it turns out that the truth is stranger and more satisfying than fiction. Do the body snatchers haunt the town still? Why might the town have forgotten the most exciting part of the story, preferring instead to remember just a murky fragment of the tale? Nat ponders these questions and finds some surprising answers.
This episode also looks at a haunting linked to a victim of crime in London's Green P
12. Ghostly Crime Part One: Murder Bridge, Thomas Dun and a Chat with Eerie Edinburgh
In this bumper episode I explore why so many ghost stories and hauntings have a connection with crime or criminals.
I investigate the local legend of Biggleswade's Murder Bridge, a place every school child knows not to approach.
I tell you the tale of Thomas Dun, reported to be Black Tom's phantom friend or even the real Black Tom. His 800 year old story is full of despicable deeds and more strange and eerie folk tales.
And finally as a real treat, I talk with Wayne from Eerie Edinburgh about
11. Black Tom Phantom Highwayman of Bedford
In this episode we explore one of Bedford's most famous hauntings. A folktale so well known it gave it's name to an area of the town. What is now a rather unassuming roundabout just north of Bedford town centre, known locally as Black Tom's Grave, was once a place of fear. Was a highwayman executed on that site? Does his restless spirit still wander beneath the trees there? Why are there so many paranormal reports in that small area of Bedford? And who is the shadowy figure often reported along
Bonus Episode: Facing my Demons at the Black Magic Church
Happy New Year! In this bonus episode I visit the ruin of St Mary's Old Church, Clophill. On a chilly December morning, 60 years after the ruin became notorious for black magic rituals, devil worship, vandalism, desecration and hauntings, I spend a few hours recording and photographing the site. An instance of pareidolia (seeing a figure in random mottled wall markings in this case) forces me to confront some childhood demons.
You don't have to have listened to the previous episodes about Cloph
10. The Ghosts of St Mary’s Old Church
In this Christmas bonanza episode chock full of ghosts, I tell you about the many hauntings reported at St Mary's Old Church, Clophill, over the last 60 years. From Spectral beasts scaring news agents at Christmas, to a punk band who felt their haunting encounter at the church brought them bad luck, to more recent mobile phone footage of monk like phantoms. It's all explored in this episode.
Did the church's sad past of vandalism and desecration disturb spirits who should have been left to rest
9. The Black Magic Church
There's an abandoned church on a hill top at Clophill in Bedfordshire, that fuelled my nightmares as a child. In today's episode I explore the history of this notorious church that the tabloid press labelled a "black magic church" back in the 1960s. This ruined church has associations with magic, ghosts, grave robbers, the devil, desecration and death. But are the newspaper stories and the local folklore true? And why was I so scared by the very thought of this church as a child? How do my night
Bonus Episode: More Big Cats of Bedfordshire and Beyond
In this bonus episode we hear from a new witness who saw a large black cat in Bedfordshire in the 1990s. His sighting was near to the famous encounters with the beast of Silsoe which I also explore.
We also catch up with Owen Staton, completing the interview started in episode 7, The Big Cat of Biggleswade and Phantom Felines.
Find out more about Owen and his podcasts by following him on Twitter / X here.
Read the show notes and links on the blog at weirdinthewade.blog
Contact the podcast at w
8. The Most Haunted Pub in Biggleswade
The Golden Pheasant in Biggleswade is not the town's oldest or even grandest pub, but this real ale beer house is reported to be Biggleswade's most haunted. Over the years strange phenomena and mysterious stories have built up around the establishment.
I visited the pub and chatted with regulars and staff to try and get to the bottom of the haunting. What I discovered made my blood run cold on at least three occasions as I uncovered two tragic deaths from the Victorian age, which seem to provide
7. The Big Cat of Biggleswade and Phantom Felines
There have been several sightings of a big cat stalking the water meadows, heaths, and back gardens of Biggleswade in the last twenty years. And they're not your usual black panther type sightings; they're more intriguing. Of course, I just had to investigate.
In this episode I speak with an eye witness about the large and unusual cat they saw whilst walking their dog. We have another witness statement sent into the show, and I look at old newspaper stories. All in an attempt to work out what th
6. The Potton Poisoner: Part 3
In this final part of the story of Sarah Dazley, the Victorian poisoner, we follow the evidence shared at William Dazley's inquest and murder trial. We unpick tricky testimony and tangled timelines in an attempt to decide if Sarah really did it. There's gossip, pills and powders, a dead pig, and a teenage pregnancy all to uncover.
We hear a new ghost story shared by a listener this time centred around the Chequers Inn at Wrestlingworth where the inquest was held. Does Sarah's restless spirit st
5. The Potton Poisoner: Part Two
This is the second part of a three part story about Sarah Dazley the Potton Poisoner.
This episode opens with Sarah's arrest on the banks of the Thames in London and her appearance in front of the Lord Mayor. We'll hear a late night conversation between Sarah and the women guarding over her in a Biggleswade tavern. Find out why arsenic poisoning was such a problem in Victorian Britain. As well as exploring the details of the inquests into the deaths of her first husband and baby. It's an episod
4. The Potton Poisoner: Part One
On Saturday 5th August 2023 it will be 180 years since the execution of Sarah Dazley the Potton Poisoner, she was hanged outside Bedford Gaol in front of 10,000 people.
The haunting of a pretty cottage ties to the story of the Potton Poisoner. A murder case that was a Victorian sensation. Scandalising a nation, and still fascinating true crime enthusiasts today. Should Sarah Dazley, dubbed the Potton Poisoner by Victorian press, be known as the UKs first recorded female serial killer? Or is she
Bonus Episode: Updates, News and a New Spooky Story
A bonus episode with updates from previous episodes, a new spooky story that happened to Nat Doig earlier this year, and some news about changes to the podcast. There's also a new trailer for the next episode about the Potton Poisoner.
If you haven't listened to all of our previous episode's here's some timings so you can avoid spoilers!
Pound Stretcher update is at 3 minutes 45
Flying saucer update is at 8 minutes 15
Potton Wood Update is at 14 minutes 10
New Spooky story and trailer all spoi
3. What’s Haunting Potton Wood?
Can a WW2 plane crash explain the strange phenomena that have been reported in this quiet corner of English woodland over the last 70 years? How does the tale of a little hero dog tie in with the ghostly encounters? Why do so many visitors to the wood smell burning when there are no signs of fire near by?
This month's episode is a little different. We have a witness interview, field recordings from the woods, access to Luton Paranormal's research files and lots of history to explore as we try to
Bonus Episode: Luton’s Noontide Hag
In 1848 a boy from Luton workhouse has a strange and horrifying encounter in church. His story is reported in the newspapers and there are links to Scotland, Sir Walter Scott and a pioneer of stage magic. Hear all about it in this bonus episode.
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2) Flying Saucers Over Biggleswade
It's the 1950s and for a few short weeks Biggleswade becomes the flying saucer capital of the world! A UFO hoax is uncovered, whilst two flying saucer sightings a year apart, remain to this day, a mystery. Find out how the hoax and the genuine UFO mystery are intertwined, meet a cast of characters including a working class engineering hero, and a woman investigating UFOs with her trusty Labrador. In the 1950s things were definitely weird in the wade.
Thank you so much for listening!
Read the sh
Bonus Mini Episode: The Silsoe Grey Lady
In this bonus, mini episode, partly recorded on a dawn walk around Wrest Park, hear the ghost story of the grey lady of Silsoe in Bedfordshire. Birdsong will accompany you as we travel back in time and discover what haunts the George Inn and how the haunting is linked to the beautiful and stately Wrest Park.
Show notes and transcript at Weird in the Wade's blog
Please consider supporting the podcast if you can by rating or reviewing this episode or buy me a Ko-fi at https://ko-fi.com/weirdinthe
Bonus Episode: The Great Fire of Biggleswade, New Evidence.
A bonus episode about the 1785 Great Fire of Biggleswade. I've unearthed new evidence, which has lain unnoticed for 230 years. Does the established narrative including the cause of the fire need to be challenged? Make up your own mind after listening.
Find out about how the news was reported 230 years ago, how connected our country really was back then, and how history can turn on a six pence or on a dog's paw.
Researched, written and presented by Nat Doig
Theme music by Tess Savigear
Find the t
1 The Haunted Pound Stretcher
The staff at the Biggleswade pound stretcher got more than they bargained for when strange things started happening at their place of work. We examine what really went down in the shop and gather witness testimonies. We'll also look at links to Biggleswade's past and the building's unique place in history. Can we discover who Aggie the poltergeist really was?
Visit Weird in the Wade blog for more info including transcript and photos.
Find us on Twitter and Instagram
Theme music by Tess Savigear
Weird in the Wade: Trailer
Something is coming... A new podcast about all that's weird, wonderful and a little off kilter in the town of Biggleswade in Bedfordshire. Before our first episode is released on Monday 1st of May listen to a trailer all about this new and fascinating podcast. If you like your spooky stories with an historical context or your history with a pinch of the paranormal then this is the podcast for you.
Theme music by Tess Savigear
Written and presented by Natalie Doig