Wyrd Wessex

Is it safe to spend the night in England’s most haunted churches? And more importantly... why didn't they include any in Wiltshire? 👇 Expand for the full book review!

Before we launch into our massive Harry Price series, it's time to settle in with a pot of tea and some Jaffa cakes for the Weirdo Book Club! This month, Craig is joined by Discord community member Rosie to review Shadows in the Nave: A Guide to the Haunted Churches of England by Eddie Brazil, Paul Adams, and legendary ghost hunter Peter Underwood.

Did this guide to the country's spookiest chapels deliver the chills, or was it a bit too dry? We discuss the strange legends of spectral horses, the drowned coastal village of Dunwich where phantom church bells still ring beneath the waves, and the bizarre Thetford ghost sightings captured by original 90s ghost hunters.

Plus, we hand out our official "Green Men" rating and reveal our incredibly dark, death-focused reading choice for our upcoming summer-ween book club!

Sometimes Wyrd is Better...

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Hosted and edited by Craig Brooks
Intro & Outro Music: Medieval Celtic violin by Music_for_Creators
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In this episode of AfterWyrd, Craig and Andy break down the week's strangest stories. Featuring a special check-in with stone carver Toby to dismantle some dubious academic claims about historical protection marks, alongside tales of high-altitude hounds, profound out-of-body encounters, a tracking-collared rogue elephant in Nepal, and Count Binface's hilarious local election manifesto for Clacton.

Segment Breakdown
Witch Marks vs. Mason's Marks with Toby the Stone Carver
Following up on last week's exploration of historic protection marks, Craig and Andy catch up with stone carver Toby. The trio dissect a recent academic paper attempting to reclassify witch marks as mere "mason's marks" or training exercises, explaining why the theory falls apart when looking at rural vernacular architecture, taper burn marks on inglenook beams, and the practical realities of historical stonemasonry and carpentry.

The Ben Nevis Cannabis Canine
The hosts turn to some bizarre modern news involving Tokyo, a black Labrador who had to be rescued halfway up Ben Nevis after suffering a suspected cannabis ingestion—a mix of mountain rescue heroics and inadvertent canine relaxation.

Near-Death and Shared Spirit Experiences
Shifting into the supernatural, Craig and Andy examine the chilling account of Jeffrey Olsen, who survived a devastating 1997 car crash that claimed the lives of his wife and son, exploring out-of-body phenomena and medical professionals corroborating impossible spiritual sightings.

Dhrub: The Infamous Rogue Elephant of Nepal
The hosts look at an extraordinary and harrowing piece of wildlife news: Dhrub, a notorious rogue elephant linked to dozens of human fatalities since 2010, equipped with multiple tracking collars and returning predictably to the same villages year after year.

Passing of a UFO Pioneer and Count Binface's Clacton Manifesto
Craig and Andy briefly note the passing of Paul Andrews, founder of the famous Contact in the Desert UFO convention, before pivoting to examine Count Binface's satirical by-election manifesto for Clacton featuring bus fare caps, 99p ice creams, and a referendum on Pluto's planetary status.

Don't blame the Owls!

Website: www.wyrdwessex.co.uk
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Hosted by: Craig Brooks & Andy Stevens
Edited by: Craig Brooks
Intro music by: Universfield Dark 80s Sci-Fi Atmosphere
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In this episode, Craig and Andy head to Oxfordshire's ancient Ridgeway to explore one of England's most haunted landscapes—from Farringdon churchyard where a headless ghost still patrols, to the Uffington White Horse that inspired Tolkien, and finally Wayland's Smithy, where an invisible blacksmith once shoed horses for pennies.

What starts as a folklore walk quickly turns into something stranger, as we're joined by local carver Toby to share unsettling firsthand accounts of small brown figures spotted in the tree line, objects thrown at tents, and sounds with no visible source.

We dig into the true story of Hampden Pye, a 17th-century aristocrat murdered during a naval engagement and cursed to haunt his memorial service as a headless spectre.

We examine the Bronze Age origins of the White Horse and the ritual mutilations discovered at Childley Warren, before ending at the Neolithic barrow of Wayland's Smithy—where Saxons believed a demigod blacksmith still worked the night. Plus, we investigate a 1978 UFO sighting from Stanford-in-the-Vale that doesn't quite add up on paper.

In This Episode
The Headless Ghost of Farringdon: Hampton Pie's tragic love affair, murder by treachery, and decades-long haunting of All Saints Church before a Victorian vicar laid him to rest.

The Uffington White Horse: Britain's oldest hill figure (1380–550 BC), its WWII camouflage, and why you can't see it properly when standing right on top.

Dragon Hill & St. George: The bare chalk patch where a dragon's blood supposedly poisoned the earth forever—and Kate Bush's "Running Up That Hill" connection.

Wayland's Smithy: A Neolithic long barrow home to the invisible Saxon demigod blacksmith who offered roadside horse-shoeing services until the 19th century.

The Little Brown Figures: Guest Toby shares two separate accounts from different decades of diminutive brown figures appearing in the tree line around Wayland's Smithy at night—with objects thrown at tents and no witnesses.

Stanford-in-the-Vale UFO: A 1978 alleged close encounter with missing time, though the travel timeline raises questions.

Stay Wyrd!

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Written by Craig Brooks and hosted by Craig Brooks and Andy Stevens

Edited by Craig Brooks

Intro music by Antipodean Writer: Full of Soul - Neon Waves Extended - Remix
Outro music by Colt Fingaz: Ding Ding Dong
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Welcome back to WyrdLore, our bonus series dedicated to the strange tales, local legends, and folklore that are just too "Wyrd" for the main show.

In this episode, Andy and Craig travel out to the treacherous, wave-lashed waters twenty miles west of the Marloes Peninsula to uncover the grim and haunting history of the Smalls Lighthouse. Back in the autumn of 18th-century Britain, this wasn't the sturdy stone tower people picture today, but a bizarre, claustrophobic wooden cage balanced precariously on nine oak pillars—allowing the violent Atlantic swells to rush right through beneath the keepers' feet.

Stationed out on this isolated post were Thomas Griffiths and Joseph Harry, two men whose forced confinement spiralled into a psychological nightmare. What happened inside that tiny wooden room left one man dead, the other irrevocably changed, and gave birth to a dark maritime legend that would eventually echo all the way to modern cinema.

Step inside the cage with us as we unpack a true chapter of coastal horror that changed lighthouse regulations forever.

Support the show and join our Discord here: buymeacoffee.com/wyrdwessex

Buy our merch here: https://www.redbubble.com/people/saxonforageruk/shop?asc=u

Written by Craig Brooks
Hosted by Craig Brooks and Andy Stevens
Edited by Craig Brooks

Main theme: NRA-LAB Intro
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Wyrd Wessex, we sit down with Matt, the director of Area 51, to peel back the layers of one of the UK’s most unique gatherings: The Strange Days Festival. Hosted at the legendary Barge Inn in Honey Street, this weekend-long celebration on the Kennet and Avon Canal has become a vital hub for the Fortean community.

Matt takes us behind the scenes of creating immersive, "shit-scary" experiences—from his work designing elaborate Halloween scare mazes like Witchfinder to the eclectic, "psychedelic space rock" atmosphere of the festival itself. We discuss the fine line between believers and skeptics, the fascinating history of Forteana, and why the Barge is the perfect, uncanny setting for healthy debate and storytelling.

Join us as we explore the lineup for this year’s festival, discuss the "Sandown Clown" mystery, and dive into the peculiar crossover between folk horror and modern UFO encounters.

Links:
Strange Days Festival: strange days festival.co.uk
Follow the Barge: https://www.facebook.com/thebargehoneystreet/?locale=en_GB

Stay Wyrd!

Support the Show:
Join our Discord: buymeacoffee.com/wyrdwessex

Shop our merch: https://www.redbubble.com/people/saxonforageruk/shop?asc=u

Written by Craig Brooks and hosted by Craig Brooks and Andy Stevens
Edited by Craig Brooks

Intro music by Antipodean Writer: Full of Soul - Neon Waves Extended - Remix
Outro music by Colt Fingaz: Ding Ding Dong
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.