Spring Heeled Jack - new Monstertalk podcast

[Rafterman]

Excellent new episode of Monstertalk on the Spring Heeled Jack phenomenon.

http://www.skeptic.com/podcasts/monstertalk/13/02/06/

About an hour and a half interview with historian Mike Dash who has spent the better part of the last 20 years researching SHJ.

Enjoy.

[Q-C]

Thanks! I always found SHJ pretty creepy.

[Rafterman]

I just finished it up on the way home from work and have to say that I HIGHLY recommend it.

Dash's information on how the press functioned back in those times and Victorian life in general was quite fascinating and really forces me to question any news reports from that era. Also some time is spent on how the digitization of research materials has made it much easier to search on these subjects. Instead of pouring through volumes of old newspapers, one can simply do a digital search and cross reference names, places, etc. In the case of SPH, he's determined that several of the more sensational stories are completely made up by modern authors.

I wonder what such metasearching on some of the more common stories dealing with other cryptids might reveal? And again, it continues to reinforce my opinion that the overwhelming majority of these tales fall apart at very basic levels when one is able to actually go in and do the research.

Edited February 8, 2013 by Rafterman