The strangest true stories from history

The
Weird
Past

Odd episodes from history, told from the records: what happened, what the sources say, and which famous details are myths.

Strange eventsCurious Connections: Yūrei and the Human Ties Behind Japan’s Ghosts
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The cabinet

All 11 stories, newest first. Scroll along the shelf.

Tonight's programme

Every story, by section.

Strange events

Odd things that really happened.

  1. Curious Connections: Yūrei and the Human Ties Behind Japan’s Ghosts5 min
  2. Deciphering the Elusive Origins: What is Known About the Ancient Nazca Lines of Peru?6 min
  3. Four famous historical hoaxes and how they were exposed3 min
  4. Did an Ancient Amazonian Civilization Disappear Because They Built Too Many 'Geoglyph Gardens'?6 min
  5. Unraveling the Dyatlov Pass Incident: Bizarre Theories Behind Russia's Unexplained Historical Mystery6 min
  6. Eight of the strangest archaeological discoveries ever made3 min
  7. Twelve of the weirdest jobs that really existed3 min

Unexplained

Mysteries still open.

  1. The Somerton Man: a famous unsolved death3 min
  2. Seven lost civilisations, and what really happened to them3 min
  3. Eight ancient mysteries that still puzzle historians3 min

People

Eccentrics, impostors and rulers.

  1. Three of history's most eccentric characters3 min

Myths debunked

Famous "facts" that are not.

  1. No stories in this section yet.
Headliner: the longest story on the bill

Deciphering the Elusive Origins: What is Known About the Ancient Nazca Lines of Peru?

Explore the historical accounts, geographical location, creation period, and techniques behind the Nazca Lines in Peru.Strange events — 6 min read