PODCAST · history
My Victorian Nightmare
by Genevieve Manion | Daylight Media
Here you’ll find mysterious deaths, morbid fascinations, disturbing stories, and otherwise spooky events from the Victorian Era. For ad-free listening, witchy content, Victorian True Crime Extras and Dark Poetry, join The Fan Coven! If you consider yourself an enthusiast of creepy Victorian history, you probably already know about the age of spiritualism, the grisly murders, the grave robbers, twisted pseudo psychotherapy, and memento mori – But I try to dig a little deeper. This was a time full of lace corsetry, romantic poetry, and a deep reverence and affection for the dead. It was a culture of shared sorrow, ornament and elegance, prudishness and scandal, bone chilling children’s stories, and for whatever reason, I just feel at home there. There’s something strangely comforting about the heebie jeebies this era gives me. If you find yourself equally enchanted by things that most people would find horrifying,
Episodes
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Ep. 117 - A Victorian Witch Killing & The History of Witch Hunting
In this episode, Genevieve will share the history of witch hunting in England, and the murder case of a man in Victorian England suspected of witchcraft. The disturbing murder of Old Dummy in 1863. Thank you to today’s sponsor! Try skincare from Alloy. Visit myalloy.com and use code VICTORIAN for...
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Ep. 116 - Scientifically Studied Victorian Ghost Stories
In this episode, Genevieve will share a number of Victorian ghost encounters recorded by The Society for Psychical Research: the ghostly women in black, mysterious reflections of deceased fathers, smiling dead sisters at the foot of the bed and much, much more. Thank you to today’s sponsors!…
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Ep. 115 - Lizzie Borden: Monster or Maligned?
In this episode, Genevieve will discuss the facts of the Lizzie Borden axe murder case — what we know to be true, what the Netflix series Monster got wrong, what it got right, and exactly why this particular axe murder case, versus so many others, caught fire when it did. Thank you to today’s...
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Ep. 114 - The Souls Behind the Stones
In this episode, Genevieve will discuss the sudden deaths, shattered dreams, haunting tales, gothic obsessions, mysteries and answers – the true stories behind 3 of the most intriguing graves in Greenwood, Evergreen and Père Lachaise cemeteries. The Graves of Charlotte Canda, George Rodenbach and...
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Ep. 113 - The True Inspirations Behind Dracula & The Film’s Iconic Costumes
In this episode, Genevieve will do a deep dive into Bram Stoker’s notes, interviews and musings about the inspiration behind his vampiric creation, Dracula, and then she will discuss the inspiration behind some of the most iconic costume designs in film history: Eiko Ishioka’s richly inspired,...
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Ep. 112 - Damnit, Mary Ann Cotton!
In this episode, Genevieve will bring us back to the murder scenes, the time-slips, the haunted lunatic asylums and hotels of past episodes, and share the back stories to their creations. Thank you to today’s sponsors! Spoiler: you can feel amazing in menopause. Visit myalloy.com and use code...
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Ep. 111 - The Tragically HAUNTED History of the Kreischer Family
In this episode, Genevieve will discuss the tragic history of the Kreischer family, the many deaths, mob murders and truly creepy hauntings of the Kreischer family mansion that still stands to this very day. She will also discuss the recent discovery of a body that received a vampire burial in…
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Ep. 110 - Cannibal Cats and Ghosts with Guns
In this episode, Genevieve will dive back into the Illustrated Police News, The 19th century’s worst newspaper. She will discuss horrifying murder attempts with hot pokers, deadly champagne suppers, the science of decapitation, men falling dead at funerals, ghosts with guns, cannibal cats and…
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Ep. 109 - The Fascinating Funeral Industry of the 19th Century
In this episode, Genevieve will discuss the funeral industry of the 19th century and a few of her favorite death-centered professions that are no longer in high demand today, but were positively fascinating: funeral cookie bakers, corpse-watchers, mutes and professional mourners. Thank you to...
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Ep. 108 - Haunted Underground Stations & Unusual Death Omens
In this episode, Genevieve will discuss verifiable accounts of tragedies that many believe explain the hauntings of 2 London Underground stations: Bank and Farringdon. She will also discuss a few unusual omens that Victorians believed predicted certain doom. Thank you to today’s sponsor!…
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Ep. 107 - The TRAGIC Paris Charity Bazaar Fire of 1897
In this episode, Genevieve will discuss the Paris Charity Bazaar fire of 1897: how an event devoted to gaiety, high society socializing and generosity became one of the deadliest fire tragedies in French history. Subscribe to the Newsletter! Subscribe to the Patreon free trial for ad-free...
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Ep. 106 - The Lincoln Assassination & Its HORRIFIC Aftermath
In this episode, Genevieve will discuss the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln and the shocking, little-known disasters and tragedies that began to unfold even before the smoke had cleared: the psychological unraveling of Mary Todd Lincoln, The Ford Theater collapse of 1893, the…
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Ep. 105 - The NOTORIOUS Case of Dr. Crippen
In this episode, Genevieve will discuss the murder case of Dr. Hawley Crippen: one of the most sensational murder cases in English history. We’ll discuss The glitz and glamour, the torrid affairs, the astounding escape attempt by sea, and the modern scientific discoveries that have raised serious...
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Ep. 104 - Haunted Theaters and Their Tragic Histories
In this episode, Genevieve will discuss two Victorian theater tragedies, the lives and deaths of illusionist Sigmund Neuberger, otherwise known as the Great Lafayette, and actor William Terriss, as well as their alleged hauntings of the theaters where they met their tragic ends; The Adelphi…
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Ep. 103 - MASSACRE on the Mary Russell
In this episode, Genevieve will discuss one the 19th century’s most shocking maritime murder cases, the massacre on the Mary Russell in 1828: a story of the slow unraveling of a captain’s sanity, bloodshed, and survival against all odds on the open seas. Subscribe to the Newsletter! Subscribe to...
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Ep. 102 - Metallic Immortality: Cast Iron Coffins & Electroplating The Dead
In this episode, Genevieve will discuss the cast iron Fisk coffins of the mid-19th century, and the shockingly bizarre and disturbing proposals to electroplate dead bodies so that they may become golden, silver, brass or bronze statues that you could keep in your home forever. Subscribe to the...
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Ep. 101 - The DARK History Behind the 19th Century’s Most Haunting Paintings
In this episode, Genevieve will discuss the dark histories and meanings behind three 19th century masterpieces: Edvard Munch’s electrifying “The Scream,” Théodore Géricault’s devastating “Raft of the Medusa,” and John William Waterhouse’s haunting Pre-Raphaelite work, “The Lady of Shalott.”...
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Ep. 100 - The HAUNTED History of Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery
In this, our 100th EPISODE, Genevieve will discuss the paranormal and downright bizarre events that have taken place in Bachelor’s Grove Cemetery in Chicago. We will also travel back to some of our favorite horrifying events, and we might run into some friends along the way! Subscribe to the...
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Ep. 99 - The HORRIFYING Confession of a Haunted Killer: Thomas Bedworth
On this week’s episode, Genevieve will discuss one of the most unsettling true crime stories in English history: The (seriously) true story of Thomas Bedworth, a man who claimed to be compelled to confess to murder by the ghost of his victim, Elizabeth Beesmore. Subscribe to the Newsletter!...
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Ep. 98 - The History and Hauntings of The Lemp Family Mansion
On this week’s episode, Genevieve will discuss the rise and steep fall of the Lemp dynasty; the heartbreak and mysteries that surrounded the family, and the alleged hauntings of the Victorian mansion they made their home. Subscribe to the Newsletter! Subscribe to the Patreon free trial for…
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Ep. 97 - Passion, Poison and Betrayal: The Death of Charles Bravo
On this week’s episode, Genevieve will discuss The death – or murder, of Charles Bravo. More than a century later, his death remains one of England’s most chilling unsolved mysteries; a case tangled in forbidden affairs, social ambition, horrifying abuse and whispers of revenge. Was it suicide…
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Ep. 96 - Victorian Death Superstitions & Medical Miracles
On today’s episode, Genevieve will discuss fascinating superstitions and beliefs that Victorians held about death and cemeteries, as well as some of the origins of those beliefs. And we will discuss how medical science in the 19th century wasn’t just horrific, it was groundbreaking, and not only...
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Ep. 95 - Dark Floriography & The Demonic Sallie House
On today’s episode, Genevieve will discuss the elegant and insulting language of flowers, Victorian Floriography and the demonically haunted Sallie House in Atchison, Kansas. Subscribe to the Newsletter! Subscribe to the Patreon free trial for ad-free listening! Today's Instagram Post References…
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Hidden History - Special Preview!
Check out Hidden History! In this preview, Dr. Harini Bhat discusses the Dancing plague of 1518. The city of Strasbourg was overtaken by one of the strangest epidemics in recorded history. It wasn't the plague, it wasn't a war, it was dancing. Dr. Harini Bhat is a clinical pharmacist and...
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Ep. 94 - Deadly Ghosts, Body Snatching & Bizarre Victorian Fads
On today’s episode, Genevieve will discuss the case of the Hammersmith Ghost, The Hope Street Body Snatching Scandal of 1826, as well as little-known, strange, disturbing and silly Victorian fads. Subscribe to the Newsletter! Subscribe to the Patreon free trial for ad-free listening! Today's...
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Ep. 93 - The Wraiths of St. Mark’s Eve & Cursed Victorian Objects
On today’s episode, Genevieve will discuss the terrifying Victorian St. Mark’s Eve practice of waiting for wraiths (the ghosts of future dead people) to reveal themselves and walk through church doors at midnight. She will also discuss haunted and cursed objects like the Delhi Purple Sapphire…
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Ep. 92 - The DARK History of Griffith Park & The Queen’s 8 Assassins
On today’s episode, Genevieve will discuss the numerous failed assassination attempts made on Queen Victoria’s life, and the simply horrifying history of Griffith Park in Los Angeles California. Subscribe to the Newsletter! Subscribe to the Patreon free trial for ad-free listening! Today'…
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Victorian True Crime Extras Sneak Peek!
This is a sneak peek of the Victorian True Crime Extras episodes that Patreon subscribers receive each week! To receive My Victorian Nightmare ad-free, and receive Victorian True Crime Extras, visit Patreon to find out how! In this episode, we will have a tale of ghostly revelations, prophetic...
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Ep. 91 - The CURSE of Cleopatra’s Needle and Greyfriars Haunted Kirkyard
On today’s episode, Genevieve will discuss the dark history of Cleopatra’s Needle and the most haunted cemetery in Edinburgh, Greyfriars Kirkyard. Subscribe to the Newsletter! Subscribe to the Patreon free trial for ad-free listening! Today's Instagram Post References:...
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Ep. 90 - Cheeseman Park HAUNTINGS & The Plaistow Horror
On today’s episode, Genevieve will discuss the terribly haunted Cheesman Park in Denver, Colorado, and the unthinkable murder of Emily Harrison Coombes, otherwise known as The Plaistow Horror. Subscribe to the Newsletter! Subscribe to the Patreon free trial for ad-free listening! Today's…
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Ep. 89 - Fluffy Black Vampire Ducks
On today’s episode, Genevieve will take us back to creepy field trips of yore: the murder scenes, spooky cemeteries and cult compounds of episodes past, and give a little more dimension to each episode where we took these trips. Subscribe to the Newsletter! Subscribe to the Patreon free trial for...
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Murder, She Told - Special Preview
Listen to Murder, She Told: an award-winning true-crime podcast created by victim’s advocate, Kristen Seavey, that covers lesser-known true crime cases. This is a preview of the episode about Peggy Mortimer on Murder, She Told originally published February 10, 2026. On the eve of Thanksgiving in...
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Ep. 88 - Old Salem Prison Ghosts & The MURDEROUS Wakemanite Cult
On today’s episode, Genevieve will discuss ghost sightings in the Old Salem Jail, The 1856 Wakemanite cult killing of Justus Mathews and their connection to the “maniac murderer” Charles Stanton. Subscribe to the Newsletter! Subscribe to the Patreon free trial for ad-free listening! Today's...
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Ep. 87 - Trunk Murders and New England Vampires
On today’s episode, Genevieve will discuss the “alleged” New England vampire, Nellie Vaughn as well as the murders of Albert N. McVicar and Elsie Sigel, two victims mysteriously found in trunks. Subscribe to the Newsletter! Subscribe to the Patreon free trial for ad-free listening! Today's...
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Ep. 86 - Meat Showers, DEMONIC Poltergeists & Spring-Heeled Jack
On today’s episode, Genevieve will discuss not one, not 2, but 3 different topics that are all creepy for different reasons: the Kentucky Meat Shower of 1876, the Dagg Family Poltergeist of 1889, and the most terrifying public menace of the 1830s, Spring-Heeled Jack. Subscribe to the Newsletter!...
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Ep. 85 - HORRIFIC Niagara Falls History & The Avenues of Death
On today’s episode, Genevieve will discuss “temporary insanity” in the Victorian era, men demanding to be executed, the horrifying history of Niagara Falls, shocking murders, women falling out of windows, New York’s westside cowboys on the avenues of death and much, much more. Subscribe to the...
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Ep. 84 - The HORRIFIC Thames Torso Murders
On today’s episode, Genevieve will discuss the horrific, Jack-The-Ripper-adjacent serial killer murder cases, the Thames Torso Murders. Subscribe to the Newsletter! Subscribe to the Patreon free trial for ad-free listening! Today's Instagram Post References: “THE WHITECHAPEL TRAGEDY”- East London...
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Fan Coven Sneak Peak! Lunar Eclipse Shadow Work & Meditation
Here's a little sneak peak of the content that is offered in the Fan Coven! Click here for more info! In this episode, we discuss how to work with the raw, vulnerable and painful feelings that eclipse season reveals, we'll discuss why and how to do shadow work: allowing our darkest parts to have...
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Ep. 83 - A Criminal LUNATIC Murderer and Master Painter of Fairies
On today’s episode, Genevieve will discuss the “criminal lunatic murderer” and master painter of fairies, Richard Dadd, the ballsiest, fraudulent mediums of all: the Davenport brothers, men attacked with swords, the tough lives of newsboys, and blood-thirsty female whisky-slingers, all this and...
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Ep. 82 - Madame Vesta la Viesta’s Galactic Love Affairs & The Meek’s Family Murders
On today’s episode, Genevieve will discuss Madame Vesta la Viesta, the galactic mystic and clairvoyant, suicidal ghosts, mediums in spirit cabinets, and the horrifying Meeks family murder of 1894. Subscribe to the Newsletter! Subscribe to the Patreon free trial for ad-free listening! Today's...
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Ep. 81 - Madame Tussaud's MACABRE Origin Story
On today's episode, Genevieve will discuss Madame Tussaud's macabre origin story, haunted houses, fatal theater accidents, murder in a row boat, murder in a furnace, death in a dentist’s chair, and a courageous, life-saving dog - all this and much, much more. Subscribe to the Newsletter!…
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Ep. 80 - The MYSTERIOUS Exhumation of Elizabeth Siddal
On today's episode, Genevieve will be discussing legal cases brought about by hauntings, the legendary and mysterious exhumation of Elizabeth Siddal, otherwise known as Ophelia, ghost globules, spirit photography, and the utterly tragic Bradford Sweets poisonings of 1858. Subscribe to the...
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Ep. 79 - Nikola Tesla’s VIOLENT & Luminous Visions
On today's episode, Genevieve will have little known, strange and unusual facts about Nikola Tesla, ghosts with deep and ghastly wounds, a woman smoking a pipe in a hearse, corpse flinging, pickax murders and a woman’s revenge with a rolling pin. All this and much, much more. Subscribe to the...
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Ep. 78 - The Donner Party Tragedy
On today's episode, Genevieve will have the tragic tale of the Donner Party, the group of 87 pioneers who became snowbound in the Sierra Nevada mountains in 1847, who were driven to commit acts of cannibalism to survive. She will also discuss the séances of “The Naked Medium,” Eva Carrière, as…
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Ep. 77 - Skeletons in a Beer Vat and Poe’s Final Resting Place
On today's episode, Genevieve will discuss astral projecting souls, an interview with a dead woman, skeletons found in a beer vat, terrible mutilations, an unexpected corpse - a number of unexpected corpses, actually, diamond studded murder weapons, and much, much more. Subscribe to the…
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Ep. 76 - NOTORIOUS Female Poisoners of the 19th Century
On today's episode, Genevieve will discuss not one but 2 female poisoners of the 19th century. Adelaide Bartlett and Mary Ann Cotton. This episode will be dripping with chloroform and arsenic. Subscribe to the Newsletter! Subscribe to the Patreon free trial for ad-free listening! Instagram Post…
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Ep. 75 - SPOOKY Ghosts of the Tower of London
On today's episode, Genevieve will discuss the ghosts of The Tower of London, Welsh fasting girls, rabid brides, maniacs with razors, an attempted murder at a christening, a great deal of homicidal arson and a fatal masquerade. Subscribe to the Newsletter! Subscribe to the Patreon free trial for...
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Ep. 74 - The Origins of TERRIFYING Victorian Christmas Creatures
On today's episode, Genevieve will discuss the Yule Cat, Krampus and the Yule Goat, as well as a few other deeply disturbing monsters that roam the countryside, looking to slice children open and replace their insides with straw and rocks every Christmas. Some of these creatures have ancient...
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Ep. 73 - An Insane Pioneer Pistol Murderess & Religious Maniacs
On today's episode, Genevieve will discuss corpse-related practical jokes, jealousy and suicide, an insane pioneer pistol murderess, a religious maniac family annihilation, men bitten by mad dogs and the madcap frolic of a cross-dressing widow in New York City. Subscribe to the Newsletter!...
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Ep. 72 - DARK Inspirations Behind Music of the 19th Century
On today's episode, Genevieve will discuss the dark, macabre, heart-wrenching and fascinating inspirations for classical music pieces from the 19th century. From Beethoven to Berlioz; romantic, brooding, frightening pieces of music that we all know, we’ve heard in movies, studied in school, or...
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ABOUT THIS SHOW
Here you’ll find mysterious deaths, morbid fascinations, disturbing stories, and otherwise spooky events from the Victorian Era. For ad-free listening, witchy content, Victorian True Crime Extras and Dark Poetry, join The Fan Coven!
If you consider yourself an enthusiast of creepy Victorian history, you probably already know about the age of spiritualism, the grisly murders, the grave robbers, twisted pseudo psychotherapy, and memento mori – But I try to dig a little deeper. This was a time full of lace corsetry, romantic poetry, and a deep reverence and affection for the dead. It was a culture of shared sorrow, ornament and elegance, prudishness and scandal, bone chilling children’s stories, and for whatever reason, I just feel at home there. There’s something strangely comforting about the heebie jeebies this era gives me. If you find yourself equally enchanted by things that most people would find horrifying,
HOSTED BY
Genevieve Manion | Daylight Media
CATEGORIES
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does My Victorian Nightmare have?
My Victorian Nightmare currently has 108 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is My Victorian Nightmare about?
Here you’ll find mysterious deaths, morbid fascinations, disturbing stories, and otherwise spooky events from the Victorian Era. For ad-free listening, witchy content, Victorian True Crime Extras and Dark Poetry, join The Fan Coven! If you consider yourself an enthusiast of creepy Victorian...
How often does My Victorian Nightmare release new episodes?
My Victorian Nightmare publishes regularly with 108 episodes available. Check the episode list for the typical release schedule.
Where can I listen to My Victorian Nightmare?
You can listen to My Victorian Nightmare on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts My Victorian Nightmare?
My Victorian Nightmare is created and hosted by Genevieve Manion | Daylight Media.
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