Weird Christmas Podcast

Episodes

1. 54

   2025 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction ConThology (ex-Contest/Anthology)

   Please check WeirdChristmas.com for the text of all the stories along with links to the authors' bios, other works, and all the show notes. Please help support the show, the podcast, and Weird Christmas website by donating/gifting any and all amounts at Ko-Fi.com (click here). The money from the...

   Dec 26, 2025

   1h 25m
2. 53

   Benito and Christkindlmarkt Travel PART TWO

   If you’re looking for any of the links mentioned in the show, they're all at WeirdChristmas.com on the post for the first part of this conversation, which, yes, is technically a different episode, even though I probably should have made them all one, although there were a couple years inbetween…

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   Dec 22, 2025

   56m
3. 52

   Benito Cereno and Christkindlmarkt Travel (Christkindlemarkets in English for the searches)

   Craig talks with Benito Cereno about Benito's tour of Christkindlmarkets (Or Christkindlmärkte to be accurate, but we're also gonna call them Christkindlemarkets just to make sure the search engines fine anything for my fellow Americans). If you don't know Benito, you should. He knows more about...

   Dec 21, 2025

   59m
4. 51

   Weird Christmas Baking with Linda Raedisch

   Baking: Recipes & Stories from Tomb Offerings to Gingerbread Boys. Talk about disgusting food and wondrously delicious treats, along with some of the strange stories that lay behind them all Buy the book direct from the publisher (Llewellyn). (Or that other place.) Her author site at Llewellyn...

   Dec 14, 2025

   1h 19m
5. 50

   2024 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction Contest/Anthology Results Show

   2024 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction Contest Winners: Weird Card Winner: “The Study of Owls and the Christmas Contronyms” by Daniel Roop Unreal Holiday Celebration Winner: “The Mycelial Muffinheads’ Annual Pilgrimage to the Cave of Forget-Me-Nothings” by C.L. Sidell Stocking Stuffer Winner: “All…

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   Jan 7, 2025

   1h 26m
6. 49

   2023 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction Contest Results Show

   Please see WeirdChristmas.com for text and info on all the stories and writers.

   Dec 31, 2023

   1h 32m
7. 48

   Nisser and Tomtar (Scandinavian Elves) with Benito Cereno

   Craig talks with the ever knowledgeable and jolly Benito Cereno about Scandinavian elves, which you're starting to see more and more places in decorations and movies. All links mentioned on the show, along with info on Benito, can be found at WeirdChristmas.com at this link:...

   Dec 23, 2023

   50m
8. 47

   2022 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction Contest (5th Annual Results Show)

   The best show of the year: 19 stories of Christmas Weirdness from the annual Weird Christmas Flash Fiction Contest. Please visit WeirdChristmas.com to get information on the authors and to read the stories again. If you want to support the contest and help make more and bigger prizes for the...

   Dec 31, 2022

   1h 15m
9. 46

   Ancient Christmas with Earl Fontainelle of the SHWEP

   I talk to Earl Fontainelle of the SHWEP (Secret History of Western Esotericism Podcast). We try to trace down any textual evidence that would connect the origins of Christmas to ancient pagan sources, namely the Mithras cult and Emperor Constantine’s Sol Invictus cult. Listen here, on your…

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   Dec 24, 2022

   1h 32m
10. 45

    Mari Lwyd with Benito Cereno

    Benito and I discuss the traditions surrounding the Mari Lwyd, getting into similarities with other European wassailing and hobby horse traditions. A recording of the Mari Lwyd rhyme in action by the BBC. Benito's Links: Benito’s Christmas history videos Benito’s writing at Gumroad Apocrypals...

    Dec 19, 2022

    57m
11. 44

    The Ghost Story of Christmas 2021ish ”A Strange Christmas Game” by Charlotte Riddell

    SURPRISE CHRISTMAS IN JULY PODCAST! I never quite got this show finished during the season, so my humble apologies. All is now well. Thank you to Meghan Arcuri for talking to me about Charlotte Riddell! Her collection of Riddell’s stories will be out very soon. And here are some links to her…

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    Aug 1, 2022

    58m
12. 43

    Christmas Past, American Xmas Literary History with Thomas Ruys Smith

    I chat with Thomas Ruys Smith, editor of Christmas Past: An Anthology of Seasonal Stories from Nineteenth Century America and Professor of American Literature and Culture at the University of East Anglia. Links from the show: Christmas Past: An Anthology of Seasonal Stories from Nineteenth…

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    Jan 10, 2022

    54m
13. 42

    2021 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction Contest (4th Annual Results Show)

    It’s out later than I would have preferred, but like the inevitability of New Year’s following Christmas, it is here. To read the stories, get bio information and links on the authors, and for all other show notes, please check out WeirdChristmas.com. Results: Overall Winner: “The Fight” by...

    Jan 3, 2022

    1h 28m
14. 41

    Ghost Stories, Weird Poetry, and All Manner of Old Xmas Weirdness with Christopher Philippo

    Talking with Christopher Philippo, editor of Volumes 4 and 5 of the Valancourt Book of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories. Chris' Goodreads site Valancourt Book of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories, Volume 4 (the American stories) [Amazon] Valancourt Book of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories…

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    Dec 21, 2021

    55m
15. 40

    The Perchten with Al Ridenour

    Al Ridenour is back after talking to us last year about Krampus, but this time to help unpack the lore and traditions around the Perchten, Krampus-esque goblin-ish creatures tied to both Krampus and Frau Perchta. Links mentioned on the episode: Bone and Sickle Podcast Ep. 80 "America and the Old,...

    Dec 9, 2021

    50m
16. 39

    Christmas Murder Ballads with James Wynn

    Happy Thanksgiving! We dive deep into the history of Christmas murder ballads with my friend (and cohost from the ReReading Wolfe Podcast) James Wynn. I'll get links to all the songs from the episode up here shortly. But for now, here are links for James: ReReading Wolfe Podcast RRW on Twitter…

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    Nov 25, 2021

    1h 05m
17. 38

    Christmas Witches with Benito Cereno

    La Befana, Perchta, Holda, and so many more! We chat with the always encyclopedic Benito Cereno about all the Christmas witch folklore in Christmas history. Links: Benito's Christmas history videos Benito's writing at Gumroad Apocrypals podcast Friends 'Till the End podcast Progressively…

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    Nov 15, 2021

    1h 21m
18. 37

    2020 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction Contest Results Show

    Full text of all the winners are at WeirdChristmas.com along with bios, information, and links for all the authors. All fiction copyright 2020 by the authors. Please visit WeirdChristmas.com for full information.

    Dec 23, 2020

    1h 06m
19. 36

    Philosophy, Christmas, and Does Santa Exist by Eric Linus Kaplan who wrote Big Bang Theory which I mentioned here totally for clicks

    Sometimes when you have a podcast, you talk to people who interest you and you don’t worry so much about how it relates to the show or your topic or what your hard-won audience really cares about. So you put out a show that’s all about really, really narrow interests you have. This is half that....

    Dec 21, 2020

    54m
20. 35

    The Ghost Story of Christmas 2020 "Between the Lights" by EF Benson

    “…And scary ghost stories of Christmasses long, long ago!” Ghost stories from previous years if you’re in a spooky mood: 2019, 2018, 2017 Next year, we should break open this boys’ club with a tale from this… Links from the show: Full text of the story, “Between the Lights” A bit about Benson...

    Dec 15, 2020

    42m
21. 34

    Weird Christmas Food with Glen Warren of the Season's Eatings Podcast

    Time to destroy your appetite! I talk to Glen Warren from the Season's Eatings Podcast about weird Christmas food throughout history. Links: Season's Eatings Podcast List of Christmas Podcasts (from Brian Earl's Christmas Past) Holly Jolly Xmasu (Japanese Christmas music podcast) Totally Rad...

    Dec 4, 2020

    47m
22. 33

    Santa is NOT St Nick - Tom Jerman and Santa Claus Worldwide

    As a Thanksgiving treat, enjoy a deep dive down the rabbit hole of Santa history with Tom Jerman, author of Santa Claus Worldwide: A History of St. Nicholas and Other Holiday Gift-Bringers. This is my favorite book of Santa history, and Tom and I covered a lot of ground. Links mentioned in the...

    Nov 26, 2020

    1h 40m
23. 32

    Mumblecore Christmas with Stefanie Davis about her film The Christmas Ride

    I'm not usually your go-to source for new movies. But this one is worth your time. The Christmas Ride is a mumblecore (improvised dialogue) film about a ride share driver getting an emotional gut punch on Christmas day. I talked to the producer/director Stefanie Davis, and I hope you'll check it...

    Nov 17, 2020

    33m
24. 31

    Krampus with Al Ridenour

    Krampus. Seems like I should have done a show on Krampus years ago, but I was waiting for the right person. And that person is Al Ridenour, author of The Krampus and the Old, Dark Christmas: Roots and Rebirth of the Folkloric Devil. This is the definitive book on Krampus, and Al fills us in on…

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    Oct 31, 2020

    1h 16m
25. 30

    Christmas Werewolves with Benito Cereno

    Christmas werewolves are a thing. I mean, I don't know if they're REAL real. But people really used to believe they were a thing. So Christmas expert Benito Cereno fills us in on their history Benito's been on the show before, talking about Christmas comics and the Yule Lads. Links mentioned in…

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    Oct 15, 2020

    43m
26. 29

    Halloween Postcard Collecting with Eric Hinton

    The first podcast episode of the 2020 {shiver} season. We do a bit of deep diving into the world of Halloween postcard collecting which, if you follow me on social media, you know is a small obsession of mine. Eric Hinton runs Halloween Postcards and has collected all, yes, ALL of the Halloween...

    Oct 2, 2020

    32m
27. 28

    WC# 25 Christmas and Zen Buddhism, a talk with Brad Warner

    A talk with Brad Warner, author of the new book Letters to a Dead Friend About Zen. How Buddhism can help calm holiday stress, and just stuff about Brad and Zen in general.

    Jan 9, 2020

    47m
28. 27

    WC #24 Medieval Christmas with Misty Schieberle and Scott Smith

    What do we know about Christmas during the Middle Ages? Turns out it's kinda hard to find very much information. I talk to two medievalists, Misty Schieberle and Scott Smith, who help me trace what few mentions of Christmas there are in the English tradition.

    Jan 4, 2020

    51m
29. 26

    WC #23 The Ghost Story of 2019, M.R. James' "The Story of a Disappearance and an Appearance"

    The 2019 Weird Christmas ghost story is "The Story of a Disappearance and an Appearance" by M. R. James. I also get some help with background on James and Punch and Judy puppet shows (which show up in the story) from Jim Moon of the Hypnogoria Podcast.

    Dec 30, 2019

    56m
30. 25

    WC #22 Underground Christmas Music with Christmas Underground

    Weird Christmas talks to the indie music blog Christmas Underground about the world of Christmas mixes and how he finds great, unknown Christmas music all year long.

    Dec 19, 2019

    1h 02m
31. 24

    WC #21 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction 2019 (Contest results show)

    The annual Weird Christmas Flash Fiction show with the results of the 2019 contest. Fourteen odd stories of Christmas uncanniness to get you out of that holiday spirit. Find the full text of all the stories along with author bios and their contact info at WeirdChristmas.com.

    Dec 15, 2019

    57m
32. 23

    WC #20 Yule Lads and Icelandic Christmas

    Who are the Yule Lads, and why does Iceland have a bunch of trolls instead of Santa Claus? I talk to author Heidi Herman and Christmas expert Benito Cereno about where the legends of the Yule Lads came from and how they're celebrated today. (Next show is the contest results show...almost there!)

    Dec 12, 2019

    31m
33. 22

    WC #Bonus Christmas Pickles with the Christmas Podcast Network

    Bonus episode with Brian Earl of Christmas Past, Tim Babb of Can't Wait for Christmas, and Richard Parks III of Richard's Famous Food Podcast. This one's brought to you by the Christmas Podcast Network. We talk about Christmas pickles. Are they a "thing"? Well, that's what the show is about.

    Dec 8, 2019

    41m
34. 21

    WC #19 (Almost) Unwatchable Christmas Movies with Alonso Duralde

    I chat with film critic Alonso Duralde about his book Have Yourself a Movie Little Christmas, especially the chapter about the worst Christmas movies ever made. We discuss the Mexican film _Santa Claus_ (1959), the 70's gay bar flick _Some of My Best Friends Are..._, and the inexplicable _Magic...

    Dec 3, 2019

    49m
35. 20

    WC #18 Christmas Elves and Linda Raedisch

    Craig Kringle talks with Linda Raedisch about Christmas elves, winter and solstice folklore surrounding fairies and elves, and even a bit of Halloween talk. Check the full show notes at WeirdChristmas.com as well as Linda's book _The Lore of Old Elfland."

    Nov 24, 2019

    35m
36. 19

    WC #17 Lisa Morton and Halloween History

    Weird Christmas Podcast #17, a discussion of Halloween History with Lisa Morton. We discuss her three books about the history of Halloween along with talk of old forgotten Halloween traditions, such as youth riots and fortune telling with cabbages and kale. I also mention a site with tons of…

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    Oct 31, 2019

    21m
37. 18

    WC #16 Christmas Summer Comet and Patreon Plug

    A bonus summer episode! Professor (and Sir) Colin Humphreys of Cambridge discusses the evidence putting Christmas in the spring or summer rather than December. And...I plug my new Patreon site where you can get episodes all year round. (And there's a longer version of THIS VERY EPISODE at...

    Aug 28, 2019

    21m
38. 17

    WC #15 Christmas with MST3K, Rifftrax, and Connor Lastowka

    Weird Christmas explores the Christmas offerings of Mystery Science Theater 3000, Rifftrax, and Cinematic Titanic with Rifftrax writer Connor Lastowka.

    Jan 1, 2019

    29m
39. 16

    WC #14 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction

    The results show from the 2018 Weird Christmas Flash Fiction contest. 12 very, very short stories that will make you laugh, cringe, and fear Santa.

    Dec 18, 2018

    36m
40. 15

    WC #13 The Old Magic of Christmas with Linda Raedisch

    I talk to author Linda Raedisch about her book The Old Magic of Christmas: Yuletide Traditions for the Darkest Days of the Year. We discuss ancient pagan rituals, legends, and stories from pagan old Europe.

    Dec 12, 2018

    30m
41. 14

    WC #12 Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories and Algernon Blackwood's "The Kit Bag"

    Why did Victorian England love Christmas ghost stories? Why does Andy Williams sing about them? Why is Algernon Blackwood's "A Kit Bag" so freakin' awesome? Why did so many people volunteer to read for me? Why did an actual scholar (Tara Moore) come on this obscure podcast?

    Dec 4, 2018

    49m
42. 13

    WC #11 Xmas Comics with Benito Cereno

    Weird Christmas Podcast #11. A discussion with Benito Cereno about the unlikely world of Christmas and comic books.

    Nov 30, 2018

    41m
43. 12

    WC #Bonus Thanksgiving Gift of the Christmas Podcast Network

    Weird Christmas is part of a new thing: the Christmas Podcast Network. So this is a sampler of a bunch of the things you can find there. Different shows, different voices, and all in one place

    Nov 22, 2018

    33m
44. 11

    WC #10 Christmalloween (or How I Mixed Up My Holidays)

    How many Christmas carols are actually about Halloween? Or vice versa? However many there are, they aren't very good...with a couple of exceptions.

    Oct 31, 2018

    15m
45. 10

    WC #9 Christmas Music Junkies and Interview with Mitchell Kezin, Director of Jingle Bell Rocks!

    Talking about the underground world of Christmas music collectors with Mitchell Kezin, the director of Jingle Bell Rocks!, a documentary about people who hunt for the best and strangest Christmas music all year long.

    Dec 21, 2017

    36m
46. 9

    WC #8 HP Lovecraft Christmas Poems (and one story)

    All of HP Lovecraft's Christmas Poetry, with only minor bits of mind-bending terror. And his one "Christmas" story read by WC listeners, who are all awesome!

    Dec 15, 2017

    34m
47. 8

    WC #7 Santa's a Magic Mushroom

    In this episode, I delive into the world of shamanism, magic mushrooms, and Santa Claus. Travel with me on a trip to strange holiday destinations!

    Dec 11, 2017

    18m
48. 7

    WC #6 Drunken Christmas Music

    Christmas songs full of the best tradition of the season: drinking! Country misery, drunk singing, and, believe it or not, some actually good stuff this time. But still weird.

    Dec 7, 2017

    14m
49. 6

    WC #5 Weird Christmas TV and Movies with Joanna Wilson

    Episode #5 of the Weird Christmas Podcast! Kicking off the 2017 Christmas season talking to Joanna Wilson, author of numerous books about Christmas tv. She gives some excellent recommendations to keep your holiday viewing weird.

    Dec 1, 2017

    33m
50. 5

    WC #Bonus Episode, The House of Seven Santas, Part 5

    SPECIAL BONUS EPISODE! Join the Weird Christmas Podcast and six other podcasts for a multi-part holiday special retelling of the story "The House of Seven Santas." If you want to start from the beginning, check out the Christmas Past Podcast at http://christmaspastpodcast.com/.

    Dec 1, 2017

    8m