Some Other Sphere

Episode 60 - Anna Björg Þórarinsdóttir - Icelandic Sorcercy and Witchcraft

My guest for this episode is Anna Björg Þórarinsdóttir, manager of The Icelandic Museum of Sorcery and Witchcraft. The museum, located in Holmavik in the Strandir area of the country was opened in the year 2000 to promote and preserve the heritage of magical practice in Iceland, its methods and customs and tell the stories of the witches and sorcerers themselves.
In the interview I talk more with Anna about the history of magic in Iceland, how it developed over the centuries and the changeable social attitudes to people who used spells, staves and grimoires.  We also discussed the origins of the museum and it’s collection of fascinating and unusual exhibits, the most well-known of which are perhaps the rather gruesomely named Necropants.
For more information on The Museum of Sorcery and Witchcraft, please go to https://galdrasyning.is/en/.
You can now also support Some Other Sphere via Ko-fi. To buy the podcast a coffee, please visit https://ko-fi.com/someotherspherepodcast. Thank you!
 
The Some Other Sphere theme is from Purple Planet Music - 'Hubbub', by Chris Martyn and Geoff Harvey.

Episode 59 - Daniel Franklin and Frankie Larson - The Propagated Podcast

In this episode I’m joined by the hosts of the Propagated Podcast, Daniel and Frankie. In their show they explore the history, science and folklore of our green world, understanding that plants themselves are wonderful storytellers, and that by learning from the history and relationships between plants and humans, a more sustainable future, one of coexistence is both possible and vital.
Daniel and Frankie are huge plant nerds and their enthusiasm for the subject matter makes their show a really interesting and engaging listen. In the interview I talk with them about their shared passion, what made them start the podcast, and what that has revealed to them about the plant kingdom and humanities relationship with it. We also discuss plant folklore, and connections between the plant kingdom and the paranormal.
To find out more about Daniel and Frankie and the Propagated Podcast please visit their website - https://www.propagatedpodcast.com/.
You can now also support Some Other Sphere via Ko-fi. To buy the podcast a coffee, please go to https://ko-fi.com/someotherspherepodcast. Thank you!
 
The Some Other Sphere theme is from Purple Planet Music - 'Hubbub' by Chris Martyn/Geoff Harvey.
 

Episode 58 - Dr Holly Walters - Shaligram Stones

My guest for this episode is anthropologist and author Dr Holly Walters, who joined me to talk about her work researching Shaligram stones, sacred fossil ammonites found in a remote area of Himalayan Nepal. They are seen as direct expressions of the divine in the landscape and objects very much with their own agency, making pilgrimages through time and space, and their veneration has been a part of Buddhist and Hindu practice for over two thousand years.
Interestingly the mystical nature of Shaligrams does not interfere with an interpretation of them as fossilised creatures, or their existence millions of years ago as living ammonites. They represent in microcosm the ability for something to have both meaning and explanation in balance, without one needing to supersede the other.
In the interview I talk more about this with Holly, along with a general discussion about Shaligram stones themselves and their history as sacred objects. Given their birthplace is in the Himalayas, we also talked a little about how the Yeti and the supernatural in general is understood and interpreted in that part of the world.
To find out more about Holly's work and Shaligram stones, her excellent blog can be found at https://www.peregrinationblog.com/.
Her article 'Yeti or not! Here I come!' can be found here.
You can now support Some Other Sphere via Ko-fi. To be the podcast a coffee, please go to https://ko-fi.com/someotherspherepodcast. Thank you!
 
The Some Other Sphere theme is 'Hubbub' by Chris Martyn and Geoff Harvey of Purple Planet Music.
 

Episode 57 - Stephanie Quick - Exploring the esoteric

In this episode I’m joined by writer and esoteric researcher Stephanie Quick. Stephanie is the creator of the Ghost Dog is a Mystery Box blog, where she discusses her own experiences and investigations into a wide range of Fortean subjects. Her approach to engaging with the weird is a practiced one and as such she has a very thoughtful and insightful way of trying to understand subjects that can often be polarising.
As you can imagine, when talking to someone with such an interesting life, this was a wide-ranging interview, with not that much input from me as it didn’t really need it! 
Stephanie's excellent blog can be found at https://stephaniequick.home.blog/
You can now also support Some Other Sphere via Ko-Fi. To buy the podcast a coffee please go to https://ko-fi.com/someotherspherepodcast. Thank you!
 
The Some Other Sphere theme is from Purple Planet Music - 'Hubbub' by Chris Martyn/Geoff Harvey
 

Episode 56 - Linda Zimmermann - Hudson Valley UFOs

My guest for this episode is author, historian and paranormal researcher Linda Zimmermann. Linda is a native of New York State’s Hudson Valley, and has written extensively on the history of that area, a subject which includes an intriguing array of paranormal phenomena. Perhaps best known of these are the sightings and encounters that local residents have had with UFOs, which date back decades to the beginning of the 20th Century, perhaps even earlier. Linda wrote her first book on the subject, In the Night Sky in 2013 which would later go on to be made into an award winning documentary.
In the interview I talk with Linda about the history of those sightings, how they changed over the decades and were perhaps at their most spectacular in the 1980’s when scores of people reported seeing vast craft in the skies above them. We also talk about the Hudson Valley area itself, its unusual nature on a broader scale and the part it plays as the setting for this fascinating weirdness.
More information on Linda's books, research and podcast can be found at http://www.gotozim.com/
You can now also support Some Other Sphere through Ko-fi. To buy the podcast a coffee, please go to https://ko-fi.com/someotherspherepodcast.
 
The Some Other Sphere theme is from Purple Planet Music - 'Hubbub' by Geoff Harvey/Chris Martyn.
 

Episode 55 - David Ditchfield - My journey to the afterlife

My guest for this episode is author, artist and composer David Ditchfield. In 2006, David was dragged under a speeding train in a freak accident. Amazingly he survived this and as the surgeons fought to save him at the hospital, he had a profound near death experience.
After this happened he soon found that he had acquired astonishing new abilities. He could paint dramatic paintings of what he had seen in the afterlife, far beyond any artistic ability he had before. He then discovered he could compose classical music, despite having never received any formal training.
His debut symphony, The Divine Light, was premiered at a sell-out orchestral concert to a standing ovation. He has since composed further classical works which have also been performed at sell-out concerts and completed over forty paintings, many inspired by his NDE. He has also written a book called Shine On, which tells his remarkable story and was released in 2020. We end the episode with the first movement from The Divine Light.
To find out more about David, his art, music and the book - please visit https://www.shineonthestory.com/.
You can now also support Some Other Sphere via Ko-fi. To buy the podcast a coffee, please visit https://ko-fi.com/someotherspherepodcast. Thank you!
 
The Some Other Sphere theme is from Purple Planet Music - 'Hubbub' by Chris Martyn & Geoff Harvey.
 

Episode 54 - Dr Shane McCorristine - The Spectral Arctic

In this episode I’m joined by author and historian Dr Shane McCorristine, to talk about his 2018 book The Spectral Arctic: A History of Dreams and Ghosts in Polar Exploration.
In the book Shane's research ventures beyond the familiar concepts of Arctic exploration in the 19th Century and reveals a wealth of strange stories and supernatural phenomena encountered by people travelling to the frozen north, as they partook in missions to find the near mythical Northwest Passage.  Embodying that endeavour was the legendary Franklin expedition, whose disappearance in 1848 prompted rescue missions across the globe as well as the use of clairvoyants to try and locate the lost ships, HMS Terror and HMS Erebus. The fate of the crews of those vessels also inspired a host of macabre tales, both among the native peoples of the Arctic as well as back home in Britain, and these too play their part in understanding what Victorian society really considered the frozen north to be like.
For more information on Shane and his books please visit https://www.shanemccorristine.net/.
You can now also support Some Other Sphere via Ko-fi. To buy the podcast a coffee, please visit https://ko-fi.com/someotherspherepodcast. Thank you!
 
The Some Other Sphere theme music is from Purple Planet Music - 'Hubbub', by Chris Martyn/Geoff Harvey.
 

Episode 53 - Laura Tempest Zakroff - Magic, Witchcraft, Sigils and Symbols

My guest for this episode is artist, author, dancer and Witch Laura Tempest Zakroff. Laura’s artwork which includes drawings, paintings, jewellery and talismans embodies myth and the esoteric and has received honors and awards worldwide.
She is also the author of the best-selling books Sigil Witchery: A Witches guide to crafting magic symbols and Weave the Liminal: Living Modern Traditional Witchcraft as well as the creator of The Liminal Spirits Oracle.
In the interview we talk about how Laura became interested in Witchcraft and the magical practices she followed and developed alongside and as part of her artistic work, which led to her starting her own tradition with a group of like minded individuals.
We also discuss some of the more fundamental concepts of what magic is and how it works, the role of symbols and sigils in that, and how paranormal phenomena can be viewed through a magical lens.
To find out more about Laura and her work please visit her website https://lauratempestzakroff.com/.
You can now also support Some Other Sphere via Ko-fi. To buy the podcast a coffee go to https://ko-fi.com/someotherspherepodcast. Thank you!
 
The Some Other Sphere theme music is from Purple Planet Music - 'Hubbub' by Geoff Harvey/Chris Martyn.
 

Episode 52 - Tanner F. Boyle - The Fortean Influence on Science Fiction

My guest for this episode is author Tanner F. Boyle, who joined me to talk about his book The Fortean Influence on Science Fiction.
Charles Fort is an enigmatic character – part researcher, part writer, part philosopher. In the early twentieth century he extensively catalogued any reference he could find made to anomalous phenomena, which he would later go on to write about in a series of books, the most famous of which is The Book of the Damned. His writing includes ideas that would go on to be extensively explored in both science fiction and paranormal research – things such as Cryptids, UFOs, poltergeists, strange disappearances, ancient mysteries and unusual natural occurrences.
Tanner’s book examines the work and ideas of Charles Fort, their influence on science fiction, and the writers and editors who included and popularised them in their work, as well as the challenges faced by doing that.   
Charles Fort is a hero of mine here at Sphere HQ – without him, the podcast might not exist, so it was great to be able to record an episode about him.
Tanner can be found on Twitter (@TannerFBoyle1) and you can get a hold of his book from McFarland Books.
You can now also support Some Other Sphere via Ko-fi. To buy the podcast a coffee, please go to https://ko-fi.com/someotherspherepodcast. Thank you!
 
The Some Other Sphere theme is from Purple Planet Music - 'Hubbub', by Chris Martyn/Geoff Harvey.
 

Episode 51 - Ruth Roper Wylde - British Ghosts and Hauntings

My guest for this episode is paranormal investigator and author Ruth Roper Wylde. Ruth has written extensively on supernatural happenings in Britain, beginning with her book The Ghosts of Marston Vale and continuing with titles such as The Almanac of British Ghosts and The Roadmap of British Ghosts. Her latest offering is the second volume of These Haunted Times, which covers a wide range of first hand accounts of encounters with ghostly entities.
In the interview we talk about her life-long interest in the supernatural, her approach to investigating reports of hauntings and some of the theories as to what might be behind this sort of paranormal activity.
 
Ruth can be found on Twitter (@Ruth Roper Wylde), Facebook and Pinterest and her books are available from all good book retailers.
If you would like to support Some Other Sphere you can do so via Ko-Fi. To buy the podcast a coffee, please go to https://ko-fi.com/someotherspherepodcast. Thank you!
The Some Other Sphere is from Purple Planet Music - 'Hubbub' by Geoff Harvey/Chris Martyn.