Certainly Strange: The Terror of London

The Victorian era was a time of shadows and superstitions. In every corner of London’s dark streets lived a mystery or a monster. One of the most popular urban legends of this time is the story of the leaping devil, Spring-Heeled Jack.
Certainly Strange is a podcast about the unexplainable. Each episode features another strange tale, claimed to be based on true events.
New episodes air each Friday.
For a full transcript of the episode and the sources used in our research, visit
www.drnemoscabinetofcuriositi...
Listen to the podcast on Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/1stSYQC...
Listen to the podcast on Castbox: castbox.fm/ch/3718261​​​

[@spookycathymorshaw6599]

Hi ! I think that's my favorite episode so far !
So intriguing ! As someone who seldom blame ghosts and fictional creatures when she can avoid it, I liked the steampunk-like theory the best but I am slightly concerned by the Spring-Heeled Jack's lifespan if he was active between 1837 and 1904.
It's fascinating to see how society creates and shapes its own monsters - the fictional ones to explain the human ones (who may have been inspired by fictional monsters in the first place).
As for aliens - as much as I love a good the X-files episode, I have to side with you.

[@anemonenova8694]

Every time I read a theory about aliens I am tempted to throw my laptop out of the window... Of course I believe we are not alone in the universe, but some people just take it too far

[@georgina3799]

I think for me Spring Heeled Jack was a way mostly for women to deal with trauma and it was the only way for people to take them seriously as men also claimed to see it. Unfortunately, due to social hierarchy perhaps it was a way of communicating what happened to them without incriminating someone (quite possibly their employer or a richer person) who could cause them to suffer economically especially in the case of the servant girls. I think he became something to blame and perhaps was many people like the rich men over generations due to his lifespan. I do like the steampunk theory.

[@anemonenova8694]

That's a very interesting take! Women have always used fairytales to warn other women from danger (the abuse in Hansel and Gretel, marrying a monster in Bluebeard). In a way, Spring Heeled Jack is a modern fairytale warning women of strangers in the dark shadows of alleyways...