Story One – Evil Under the Ice In the aftermath of World War Two, the victorious Allied nations despatched numerous military expeditions into the Antarctic region. Did these battleships weigh anchor in the name of science and exploration, or did they set sail in search of something far more sinister? An evil that dwelt under the ice. Story Two – The New York Nuke From solar cannons to time-travelling armies, there are few areas of science fiction which were not inspired in some way by...

Behind the closed doors of government offices and military compounds, are hidden stories and buried secrets from the darkest corners of history. Each week, Luke Lamana, a Marine Corp Reconnaissance Veteran, pulls back the curtain on what once was classified information exposing the secrets and lies behind the world’s most powerful institutions. From the hitmakers at Wondery and Ballen Studios, we bring you REDACTED: Declassified Mysteries with Luke Lamana. The stories are real, and the...

Story One – The Beast of Bolam Lake In the northernmost region of England, there lies a small, unremarkable lake. Formerly known as Bolam Bog, it is part of a 65-hectare park teeming with deer and red squirrels. But some claim that there’s something else here as well – something far more dangerous. Since the 1990s, dozens of visitors to the area have reported seeing a tall, hairy creature with large fangs and glowing red eyes. Is it possible that the wilds of Northumberland are indeed haunted...

Part Three What started out as a search and rescue effort soon turned into a serious investigation into the tragic and untimely deaths of nine young souls. There were many aspects of the case which were highly mysterious and seemed to suggest some sort of foul play. But by who? Or what? In the concluding part of our Dyatlov Pass series, we examine the theories surrounding what happened on that fateful night back in February of 1959 - theories which range from the mundane to the truly...

Part Two After discovering the collapsed tent of the Dyatlov group, rescuers searched in vain for the missing hikers, hoping they were braving out the harsh Siberian winter in a cave or abandoned hut. The truth, however, was far more gruesome. Only metres away from the abandoned campsite, the bodies of their friends lay silently beneath the pristine snow, each having suffered a multitude of mysterious injuries. MUSIC  Tracks used by kind permission of Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed...

Part One In 1959, a group of hikers died in mysterious circumstances on the slopes of a then unnamed mountain. Now one of the most famous mysteries of the 20th Century, are we any closer to understanding what happened on that cold, February night all those years ago? In the first of our three part series, we introduce you to the people involved and recount their movements during the time leading up to their untimely deaths. MUSIC  Tracks used by kind permission of Kevin MacLeod...

Story One – The Monkey Man of Delhi Urban legends exist around the world. Mostly, they keep us from parking in dark places at night, or from talking to creepy kids with dark-coloured eyes. But what happens when an urban legend goes viral, causing so much panic that people begin to die because of it? That’s precisely what happened in India in 2001, when residents reported some 350 terrifying encounters with what would eventually become known as the Monkey Man of Delhi. Story Two – The Dread of...

Story One – The Strange Death of Zygmund Adamski In June 1980, a man was found dead in a coal yard more than 20 miles from his home with suspicious burns to his neck and shoulders. Who—or what—could have been responsible? Story Two – The Body on the Reservoir In 1988, the mutilated body of a middle-aged man was found on the banks of an artificial lake in Brazil. Listed as one of the most disturbing deaths of a human being ever recorded, the question is who or what left the body on the...

Story One – First in Defence The United States Navy possesses the largest and most powerful fleet of ocean-going vessels on the planet. In the many years that have passed since it was founded, the brave men and women serving within this institution have been exposed to numerous incidents of an inexplicable and unsettling nature. In this week’s episode, we examine three such occurrences. Story Two – The Disappearance of the Nanjing Battalion Despite modern advances in communications and...

Story One – Predators on the Moors For over two hundred years, the rural communities of the United Kingdom have fallen victim to attacks by mysterious feline intruders. As incidents involving these unidentified creatures continue to be reported, we examine the evidence and question whether there really are predators on the moors. Story Two – There is Something in the Valley Tucked away within Canada’s Northwest Territories is an area of outstanding natural beauty, inaccessible by conventional...

Story One – Ghosts of Flight 401 During previous episodes, we have explored several tales involving vehicles which have become closely associated with the paranormal. In this story we will finally be adding an aircraft to the list of allegedly haunted transports as we retell the story of the Ghosts of Flight 401. Story Two – The Curse of Clapham Woods Previously, we have explored numerous instances of supernatural activity witnessed at Cannock Chase in Staffordshire, many of which are...

Story One – Mystery of the High Country Over the last decade, the Australian state of Victoria has been the scene of multiple unexplained disappearances. What is happening to the people who vanish into this region’s isolated, rural areas, and could a mysterious figure potentially hold the key to uncovering their fates? In this story, we explore the Mystery of the High Country. Story Two – Outback Encounters In the heart of Australia lies a desolate expanse known for its unsettling reputation....

Story One – The Wavertree Bus Incident From ghostly sightings, weird time slips and bizarre reality glitches, Liverpool it seems, has something of an obscure history of strange occurrences. But an incident in 1961, which saw multiple witnesses incapacitated by strange figures, would add the possibility of inter-dimensional gateways to the city’s ever-growing list of unusual happenings. Join us as we explore the Wavertree bus incident. Story Two – The Sandown Clown During the mid-1970’s, two...

Story One – What Happened to the Sodder Children? During the dying days of 1945, the small town of Fayetteville in West Virginia played host to a horrendous tragedy. A huge blaze tore through a local household, seemingly claiming the lives of five young children in the process. But the failure of authorities to locate their remains, coupled with a series of bizarre occurrences in the aftermath of the incident ultimately posed the question, what happened to the Sodder Children? Story Two –...

Story One – The Blackbird of Chernobyl When researching the numerous major catastrophes which have occurred throughout human history, it is not uncommon to find testimony from observers who claim to have been pre-warned about the looming tragedy by some form of vision or ominous portent. In this chapter, we examine one such example of this. What was the Blackbird of Chernobyl? Story Two – The Shadow of the Aswang Since time immemorial, in cultures all over the globe, there have been stories...

As a species, we have long considered ourselves the most dominant on the planet, laying claim to the territories and natural resources we discover. And yet, over two thirds of the world remain beyond our reach, hidden deep beneath seemingly endless stretches of water. What do those depths hold for those who succumb to their hidden dangers? MUSIC  Tracks used by kind permission of Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 Tracks used by kind...

Story One – The Secret of Scape Ore Swamp In an isolated rural corner of South Carolina, there is an area of swampland that has come to gain no small amount of notoriety. Is this inhospitable region home to one of North America’s most infamous cryptids? Join us in this story, as we delve into the secret of Scape Ore Swamp. Story Two – The Lurking Horror In previous episodes, we have examined stories of oversized creatures, whose mere existence appears to defy belief, and in this story, we...

Story One – The Mystery of Aurora America has played host to numerous high-profile UFO incidents, perhaps the most notorious of which took place in New Mexico during the summer of 1947. But the reported discovery of a downed alien spacecraft near Roswell was by no means the first such incident, with an equally mysterious crash having allegedly taken place in the neighbouring state of Texas, fifty years earlier. This week, we visit the mystery of Aurora. Story Two – The Ariel School...

Story One – The Hoosac Tunnel Haunting In the northernmost regions of the United States, a train tunnel stands as a haunting monument to the many workers who perished during its construction, their blood soaked into its very foundations. Eerie encounters with ghostly entities have been reported since its creation, persisting right up to the present day. What secrets lurk within this tunnel of the dead? Story Two – The Tsarichina Entity On the outskirts of a small village in Eastern Europe,...

We have examined several encounters with strange entities, which took place in remote North American communities. In many of these cases, the bizarre nature of the incident has gone on to immortalise not only the being itself but also the location in which it was seen. In this episode, we explore two such encounters, which took place in West Virginia. This mountainous region was the backdrop for the infamous Mothman sighting during the 1960s, which we have already covered. This week, we take...

Story One – The Smiley Face Killers For the last quarter of a century, the bodies of fit and healthy young men have been recovered from the waterways which crisscross the US. Whilst their deaths were ruled accidental by the authorities, a small group of retired detectives believe that they were instead the victims of an organised group of murderers. Who are the Smiley Face Killers? Story Two – Death in Gorda Springs During the Autumn of 2003, staff at a holiday resort in California contacted...

Story One – The Second Kind Alleged interactions with extra-terrestrial craft and their occupants come in many forms, each providing varying degrees of evidence with which to validate their provenance. A small proportion of these cases has resulted in significant illness or injury to those involved, with no definitive explanation as to how or why the witnesses came to develop such harmful symptoms. In this story, we examine two such instances of close encounters of the second kind. Story Two...

Story One – A Haunting in Indiana There are many accounts on record of individuals being targeted by demonic entities. But in this story we examine a case in which an entire family was allegedly driven from their home by a whole host of demons, forcing them to enlist the help of both the church and the police in an effort to save their children. Story Two – The Philip Experiment The idea of a continuing existence despite the passing of a person’s physical form is one that has long fascinated...

From Ballen Studios, and hosted by Marine Corp Reconnaissance veteran, Luke Lamana, this is Wartime Stories. A weekly podcast that is a mix of horror, mystery, and awe inspiring tales. Where the strange, dark & mysterious meets the battlefield and beyond. New episodes every Monday. Listen now: https://ballen.lnk.to/Fz9J66