Weird Darkness is narrated by professional full-time voice actor Darren Marlar. No A.I. voices are ever used in the show. Darkness Syndicate members get the ad-free version: https://www.patreon.com/posts/112913114 IN THIS EPISODE: Hundreds of years after his death, the tomb of William Longespee was opened and what was found horrified the man who opened it… the skeleton of a black rat was found in the skull of Longespee – but that wasn’t the end of the story! (The Rat In Longespee’s Skull) *** Most people are superstitious to at least a tiny degree – avoiding walking under ladders, not opening umbrellas indoors, or having a tingle down the spine every Friday the 13th. Perhaps you have a favorite or “lucky” shirt to wear on special occasions – or a lucky pair of socks. Maybe you have to dress from left to right instead of the other way around. Superstitions may seem silly, but we seem to live with them everywhere – but your superstitions don’t hold a candle to the ones believed by those in the theater. Thespians on and off the stage have some pretty bizarre concepts about what is lucky and unlucky. (Strange Superstitions of the Stage) *** Viking sagas describe the ritual execution of blood eagle, in which victims were kept alive while their backs were sliced open so that their ribs, lungs, and intestines could be pulled out into the shape of bloody wings. The torture method was so grisly that some historians believe it never truly happened. We can only hope historians are correct, because the thought of someone going through it alive is unbelievably terrifying. (The Blood Eagle Viking Torture) *** Physicist Enrico Fermi famously asked the question "Where are they?" to express his surprise over the absence of any signs for the existence of other intelligent civilizations in the Milky Way Galaxy. Although many potential resolutions to this so-called “Fermi paradox” have been suggested over the years, there is still no consensus on which one, if any, is correct.  We’ll look at some of the theories as to where E.T. might be found. (Where Might E.T. Be Hiding?) *** Only once in the history of law enforcement and ufology has there been a case where a UFO incident turned into an actual criminal investigation. We’ll look at the Dechmont Woods Encounter. (The Criminal Investigation of a UFO Incident) CHAPTERS & TIME STAMPS (All Times Approximate)… 00:00:00.000 = Cold Open and Show Intro 00:06:56.540 = The Criminal Investigation of a UFO Incident 00:28:52.627 = Where Might E.T. Be Hiding? 00:43:11.703 = The Blood Eagle Viking Torture 00:52:29.530 = Strange Superstitions of the Stage 01:11:38.823 = The Rat in Longespee’s Skull 01:23:19.578 = Show Close SOURCES AND REFERENCES FROM THE EPISODE… BOOK: “The UFO Mystery Solved” by Steuart Campbell: https://amzn.to/3OsXXnI BOOK: “UFO Scotland – the Secret History of Scotland’s UFO Phenomenon” by Ron Halliday: https://amzn.to/3Y5nkiA “The Criminal Investigation of a UFO Incident” by Marcus Lowth for UFO Insight: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/562ntr6z; and IAN at Mysterious Britain and Ireland:https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/2p8ty2n8 “Where Might E.T. Be Hiding?” by Ben Gazur for ListVerse.com: https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/3yvx7adx “Strange Superstitions of the Stage” by Amanda Boisen for Ranker: a href="https://weirddarkness.tiny.us/36y34m7b" target="_blank"...