The Voynich Manuscript: Medieval Wellness or Time-Travelling Shite Talk?

This week on The Creep Dive, we head from the eerie walls of an Irish holiday rental to Nazi-occupied Paris, where one of history's most chilling killers preyed on desperate families fleeing the Holocaust. We unravel the horrifying story of Dr. Marcel Petiot the charming physician who promised safe passage out of France, only to lead his victims into a house of unimaginable horror. Plus, an unbelievable modern murder case in which a jealous fiancée invented an entire Mexican cartel online... and the fantasy ended in real bloodshed. Murder, manipulation, wartime deception, hidden rooms and one of the most bizarre catfishing cases we've ever covered. This one is a ride. Want to listen ad-free and get hundreds of exclusive bonus episodes, extended chats and Patreon-only Creeps? Join us here: https://www.patreon.com/thecreepdive Your support keeps the show independent, lets us make even more weird and wonderful episodes, and you'll get this episode completely ad-free.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we're heading back to Victorian London, where the richest city on Earth was quietly drowning in its own waste. As London's population exploded during the Industrial Revolution, millions of gallons of sewage, animal carcasses and factory waste poured straight into the River Thames. The result was The Great Stink of 1858 a summer so unbearably foul that Parliament was forced to flee its own chambers, and an engineering project was launched that would transform London forever. We also look at the pioneering doctor who proved cholera wasn't spread by "bad air", the Irish labourers who built the hidden city beneath London, and the extraordinary sewer system that still serves the capital today. Plus, we finish with the astonishing true story of a Japanese husband who paid rent on his wife's murder scene for 26 years in the hope that advances in DNA technology would finally identify her killer. ⚠️ Content warning: This episode contains extensive discussion of sewage, bodily waste, disease and decomposition. 🤢 Friendly advice: maybe don't eat while listening to this one. 🎧 Listen ad-free and get an extra bonus episode every week on Patreon: patreon.com/thecreepdive ⚾ Want to join Cassie's giant game of Rounders in the Phoenix Park? Get all the details here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc5daSjgGO4YkYTPP1d_doVQDzwO_tGL8ybS_uHVYNEZIc9-Q/viewform?usp=publish-editor Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Trigger Warning: This episode contains discussion of graphic violence, fetal abduction, infant death, pregnancy trauma, and crimes against women and children. This week on The Creep Dive, we're diving into one of the rarest and most disturbing crimes imaginable. Following the shocking Taylor Parker case, Soph investigates a terrifying pattern that has appeared again and again across America: women faking pregnancies, building elaborate lies, befriending expectant mothers, and committing unthinkable acts in pursuit of a child. From online friendships forged through puppy breeding forums to fake baby bumps, fabricated ultrasounds, and years-long deceptions, these cases reveal a chilling psychological pattern that feels almost impossible to understand. Then, because we all desperately need a palate cleanser, Jen takes us to Belgium for one of the greatest robberies in history: the Antwerp Diamond Heist. A gang of thieves spent years infiltrating the world's most secure diamond vault, bypassed layers of security that experts believed were impossible to defeat, and nearly got away with half a billion dollars in diamonds. Fake pregnancies, stolen babies, giant diamond vaults, salami-based detective work, and some of the strangest criminal behaviour we've ever covered. Listen ad-free and get hundreds of exclusive bonus episodes: 🐝 The Creep Dive Patreon Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on The Creep Dive We begin with a tragic bungee-jumping disaster at Brazil's infamous "Skeleton Bridge" before spiralling headfirst into a world of magic schools, witches, secret rituals, spiritual manipulation and the blurry line between belief and control. What starts as a conversation about alternative education becomes something much darker as we unpack the experiences of people raised inside a movement that promised supernatural powers, protection from death and a direct connection to hidden knowledge. Along the way there are flying claims, psychic abilities, mysterious ceremonies, tithes, cult comparisons and one very uncomfortable question: At what point does a spiritual community become something else entirely? Plus: the girls debate religion, cults, magical thinking and why humans seem endlessly drawn to people who claim to have special powers. Part 2 is available now. Listen ad-free and jump straight into Part 2 on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thecreepdive Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jen takes us back to 1920s America and the story of Henry Ford, anti-Semitic propagandist, Hitler fan, and all-round moral crusader who decided that owning the world's car industry wasn't enough. His next project? Buying 2.5 million acres of the Amazon rainforest to build a rubber empire and implant a wholesome, alcohol-free, jazz-free, union-free Midwestern town in the middle of one of the most hostile environments on Earth. The Soph  brings the misery with a story from July 1999. Best friends David and Raffi set off on a road trip from Boston to California. A detour into Rattlesnake Canyon in Carlsbad Caverns National Park, with one and a half litres of water between them, goes catastrophically wrong. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.