158 episodes

Humans are resilient. In our toughest moments, we will fight, we will struggle, and we will triumph...often against the odds. 
In this immersive series from Wondery, host-adventurers Mike Corey and Cassie De Pecol will share thrilling stories of survival. From the daring rescue of a soccer team trapped in an underwater cave in Thailand, to a woman taken hostage by Somali pirates, these stories made headlines around the world. AGAINST THE ODDS will make you feel as though you’re living these experiences with our heroes as they push themselves to their limits.
New episodes come out every Tuesday for free, with 1-week early access for Wondery+ subscribers. Listen ad-free on Wondery+ or on Amazon Music with a Prime membership or Amazon Music Unlimited subscription.

Against The Odds Wondery

    • Society & Culture
    • 4.6 • 556 Ratings

Listen on Apple Podcasts
Requires subscription and macOS 11.4 or higher

Humans are resilient. In our toughest moments, we will fight, we will struggle, and we will triumph...often against the odds. 
In this immersive series from Wondery, host-adventurers Mike Corey and Cassie De Pecol will share thrilling stories of survival. From the daring rescue of a soccer team trapped in an underwater cave in Thailand, to a woman taken hostage by Somali pirates, these stories made headlines around the world. AGAINST THE ODDS will make you feel as though you’re living these experiences with our heroes as they push themselves to their limits.
New episodes come out every Tuesday for free, with 1-week early access for Wondery+ subscribers. Listen ad-free on Wondery+ or on Amazon Music with a Prime membership or Amazon Music Unlimited subscription.

Listen on Apple Podcasts
Requires subscription and macOS 11.4 or higher

    Buried Alive | Taken

    Buried Alive | Taken

    It’s December, 1968, and 20-year-old Emory University student Barbara Mackle is taken at gunpoint from the Atlanta motel room she’s sharing with her mother. Her two kidnappers drug her and then drive her to a remote spot in the woods outside the city. Their plan? To bury her alive in a coffin-like box while they wait for a half-million dollar ransom from her father, a wealthy real estate developer.

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    • 41 min
    Buried Alive | The Box

    Buried Alive | The Box

    This episode comes out for free on 03/19, and is available early and ad-free for Wondery+ subscribers.

    Sign up on http://wondery.fm/applepodcasts and stay up-to-date on the latest new podcasts and more from Wondery.

    Drugged and sick with flu, Barbara Mackle begs her kidnappers not to bury her underground. But soon she’s sealed inside a cramped wooden box, and can hear dirt being shoveled onto the lid. Meanwhile, a mysterious caller to her family’s home outside Miami directs them to a note buried beneath a rock in their front yard. The note confirms their worst fears – Barbara has been kidnapped and will never be found if they don’t pay the ransom.

    Johnstown Flood | The Dam

    Johnstown Flood | The Dam

    It’s May, 30th 1889, and the South Fork Dam in Western Pennsylvania is in danger. After nearly a month of hard rain, eight inches have fallen in one day, filling the lake behind the dam to capacity. And the dam’s owners, the South Fork Hunting and Fishing Club, have cut corners in repairing and maintaining it. It’s threatening to break, which would unleash 20 million tons of water on the people in the valley below, including everyone living in the steel city of Johnstown.

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    • 47 min
    Johnstown Flood | Overflow

    Johnstown Flood | Overflow

    Engineer John Parke and a team of workers furiously shovel dirt, trying to shore up the South Fork Dam as it threatens to overflow, amid torrential rains. Parke knows these efforts are their only chance of preventing a terrible flood. He decides he has to warn the towns in the river valley of the imminent danger — but it’s a warning they’ve heard too many times in the past to take seriously. 

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    • 41 min
    Johnstown Flood | Cascade

    Johnstown Flood | Cascade

    Despite the efforts of engineer John Parke, the South Fork Dam does break. The ensuing flash flood sweeps up a vast, moving wall of debris: mud, rocks, trees, fragments of bridges and smashed-up houses. Residents in Johnstown, including Reverend H.L. Chapman and his family, have mere seconds to flee to higher ground as the floodwaters and debris crash into their homes. The lucky ones find themselves clinging to rooftops amid the raging waters, fighting to survive.

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    • 40 min
    Johnstown Flood | Fire on the Water

    Johnstown Flood | Fire on the Water

    After the flood leaves many Johnstown residents trapped by debris and fighting for their lives, several oil slicks from leaking industrial equipment catch fire, igniting a deadly inferno. Sixteen-year-old Victor Heiser must rescue a young woman whose leg is pinned by rubble as the fire grows closer by the second. And as the floodwaters finally recede, and residents return to where their homes once stood, they reckon with all that they’ve lost and will have to rebuild.

    See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

    • 48 min

Customer Reviews

4.6 out of 5
556 Ratings

556 Ratings

Nzl75 ,

Music

The music is getting a little too dramatic. It’s a bit silly.

fitz1703 ,

To many ads

The excessive amount of ads ruin the story

Jesssie S ,

Read too dramatically

Stories are really good. However I’ve stopped listening as the hosts are so painful to listen to, they read it as if auditioning for a theatre production. It’s told so dramatic and over the top that you almost forget they are speaking about real life people and stories. Tone it down, tell their story, not your adaptation of what they were thinking and doing in that time.

Top Podcasts In Society & Culture

Mamamia Out Loud
Mamamia Podcasts
Conversations
ABC listen
The Louis Theroux Podcast
Spotify Studios
No Filter
Mamamia Podcasts
Sleep Deprived with Indy Clinton
CW Media
Shameless
Shameless Media

You Might Also Like

American Scandal
Wondery
American History Tellers
Wondery
The CRUX: True Survival Stories
Kaycee McIntosh, Julie Henningsen, Tessa King
Over My Dead Body
Wondery
This Is Actually Happening
Wondery
Dr. Death
Wondery

More by Wondery

British Scandal
Wondery
Dr. Death
Wondery
This Is Actually Happening
Wondery
American Scandal
Wondery
Real Crime Profile
Real Crime Profile / Wondery
Good Life Project
Jonathan Fields / Acast