Monstrous

Carrie Canny

Monstrous is a true crime and mystery podcast that dives into legends, hauntings, and all things eerie and spine-tingling. Hosted by a Southern-born storyteller now living in the Midwest, the show explores murders, serial killers, cold cases, mysteries, cults, and the unexplained. Along with a regular guest and occasional special guests, each episode unravels the strange, the chilling, and the monstrous. Join us every Monday for new episodes. Listener discretion is advised.

  1. 4d ago

    The Disappearance of Natalee Holloway

    Natalee Holloway was 18 years old when she vanished on a graduation trip to Aruba, and the nightmare that followed would stretch on for nearly two decades. In this episode of Monstrous, we follow the disappearance, the chaos of the early investigation, the endless lies, and the dark trail that finally led back to Joran van der Sloot. Even after the confession, one devastating question still remains: where is Natalee? 📧 Send us case suggestions and listener stories: monstroustcpod@gmail.com 📱 Follow us on all social media links here: https://linktr.ee/monstrouspod

  2. Jul 21

    When Mass Hysteria Spreads

    In this episode of Monstrous, we’re diving into three real cases of mass psychogenic illness that left investigators searching for answers. It starts in 1962, when a laughter outbreak swept through a Tanzanian boarding school and spread into surrounding communities. Then we move to a North Carolina factory, where workers began reporting strange symptoms after fear took hold on the floor. Finally, we head to the West Bank, where fainting episodes spread across multiple schools in the middle of growing panic. We also look at a more modern example from LeRoy, New York, where teenage girls developed sudden tics and twitching that sparked the same kinds of questions all over again. Different places. Different symptoms. Same unsettling pattern. What happens when fear spreads faster than logic — and a whole group starts reacting before anyone understands why? 📧 Send us case suggestions and listener stories: monstroustcpod@gmail.com 📱 Follow us on all social media links here: https://linktr.ee/monstrouspod

  3. Jul 13

    The Meowing Nuns

    A convent in France. Silence, ritual, and devotion. And then, according to later accounts, the sound of cat-like cries breaking through the stillness. In this episode of Monstrous, we unravel the eerie story of the meowing nuns — a medieval tale that lives somewhere between legend, historical memory, and psychological mystery. We explore what people believed was happening, why the story survived, and what it reveals about fear, control, and the fragile line between order and collapse. We also dig into the symbolism of cats in medieval Europe and the possibility that the tale reflects something deeper about shared distress and collective behavior. 📧 Send us case suggestions and listener stories: monstroustcpod@gmail.com 📱 Follow us on all social media links here: https://linktr.ee/monstrouspod

  4. Jul 5 ·  Bonus

    Simon Michael: Barrister Turned Author

    In this special bonus episode of Monstrous, Carrie sits down with Simon Michael—a former criminal barrister turned novelist, often called the “British John Grisham”—for a conversation rooted in real cases, courtroom tension, and the darker corners of human nature. After 37 years practicing law in the UK, including at the Old Bailey, Simon has prosecuted and defended some of the most serious criminal cases imaginable. Now an author of historical legal thrillers set in 1960s London, he draws directly from the cases he lived through—bringing a level of authenticity few writers can match. In this episode, Simon shares the story that launched his writing career, along with unforgettable moments from inside the justice system, including the eerie “waxwork corpse” case—where a body, preserved for nearly a decade at the bottom of a freezing lake, resurfaced in a way no one could have predicted. He also opens up about the psychological reality of defending people he suspected—or knew—were guilty, and the intense, sometimes dangerous moments that came with the job. Carrie and Simon explore the stark differences between UK and US legal systems, from jury selection to the unique “cab rank rule,” and what it really means to pursue justice when the system itself isn’t perfect. They also dive into Simon’s writing process, his antihero Charles Holborne, and how real-life violence, corruption, and moral ambiguity shape both his fiction and his worldview. The episode takes a true crime turn as Carrie recounts the chilling Texarkana Moonlight Murders—a 1946 killing spree by the still-infamous Phantom Killer—while Simon shares the story of London’s notorious Kray twins, whose reign of violence, political connections, and shocking crimes exposed just how far corruption could reach. Blending true crime, legal insight, and unsettling storytelling, this conversation pulls back the curtain on both the justice system and the monsters that move within it—sometimes hidden, sometimes protected, and sometimes closer than we’d like to believe. Follow Monstrous: https://linktr.ee/monstrouspod Find Simon Michael’s books: www.simonmichaelauthor.com Contact: monstroustcpod@gmail.com

  5. Jun 29

    The Dancing Plague of 1518

    In 1518, the city of Strasbourg witnessed an event that still defies explanation. A woman known as Frau Troffea began dancing in the street—and continued for days. Within a week, dozens had joined her. Within a month, that number may have reached into the hundreds. There was no music. No clear cause. And no way to stop it. Contemporary records describe people dancing to the point of exhaustion, injury, and in some cases, death. Authorities, believing the condition was caused by “overheated blood,” encouraged the dancing—only intensifying the outbreak. Historians and scientists have proposed explanations ranging from ergot poisoning to mass psychogenic illness. But none fully account for the scale, duration, and physical toll of what occurred. In this episode of Monstrous, we examine the historical accounts, the leading theories, and the deeper question behind them: How does something spread through a group—not physically, but psychologically—and become real in the body? 📧 Send us case suggestions and listener stories: monstroustcpod@gmail.com 📱 Follow us on all social media links here: https://linktr.ee/monstrouspod

  6. Jun 29

    Ted Kaczynski Part 2

    In Part 2 of our two-part Unabomber series, we continue the story of Ted Kaczynski — the man who terrorized the United States for nearly two decades with a bombing campaign that killed three people and injured 23 more. From the first bomb at Northwestern University in 1978 to the final fatal attacks in 1995, we walk through every device, every victim, and every mystery that made this one of the longest-running domestic terror investigations in U.S. history. Listen as we uncover the turning point that finally broke the case: a 35,000-word manifesto published in the Washington Post, and the brother who recognized his own sibling’s writing style. We detail Ted’s arrest at his isolated Montana cabin in 1996, his refusal to confess despite overwhelming evidence, his life sentence at ADX Florence (“Bombers Row”), and his death in 2023 at age 81. Key Facts: • 16 known bombing devices (9 mailed) • 3 killed: Hugh Scrutton (1985), Thomas Mosser (1994), Gilbert Murray (1995) • 23 injured across 7 states • 17-year campaign (1978-1995) • Ted arrested April 3, 1996 in Montana • Never expressed remorse, pleaded guilty in 1998 to avoid death penalty • Died at Federal Medical Center Butner, North Carolina in 2023 📧 Send us case suggestions and listener stories: monstroustcpod@gmail.com 📱 Follow us on all social media links here: https://linktr.ee/monstrouspod

  7. Jun 19 ·  Bonus

    Two Podcasters. One Unsolved Case.

    Amy Bradley’s disappearance is one of those cases that never really lets go. Nearly three decades later, the questions are still there. The sightings. The theories. The gaps that don’t quite make sense. And the reality that no one has ever been able to fully explain what happened aboard that cruise ship. In this special bonus episode, I’m joined by Kevin Hall, host of Midnight Mystery Archive, who recently completed a 12-part deep dive into Amy’s case. What makes this conversation different is that we were both researching the same case at the same time—working through the same material, the same questions, and many of the same uncertainties. This isn’t a recap. It’s a reflection. We talk about what changes after you spend months inside a case like this—what holds up, what starts to fall apart, and what still doesn’t sit right. From the complexities of investigating a disappearance at sea, to the way public narratives take shape, to the responsibility of telling unresolved stories responsibly—we go beyond the surface of the case itself. We also discuss what often gets misunderstood about Amy Bradley’s disappearance, how audience engagement can shape true crime storytelling in real time, and why some cases refuse to fade. And toward the end, we shift into something new—Kevin’s upcoming novel, Echo 1953—and what it looks like to move from real, unresolved stories into fiction. This episode is about more than a mystery. It’s about memory, storytelling, and the weight of not knowing. Listen now, and stay tuned—my full coverage of Amy Bradley’s case is coming soon. Keep an eye out for Echo 1953 Follow Kevin Hall and Midnight Mystery Archive: https://www.midnightmysteryarchive.com/?utm_source=podnews.net&utm_medium=web&utm_campaign=podcast-page Find our links here: https://linktr.ee/monstrouspod Email us at: monstroustcpod@gmail.com

    Two Podcasters. One Unsolved Case.

  8. Jun 16

    Ted Kaczynski Part 1

    This is the story of how a math prodigy became the Unabomber. Born in Chicago in 1942, Theodore Kaczynski was a brilliant but isolated child who skipped grades, spent months in hospital isolation as an infant, and never learned how to connect with other people. By 16, he was at Harvard studying mathematics. By 25, he was an assistant professor at UC Berkeley—the youngest professor ever hired by the university’s math department. But he quit. He walked away from academia and moved into an off-grid cabin in rural Montana, with no electricity, no running water, and no contact with society. What happened out there changed everything. Industrial noise invaded his silence. Logging destroyed his favorite hiking spots. The wilderness he loved was being eaten by modern society. And Ted’s resentment turned into ideology. He began writing. He began blaming. And he began justifying violence. On May 25, 1978, the first bomb appeared—a package at the University of Illinois-Chicago that exploded when opened, injuring a security officer. That was the first spark of a 17-year bombing campaign that would kill three people, injure 23 others, and terrorize the United States for nearly two decades. In Part 1, we go back to the beginning. We explore how Ted Kaczynski became Ted Kaczynski—his childhood, his Harvard years, the psychological experiments he was secretly enrolled in, his academic career, and his retreat into the wilderness. We trace the slow, quiet drift from an innocent child into someone who sent bombs through the mail and killed people. This is not a story of a sudden explosion. It’s a story of a lifetime of isolation, intelligence, and bitterness that built into something monstrous. Part 2 continues the story with the deadly bombs, the manifesto, and the hunt for the Unabomber. 📧 Send us case suggestions and listener stories: Monstroustcpod@gmail.con 📱 Follow us on all social media links here: https://linktr.ee/monstrouspod

See All (114)

Trailers

Ratings & Reviews

4.7
out of 5
6 Ratings

About

Monstrous is a true crime and mystery podcast that dives into legends, hauntings, and all things eerie and spine-tingling. Hosted by a Southern-born storyteller now living in the Midwest, the show explores murders, serial killers, cold cases, mysteries, cults, and the unexplained. Along with a regular guest and occasional special guests, each episode unravels the strange, the chilling, and the monstrous. Join us every Monday for new episodes. Listener discretion is advised.

Information

  • Creator
    Carrie Canny
  • Years Active
    2024 - 2026
  • Episodes
    114
  • Rating
    Explicit
  • Copyright
    © Carrie Canny
  • Show Website
    Monstrous