1
00:00:10,640 --> 00:00:16,159
Speaker 1: Welcome to Unexplained Extra with me Richard McClane smith. For

2
00:00:16,239 --> 00:00:19,239
Speaker 1: the weeks in between episodes, we look at the stories that,

3
00:00:19,320 --> 00:00:21,760
Speaker 1: for one reason or other, didn't make it into the show.

4
00:00:23,280 --> 00:00:26,520
Speaker 1: In last week's episode, Whispers in the Trees, we looked

5
00:00:26,520 --> 00:00:29,720
Speaker 1: at the unsettling mystery of the skeleton found inside the

6
00:00:29,760 --> 00:00:34,199
Speaker 1: hollowed out trunk of an old witch elm tree. The

7
00:00:34,280 --> 00:00:37,800
Speaker 1: gruesome discovery was made one evening in April of nineteen

8
00:00:37,840 --> 00:00:41,360
Speaker 1: forty three by four young boys looking for rabbits and

9
00:00:41,479 --> 00:00:45,920
Speaker 1: birds eggs. The boys had been searching through a small

10
00:00:45,960 --> 00:00:49,360
Speaker 1: stretch of forest just west of Birmingham known as Hagley

11
00:00:49,400 --> 00:00:52,680
Speaker 1: Wood when they came across the bizarre tree and its

12
00:00:52,680 --> 00:00:58,520
Speaker 1: grizzly secret. For over seventy years, numerous attempts have been

13
00:00:58,520 --> 00:01:01,840
Speaker 1: made at piecing together the mystery, but to this day,

14
00:01:02,120 --> 00:01:06,400
Speaker 1: the identity of both the victim and the perpetrator remains unknown.

15
00:01:07,880 --> 00:01:11,000
Speaker 1: There is one theory, however, relating to the case that

16
00:01:11,080 --> 00:01:15,800
Speaker 1: stands out amongst all others. In nineteen forty five, the

17
00:01:15,920 --> 00:01:21,120
Speaker 1: historian and anthropologist doctor Margaret Murray surmised that whatever crime

18
00:01:21,160 --> 00:01:25,640
Speaker 1: had been enacted may have been ritualistic in nature. Suggesting

19
00:01:25,680 --> 00:01:30,920
Speaker 1: a possible link to witchcraft and the occult. Murray's supposed

20
00:01:30,959 --> 00:01:34,240
Speaker 1: authority on the subject was crystallized in her nineteen twenty

21
00:01:34,240 --> 00:01:38,679
Speaker 1: one book The Witch Cult in Western Europe. The book

22
00:01:38,920 --> 00:01:41,800
Speaker 1: drew a great deal of criticism, but in equal measure

23
00:01:42,040 --> 00:01:45,080
Speaker 1: it was also to become exceedingly influential to a number

24
00:01:45,080 --> 00:01:56,480
Speaker 1: of like minded individuals, individuals such as Gerald Gardner. Today,

25
00:01:56,960 --> 00:01:59,680
Speaker 1: Gardner is perhaps best known for having been a leading

26
00:01:59,680 --> 00:02:04,760
Speaker 1: figure of pagan witchcraft, also known as wicker. What is

27
00:02:04,800 --> 00:02:08,359
Speaker 1: perhaps less known is the extraordinary story of what Gardner,

28
00:02:08,520 --> 00:02:11,680
Speaker 1: along with sixteen other witches, claims to have attempted on

29
00:02:11,760 --> 00:02:16,000
Speaker 1: behalf of the British war effort in August of nineteen forty.

30
00:02:16,760 --> 00:02:20,080
Speaker 1: It was an unsettling time, to say the least, after

31
00:02:20,120 --> 00:02:23,600
Speaker 1: the Nazi invasion of Poland in September nineteen thirty nine,

32
00:02:23,840 --> 00:02:28,240
Speaker 1: Belgium and the Netherlands was to follow in May nineteen forty.

33
00:02:28,760 --> 00:02:32,240
Speaker 1: After a gallant but disastrous attempt to halt the invading forces,

34
00:02:32,639 --> 00:02:35,480
Speaker 1: the British Army were forced to evacuate from the continent

35
00:02:35,680 --> 00:02:40,880
Speaker 1: at Dunkirk. Barely ten days later, the Nazi army had

36
00:02:40,919 --> 00:02:45,400
Speaker 1: captured France. It seemed only a matter of time before

37
00:02:45,480 --> 00:02:48,239
Speaker 1: Hitler would send his forces across the Channel to claim

38
00:02:48,280 --> 00:02:53,120
Speaker 1: the British Isles, and so it was when Gerald Gardner,

39
00:02:53,440 --> 00:02:55,720
Speaker 1: operating as part of a group known as the New

40
00:02:55,760 --> 00:02:59,840
Speaker 1: Forest Covern, hatched a cunning plan to halt the anti

41
00:03:00,000 --> 00:03:06,400
Speaker 1: Scipated invasion. Born in eighteen eighty four in Blundell Sands

42
00:03:06,520 --> 00:03:09,080
Speaker 1: in the northwest of England, into a wealthy line of

43
00:03:09,160 --> 00:03:13,200
Speaker 1: timber merchants, Gardner was to spend his formative years traveling

44
00:03:13,200 --> 00:03:18,680
Speaker 1: the world with his nurse maid, Josephine McCombe. Such exposure

45
00:03:18,680 --> 00:03:22,160
Speaker 1: to many different peoples and cultures filled Gardner with a

46
00:03:22,200 --> 00:03:25,160
Speaker 1: deep sense of searching and a desire to get to

47
00:03:25,200 --> 00:03:28,520
Speaker 1: the root of life. It was a path that would

48
00:03:28,560 --> 00:03:33,760
Speaker 1: lead him to increasingly esoteric and occult interests, culminating ultimately

49
00:03:34,040 --> 00:03:38,800
Speaker 1: in his devotion to pagan witchcraft. In nineteen thirty eight,

50
00:03:39,200 --> 00:03:42,839
Speaker 1: shortly after returning to the UK with his wife Dorothea,

51
00:03:43,000 --> 00:03:46,200
Speaker 1: Gardner had become fascinated with a group known as the

52
00:03:46,280 --> 00:03:50,400
Speaker 1: Rosicrucian Order krotona fellowship who were operating in his newly

53
00:03:50,440 --> 00:03:55,040
Speaker 1: adopted town of Highcliffe on the Dorset coast. But something

54
00:03:55,200 --> 00:03:59,680
Speaker 1: didn't fit. Within a year, Gardner became skeptical of some

55
00:03:59,760 --> 00:04:02,560
Speaker 1: of the Orders followers who were taken to believing that

56
00:04:02,600 --> 00:04:09,480
Speaker 1: their founder, George Alexander Sullivan, was immortal. After expressing his

57
00:04:09,560 --> 00:04:13,480
Speaker 1: dissatisfaction to other members of the group, Gardner was invited

58
00:04:13,520 --> 00:04:16,240
Speaker 1: to join a small gathering at a large house known

59
00:04:16,279 --> 00:04:21,520
Speaker 1: as the Mill House in Highcliffe. After arriving, Gardner was

60
00:04:21,560 --> 00:04:24,839
Speaker 1: invited to strip naked before being taken through a series

61
00:04:24,880 --> 00:04:28,360
Speaker 1: of initiation rituals, by the end of which Gardener had

62
00:04:28,360 --> 00:04:31,560
Speaker 1: become a fully fledged member of the New Forest Covern.

63
00:04:32,960 --> 00:04:36,120
Speaker 1: Twelve months later, the fate of the British nation hung

64
00:04:36,160 --> 00:04:42,240
Speaker 1: in the balance. Are you always taking care of your family?

65
00:04:42,560 --> 00:04:44,960
Speaker 1: Do you often take care of others and not yourself?

66
00:04:45,560 --> 00:04:48,240
Speaker 1: Now it's time to take care of yourself, to make

67
00:04:48,279 --> 00:04:51,680
Speaker 1: time for you. You deserve it. Tele Adoc gives you

68
00:04:51,760 --> 00:04:54,680
Speaker 1: access to a licensed therapist to help you get back

69
00:04:54,720 --> 00:04:58,480
Speaker 1: to feeling your best, to feeling like yourself again. With

70
00:04:58,600 --> 00:05:01,560
Speaker 1: tele adoc, you can speak to a licensed therapist by

71
00:05:01,600 --> 00:05:05,240
Speaker 1: phone or video. Therapy appointments are available seven days a

72
00:05:05,240 --> 00:05:08,800
Speaker 1: week from seven am to nine pm local time. If

73
00:05:08,839 --> 00:05:13,159
Speaker 1: you feel overwhelmed sometimes maybe you feel stressed or anxious,

74
00:05:13,480 --> 00:05:16,440
Speaker 1: depressed or lonely, or you might be struggling with a

75
00:05:16,520 --> 00:05:21,240
Speaker 1: personal or family issue. Teledoc can help. Teledoc is committed

76
00:05:21,240 --> 00:05:24,960
Speaker 1: to facilitating great therapeutic matches, so they make it easy

77
00:05:25,000 --> 00:05:29,359
Speaker 1: to change counselors if needed. For free. Teledoc therapy is

78
00:05:29,400 --> 00:05:33,560
Speaker 1: available through most insurance or employers. Download the app or

79
00:05:33,640 --> 00:05:38,000
Speaker 1: visit teledoc dot com Forward slash Unexplained podcast Today to

80
00:05:38,040 --> 00:05:44,880
Speaker 1: get started. That's tela DC dot com slash Unexplained Podcast.

81
00:05:49,839 --> 00:05:52,839
Speaker 1: It was shortly after night descended on Lamas Day, the

82
00:05:52,920 --> 00:05:56,960
Speaker 1: first of August nineteen forty, when seventeen people made their

83
00:05:57,000 --> 00:06:01,240
Speaker 1: way deep into the new forest. They gathered a few

84
00:06:01,240 --> 00:06:03,159
Speaker 1: miles north of High Cliff at the foot of an

85
00:06:03,200 --> 00:06:07,680
Speaker 1: ancient gallows tree known as the Naked Man. Once the

86
00:06:07,720 --> 00:06:10,520
Speaker 1: group had assembled, they made their way to a part

87
00:06:10,520 --> 00:06:14,400
Speaker 1: of the woodland known as Ferny Nap, in a forest

88
00:06:14,480 --> 00:06:19,560
Speaker 1: clearing of ancient primordial beauty, surrounded by birch, oak and fern.

89
00:06:20,200 --> 00:06:23,000
Speaker 1: The group marked out a large circle of about nine

90
00:06:23,000 --> 00:06:29,159
Speaker 1: feet in diameter. It was a witch's circle. A shutter

91
00:06:29,240 --> 00:06:32,479
Speaker 1: lantern was placed to the east of the circle, facing

92
00:06:32,480 --> 00:06:36,159
Speaker 1: out towards Berlin, providing a beacon for which the group

93
00:06:36,320 --> 00:06:41,720
Speaker 1: could focus their powers. One by one, the group lined

94
00:06:41,760 --> 00:06:45,000
Speaker 1: themselves around the circle and began to strip free from

95
00:06:45,000 --> 00:06:50,040
Speaker 1: their clothes in preparation for the ritual. Some covered themselves

96
00:06:50,040 --> 00:06:53,080
Speaker 1: in goose fat to better endure the chill summer air.

97
00:06:54,800 --> 00:06:57,599
Speaker 1: On the order of one the group began to dance

98
00:06:57,640 --> 00:07:01,600
Speaker 1: in a spiral pattern about the circle, slowly at first,

99
00:07:01,839 --> 00:07:05,640
Speaker 1: but then as their awareness grew, the movement became faster

100
00:07:05,760 --> 00:07:11,360
Speaker 1: and more fluid. Then they began to chant louder and louder.

101
00:07:11,520 --> 00:07:15,040
Speaker 1: As the bodies spun around the circle. More and more

102
00:07:15,080 --> 00:07:17,640
Speaker 1: they moved as their voices built in unison to an

103
00:07:17,640 --> 00:07:22,400
Speaker 1: ecstatic crescendo. Finally, with the cone of power established in

104
00:07:22,400 --> 00:07:25,480
Speaker 1: all their minds, a collective picture was drawn of a

105
00:07:25,520 --> 00:07:28,560
Speaker 1: circular base of energy moving up like clay on a

106
00:07:28,600 --> 00:07:32,400
Speaker 1: potter's wheel, squeezing to an apex of power, rising high

107
00:07:32,400 --> 00:07:34,880
Speaker 1: into the night sky before being flung through the air.

108
00:07:35,680 --> 00:07:38,880
Speaker 1: The energy bursting forth from the cone thundered over the

109
00:07:38,920 --> 00:07:42,320
Speaker 1: tree tops and across the fields, across the freezing gray

110
00:07:42,360 --> 00:07:45,080
Speaker 1: waters of the North Sea and the lowlands of Europe,

111
00:07:45,240 --> 00:07:48,240
Speaker 1: and headed straight for the mines of the German High Command.

112
00:07:50,120 --> 00:07:53,600
Speaker 1: You cannot cross the sea. They said you cannot cross

113
00:07:53,640 --> 00:08:00,480
Speaker 1: the sea. You will not cross the sea. The rest is,

114
00:08:00,520 --> 00:08:09,680
Speaker 1: of course history. All elements have Unexplained are produced by me,

115
00:08:09,920 --> 00:08:13,320
Speaker 1: Richard McClain Smith. Please subscribe and rate the show on iTunes,

116
00:08:13,400 --> 00:08:15,360
Speaker 1: and feel free to get in touch with any thoughts

117
00:08:15,400 --> 00:08:17,840
Speaker 1: or ideas regarding the stories you've heard on the show.

118
00:08:18,400 --> 00:08:20,440
Speaker 1: Perhaps you have an explanation of your own you'd like

119
00:08:20,480 --> 00:08:23,640
Speaker 1: to share. You can reach us online at Unexplained podcast

120
00:08:23,680 --> 00:08:40,719
Speaker 1: dot com or on Twitter at Unexplained Pod. Hello, it's

121
00:08:40,800 --> 00:08:43,800
Speaker 1: Jamie from My dad wrote a Porno. Now, Christmas just

122
00:08:43,840 --> 00:08:47,240
Speaker 1: wouldn't be Christmas without my dad writing some really terrible

123
00:08:47,240 --> 00:08:51,360
Speaker 1: erotic literature. And Rockey Flintstone has not disappointed this year

124
00:08:51,600 --> 00:08:55,960
Speaker 1: because twenty eighteen's Christmas Pornos Special is available right now

125
00:08:56,120 --> 00:08:59,680
Speaker 1: exclusively on Spotify for two weeks only to get you

126
00:08:59,720 --> 00:09:02,240
Speaker 1: in the festive mood. Not only that, but you can

127
00:09:02,280 --> 00:09:05,120
Speaker 1: listen to all four seasons of My Dad Wrote a Pornoe,

128
00:09:05,120 --> 00:09:08,080
Speaker 1: as well as thousands of other amazing podcasts, all for

129
00:09:08,160 --> 00:09:10,959
Speaker 1: your oral pleasure. Just head over to Spotify and start

130
00:09:11,000 --> 00:09:14,880
Speaker 1: listening now. Now it's time to take care of yourself

131
00:09:15,320 --> 00:09:19,080
Speaker 1: to make time for you. Teledoc gives you access to

132
00:09:19,120 --> 00:09:22,280
Speaker 1: a licensed therapist to help you get back to feeling

133
00:09:22,320 --> 00:09:26,000
Speaker 1: your best. Speak to a licensed therapist by phone or

134
00:09:26,120 --> 00:09:30,000
Speaker 1: video anytime between seven am to nine pm local time,

135
00:09:30,480 --> 00:09:34,360
Speaker 1: seven days a week. Teledoc Therapy is available through most

136
00:09:34,360 --> 00:09:38,760
Speaker 1: insurance or employers. Download the app, or visit teledoc dot

137
00:09:38,760 --> 00:09:43,480
Speaker 1: com Forward slash Unexplained podcast Today to get started. That's

138
00:09:43,679 --> 00:09:48,239
Speaker 1: t e ladoc dot com Slash Unexplained Podcast