The Winter Solstice is here. The longest, darkest night of the year. Many a tradition are drawn from this night. It's a night of magic and mystery. One of my favorites of the entire year.

For my last dispatch of the year, I thought I would take part in the tradition of Yule Ghost Stories. Like the strange people of the Victorian era, I'm here with two classic tales to entertain you on this dark night.

The Story of the Goblins Who Stole a Sexton by Charles Dickens & Christmas Meeting by Rosemary Timperly.

I hope you enjoy them, and I'll see you all after the New Year.

The Strange Dispatch is written and produced by Andrew Juhl. Music by Andrew Juhl.

Check out Strange Days for more high strangeness!

For hundreds, if not thousands of years, run-ins with certain mythical creatures have plagued bystanders with calamity and, sometimes, even death. From black shucks in the UK to banshees in Ireland and the Little Red Devil in Detroit, we dive into the lore behind these so-called harbingers and the superstitions they bring with them.

The Strange Dispatch is written and produced by Andrew Juhl. All media is used under the protection of fair use. Original score by Andrew Juhl.

Check out Strange Days for more high strangeness!

This episode is full of the bizarre stories we love. Don't miss it!

The Bloop

The Upsweep (My apologies for referring to it as the "unsweep" half of the time!)

Taos Hum

Lincolnshire Poacher

UVB 76

Lost Cosmonaut

Astonishing Legends Sallie House Series

The Strange Dispatch is written and produced by Andrew Juhl. All media is used under the protection of fair use. Original score by Andrew Juhl.

Check out Strange Days for more high strangeness!

Then we delve into one of the most extraordinary pieces of UFO folklore in US history: Valiant Thor. Valiant Thor was allegedly an alien ambassador from Venus who secretly lived in the Pentagon for three years in the late 1950s. Val was sent here with a mission to save humanity from causing further harm to ourselves and our planet. Unfortunately for Val, the American ego was strong and political leaders were not quite ready to accept the help this bible-thumping Venusian had been sent to offer. That didn't stop him from trying.

Stranger at the Pentagon

Val Thor Photos

STRANGE DAYS

The Strange Dispatch is produced and scored by Andrew Juhl.

In 2014 a family in Westfield, NJ, was preparing to move into their recently purchased dream home when they started receiving bizarre and sometimes threatening letters from an anonymous author. It seemed as if someone in the neighborhood had a vendetta against the family and was attempting to stop them from occupying the old colonial house. The person, who referred to themselves as the Watcher, made it clear that there was more to the house than meets the eye and that the family was not welcome there. What at first seemed like an alarming prank escalated into a life-altering situation that tore the family apart and ostracized them from their community.

In this episode of the Strange Dispatch, Ian and I discuss the peculiar, unsolved mystery of the Watcher.

Legends of the Dogman in the Great Lakes State go back centuries. Tales of this elusive creature are some of the most terrifying encounters I've ever read. While the beast's roots aren't exclusive to Michigan, it is undoubtedly one of the state's most notorious monsters.

In this episode, I'm joined by a long-time friend, Vince Suchanek, to discuss the Dogman. We cover some of the most infamous stories to come out of Michigan, a weird encounter we had years ago in Manistee National Forest - a Dogman hotspot - and a first-hand encounter we heard directly from a man who had an absolutely terrifying run-in with one of the creatures in rural Tennessee. While his story didn't occur in Michigan, it was too incredible not to share on this episode.

If you've had an encounter with a Dogman, or any other strange or unusual experiences, we'd love to hear about it. Send us your story at StrangeDaysZine@gmail.com.

I hope you enjoy this episode while you take a break from all of the holiday festivities! Thanks so much for listening, and a special thanks to my co-host for this episode.

Stay safe, stay strange.

Show Links:

Dogman Onstar Incident

The Legend of Dogman w/photos

I'm excited to share a very special episode of the Dispatch with you all today. I recently had the pleasure of sitting down with Greg D'Alessandro, the editor-in-chief of the Weekly World News! We discussed the history of the WWN, some of his favorite stories, and the strange state of the world today. It was an incredibly fun interview. The Weekly World News is a staple in the strange world that we're so happy to be a part of, and I can't thank Greg enough for coming on the show.

I hope you enjoy it! Thank you very much for listening to the Strange Dispatch! Be sure to check out the Weekly World News and Strange Days online.

Weekly World News

Strange Days

We happened to pick a particularly noisy day in my neighborhood, so apologies in advance for the annoying background noise! This was the first episode in nearly 9 months in which we were able to record the Strange Dispatch in person, so please excuse us we settle back into Strange Days HQ.

Thanks for listening!

Three UFO Videos Filmed by US Military

Pentagon Confirms Leaked UFO Images are Authentic

The US Navy Filmed Pyramid Shaped UAPs

Transmedium UFO off California Coast

60 Minutes UFO Special

UAP Buzzes A10 Warthog