Unexplained History
byTom McKenzie
HistorySocietyCultureDocumentaryTrue Crime
Unexplained History delivers unexplained events analysis and deep dives into the history of the unexplained. Join host Tom McKenzie weekly as we uncover the secrets behind history’s greatest cold cases and cover-ups. If you’re fascinated by true crime, ancient mysteries, paranormal activity, and government conspiracies, this podcast is for you.Each episode creates a gripping audio landscape exploring events that defy explanation — from baffling disappearances and cryptid sightings to the dark realities of the Cold War and the occult.The TeamNarrative & Direction: Rob DavenportLead Researcher: Mike SherwinSound Design & Score: Smoking Man StudiosNew episodes drop every Tuesday. Listen in — and deci...
Episodes(40 episodes)
Season 2 - Episode 48
Giants of History: The Bones They Told Us Were Buried
Ancient stories say giants once walked the earth — from the Nephilim and Og of Bashan to Greek Titans, Gilgamesh, Native giant traditions, and mysterious “giant skeleton” reports from American mounds. But were these legends based on real beings, exaggerated discoveries, misunderstood bones, or something even more revealing?In this episode of Unexplained History, we follow the giant mystery from biblical texts and ancient mythology to nineteenth-century newspaper reports, mound-builder legends, and the enduring claim that the Smithsonian hid the evidence.Along the way, the story grows larger: lost races, missing bones, forbidden archaeology, museum baseme...
Published: May 5, 2026Duration: 1h 3m 1s
Season 2 - Episode 47
The Prophecy of the Popes: The Secret List That Predicted the End Times
A secret list of 112 popes. A mysterious manuscript that surfaced during a papal conclave in 1590. A final prophecy warning that Peter the Roman would rule during the destruction of Rome.For centuries, the so-called Prophecy of the Popes has fascinated believers, skeptics, Catholic scholars, conspiracy theorists, and end-times watchers. Attributed to the Irish saint Malachy, the list appears to predict every pope from the 12th century to the apocalypse — with eerie accuracy before 1590, and suspiciously vague language afterward.In this episode of Unexplained History, we investigate the origins of the prophecy, the political chaos of...
Published: Apr 30, 2026Duration: 56m 23s
Season 2 - Episode 46
The Cash-Landrum Incident: The UFO Case That Took the U.S. Government to Court
On December 29, 1980, Betty Cash, Vickie Landrum, and seven-year-old Colby Landrum were driving through the pine woods of East Texas when they claimed to see something impossible: a massive diamond-shaped craft hovering above the road, blasting flames from its base, and surrounded by military helicopters.Within hours, all three witnesses began suffering strange physical symptoms. Betty Cash developed severe burns, hair loss, and illness so intense she spent weeks in hospitals. The U.S. government denied any involvement, but the witnesses were convinced they had been exposed to a secret military operation gone wrong.Their fight led...
Published: Apr 28, 2026Duration: 56m 8s
Season 2 - Episode 45
Babylon's Secret Gods
Babylon's Secret Gods follows one of the oldest and most seductive religious-conspiracy claims in history: that ancient Babylon preserved a hidden system of sacred knowledge that survived its own collapse and passed into later mystery cults, empire religions, and secret traditions.Tom McKenzie and the Narrator descend into the real religious world of Babylon—its priests, temples, omens, laments, and divine figures like Ishtar and Tammuz—before tracing how later writers transformed that complexity into the sweeping theory known as the Babylon mystery religion. By the end, the episode separates Babylon's real ritual power from the late...
Published: Apr 23, 2026Duration: 39m 34s
Season 2 - Episode 44
Point Pleasant’s Red-Eyed Omen: The Mothman Legend of West Virginia
Explore the chilling history and enduring legacy of the Mothman. It all began on the night of November 15, 1966, when two couples encountered a massive, winged figure with glowing red eyes near the TNT site outside of Point Pleasant, West Virginia. What started as a local police report quickly spiraled into a national sensation, documented by journalist Mary Hyre and later reinterpreted as a prophetic omen by author John Keel.In this episode, we dissect:The Initial Wave: The surge of sightings between 1966 and 1967 that gripped...
Published: Apr 21, 2026Duration: 40m 23s
Season 2 - Episode 43
Voices in the Static: The Enigma of Number Stations
What happens when a jingle ends and a monotone voice begins reading strings of numbers into the void? Welcome to the unsettling world of Number Stations. In this episode of Unexplained History, Tom McKenzie dives deep into the shortwave transmissions that have fascinated hobbyists and frustrated intelligence agencies for decades.From the jaunty folk tunes of the Lincolnshire Poacher and Cherry Ripe to the relentless, industrial drone of the Russian Buzzer (UVB-76), we explore how these one-way signals became a cornerstone of Cold War espionage.We’ll examine:Th...
Published: Apr 16, 2026Duration: 59m 2s
Season 2 - Episode 42
Project Azorian: The Secret Cold War Mission to Salvage Soviet Sub K-129
In March 1968, the Soviet ballistic missile submarine K-129 vanished into the depths of the North Pacific. While the Soviets searched in vain, the U.S. government—armed with secret acoustic data of the sub's implosion—hatched one of the most audacious covert operations in history: Project Azorian.To keep the mission hidden from the world, the CIA partnered with billionaire Howard Hughes to build the Hughes Glomar Explorer, a massive vessel disguised as a commercial deep-sea mining ship. Join host Tom McKenzie as we dive deep into:The Disa...
Published: Apr 14, 2026Duration: 57m 7s
Season 2 - Episode 41
Sedona’s Red Rocks: The Hidden History of the Vortex Legend
Millions of travelers flock to Sedona, Arizona, seeking the "vortexes"—specific sites rumored to emit powerful, healing electromagnetic energy. But where did this idea actually come from? In this episode of Unexplained History, we peel back the layers of the red rock to separate geological fact from spiritual fiction.We trace the legend back to the original 1980 map created by Page Bryant and explore the "grey literature" and enthusiast research of figures like Benjamin Lonetree. Most importantly, we hear from Reba Franco and the Indigenous communities of the Verde Va...
Published: Apr 9, 2026Duration: 56m 34s
Season 2 - Episode 40
The Lost City of Z: Percy Fawcett and the Ancient Secrets of the Amazon
In 1925, the world’s most famous explorer vanished into the green wall of the Amazon. Percy Harrison Fawcett wasn't just wandering; he was hunting for "Z"—a grand, ancient civilization he believed was hidden beneath the jungle canopy. While his contemporaries dismissed the idea of a complex Amazonian society as a "wilderness" myth, Fawcett staked his life and the lives of his crew on its existence.In this episode of Unexplained History, we dive deep into:The Theory of Z: How Fawcett used colonial records and indigenous oral histories to map a lost netw...
Published: Apr 7, 2026Duration: 1h 1m 34s
Season 2 - Episode 39
Lemuria: The Sunk Continent Myth vs. Geological Truth
A single footnote in 1864 by zoologist Philip Sclater was intended to solve a simple primate distribution puzzle. Instead, it birthed Lemuria, a legendary sunken continent that has captivated mystics, thrill-seekers, and pseudo-scientists for over 150 years. In this episode of Unexplained History, Tom McKenzie traces the fascinating evolution of a scientific hypothesis into a cornerstone of modern myth.Explore how Ernst Haeckel used "visual authority" to map the human cradle in the Indian Ocean, and how Helena Blavatsky transformed Lemuria into an esoteric home for ancient "root races". We...
Published: Apr 2, 2026Duration: 1h 5m 3s
Season 2 - Episode 38
Unearthing the Truth of the Canary Islands: Beyond the Myth of Atlantis
In 2011, a Spanish research vessel discovered "Los Atlantes," a series of submerged seamounts east of the Canary Islands with features resembling ancient beaches. While headlines immediately linked the find to Plato's legendary Atlantis, this episode of Unexplained History dives deep into the tension between scientific evidence and cultural storytelling.We explore the geological reality of these volcanic peaks and contrast it with the persistent myths that have shadowed the Guanche people for centuries. Featuring insights from lead scientist Luis Somoza, geneticist Linus Girdland-Flink, and historian Ricardo Rodríg...
Published: Mar 31, 2026Duration: 43m 21s
Season 2 - Episode 37
Admiral Byrd & Operation Highjump: The Truth Behind the Antarctic Myths
Join host Tom McKenzie in this investigative episode of Unexplained History as we journey to the frozen landscape of Antarctica. We dive deep into the official records of Operation Highjump (1946-1947), led by the legendary Admiral Richard E. Byrd.While the mission was officially designated for cold-weather training and scientific mapping, it has become the bedrock for sensational theories involving hidden bases and exotic craft. We contrast the actual Navy deck logs and Army observer reports with the post-war pulp stories and internet folklore that transformed a documented m...
Published: Mar 26, 2026Duration: 41m 3s
Season 2 - Episode 35
The Montauk Project: Time Travel, MKUltra, and the Secrets of Camp Hero
Explore the chilling history and haunting urban legends of Camp Hero in Montauk, New York. This episode of Unexplained History investigates the transition of this former Long Island military base into a state park, while digging into the dark rumors of time travel portals and the Montauk Project. We ground these extraordinary claims by examining the documented history of the CIA’s MKUltra program and the psychological impact of government secrecy. Featuring insights from archival researchers, memory scientists, and local stewards, we navigate the blurred lines between verified Cold War op...
Published: Mar 24, 2026Duration: 38m 40s
Season 1 - Episode 36
The CIA Gateway Report: Military Mind Control or Meditation Science?
In 1983, Army Lieutenant Colonel Wayne M. McDonald authored a document that would quietly sit in filing cabinets for decades before exploding into an internet phenomenon. Known as the "Gateway Report," it attempted to bridge the gap between the subjective experience of deep meditation and the objective language of neuroscience and quantum physics.In this episode of Unexplained History, Tom McKenzie takes you inside the wood-paneled rooms of the Monroe Institute in rural Virginia. We explore the "Hemi-Sync" audio technology designed to synchronize brain hemispheres and the Army’s strategic interest in altered co...
Published: Mar 19, 2026Duration: 43m 48s
Season 2 - Episode 35
The Black Knight Satellite: Alien Probe or Space Myth?
For decades, rumors have circulated about a mysterious object orbiting Earth—an object some claim has been watching humanity for thousands of years.Conspiracy theorists call it The Black Knight Satellite.The legend traces back to strange signals detected by Nikola Tesla, mysterious radar sightings in the early days of the Cold War, and bizarre photographs taken during NASA’s STS-88 space shuttle mission. Some believe these events point to a silent alien probe placed in orbit long before modern civilization.But what really happened?In this episode of U...
Published: Mar 17, 2026Duration: 43m 48s
Season 2 - Episode 34
Area 51: The Secret History of America’s Most Classified Military Base
For decades, a remote stretch of desert in Nevada has fueled some of the most persistent mysteries in modern history.Area 51 is officially just a military testing site. But behind its guarded fences and classified airspace, experimental aircraft, Cold War espionage, and strange sightings have created a legend that refuses to die.In this episode of Unexplained History, we explore the real story behind Area 51. From the secret development of the U-2 spy plane and the legendary SR-71 Blackbird, to stealth aircraft programs that reshaped modern warfare, the base at...
Published: Mar 12, 2026Duration: 1h 15m 25s
Season 2 - Episode 34
Rendlesham Forest: Britain’s Most Documented UFO Encounter
In December of 1980, a group of U.S. Air Force personnel stationed at RAF Woodbridge in Suffolk, England entered the dark woods of Rendlesham Forest to investigate mysterious lights reported near the base perimeter. What they claim to have encountered would become one of the most debated UFO incidents in modern history.According to multiple witnesses, the patrol discovered a triangular metallic craft resting among the trees. One airman, Sergeant Jim Penniston, says he approached the object and touched its surface before it suddenly lifted off and disappeared into the night. In the hours and days that followed...
Published: Mar 10, 2026Duration: 50m 53s
Season 2 - Episode 33
The Philadelphia Experiment: The Navy’s Teleportation Conspiracy
In October of 1943, a U.S. Navy destroyer escort called the USS Eldridge was allegedly used in a secret military experiment at the Philadelphia Naval Shipyard. Witnesses claimed the ship was surrounded by a strange green fog… before vanishing completely.According to the legend, the ship reappeared minutes later in Norfolk, Virginia—over 200 miles away. Sailors were reportedly left disoriented. Some allegedly vanished. Others were said to have been fused into the steel hull of the ship itself.The story would later become known as The Philadelphia Experiment—one of the most famous military conspiracy theories in mod...
Published: Mar 9, 2026Duration: 51m 53s
Season 2 - Episode 32
Tesla & The Tunguska Mystery: Stories of the Tesla Death Ray
In the early morning hours of June 30, 1908, a cataclysmic explosion leveled 800 square miles of the Siberian Taiga. While the official scientific explanation attributes the Tunguska Event to a meteor airburst, a persistent and intriguing conspiracy theory points elsewhere: to the laboratory of Nikola Tesla.In this episode of Unexplained History, host Tom McKenzie dives deep into the legendary inventor’s "Death Ray" experiments and the persistent rumors that his wireless energy tests at Wardenclyffe Tower inadvertently triggered the massive blast. We explore the technical arguments, the la...
Published: Mar 6, 2026Duration: 57m 50s
Season 2 - Episode 31
Skinwalker Ranch: Navajo Legend, Federal Records, and the Truth Behind the Haunting
In this deep-dive episode of Unexplained History, Tom McKenzie investigates a chilling encounter on a desolate stretch of Arizona highway that changed one man's life forever.When Jake, a professional truck driver, heard a sudden "thud" against his passenger window in the dead of night, he came face-to-face with a humanoid figure moving at impossible speeds—an experience that pulled him into a decades-long search for the truth.We go beyond the sensationalized headlines of "Skinwalker Ranch" to examine the intersection of Navajo folklore and documented high strangeness. This episode features:The Pape...
Published: Mar 5, 2026Duration: 1h 2m 4s