In 1980, teenager Robert Shafran arrived for his first day at college and was greeted by complete strangers who seemed to know him. Within hours, he discovered he had an identical twin he never knew existed. Soon after, a third brother emerged. In this episode, Elizabeth explores the extraordinary story of three identical triplets separated at birth and reunited by chance at nineteen. What begins as an incredible reunion soon reveals something far darker… a secret psychological study that deliberately placed the brothers into different homes and observed them throughout their childhoods without ever telling them the truth. From their rise to national fame to the hidden experiment that shaped their lives, Elizabeth examines one of the most disturbing scandals in modern psychology.
Elizabeth also talks about accidentally taking home a pre-war cast iron street sign she found walking around London… is it cursed?
If you have a story where crime and the otherworldly intertwine, something strange, unexplained or just plain haunted, get in touch at paranormia@alwaystruecrime.com.
Paranormia is an Audio Always production. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Ghosts: The "Guardian Angel" of Flight 401
16/06/2026 | 26 min
After Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 crashed in the Florida Everglades in 1972, some of the aircraft's undamaged equipment was salvaged and installed on other planes. Not long after, flight attendants and pilots began reporting sightings of two familiar faces… the deceased captain and flight engineer from the doomed flight. In this episode, Elizabeth looks into one of aviation's most enduring ghost stories. From reports of apparitions appearing in cockpits and galleys to chilling accounts of the spirits warning crews about potential faults and dangers, she explores how tragedy gave rise to a legend that many airline employees swore was true.
Elizabeth also shares an update on a documentary she's currently working on, reflects on attending the True Crime Awards in London, and recommends the gripping podcast Strangely for your next listening obsession.
If you have a story where crime and the otherworldly intertwine, something strange, unexplained or just plain haunted, get in touch at paranormia@alwaystruecrime.com.
Paranormia is an Audio Always production.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Cursed Object: The Busby Stoop Inn chair
09/06/2026 | 23 min
An ordinary wooden chair hanging in a museum in North Yorkshire is said to carry a deadly curse. In this episode, Elizabeth explores the legend of the Busby Stoop Chair, tracing its origins back to a brutal murder in 1702 and following the stories of those who allegedly paid the price for sitting in it. She uncovers how a real historical crime became a lasting piece of local legend and paranormal folklore. Elizabeth also shares a new horror book she’s picked up...
If you have a story where crime and the otherworldly intertwine, something strange, unexplained or just plain haunted, get in touch at paranormia@alwaystruecrime.com
Paranormia is an Audio Always production.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Spirits: The God Helmet
02/06/2026 | 34 min
Elizabeth takes us into the remote mining country of northern Ontario, where a neuroscientist named Michael Persinger has spent decades trying to understand how the brain constructs some of our most powerful experiences. At the centre of his work is a modified motorcycle helmet, fitted with coils that deliver weak, patterned magnetic fields to the temporal lobes. The idea is unsettlingly simple… could the feeling of a presence in the room, even something interpreted as God, be triggered by subtle changes in brain activity? As one journalist sits inside Persinger’s lab and undergoes the experiment himself, the line between neuroscience and the supernatural begins to blur in unexpected ways. Plus Elizabeth shares a little about the release of her new book.
If you have a story where crime and the otherworldly intertwine, something strange, unexplained or just plain haunted, get in touch at paranormia@alwaystruecrime.com
Paranormia is an Audio Always production. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Serial Killer: Monster of Florence
26/05/2026 | 28 min
Elizabeth takes us to the wooded outskirts of Florence, where between 1968 and 1985 a killer known as the “Monster of Florence” stalked young couples parked in secluded cars. Sixteen people were murdered across eight attacks in rural lovers’ lanes. But as the investigation dragged on for decades, suspects multiplied, confessions unraveled, and the truth only became more elusive. So was this a single, methodical killer moving through the Tuscan darkness, or a case where fear and flawed policing helped create the monster? Plus Elizabeth shares a little about her recent trip to a spider convention!
This story was provided by a Paranormia listener. If you have a story where crime and the otherworldly intertwine, something strange, unexplained or just plain haunted, get in touch at paranormia@alwaystruecrime.com
Paranormia is an Audio Always production. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Are you ever awake in the cruellest hours of the night, when the world is quiet, but your mind isn’t?That’s where Paranormia begins.Hosted by journalist and parapsychologist Elizabeth McCafferty, Paranormia is a weekly storytelling podcast where true crime collides with the supernatural, the psychological, and the macabre. Each episode explores real cases where belief in something unseen becomes dangerous, cursed objects drive people to violence, psychic visions predict tragedy, cults where worship turns deadly, and hauntings blur into guilt, obsession, or faith.Elizabeth blends rigorous research with cinematic storytelling to uncover what happens when reason falters and fear takes hold. Because these aren’t just ghost stories, they’re stories about us: about the human need to explain the inexplicable, to find meaning in the dark.Paranormia: where paranoia meets the paranormal.Subscribe, and stay awake with us.If you have a story where crime and the otherworldly intertwine, something strange, unexplained or just plain haunted, get in touch at paranormia@alwaystruecrime.com.For more true crime that you'll be obsessed with head to AlwaysTrueCrime.com. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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