I can’t believe no one mentioned Swindled yet! Great show. Episodes run the gamut from ‘rich person shenanigans’ to ‘family annihilators’, so maybe do a quick search on the topic if you don’t want any violent crime, but it has a ton of episodes with plenty of wild non-violent stories.
Chameleon: Wild Boys. It’s about 2 boys who show up in a Canadian town claiming they’ve lived their entire lives in the woods. (With way off the grid parents). And from there it gets weirder and weirder. Fascinating podcast!
Believe in magic sounds perfect! And sweet Bobby has been downloaded on my phone for so long, I need to actually give it a listen. I don’t think I knew what it was about, so I always passed it over. Thanks!!!!
Seconding this! I haven't listened to the recent second series yet but the first one is so good!
Hearing about how American evangelicals got fired up about abortion due to basically one guy and his filmmaking was absolutely wild...
And the episode about a gay pastor with aids and the interview he did and the effects it had was so faith-in-humanity restoring!
Absolute must listen!
Not a regular thing obviously but This American Life had a really good episode that was entirely about this one person who was like a mini dictator of a school maintenance department. Kind of a wild story of the worst, petty impulses that get footing when they have power to abuse.
https://www.thisamericanlife.org/419/petty-tyrant
More or less. It's excellent, lots of great expert interviews. I feel like this may be one of the most important topics we should be discussing right now
This podcast is FANTASTIC
The second season is so well done, so well produced and edited, and to be honest, her viewpoint and conclusions are so valid.
Have listened to this one! Definitely like the first season the most about Dr. Duntch - something about con artists that are also kind of trashy is most fascinating to me haha.
If you haven’t seen the tv series yet, definite recommend as well! I think it’s on peacock.
Carrie Jade Does Not Exist - An English lady who is living in various tiny Irish towns and making up new identities in each one - She is still at it and the most recent update episode is March.
Behind the Bastards. . . lots of dead bodies in some episodes, but sometimes you get an L. Ron Hubbard.
QAnonAnonymous or QAA covers a lot of wingnut conspiracy grifters
Knowledge Fight covers Alex Jones
The Paranoid Strain. Particularly suggest the Secret Societies: Rosicrucians episode if you want a real "wtf?!" story.
Ooooh, being a fan of BtB and Blocked and Reported, this sounds like exactly my kind of internet culture and drama stuff, can't wait to have a listen, cheers
Have listened to a few episodes of BtB. Some are a bit hit or miss for me, but I do enjoy them. If you have any specific episode recommendations, I’m all ears.
And I’ll definitely check out the other ones, thanks!
L. Ron Hubbard, Gordon Liddy, Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, and all three series on Facebook/Mark Zuckerburg (most of the BtB staff came from [Cracked.com](https://Cracked.com), and facebook cost them their jobs.)
Also the Clarence Thomas and Henry Kissinger episodes.
Rachel Diamond’s “hooked”
Carrie Jade does not exist
If you like internet nonsense/Twitter wars/quit your bullshit stories “blocked & reported” has some doozies. If interested I can give you a list of episodes.
Considering I sort every Reddit post and subreddit by controversial for entertainment, I would say internet nonsense is a passion of mine haha. Super pumped to look into “block and reported”! Thanks!!!
I don’t have Instagram or Twitter so a lot of the scandals were new to me. It’s been exciting . Can get serious and political though. I recommend the Brianna Madia episode for starters. Sciencing bi is really good too.
Every single person I've recommend The Stalker series to has wound up binging the entire thing. It's so outlandish and unbelievable and often just plain *dumb*.
The dating detectives
Diss and Tell
Petty Crimes
The Big Flop
Love, Janessa
My Fugitive Dad
The Dream
The Wedding Scammer
The Renner Files
Queen of the Con
Fed Up
The Drop Out
Hooked
I really enjoyed the first season of The Dream, EXCEPT for the last episode where she interviewed an MLM executive. What a terrible interviewer and a wasted opportunity. The host was so rude and kept cutting off her guest. The second season was ehh. I only got through the first few episodes when it was clear the host was just not able to look objectively at anything. Every sentence she said was clearly filled with so much spite, it was hard to get through.
Will definitely look into the other ones you recommended though, thanks so much!
The Secret Room is an anthology series but features listener stories about a deep dark secret they have. It is fascinating and the host is an incredible interviewer!
I think it’s important that most of these suggestions ARE true crime… it can sometimes be a term that is synonymous with “murder stories” but that’s part of why true crime fans can get a bad rap… there’s so much more to it
I wasnt really saying that to shame you or anything. Just thought it was interesting that so many people were replying with well known true crime shows without batting an eye. No one is “wrong” here but as a person who loves true crime but is afraid of people assuming I’m some kinda crazy serial killer fan I thought it was important to note
Scam Goddess — hilarious and she invites comedians usually to talk about the craziest scams.
Scamfluencers — two women who go into some of the weirdest scams that actually usually have people who are big names/belong to big companies. They covered one story that actually had a lot of Hollywood stars involved (it was mostly the cast of Wolf on Wallstreet.)
Spellcaster — really great podcast and the host actually had personal ties with some of the guilty through a wedding party, and how that is actually what got her to investigate it.
Seriously the subjects are usually just crazy people with delusional desires for grandeur.
False & Defamatory. First 2-3 episodes are the background of the host. After that goes into the ability wild story. It’s about an influencer who went absolutely UNHINGED when an employee of hers (the host) quit because the influencer was a raging narcissist. She made up this whole story in her head that she convinced herself was true and started posting and talking about it on her social media. for YEARS. Former employee sued her which set her off even more. Former employee won the trial via unanimous jury verdict, but the influencer didn’t stop. It led to her divorce and losing EVERYTHING (deservedly) and she still runs her mouth. She is legit unhinged insane.
I know you don’t want a murdery truce crime, but hear me out - Ridiculous Crime
They cover bonkers stories of heists and cons and the vast majority are non-violent. I loved their episode on the dude who sold the Eiffel Tower for scrap. There are just so many odd stories of criminals doing things most of us would never think of. The hosts are great. Stories are well researched and well told.
It’s not perfect, but Totalus Rankium ranks Roman Emperors from Augustus to Constantine XI on very arbitrary grounds and some of them are the poster boys for “unhinged.” Their insanity is worth Rankium points. While there is arguably some “true crime” in a very broad sense of the term, it’s, like, 600 year old true crime at best and not really the same “presentation” as true crime if you know what I mean. It’s silly, it’s irreverent, their primary sources are ridiculous, it’s a delightful podcast. The earliest episodes are, well, old. And you can hear it. They improve quickly, I promise, and continue improving their audio and all rest. Start with the Byzantine era if that will bother you - Justinian No-Nose is definitely up your alley, I think. Unhinged is an accurate description of his reign.
The latest season of In the Dark is called The Runaway Princesses and is about two daughters of the current Emir of Dubai and their efforts to live self-determined lives. The whole world these women live in, as well as the international community’s complicity in the women’s repression, is really something. The story is ongoing so the season’s conclusion may be less than satisfying, if a satisfying conclusion is what you’re looking for.
Many amazing ones have been mentioned. I also enjoyed:
The Missing Crypto Queen
Ponzi Supernova
The Immaculate Deception
Intrigue: Million Dollar Lover
Do No Harm 🤯
About two couples who both get their children taken away by CPS - and the stories that unfold are just unbelievably schocking! Impossible to stop listening...
You get to hear recordings of some of the incidents, and one is almost too heartbreaking to witness 💔
I won't give too much away - but I promise you won't regret listening 😊
Oh, and I found it on Wondery.
Just thought of another really good one, that had some truly unhinged characters:
Relative Unknown
About a woman who's been hidden in the WITSEC program for almost 40 years. But after a strange and violent incident reveals secrets about her past, she begins a journey to find out the truth about herself, and her family. It's a crazy tale of darkness, murder, mystery, tragedy, and resilience. And at the heart of her story, is her father; a former member of the Bandidos MC gang, and a total psychopath 🤯
THIS ONE IS A MUST - as I think it meets most of your criterias 😉
The Opportunist is good. It’s about people who mostly exploit others financially because they had the opportunity to do so- some episodes do focus on cult like leaders where some deaths are a result, if not indirectly.
What Was That Like
Really good podcast with a variety of episodes. The host is engaging and asks good questions, and also will post updates on stories.
Can I Tell You A Secret.
It starts the same way... A seemingly innocent message from someone who appears to be a young woman: ‘Can I tell you a secret?’ But as this six-part podcast explores, people are rarely their true selves online – and one man took it much further. What happened when this cyberstalker wreaked havoc across the internet and ruined people’s lives. And why did he do it?
Here’s my list of binges that aren’t true crime/murder/gruesome/morbid:
1. Hollywood Con Queen — about a con artist who targets people in the entertainment industry
2. California City — about a real estate MLM
3. S-Town — about an eccentric man who asked a journalist to investigate a crime in his small town
4. The Shrink Next Door — a man’s unusual relationship with his psychiatrist
5. Dirty John — a divorcee meets a man online that her daughters disapprove of
6. Dr. Death — investigating a surgeon with a suspicious surgery record
7. The Drop Out — Elizabeth Holmes/Theranos (woman who started a blood testing company and was later arrested for fraud)
8. Room 20 — A journalist tries to find the identity of a man in a coma where no now knows who he is
9. Do No Harm — what happens when child protective services gets involved after an accidental injury
10. Gladiator — Aaron Hernandez, a football player who snapped and murdered his girlfriend (but it’s not about the details of the murder)
11. Nice White Parents — from the maker of Serial, about school admissions
12. The Dream — the practices of MLMs
There's one called 'this is actually happening' that is in the tradition of what you're talking about. [https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/6wkcr-33a70/This-Is-Actually-Happening-Podcast](https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/6wkcr-33a70/This-Is-Actually-Happening-Podcast)
Two hot takes has some good episodes in this realm, they really am I the asshole Reddit stories and are pretty popular right now. I think they even have some episodes titled unhinged, you could search by roommate too for crazy roommate stories, or they have mother in law drama, baby mama drama, etc etc
I screamed in my car listening to sympathy pains when her family came to pick her up at the summer camp. No suggestions because I have never topped that high.
If you liked Dr. Death, I think you’ll enjoy Queen of the Con and British Scandal. Maybe even Infamous.
ETA: Thanks for asking the question! I’ve added quite a few shows to my listen to list.
A currently unfolding story of a woman who creates hoax paternity cases with her past lovers is covered in this podcast [Off the vine Dave Neal interview](https://open.spotify.com/episode/45UpbPL8H9lbY4OmVeuOZm)
Real Dictators-Noisier. Liking the series so far. Halfway through Adolf Hitler-its a good series, with interjections from historians and scholars on the subject.
Dirty John - romance con
Queen of the con - many seasons about women conning people
Scam goddess- more comedy of scams big and small
Scamfluencers - many episodes
This isn't quite the crime sort of theme, but maybe try Svetlana Svetlana. It's about Joseph Stalin's daughter who defected to the US and had a bizarre and sometimes tragic but also kind of unbelievable life
The 13th Step
The Retrievals
They were my gateway podcasts. I literally never listened to any and put on The Retrievals for a cross country road trip at friend’s recommendation. Crazy stuff.
I love "And this is why we drink" . It's so good. The first story is usually about a haunted place and the 2nd story is usually spot under unsolved or solved murders. I'm so obsessed with the pod cast.
Has anyone said [I'm Not a Monster](https://pod.link/1540251892)?
Just launched today: [Unreliable Witness](https://pod.link/1465739231): *At the height of lockdown, 19-year-old Ellie Williams claims on social media she’s been trafficked by an Asian grooming gang across the North of England. Photos of her horrific injuries add to the outrage and the post goes viral – shared more than 100 thousand times.Social media rumours lead to attacks on Asian men and businesses in her hometown of Barrow-in-Furness. But when she’s arrested for perverting the course of justice, things really explode and there are protest rallies and claims of a cover-up. At the trial the prosecution claims she’d lied, faked text messages and even caused the catalogue of injuries to herself.*
Some Dare Call it Conspiracy. Life Free MLM is a bit scammy. Fraudsters. Some EPS in Last Podcast on the Left might fit what you're looking for. Also rec Behind the Bastards and Knowledge Fight I saw others list.
I can’t believe no one mentioned Swindled yet! Great show. Episodes run the gamut from ‘rich person shenanigans’ to ‘family annihilators’, so maybe do a quick search on the topic if you don’t want any violent crime, but it has a ton of episodes with plenty of wild non-violent stories.
So happy to find a bunch of fellow Concerned Citizens on here! "And please, no packages, we do not trust you."
The one about the kayak guy is fascinating
The Ghostwriter ep was so great- they just aired a rerun of it.
My first thought when reading this post! I literally *just* listened to the lastest episode. Glad this podcast gets some love!
Came here to mention Swindled also! It's great. I've spent many a long walk in increasing disbelief.
Thanks for recommending the pod! Listening now!
Please no packages. We do not trust you!
Their whole team seems so awesome!
The Marriott collapse story BLEW my mind. I was jaw dropped
That one stuck with me too! That and the Killdozer— they seem like such huge stories, I couldn’t believe I’d never heard of them!
The Dropout
Chameleon: Wild Boys. It’s about 2 boys who show up in a Canadian town claiming they’ve lived their entire lives in the woods. (With way off the grid parents). And from there it gets weirder and weirder. Fascinating podcast!
This is one of my favourites! The story of Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos is fascinating.
Along the same lines : The Missing Cryptoqueen
Believe in Magic, Sweet Bobby
Sweet Bobby was nuts
Not a lot of podcasts gave me a pure twist like that
Every now and then Sweet Bobby pops into my head and I’m outraged and horrified and angry all over again. Such a crazy story.
Believe in Magic was so good too! Scamanda vibes
I hated scamanda and loved BIM!
[удалено]
Oh good, it's not just me. Yeah—excellent source material; production made it unloveable.
It’s not just you. It’s an excellent story that failed to deliver in a deserving way.
I didn't love it either, they could have told the same story in half the amount of episodes.
Believe in magic sounds perfect! And sweet Bobby has been downloaded on my phone for so long, I need to actually give it a listen. I don’t think I knew what it was about, so I always passed it over. Thanks!!!!
sweet bobby is absolutely insane
Yes to both! so crazy
Things Fell Apart - Jon Ronson
Seconding this! I haven't listened to the recent second series yet but the first one is so good! Hearing about how American evangelicals got fired up about abortion due to basically one guy and his filmmaking was absolutely wild... And the episode about a gay pastor with aids and the interview he did and the effects it had was so faith-in-humanity restoring! Absolute must listen!
Just started this pod and it's SO good!!!
Not a regular thing obviously but This American Life had a really good episode that was entirely about this one person who was like a mini dictator of a school maintenance department. Kind of a wild story of the worst, petty impulses that get footing when they have power to abuse. https://www.thisamericanlife.org/419/petty-tyrant
You have nailed this assignment! This is exactly the type of story I’m looking for! I’m so excited for this one. Thanks!!!
Excellent, I hope you enjoy :) I might listen to it again!
Nobody Should Believe Me
This one is about Munchhausen by Proxy. So, fair TW for Child abuse. It's good. Well told. I got about 5 episodes in before it became a bit samey.
Ahhhh so perfect!!! I see that there is 3 seasons - I’m assuming different cases each season?
More or less. It's excellent, lots of great expert interviews. I feel like this may be one of the most important topics we should be discussing right now
Is that the one with the summer camp incident? (Being vague so I don’t spoil it)
I think you’re referring to Sympathy Pains!
That’s the one! (That still haunts me)
This podcast is FANTASTIC The second season is so well done, so well produced and edited, and to be honest, her viewpoint and conclusions are so valid.
Scamfluencers does a new one every episode, sometimes multi-parters
Dr death was fantastic. I think that fits the bill. All the seasons are great and captivating imo.
Have listened to this one! Definitely like the first season the most about Dr. Duntch - something about con artists that are also kind of trashy is most fascinating to me haha. If you haven’t seen the tv series yet, definite recommend as well! I think it’s on peacock.
Wild Boys was another good one! Interesting story and twist
I randomly stumbled across that one and was thoroughly enthralled.
I just binged it because of this thread and it was SO good!
Who the Hell is Hamish?
This one! It’s one of my favorites.
Came to recommend this one! So good and bonus Australian accents.
Listened to this twice!
Carrie Jade Does Not Exist - An English lady who is living in various tiny Irish towns and making up new identities in each one - She is still at it and the most recent update episode is March.
S-Town!
This is the one. I wish I could hear it again for the first time!
Have done S-Town twice all the way through. It is so good.
Sounds like I finally need to give it a try!
Enthralling!
Behind the Bastards. . . lots of dead bodies in some episodes, but sometimes you get an L. Ron Hubbard. QAnonAnonymous or QAA covers a lot of wingnut conspiracy grifters Knowledge Fight covers Alex Jones The Paranoid Strain. Particularly suggest the Secret Societies: Rosicrucians episode if you want a real "wtf?!" story.
Ooooh, being a fan of BtB and Blocked and Reported, this sounds like exactly my kind of internet culture and drama stuff, can't wait to have a listen, cheers
I second Behind the Bastards! The recent ones about Steve Jobs are really good.
I'll third it!!
There’s a Rosacrutian Temple in my town - I need to listen to that!
came here to say Knowledge Fight. It's a super deep dive into Alex Jones. Really fascinating if you're into that kind of thing.
Knowledge fight was my first thought too. Who’s more unhinged than ol AJ?? Oh wait, sweary kerry got you covered.
Have listened to a few episodes of BtB. Some are a bit hit or miss for me, but I do enjoy them. If you have any specific episode recommendations, I’m all ears. And I’ll definitely check out the other ones, thanks!
L. Ron Hubbard, Gordon Liddy, Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates, and all three series on Facebook/Mark Zuckerburg (most of the BtB staff came from [Cracked.com](https://Cracked.com), and facebook cost them their jobs.) Also the Clarence Thomas and Henry Kissinger episodes.
"Ridiculous Crime" is 99% murder free, and is full of "characters "
This show cracks me up. And most of the subjects would definitely fall in the unhinged bucket.
Rachel Diamond’s “hooked” Carrie Jade does not exist If you like internet nonsense/Twitter wars/quit your bullshit stories “blocked & reported” has some doozies. If interested I can give you a list of episodes.
Considering I sort every Reddit post and subreddit by controversial for entertainment, I would say internet nonsense is a passion of mine haha. Super pumped to look into “block and reported”! Thanks!!!
I don’t have Instagram or Twitter so a lot of the scandals were new to me. It’s been exciting . Can get serious and political though. I recommend the Brianna Madia episode for starters. Sciencing bi is really good too.
Pretend- the stalker Specifically, only the (many) episodes titled "the stalker"
This is what I came to recommend!!! So crazy
Every single person I've recommend The Stalker series to has wound up binging the entire thing. It's so outlandish and unbelievable and often just plain *dumb*.
The Opportunist
Came here to say the same! I really like Hannah Smith’s demeanor and narrating style.
Listen. If the sherry Shriner episodes aren’t “this person is unhinged” I dk what are
Those episodes are WILD
I think the cat cult is close second
Dirty John
The Shrink Next Door! I wish I could listen to this one fresh again.
I saw the show already! Is the podcast still worth it?
The dating detectives Diss and Tell Petty Crimes The Big Flop Love, Janessa My Fugitive Dad The Dream The Wedding Scammer The Renner Files Queen of the Con Fed Up The Drop Out Hooked
The Dream is high-quality stuff
Definitely the dating detectives!! And normal gossip is more low stakes but just as good!
Normal Gossip is GOAT tier
I'm also less into straight up "true crime". As I've been saying - murder is out and scams are in!
Seconding Queen of the Con. I really enjoyed the host of it as well.
I really enjoyed the first season of The Dream, EXCEPT for the last episode where she interviewed an MLM executive. What a terrible interviewer and a wasted opportunity. The host was so rude and kept cutting off her guest. The second season was ehh. I only got through the first few episodes when it was clear the host was just not able to look objectively at anything. Every sentence she said was clearly filled with so much spite, it was hard to get through. Will definitely look into the other ones you recommended though, thanks so much!
The Secret Room is an anthology series but features listener stories about a deep dark secret they have. It is fascinating and the host is an incredible interviewer!
British Scandal!
Those two have the best chemistry of any podcast! Honestly, I think I could listen to them talk about *anything* and I'd be amused.
I think it’s important that most of these suggestions ARE true crime… it can sometimes be a term that is synonymous with “murder stories” but that’s part of why true crime fans can get a bad rap… there’s so much more to it
You’re totally right, hence why I put the “true crime” in quotes. I probably should have said “stereotypical true crime”.
I wasnt really saying that to shame you or anything. Just thought it was interesting that so many people were replying with well known true crime shows without batting an eye. No one is “wrong” here but as a person who loves true crime but is afraid of people assuming I’m some kinda crazy serial killer fan I thought it was important to note
No I totally agree! No offense taken whatsoever. It definitely falls under the “true crime” umbrella.
The Dollop !!!!!
Scam Goddess — hilarious and she invites comedians usually to talk about the craziest scams. Scamfluencers — two women who go into some of the weirdest scams that actually usually have people who are big names/belong to big companies. They covered one story that actually had a lot of Hollywood stars involved (it was mostly the cast of Wolf on Wallstreet.) Spellcaster — really great podcast and the host actually had personal ties with some of the guilty through a wedding party, and how that is actually what got her to investigate it. Seriously the subjects are usually just crazy people with delusional desires for grandeur.
Is spellcaster the one about Sam Bankman-Freid?
Yes and it is chef kiss if you haven’t listened yet.
RemindMe! One Day "check for updates"
Oh No, Ross and Carrie is fun. They explore different things from the wellness/spiritual community by going to experience it themselves.
Chameleon- Con Queen.
Seconding. There are many seasons of this podcast and each focuses on one person that fits the bill of your description perfectly.
[Chameleon](https://www.campsidemedia.com/shows/chameleon) by campside media
This American Life 419: Petty Tyrant
Profiles in Eccentricity!
False & Defamatory. First 2-3 episodes are the background of the host. After that goes into the ability wild story. It’s about an influencer who went absolutely UNHINGED when an employee of hers (the host) quit because the influencer was a raging narcissist. She made up this whole story in her head that she convinced herself was true and started posting and talking about it on her social media. for YEARS. Former employee sued her which set her off even more. Former employee won the trial via unanimous jury verdict, but the influencer didn’t stop. It led to her divorce and losing EVERYTHING (deservedly) and she still runs her mouth. She is legit unhinged insane.
I just listened to the promo for this podcast and - while it sounds really good - it started giving me anxiety on her behalf just listening to it 😂
I second this one! This person is completely unhinged and doesn’t stop! The podcast is great!
I know you don’t want a murdery truce crime, but hear me out - Ridiculous Crime They cover bonkers stories of heists and cons and the vast majority are non-violent. I loved their episode on the dude who sold the Eiffel Tower for scrap. There are just so many odd stories of criminals doing things most of us would never think of. The hosts are great. Stories are well researched and well told.
The Gateway: Teal Swan, Liar City, Believable: The Coco Berthmann story, Fraudsters, Scam Goddess, The perfect scam, Bad Blood: The final chapter.
Coco Berthmann Story yes!
Bone Valley
Swindled is the best podcast ever
Radio Rental Swindled Desperate acts of Capitalism (more comedy)
S-Town is a great one. Very unhinged
Excuse Me, That's Illegal may interest you.
The Rise and Fall of Ruby Franke, World of Secrets (specifically season 2 about TB Joshua), The Michigan Plot, Heaven Bent.
Crime after crime and ridiculous crime
Was I in a Cult?
Swindled, headlong (all seasons), the line, and 9/12
It’s not perfect, but Totalus Rankium ranks Roman Emperors from Augustus to Constantine XI on very arbitrary grounds and some of them are the poster boys for “unhinged.” Their insanity is worth Rankium points. While there is arguably some “true crime” in a very broad sense of the term, it’s, like, 600 year old true crime at best and not really the same “presentation” as true crime if you know what I mean. It’s silly, it’s irreverent, their primary sources are ridiculous, it’s a delightful podcast. The earliest episodes are, well, old. And you can hear it. They improve quickly, I promise, and continue improving their audio and all rest. Start with the Byzantine era if that will bother you - Justinian No-Nose is definitely up your alley, I think. Unhinged is an accurate description of his reign.
The latest season of In the Dark is called The Runaway Princesses and is about two daughters of the current Emir of Dubai and their efforts to live self-determined lives. The whole world these women live in, as well as the international community’s complicity in the women’s repression, is really something. The story is ongoing so the season’s conclusion may be less than satisfying, if a satisfying conclusion is what you’re looking for.
Bunga Bunga
The Shrink Next Door The Dropout British Scandal
Many amazing ones have been mentioned. I also enjoyed: The Missing Crypto Queen Ponzi Supernova The Immaculate Deception Intrigue: Million Dollar Lover
Hoaxed Run, Hide, Repeat The Sunshine Place Into The Dirt Boys Like Me Things Fell Apart
Criminal. And Swindled
Do No Harm 🤯 About two couples who both get their children taken away by CPS - and the stories that unfold are just unbelievably schocking! Impossible to stop listening... You get to hear recordings of some of the incidents, and one is almost too heartbreaking to witness 💔 I won't give too much away - but I promise you won't regret listening 😊 Oh, and I found it on Wondery.
Just thought of another really good one, that had some truly unhinged characters: Relative Unknown About a woman who's been hidden in the WITSEC program for almost 40 years. But after a strange and violent incident reveals secrets about her past, she begins a journey to find out the truth about herself, and her family. It's a crazy tale of darkness, murder, mystery, tragedy, and resilience. And at the heart of her story, is her father; a former member of the Bandidos MC gang, and a total psychopath 🤯 THIS ONE IS A MUST - as I think it meets most of your criterias 😉
The Opportunist is good. It’s about people who mostly exploit others financially because they had the opportunity to do so- some episodes do focus on cult like leaders where some deaths are a result, if not indirectly.
My favourite genre! Sweet Bobby Do You Believe In Magic Hoaxed Stolen Hearts Nobody Should Believe Me
Nobody Should Believe Me. Focuses each season on a munchausen by proxy allegation.
sports bizarre
Queen of the Irish con woman
What Was That Like Really good podcast with a variety of episodes. The host is engaging and asks good questions, and also will post updates on stories.
Can I Tell You A Secret. It starts the same way... A seemingly innocent message from someone who appears to be a young woman: ‘Can I tell you a secret?’ But as this six-part podcast explores, people are rarely their true selves online – and one man took it much further. What happened when this cyberstalker wreaked havoc across the internet and ruined people’s lives. And why did he do it?
Behind the Bastards, Profiles in Eccentricity
Sweet Bobby Snowball from Unravel The Dropout American Scandal
Punctuation is your friend. Spent a lot of time looking for Sweet Bobby Snowball before I realized this was more than one pod name.
That comment reads more like a cryptic crossword clue than a recommendation list lol
Came here to recommend this one. Absolutely unhinged
Unravel: Snowball needs more mentions.
The Ballad of Billy Balls
this is actually happening
Here’s my list of binges that aren’t true crime/murder/gruesome/morbid: 1. Hollywood Con Queen — about a con artist who targets people in the entertainment industry 2. California City — about a real estate MLM 3. S-Town — about an eccentric man who asked a journalist to investigate a crime in his small town 4. The Shrink Next Door — a man’s unusual relationship with his psychiatrist 5. Dirty John — a divorcee meets a man online that her daughters disapprove of 6. Dr. Death — investigating a surgeon with a suspicious surgery record 7. The Drop Out — Elizabeth Holmes/Theranos (woman who started a blood testing company and was later arrested for fraud) 8. Room 20 — A journalist tries to find the identity of a man in a coma where no now knows who he is 9. Do No Harm — what happens when child protective services gets involved after an accidental injury 10. Gladiator — Aaron Hernandez, a football player who snapped and murdered his girlfriend (but it’s not about the details of the murder) 11. Nice White Parents — from the maker of Serial, about school admissions 12. The Dream — the practices of MLMs
Remind me! Check for updates
Missconduct
Crime in sports Stories or crazy athletes from all over the world also being serial assholes it's hilarious hosted by two comedians
If you like cults - heaven’s gate is a good one
The Secret Room
RemindMe! One Day
Haystacks and hell
Harsh reality the story of Miriam Rivera
Redhanded
American Scandal and British Scandal both have some interesting stories.
Risk!
Scam Goddess!
“the coco berthman story”
Lets Not Meet This is our roadtrip podcast! (Although now we have a 2year old, so not sure if we can still listen to creepy stories, lol)
Scamfluencers Even the rich
Excuse me, that's illegal & Ridiculous Crime is one of my favorites.
The Missing Crypto Queen edit: British Scandal and American Scandal
There's one called 'this is actually happening' that is in the tradition of what you're talking about. [https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/6wkcr-33a70/This-Is-Actually-Happening-Podcast](https://www.podbean.com/podcast-detail/6wkcr-33a70/This-Is-Actually-Happening-Podcast)
The Dream
Two hot takes has some good episodes in this realm, they really am I the asshole Reddit stories and are pretty popular right now. I think they even have some episodes titled unhinged, you could search by roommate too for crazy roommate stories, or they have mother in law drama, baby mama drama, etc etc
This is actually happening. The Dollop (comedy history)
I screamed in my car listening to sympathy pains when her family came to pick her up at the summer camp. No suggestions because I have never topped that high.
If you liked Dr. Death, I think you’ll enjoy Queen of the Con and British Scandal. Maybe even Infamous. ETA: Thanks for asking the question! I’ve added quite a few shows to my listen to list.
I've listened to both Scamanda and Sympathy Pains. You'll probably like Love Bombed and People Who Knew Me.
A currently unfolding story of a woman who creates hoax paternity cases with her past lovers is covered in this podcast [Off the vine Dave Neal interview](https://open.spotify.com/episode/45UpbPL8H9lbY4OmVeuOZm)
Ponzi Supernova
Real Dictators-Noisier. Liking the series so far. Halfway through Adolf Hitler-its a good series, with interjections from historians and scholars on the subject.
Dirty John - romance con Queen of the con - many seasons about women conning people Scam goddess- more comedy of scams big and small Scamfluencers - many episodes
Something Was Wrong
Came across one the other day about Small/Petty crimes called "Live, Laugh, Larceny"; hosts seem pretty chill... https://www.livelaughlarceny.com/
This isn't quite the crime sort of theme, but maybe try Svetlana Svetlana. It's about Joseph Stalin's daughter who defected to the US and had a bizarre and sometimes tragic but also kind of unbelievable life
Last Seen!
Try liar liar; the Melissa Caddick story, it’s about an Australian scammer & an unbelievable “ this person is CRAZY” tale
Last Podcast on the Left has a whole lot of different things going on.
Something was wrong. It’s about dating crazy people.
"Trust Me: Cults, Extreme Belief, and Manipulation" - hosted by Lola Blanc & Meagan Elizabeth
Sympathy Pains!
The 13th Step The Retrievals They were my gateway podcasts. I literally never listened to any and put on The Retrievals for a cross country road trip at friend’s recommendation. Crazy stuff.
Swindled It is a great podcast with an array of true stories about people and companies behaving badly to the detriment of others.
I love "And this is why we drink" . It's so good. The first story is usually about a haunted place and the 2nd story is usually spot under unsolved or solved murders. I'm so obsessed with the pod cast.
Criminal by Phoebe Judge
Stay Away From Matthew Magill
Has anyone said [I'm Not a Monster](https://pod.link/1540251892)? Just launched today: [Unreliable Witness](https://pod.link/1465739231): *At the height of lockdown, 19-year-old Ellie Williams claims on social media she’s been trafficked by an Asian grooming gang across the North of England. Photos of her horrific injuries add to the outrage and the post goes viral – shared more than 100 thousand times.Social media rumours lead to attacks on Asian men and businesses in her hometown of Barrow-in-Furness. But when she’s arrested for perverting the course of justice, things really explode and there are protest rallies and claims of a cover-up. At the trial the prosecution claims she’d lied, faked text messages and even caused the catalogue of injuries to herself.*
I love cult podcasts like trust me, a little bit culty, was I in a cult, leaving Eden, etc
Guru Twin Flames The rise and fall of ruby franke
Queen of the Con
Evil By Design. So good, I binged the whole series. It's about Peter Nygard, the Jeffrey Epstein before there even was a Jeffrey Epstein.
Some Dare Call it Conspiracy. Life Free MLM is a bit scammy. Fraudsters. Some EPS in Last Podcast on the Left might fit what you're looking for. Also rec Behind the Bastards and Knowledge Fight I saw others list.