home esoterica Original binnallofamerica.com Audio the United States of Esoterica merchandise contact

Follow BoA on Twitter

Bookmark and Share

BOA : Audio

3.12.13

Andrew Nicholson

(2 Hours, 26 Minutes)


Listen Now

Play Now with Flash Streaming Audio
or
Download MP3
(Full Show MP3 : 2 Hours, 26 Minutes)
or
(Split into 2 parts for easier download)
(MP3 A : 72 minutes)
(MP3 B : 74 minutes)

Help

Listening Instructions

Download MP3 : PC Users : right-click the above links and "Save target as ..." Mac users : press "control-click" and choose "Download link to Disc".
Podcast : URL is HERE
*Add that URL to your podcast receiving software and you will be subscribed to BoA Audio.
Help : Contact binnall if you have any technical problems. As always, feedback on the interviews is appreciated.
Help Support BoA,
Make a Donation:

BoA:Audio returns to the land Down Under as we welcome Andrew Nicholson from the fantastic blog Weird Australia. Over the course of the conversation, we'll cover a number of noteworthy and strange stories and phenomena from Australia's paranormal past including legends of the Yowie, Australia's Bigfoot, bizarre locations like the Blue Mountains, the 'Devil's Pool,' and Lake George. We'll learn about odd creatures like the Jerrawerra, Junjudee, and a phantom animal in Tasmania as well as a pair of poltergeist tales. We'll also revisit Australia's previous noteworthy UFO events and the truly mindbending story of the vanishing ship known as the S.S. Waretah.

It's a veritable walkabout amidst the paranormal main streets and backroads of Australia with our tour guide to the esoteric land Down Under, Andrew Nicholson.

Full Preview: We kick things off with the bio / background on Andrew Nicholson and how he ended up creating Weird Australia. We also talk about Andrew's decision to cover a myriad of odd Australian stories rather than focusing on one specific genre of the paranormal. We then begin discussing some of the stories found at Weird Australia, starting with the 'Wild Hairy Man of the Blue Mountains, that highlights the Yowie, Australia's Bigfoot-like creature. Andrew talks about how the Yowie reports date back to the early 1820's, well before the emergence of Bigfoot in America and newspaper coverage actually treated the creature in a matter of fact way. Andrew shares a number of weird Yowie stories from the 1800's that are starkly different from your 'classic' Bigfoot cases and also tells us about a couple of potential close encounters that he has had with the creature.

Next we talk about a location known as the 'Devil's Pool', which has both aboriginal legends as well as modern stories of odd deaths associated with it. Andrew then details the story of the 'Guyra Ghost', where a poltergeist seemed to rain stones down upon a family's house. This segues into another strange story from that area, where a woman simply vanished while walking through a field. Following that, we learn about the bunyip, which is a cryptid that is unique to Australia, and has been described in a wide variety of ways.

Our conversation then turns to the disappearing waters of Lake George. Andrew tells us about theories surrounding underground tunnels and structures beneath Australia's capital city Canberra as well as the stories surrounding Black Mountain Tower and how it may be used for spying purposes. We also get Andrew's take on the infamous Pine Gap facility which many people attribute to a variety of conspiracy theories. We also talk about the longstanding rumors that Austrlia is hope to some kind of underground alien base.

Following that, we talk about the Jerrawerra as well as the junjudee, two creatures of diminutive proportions that pop up in Australia from time to time. Andrew shares one modern account of a junjudee encounter in the Blue Mountains and details how it is similar to one from way back in 1888. He dispels the notion that the Junjudee is simply a juvenile Bigfoot, since it seems to have some unique physical characteristics that have not been attributed to Bigfoot. We also find out how well known the Yowie and Junjudee are to mainstream people and if they enjoy the popularity of Bigfoot in America.

The S.S. Waratah, which was a ship that seemingly vanished without a trace, is our next port of call in the exploration of Weird Australia. Andrew reveals how 'Waratah' appears to be a cursed name, since several other ships of that name went down as well. Andrew also talks about how one crewman had a prophetic dream about the ultimate fate of the SS Warreta. Staying on this truly strange story, Andrew tells us about the witness testimony from a nearby ship which was the last anyone saw it.

Leaving the sinister sea behind us, we talk about tales of phantom animals of Tasmania as well as the infamous Tasmanian Tiger of cryptozoological lore. Looking back at the realm of hauntings, we talk about a case from 1887 where poltergeist activity caused luminous stones to rain inside of a house. Getting meta on Weird Australia, we find out how Andrew decides which stories to investigate and feature on the blog.

Heading towards the close of our conversation, Andrew shares an amazing story of a time slip that happened to a man who walked into a mist and was seemingly transported to a jungle in World War II. We then talk about famous Australian UFO cases and how the pre-1947 reports have a distinct flavor to them, such as a phenomenon similar to the Norway Spiral, that is fairly different from later UFO tales. We also talk about Australia's iconic Valentich and Westall UFO cases.

Wrapping up the program, we look at Australia, as a whole, and find out what the state of paranormal interest by laypeople as well as the media is Down Under. In light of the many genres explored on Weird Australia, we find out what realms Andrew has yet to explore and would like to investigate in the future.




Andrew Nicholson Bio

From an early age, Andrew was drawn to all things mysterious and unexplained. Some of his favourite books as a young child included the likes of Mysteries of the Unexplained, Into the Unknown and Chariots of the Gods. Among his favourite TV shows growing up were In Search Of and Arthur C. Clarke's Mysterious World.

In the same year that Frederick Valentich disappeared over Bass Strait after reporting a UFO, Andrew had his own UFO sighting as he and two classmates watched a typical saucer-shaped craft flying outside their classroom window. Unfortunately, this would be his first and only sighting.

In 2011, with more than 18 years writing and editing experience with some of Australia's leading financial services companies, which included writing investment articles for publications such as The Canberra Times, Australian Stock Exchange newsletter and Smart Investor, Andrew established weirdaustralia.com as a way to rekindle both his love of writing and his love of the mysterious and unexplained.

Since 2011, Weird Australia articles have been regularly featured on the likes of The Anomalist, Mysterious Universe, and paranormal.about.com, and have also been linked from popular sites such as cryptomundo.com and Coast to Coast AM. In 2012, Andrew's research and writings were compiled into the e-book Weird Australia: Real Reports of Uncanny Creatures, Strange Sightings & Extraordinary Encounters

His website is weirdaustralia.com


Next Episode:

David Weatherly

Black Eyed Children



BoA : Audio, Season 7 archive