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For me, reading scary stories and watching scary movies is just not enough to satiate my horror sweet tooth. During the spooky time of year, I want to eat, sleep, and breathe horror. An excellent way to immerse yourself in all things scary is to listen to podcasts during those times when you can’t read a book or sit down to watch a scary movie. Whether you’re doing homework or mowing the lawn, these five horror podcasts available on Spotify will fill your days with endless frights.
Otis Jiry’s Scary Stories Told In The Dark
Back in the day, I used to sneak between the book shelves of my elementary school and read children’s horror stories. Between Goosebumps and anything Stephen King, I’d pull out Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark. The Otis Jiry’s Scary Stories Told In The Dark horror podcast highlights the best parts of this ’80s and ’90s scary short story installation by creating a spooky storytelling theme. This podcast feels like sitting down around a campfire and listening to your petrifying uncle tell you a story that will keep you up all night.
Otis Jiry is the ringmaster of his horror podcasts. He is able to unify each unique story with the same familiar voice. For those podcast listeners who love to listen to the same voice deliver different kinds of stories, this podcast may be the one for you. His stories range anywhere from spooky camp tales to petrifying haunted houses. He has seven seasons up right now, and it doesn’t look like the podcast is going anywhere anytime soon — so get yourself to Spotify and give Otis Jiry a listen.
Creepy
If you couldn’t tell by the title of this podcast, it is creepy. Creator Jon Grilz adapts the horror podcast game by focusing his podcast Creepy on urban legends that may or may not be entirely true. This podcast is both disturbing and perfect for Halloween time.
This podcast is perfect for horror movie lovers because each podcast is performed by voice actors that give audiences an immersive experience in the stories. Each story is different. It varies between episodes about the Loch Ness monster with a twist, all the way to terrifying tales about aliens and ghouls that live under your bed. To get started, I would recommend the quick but terrifying episode “This Is Not A Healing Pond.”
Inside The Exorcist
Most horror enthusiasts can remember The Exorcist, the 1973 classic film about a young girl being possessed by a demon. The movie has gone down in history as one of the most terrifying of its time, and still remains nearly unwatchable by most audiences. This podcast capitalizes on the horrible story by diving deep into the history and peculiarities of the case that inspired the movie. Inside The Exorcist is perfect for anyone who wants to dive into a nearly nonfictional story about the movie and the history behind it.
Host Mark Ramsey walks listeners through the frightening historical context, the twists and turns of the film, and the story behind it. Listeners can depend on a consistent narrator and story quality with each episode, and with only seven installments, it is perfect for anyone looking for horror podcasts to finish during the month of October.
The Black Tapes
The Black Tapes is among a different category of horror podcasts. The podcast itself is a spinoff of the Pacific Northwest Stories podcast. It features the lead narrator, Alex Reagan, as she explores the fictional universe of paranormal investigators. The big pull of the podcast, in my opinion, is the way it blurs reality and fiction — you don’t always know if the stories happening in the podcast are true or not, and it is up for interpretation by the listener.
This podcast is perfect for any audience members that want to be in a story for the long haul. The story follows a narrative of a podcast journalist who comes in contact with a paranormal investigator who has been exiled from the community based on his disbelief in the paranormal. The story is interesting, to say the least, and perfect for returning to day after day. They post bi-weekly, so listeners can expect frequent and new installments.
The No Sleep Podcast
In my opinion, I have saved the best for last. The No Sleep Podcast is arguably among the most popular horror podcasts available right now — and for good reason! It capitalizes on short story submissions from a popular creepy story form from Reddit, and just like Creepy, each story is performed by a different set of voice actors to deliver a truly horrific experience.
As far as horror podcasts go, this one really takes the cake with its scary tales. The first time I listened to The No Sleep Podcast, I put it on in the background while I painted canvases. At first, the stories didn’t seem too scary, but as soon as I went to to bed that night, I couldn’t get the stories out of my mind.
To say I recommend this podcast would be saying the absolute least about how scary it is. For reference, I watch scary movies for enjoyment and am rarely affected by them. It takes a lot for me to say that a scary story kept me up all night, so most of the stories in this podcast are truly meant for the ambitious and the brave. Whether you are looking for an alien encounter, a dreamlike monster perspective, or just a classic ghost story, this podcast is perfect for you.
Horror Podcasts That Will Keep You Up At Night
The great thing about good horror podcasts is they leave most of the story telling up for interpretation. It is much more of an immersive experience than watching a movie or sitting down to read a book. From personal experience, listening to some of these horror podcasts while I go for morning runs or evening walks adds a little bit of scary flavor to my day, no matter what I’m getting myself into.
Be warned — listening to any of these horror podcasts may cause you to lose sleep, be afraid to go out alone when it’s dark outside, or even better, make you listen to more of these great stories. Either way, enjoy the changing seasons, and don’t forget to check under your bed tonight.