AP welcomes folklorist and writer Paul A. T. Wilson to the show to discuss the fantastically weird case of Sam, the Sandown Clown- an entity reportedly encountered on the Isle of Wight in the early 1970s by a pair of young children. Listeners familiar with the story will undoubtedly be thrilled to learn that further encounters with the entity variously called the Ghost Clown or All Colours Sam have come to light. Through Paul's work in finding and interviewing "Fey", the young girl in the original story, he has documented her several later meetings with Sam and shared them in a series of presentations for the first time. In this conversation, Wilson discusses these later meetings with the motley being, how he came to uncover them, and the nature of storytelling and reporting weird tales.

Paul lives on the Isle of Wight and has a background in pre-medieval history there, as well as with writing and sharing tales of wonder related to the island. He talks about his longtime fascination with the Sandown Clown story, which has for decades been frustratingly limited in scope. In uncovering these further stories from the anonymous witness, new dimensions to the legend of Sam are brought to light which raise a panoply of new and exciting questions. Also discussed is the importance of honoring stories and the people who tell them, and respecting their wishes in regard to anonymity. He and AP also talk a bit about the island itself, and its enchanted history with dragons, mystery fogs, and more!

Check out Paul's work on Isle of Wight folklore here: https://www.wihtlore.uk/

This week, cartoonist and ultimate Creative Weirdo Todd Purse joins AP for an inspiring and fun conversation about art, imagination, and the power of bringing ideas to life on the page. Todd makes his living, as he says, by "drawing pictures on coffee bags"- but he also consistently produces whimsical and positive paranormal themed art which he shares on instagram (@toddde85), and publishes zines and prints of his work as well. In conversation, AP and Todd get into some of his early influences, talk about the wonderful medium of comic books and comic strips, and the intersection of paranormal concepts and the creative process.

This lends itself to a lot of geeking out about everything from Calvin and Hobbes to the Loch Ness Monster, from Star Wars to Mothman, and the various trickster masks of the Kentucky Goblins. Other themes explored include parenting, the timelessness of some forms of media, humor, and underlying faith in humanity despite the horrors of the world.

Todd also contributes to the comic book adaptation of Illuminatus!, which was discussed in episode 28- Hailing Discordia with Bobby Campbell- and is the artist behind Welcome UFO People, a collaboration with Rob Kristofferson of Our Strange Skies fame.

Todd is always a pleasure to talk to or hear in conversation- and his work is highly recommended! Check it out here:

https://www.createmagicstudios.com/

Michael M. Hughes joins AP this week to discuss the proliferation of AI technology and the impact it's having on every aspect of society. Michael is an author, a journalist, a tarot reader, and teacher, and his recent writings include a "Humanifesto" which promotes biological intelligence and resists the artifice being sold to us by the tech industry. In both his written work- regularly updated to reflect new insights- and in conversation here, the necessity of so-called AI applications is called into question, leveraged against the very real harms it causes in the human psyche and to the environment.

From AI slop to plagiarism issues, broligarchs and enshittification, and what Hughes refers to as the "coprophagic ouroboros", the facade of the allegedly monumental shift in tech- not to mention the economic bubble it creates- is revealed for what it is. The conversation is far from being all doom and gloom, though, with plenty of laughs and some uplifting suggestions about how to gently work one's way back to creating, living life, and connecting with the beauty of art, literature, and community.

Read MIchael's humanifesto here: https://medium.com/@michaelmhughes/kill-the-robots-7bad904e3c9e

and check out his website here: https://www.michaelmhughes.com/