The official podcast of The Skeptic, the UK’s longest-running publication offering skeptical analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal.
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From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Regulators take action against dentist offering applied kinesiology and cranial osteopathy by Shaun Sellars, from May 2022 From the archives: A look at paranormal trends in the Soviet Union by Tim Axon, from January 1992 When it comes to research, so-called alternative medicine is hostile to progress by Edzard Ernst, from August 20
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Critical thinking is trending, so why doesn't it seem like it's helping? by Brian Davis, from March 2023 Is the US government worried about UFOs? Or is that just what THEY want you to think? By Blake Smith, from November 2021 Exploding Head Syndrome is no joke – and neither is sleep paralysis by Chris French, from October 2021 As p
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: A Rotten Apple Spoils the Barrel: Debunking the Fad of Drinking Apple Cider Vinegar to Lose Weight by Claire George, from January 2022 Netflix's Apple Cider Vinegar shows the shameless reality of Belle Gibson's fraud by Abi Kennedy, from March 2025 We can understand the effect of privilege better when we consider it in terms of mor
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: BTS = Bow to Satan? How Satanic, Illuminati conspiracies travelled from West to East by Marnell Esmilla, from June 2021 The radicalisation of "Joan": a true-life account of one colleagues slide into conspiracism by Anonymous, from November 2023 When predictions fail: UFO cults, QAnon and cognitive dissonance by Chris French, from F
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Bizarre double death: spontaneous human combustion, or merely tragic coincidence? by Andy Owens, from September 2022 Medical mistrust: what to do when the evidence isn’t enough by Robyn Lowe, from February 2022 Sacred Cloths? Flags, outrage, and the skeptical mindset by Gabriel Andrade, from August 2025 DNA analysis almost certainl
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Defending Critical Race Theory is impossible without highlighting the moral panic around it by Aaron Rabinowitz, from August 2022 You should take the opportunity to see pseudoscience up close - here's how by Michael Marshall, from April 2025 Obituary: Kendrick Frazier, editor-in-chief of the Skeptical Inquirer and long-time skeptic
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: NHS Lincolnshire Reiki-d over the coals for 'Spiritual Healer' job ad by Brian Eggo, from September 2020 Veterinary Homeopathy: Is the bark worse than the bite? by Robyn Lowe, from April 2022 Fears of creeping transhumanism give space for overt conspiracism in Gender Critical communities by Aaron Rabinowitz, from February 2022 Say
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Recovering memories: The truth is, the Satanic Panic never really went away by Chris French, from August 2021 The climate change deniers spreading misinformation... with charitable status by Alfie Hoar, from January 2022 The Bewilder Gambit: a conspiracy theorist tactic designed to distract by Dave Hahn, from August 2021 No end of
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: History is written by the victors, and the losers, and by everyone else as well by Victoria Stiles, from December 2020 Recovering memories: Could the Satanic Panic happen again? by Chris French, from July 2021 Fictional impressions: the shaky foundations of many common forensic science techniques by Dave Hahn, from March 2023 Going
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Did earthquake guru Frank Hoogerbeets really foresee the disaster in Turkey and Syria? by Frank Visser, from February 2023 Recovering memories: The Satanic Panic by Chris French, from May 2021 Darling, you smell lovely: what role does body odour play in dating? by Ginny Smith, from July 2021 The recent New Jersey drone scare tells
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Are the claims for using coffee waste in the garden well grounded? by Sarah Hearne, from September 2021 The Overton window of conspiracy theories has shifted toward the extreme - we need to drag it back by Dave Hahn, from February 2022 The March for Life conference showed the US influence on UK anti-abortion groups by Abi Kennedy,
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Contorium: how a conspiracy narrative embraced a Turkish parody crystal by Serdar Basegmez, from February 2025 Don't Be A Dick: revisiting Phil Plait's 2010 advice to skeptics by Sean Slater, from February 2025 The Russian Game: the conspiracy mongering propaganda techniques designed to stoke division by Dave Hahn, from May 2022 Bi
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Conspiracy theorists cry betrayal at Trump's selective approach to immigration by Dave Hahn, from February 2025 Cannibalism: The long history of a modern propaganda tool by James Williams, from April 2025 Project Blue Beam is finally happening... as long as you cherry pick very carefully by Nick Garratt, from February 2025 JD Vance
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Netflix's Seaspiracy, and how to spot misinformation in glossy documentaries by Sarah Hearne, from June 2021 John Robison, the Illuminati, and the beginnings of a global superconspiracy theory by Dave Hahn, from October 2022 Del Bigtree's Better Way conference seeks to turn Covid conspiracists into full-on anti-vaxxers by Aaron Rab
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: The American Culture War: Coming to a politics near you by Aaron Rabinowitz, from June 2021 Time to ‘drop the crop’ - why cutting off the tips of dogs' ears is never right by Robyn Lowe, from March 2023 Spontaneous Human Combustion: The truth behind the myth of Mary Carpenter by Matt Mills, from May 2021 Find more from The Skeptic
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: As a teacher, I wish I'd handled the conspiracy theorist in my class differently by Brian Montgomery, from March 2023 Closed coffins and open coffers: the costs of Singaporean Chinese funeral practices by Ang Kai Randall, from July 2023 In an increasingly secular America, religious conservatives exert power via the culture wars by
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Andrew Tate's misogynistic BRUV political party is a joke we should take seriously by Abi Kennedy from February 2025 The Truth of Skinwalker Ranch… probably won’t shock you by Nick Garratt from April 2025 Perspectives on Peer Review by Edzard Ernst from November 2020 The Better Way conspiracy conference went all-in on the moral pan
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: The Tartarian Conspiracy: a silly pseudo-archaeology for our serious times by Dave Hahn from April 2025 In the face of AI-driven encyclopedia, cherish Wikipedia - and original sources by Hayley Stevens from December 2025 Lytham's 'Beast of Green Drive': The Monster that almost certainly wasn’t by Andy Owens from October 2022 Unders
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Attempts to "bring back" the woolly mammoth distract us from vital conservationist goals by Sarah Hearne from November 2021 The anti-fluoridation movement is born of public health mistrust and misinformation by Elissar Gerges from January 2025 Auriculotherapy: why poking needles into your earlobe is, essentially, pointless by Edzar
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Conclave raises fascinating questions about hypothetical scenarios within the Catholic Church, by Gabriel Andrade, from January 2025 Coping with Death: Why the 5 stages of grief don’t tell the whole story, by Sarah Hearne, from May 2021 A brief history of radio-phobia: new technology is always met with fear and uncertainty, by Sean
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Exploring the limits of skepticism. Part 3: The value of adversarial collaborations, by Chris French, from January 2026 Rachel Elnaugh: the Dragon's Den star and Covid conspiracist preparing for the 'food apocalypse', by Mark Horne, from January 2023 Counterweight, and the continued enabling of bad faith 'anti-woke' actors, by Aaro
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Exploring the limits of skepticism. Part 2: The plot thickens, by Chris French, from November 2025 Cheap talk skepticism: why we need to push back against those who are 'just asking questions', by Aaron Rabinowitz, from January 2021 Fact checking a live debate taught me we shouldn't let political falsehoods stand, by Brian Eggo, fr
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Exploring the limits of skepticism. Part 1: We need an Epilogue, by Chris French, from September 2025 Those who define as 'post-tribal' forget that we all have communities - and biases, by Aaron Rabinowitz, from November 2021 From the outset, chiropractors have held anti-vax views – sadly, not much has changed, by Edzard Ernst, fro
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: Animals, acupuncture and alt-med: the Brazilian penguin being subjected to Enya, by Natalia Pasternak, from November 2024 Donald Trump's survival was no miracle - unlikely things happen, without supernatural interference, by Gabriel Andrade, from July 2024 Another mass shooting in America cites the Great Replacement conspiracy theo
From the pages of The Skeptic magazine, this is The Skeptic podcast, bringing you the best of the magazine’s expert analysis of pseudoscience, conspiracy theory and claims of the paranormal since its relaunch as online news source in September 2020. On this episode: The shaky evidence for medical cannabis, by Dave Hahn, from June 2023 Paul McCartney and The Bates Method of eyesight restoration, by Mark Horne, from July 2021 Brazil's bogus "Covid kit" represents a failure of private healthcare regulation, by Natália Pasternak, from April 2021 From the archives: Fact checking the decibels at Wim
