I chat with Christopher Philippo, editor of Volumes 4 and 5 of the Valancourt Books of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories. But we also talk about old doggerel (popular poetry), strange finds in old newspapers and magazines, and the antiquarian “thug life” of loving the hunt for forgotten treasures.
Links from the show:
- Chris’ Goodreads site
- Valancourt Book of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories, Volume 4 (the American stories) [Amazon]
- Valancourt Book of Victorian Christmas Ghost Stories, Volume 5 [Amazon]
Full version of the poems I read on the show, all found for the first time in ages by Chris:
- “Christmas in Mars” (Brooklyn Daily Eagle [NY]. December 9, 1894: 11 col 5.)
- “A Story of Christmas Eve” (W.S. Harwood, 1897)
- “The Electric Santa Claus” (Cork Daily Herald [Ireland]. December 30, 1899)
- “Christmas Eve Tragedy” (The Gazette [Montreal, Canada]. December 21, 1901: 15 col 2.)
Some of the other fun pieces mentioned:
- Louis Wain Cat Christmas Ghost Story
- “They Ain’t No Santa Claus”
- “Christmas on Mt. Olympus” by Carolyn Wells
- “Fired at Random”
Bumper music:
- Usual opening: “O Holy Night” by Tiny Tim, “Christmas Doesn’t Last” by Make Like Monkeys, “Santa Claus Boogie” by Hasil Adkins, “Space Age Santa” by Ross Christman
- Featured opening/bumper: “Christmas History” by Cooper & Yates
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