Canada is Boring

A haunted farmhouse, flying furniture, mysterious fires, missing butter—and a ghost with a potty mouth. In this Halloween episode of Canada Is Boring, Rhys Waters and Jesse investigate the Dagg Poltergeist, an unsettling 1889 ghost story from Pontiac County, Quebec.

The Dagg family’s reported paranormal activity escalates from strange disturbances to a voice claiming to be the devil. Artist Percy Woodcock visits the farmhouse to investigate, while the spirit changes its story and, eventually, promises to leave. What did the witnesses say they saw, and what might explain this Canadian haunting?
Rhys and Jesse also talk ghost stories, poltergeists, paranormal theories, folklore, and cultural beliefs about spirits, before switching gears to DIY tables and Jesse’s AI-assisted experiment with scammers.
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Somewhere in the depths of the internet, a secretive collection of audio files promises something extraordinary: the ability to rewrite who you are. They call it Bambi Sleep.
For some, it's fantasy. For others, an escape. But for those who venture deeper, the lines between pleasure, identity and control can begin to disappear. Who created these mysterious recordings? What happens to the people who surrender themselves to them? And why do some claim they can never truly escape?

In this five-part investigative documentary, Host Rhys Waters follows a trail of anonymous creators, devoted listeners, disturbing testimonies and extraordinary claims into a world where reality and suggestion become difficult to separate. What begins as an investigation into an obscure internet phenomenon soon raises unsettling questions about consent, manipulation and the power of the human mind.

Is Bambi Sleep an elaborate fantasy, a dangerous experiment in psychological control, or something we don't yet have the language to understand?
There's only one way to find out. Put on your headphones. And listen.
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For Halloween, we head to Huron County, Ontario, to tell the story of Margaret “Maggie” Pollock, a local woman who said she could communicate with spirits and help people find lost things. In 1919, after a man asked her to locate missing oats, Pollock was charged under a Canadian law against fortune-telling and pretending to use occult powers—a law that remained on the books until 2018.Along the way, we discuss whether we believe in ghosts, what makes a horror movie scary, and why audiences connect with characters’ reactions as much as the monsters on screen. Plus: spooky-season banter, a Halloween movie chat, and a teaser for next episode’s poltergeist story.
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In this episode of Canada Is Boring, Rhys Waters and Jesse uncover the strange true story of John Mark Tillman, an affluent Fall River, Nova Scotia man who stole historical artifacts from universities, museums, libraries, and private collections across Atlantic Canada.

The case came to light after an RCMP officer spotted a rare 1758 letter by General James Wolfe in Tillman’s car. A search of his home revealed a remarkable collection of stolen Canadian artifacts—including rare manuscripts, historical books, artwork, and a first-edition copy of Charles Darwin’s On the Origin of Species. The hosts discuss how Tillman’s brazen, opportunistic thefts went undetected for years, the impact on the institutions he targeted, and the troubling details of his criminal history and Nazi memorabilia.

Plus, Rhys and Jesse answer listener messages and share a fact check.
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A mysterious Toronto murder, a disputed confession, and a trial that captivated the city, welcome back to Canada Is Boring for part two of the Parkdale murder mystery.

In 1894, 18-year-old Frank Westwood was shot and killed, and Clara Ford, a Black woman who made her living as a seamstress, was arrested for the crime. Ford reportedly confessed to detectives, but later claimed her confession was fabricated under hours of police questioning. Her alibi fell apart, the physical evidence was inconclusive, and the case became as much a spectacle about Ford’s race, gender expression, and reputation as it was a search for the truth.
Rhys walks Jesse through Clara Ford’s arrest, the sensational press coverage, the courtroom drama, and the role of a very famous visitor to Toronto: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of Sherlock Holmes. Ford was acquitted by an all-male jury, but did she really shoot Frank Westwood, or did the case turn an unconventional woman into the perfect suspect? The murder remains unresolved, and the truth is still uncertain.

After the murder mystery, step into the Small Talk Dimension for Jesse’s stories from Tuscany, including painting the countryside and discovering an underground garage in a tiny Italian village. Rhys also tells the story of seeing Jeremy Clarkson, James May, and Richard Hammond at a Top Gear recording, and helping Tom Cruise when someone in the audience fainted.

Plus, a preview of next week’s episode: a bold, clever gentleman thief with an unusual accomplice.
For premium content, socials, merch, to leave a voicemail or message us go to canadaisboring.com
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