A missing child returns under suspiciously perfect circumstances, sparking a decades-long battle over identity and truth.

This episode traces the disappearance and reappearance of four-year-old Bobby Dunbar, the contradictions that muddied the investigation, and the families pulled into the fallout. Through contested identifications, clashing testimonies, and the revelation of a century-late DNA test, we explore how a single child’s return became one of America’s most enduring mysteries.

Topics include

• The Swayze Lake disappearance
• Conflicting newspaper accounts
• Disputed identifications
• The Anderson and Walters family claims
• The DNA evidence that reshaped the case

Resources and Further Reading

• A Case for Solomon – by Tal McThenia & Margaret Dunbar Cutright
• The Ghost of Bobby Dunbar – This American Life
• The Strange Case of Bobby Dunbar – Country Roads Magazine
• Disappearance of Bobby Dunbar - Wikipedia

Host & Show Info

• Hosts: Kyle Risi & Adam Cox
• Intro Music: Alice in dark Wonderland

Community & Calls to Action

• Review & follow on: Spotify & Apple Podcasts
• Instagram: @theCompendiumPodcast
• Website: TheCompendiumPodcast.com
• Support us: Sign up to Patreon
• Certified Freaks: Submit your job Descriptions

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A neonatal unit descends into crisis as accusations of murder, medical error, and systemic failure collide around nurse Lucy Letby.

This episode examines the events inside the Countess of Chester’s neonatal unit, where unexplained collapses and conflicting evidence fuelled one of the NHS’s most divisive scandals. We explore the debates over air embolisms, ventilator failures, and hospital negligence while asking whether this tragedy points to deliberate harm or a system buckling under pressure.

Topics include

• The Countess of Chester neonatal incidents
• Conflicting medical interpretations
• Air-embolism and ventilator-error debates
• Allegations of hospital negligence
• Questions around possible miscarriage of justice

Resources and Further Reading

• The Nurse Who Hated Babies, 2023 – Channel 4
• Lucy Letby – Wikipedia
• The Thirlwall Inquiry – “The Thirlwall Inquiry
• Lucy Letby International Expert Panel Press Conference - Youtube
• Three bosses at Letby hospital arrested for ‘manslaughter – Press Reader

Host & Show Info

• Hosts: Kyle Risi & Adam Cox
• Intro Music: Alice in dark Wonderland

Community & Calls to Action

• Review & follow on: Spotify & Apple Podcasts
• Instagram: @theCompendiumPodcast
• Website: TheCompendiumPodcast.com
• Support us: Sign up to Patreon
• Certified Freaks: Submit your job Descriptions

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A bitter rivalry spirals out of control as two palaeontologists race to outdo each other and rewrite the story of the dinosaurs.

This episode explores the Bone Wars, the feud between Edward Cope and Othniel Marsh that pushed American palaeontology to new heights and embarrassing lows. From sabotage and rivalry to genuine scientific breakthroughs, we trace how their obsession uncovered extraordinary fossils while nearly destroying their reputations.

Topics include

• The Cope and Marsh rivalry
• Sabotage within early palaeontology
• Landmark dinosaur discoveries
• Scientific mistakes and rushed publications
• The long-term impact on dinosaur research

Resources and Further Reading

• The Bone Wars - Wikipedia
• The Bone Wars That Made Dinosaurs So Popular – I Know Dino (Podcast)

Host & Show Info

• Hosts: Kyle Risi & Adam Cox
• Intro Music: Alice in dark Wonderland

Community & Calls to Action

• Review & follow on: Spotify & Apple Podcasts
• Instagram: @theCompendiumPodcast
• Website: TheCompendiumPodcast.com
• Support us: Sign up to Patreon
• Certified Freaks: Submit your job Descriptions

Share this episode with a friend! If you enjoyed it, tag us on social media and let us know your favourite takeaway.

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A man is found dead in a locked hotel room with no signs of a struggle, leaving investigators with a mystery that makes no sense.

This episode follows the case of Greg Flanagan, whose death in Room 348 seemed straightforward until private investigator Ken Brennan uncovered evidence hiding in plain sight. We trace the overlooked clues, the chain of small mistakes that derailed the initial inquiry, and the reasoning that finally revealed what happened inside that locked room.

Topics include

• The discovery in Room 348
• Early investigative missteps
• Key forensic details
• Ken Brennan’s reconstruction of events
• How the true cause of death was uncovered

Resources and Further Reading

• Body in room 348 - Vanity Fair
• Body in room 348 - People

Host & Show Info

• Hosts: Kyle Risi & Adam Cox
• Intro Music: Alice in dark Wonderland

Community & Calls to Action

• Review & follow on: Spotify & Apple Podcasts
• Instagram: @theCompendiumPodcast
• Website: TheCompendiumPodcast.com
• Support us: Sign up to Patreon
• Certified Freaks: Submit your job Descriptions

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A quiz show champion reaches the million-pound question, only for suspicious coughs to spark a scandal that grips the nation.

This episode revisits the Who Wants to Be a Millionaire coughing scandal, tracing how Charles Ingram, his wife Diana, and Tecwen Whittock became the centre of a media storm and courtroom battle. We explore the evidence, the trial, the role of Chris Tarrant, and the twists that inspired ITV’s Quiz, all while asking whether the Coughing Major was truly guilty.

Topics include

• The night of the alleged coughing
• Charles and Diana Ingram’s involvement
• Tecwen Whittock and studio dynamics
• Key trial evidence and testimony
• The cultural legacy of ITV’s Quiz

Resources and Further Reading

• Charles Ingram Fraud Scandal Footage - YouTube
• Charles Ingram - Wikipedia
• Quiz Miniseries 2020 – by ITV/AMC
• Bad Show: The Quiz, The Cough, The Millionaire Major – by Bob Woffinden & James Plaskett
• Reasonable doubt: was ‘the Coughing Major’ innocent? – James Plaskett

Host & Show Info

• Hosts: Kyle Risi & Adam Cox
• Intro Music: Alice in dark Wonderland

Community & Calls to Action

• Review & follow on: Spotify & Apple Podcasts
• Instagram: @theCompendiumPodcast
• Website: TheCompendiumPodcast.com
• Support us: Sign up to Patreon
• Certified Freaks: Submit your job Descriptions

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A failed explosion beneath Parliament ignites a chain of treason, torture, and myth-making that still echoes every Bonfire Night.

This episode traces the real story of Guy Fawkes, from Robert Catesby’s radical plot to the brutal aftermath that shaped Britain’s most famous annual ritual. We explore whether Fawkes was the mastermind or the perfect scapegoat, and how a botched act of rebellion became a national night of fire, memory, and political symbolism.

Topics include

• The Gunpowder Plot’s origins
• Guy Fawkes’s role and interrogation
• Robert Catesby’s leadership
• King James I’s response
• The making of Bonfire Night tradition

Resources and Further Reading

• The Gunpowder Plot - Wikipedia
• The Gunpowder Plot: Terror and Faith in 1605 – by Antonia Fraser
• Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder Plot – Tower of London
• Guy Fawkes night - Wikipedia

Host & Show Info

• Hosts: Kyle Risi & Adam Cox
• Intro Music: Alice in dark Wonderland

Community & Calls to Action

• Review & follow on: Spotify & Apple Podcasts
• Instagram: @theCompendiumPodcast
• Website: TheCompendiumPodcast.com
• Support us: Sign up to Patreon
• Certified Freaks: Submit your job Descriptions

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A young artist survives unimaginable pain and transforms it into paintings so bold and intimate they redefine what art can be.

This episode explores Frida Kahlo’s turbulent life, from the accident that reshaped her body to the politics, passion, and creative defiance that fuelled her work. We trace her self-portraits, her fractured relationship with Diego Rivera, and the way she turned personal suffering into a visual language that made her an icon of rebellion and self-expression.

Topics include

• Frida Kahlo’s life-changing accident
• Her most influential self-portraits
• Politics, identity, and artistic rebellion
• The complexities of her relationship with Diego Rivera
• Her legacy from La Casa Azul to global recognition

Resources and Further Reading

• Frida (2002) – Directed by Julie Taymor
• Frida: A Biography of Frida Kahlo – by Hayden Herrera
• Complete Works – Frida Kahlo – Frida Kahlo Foundation
• Frida: The Making of an Icon – Exhibition at Tate Modern

Host & Show Info

• Hosts: Kyle Risi & Adam Cox
• Topic Suggested by: Samantha Bingley
• Intro Music: Alice in dark Wonderland by Aleksey Chistilin
• Trailer Music: Stealy Move by Soundroll

Community & Calls to Action

• Review & follow on: Spotify & Apple Podcasts
• Follow us on Instagram: @theCompendiumPodcast
• Visit us at: TheCompendiumPodcast.com
• ️ Early access episodes: Patreon

Share this episode with a friend! If you enjoyed it, tag us on social media and let us know your favorite takeaway.

Host & Show Info

• Hosts: Kyle Risi & Adam Cox
• Intro Music: Alice in dark Wonderland

Community & Calls to Action

• Review & follow on: Spotify & Apple Podcasts
• Instagram: @theCompendiumPodcast
• Website: TheCompendiumPodcast.com
• Support us: Sign up to Patreon
• Certified Freaks: Submit your job Descriptions

Share this episode with a friend! If you enjoyed it, tag us on social media and let us know your favourite takeaway.

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A luxury music festival in the Bahamas collapses into chaos, leaving celebrity hype, empty promises, and bewildered guests in its wake.

This episode unpacks the rise and ruin of Fyre Festival, from Billy McFarland’s glossy vision of a VIP paradise to the cascading failures that exposed a web of lies. We follow the influencers, the investors, the infamous cheese sandwich, and the fallout that turned a marketing fantasy into a modern lesson in greed and delusion.

Topics include

• Billy McFarland’s festival concept
• Celebrity influencer promotion
• Logistics failures in the Bahamas
• Financial misconduct and Ponzi scheme tactics
• The aftermath and McFarland’s consequences

Resources and Further Reading

• Fyre: The Greatest Party That Never Happened (2019) – by Chris Smith
• Fyre Festival – Wikipedia
• Hype: Inside the Fyre Festival and the Golden Age of Grift – by Gabrielle Bluestone
• Billy McFarland – Wikipedia

Host & Show Info

• Hosts: Kyle Risi & Adam Cox
• Intro Music: Alice in dark Wonderland

Community & Calls to Action

• Review & follow on: Spotify & Apple Podcasts
• Instagram: @theCompendiumPodcast
• Website: TheCompendiumPodcast.com
• Support us: Sign up to Patreon
• Certified Freaks: Submit your job Descriptions

Share this episode with a friend! If you enjoyed it, tag us on social media and let us know your favourite takeaway.

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