Kyle RisiThe RingmasterDoes the research.
The Compendium Podcast
An Assembly of Fascinating Things
The Compendium is a weekly variety podcast exploring stories from the darker corners of true crime, historical events and incredible people.
Each week we serve up one complete story, researched properly, told from beginning to end, and packed with the details you’ll want to tell somebody else later.
2023Launched
1M+DownloadsAs of September 2026
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Unabomber Part 1: The Biggest Manhunt in FBI History
Before Ted Kaczynski was a name on the news, the Unabomber was an anonymous figure who could vanish for years and return with a more lethal device. Part One follows the hunt from the first 1978 package bomb to the manifesto that finally made his anon...
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Three listener favourites. No commitment ceremony required.
John Wayne Gacy: The Killer Clown Case and the Dark History Behind It
John Wayne Gacy was not just the “killer clown” of popular myth - he was a respected local figure who hid years of sexual violence and murder in plain sight. This episode follows the case from Robert Piest’s disappearance to the discovery of the bodi...
Suffolk Strangler: Steve Wright, British True Crime and the Ipswich Murders
In late 2006, Steve Wright murdered five women in and around Ipswich’s red light district, sparking one of Britain’s largest manhunts. Known as the Suffolk Strangler, his capture came through meticulous police work involving DNA and CCTV evidence.
Monster of Florence: Unsolved Mysteries and Italy’s Lover’s Lane Murders
A serial killer haunts the Tuscan hills for nearly two decades, leaving a trail of fear and unanswered questions. We uncover the myths, theories, and cultural obsession surrounding Italy’s most infamous unsolved case.
Why the compendium?
Stories worth
losing an hour to.
The best stories do something to you.They make you laugh. They make you angry. They send you down a rabbit hole. They leave you thinking, how the hell did I not know about this?
That’s what we’re always chasing.
Remarkable people. Strange moments in history. Scandals, disasters, mysteries and stories that sound completely made up until you realise they actually happened.
We go deep enough to make them matter, but never so deep that they stop being fun.
No padding. No dragging one story across ten episodes. Just fascinating stories, told with curiosity, humour and all the strange little details that make you want to immediately tell someone else about them.
More about us →LATEST EPISODES
Unabomber Part 2: The Manifesto That Exposed Ted Kaczynski
Ted Kaczynski stayed hidden for 17 years, but the manifesto he believed would justify his crimes ultimately revealed him. Part Two follows the man behind the Unabomber from Harvard and the Montana wilderness to his arrest, legal battle and guilty ple...
Aileen Wuornos: The Murders, the Self-Defence Claims and the Woman Behind Monster
Aileen Wuornos admitted killing seven men, but spent years changing the explanation for why she did it. Behind the woman portrayed in Monster lies a complicated story of trauma, murder, contradictory confessions and a first killing that remains centr...
Lizzie Borden: Did She Get Away With Murder?
In 1892, two people were hacked to death in a respectable Massachusetts home, and the only real suspect walked free after a trial that still divides opinion. Kyle and Adam dig into the evidence, the myths, the rhyme that got the numbers wrong, and th...
Nasubi: The Real Life Truman Show
An aspiring comedian enters a sweepstakes challenge and unknowingly becomes one of Japan’s biggest television stars. Nasubi’s 15-month ordeal reveals how an unlocked door, an unseen audience and a desperate hope for fame can turn entertainment into e...
The Tromp Family Mystery: The Australian Family Who Fled Their Own Minds
In 2016, five members of the Tromp family fled their farm in a single car, leaving behind their passports, credit cards and mobile phones. Why they fled remains one of Australia's greatest modern mysteries—a mystery that not even the Tromp family can...
MKUltra: The Dark History of CIA Mind Control and Frank Olson
MKUltra was the CIA’s secret Cold War programme built around drugs, hypnosis, interrogation, and the dream of controlling the human mind. This episode follows Frank Olson, LSD testing, Operation Midnight Climax, Donald Ewen Cameron, destroyed files, ...
Genie Wiley: Dark History of the Child Hidden From the Whole World
Genie Wiley was the child hidden from the world for thirteen years before her rescue became a test case for language, trauma, and the ethics of scientific research. This episode follows her abuse, rehabilitation, and the systems that failed her after...
Somerton Man: The Mystery Given a Name After 70 Years
Somerton Man is one of Australia’s most enduring mysteries: an unidentified body found on Somerton Beach in Adelaide in 1948, a hidden scrap of paper reading “Tamám Shud”, and a trail of clues that only got stranger.
Bob Lazar: The Area 51 UFO Claim That Changed Everything
Bob Lazar claimed he worked at Area 51’s hidden S-4 facility reverse-engineering alien craft powered by Element 115. This episode follows the 1989 George Knapp broadcast, Lazar’s story, the credibility questions and the UFO lore it helped send mainst...
DashCon 2014: The Failed Tumblr Convention and the Ball Pit Meme
DashCon 2014 was Tumblr’s infamous failed convention: a ball pit, guest cancellations, and a frantic $17,000 cash appeal that turned fandom excitement into internet legend. We trace how a dream of bringing online community into real life collapsed in...
Your hosts
Meet the freaks responsible.
Adam CoxThe WildcardHears it for the first time.
One brings the story. One brings the reactions.
Nobody brings adequate supervision.
RollingStone“The Compendium has done a good job establishing itself among a growing number of nerdy British buddy podcasts.”
Laura M“A perfect mix of knowledge, storytelling and genuine curiosity. More of this, please.”
Richard Cox“I binged the entire back catalogue in a week. Completely hooked from the first episode.”
Sarah Flaxman“Brilliantly researched and genuinely laugh-out-loud funny. A rare combination.”
Jill“The only podcast my whole family agrees on. Endlessly interesting every single week.”
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