Submitted for the Approval of the Midnight Pals

Patricia Highsmith, crime writer, snail friend, and lovable weirdo known for her shabby trenchcoat, eccentric habits, and possibly imaginary wife, investigates a bizarre double murder. Two people who don't know each other, or if you will, "strangers", meet on a rail vehicle, or as it were, "train", and plan the perfect crime. What really happened with Mary Shelley and her polycule at Lake Geneva last summer?

Content notes: swearing, violence, murder, death including by train and drowning.

CAST:

• Mary Shelley — REBECCA D'SOUZA
• Edgar Allan Poe — RODRIGO BORGES
• Clive Barker — SISTER INDICA
• HP Lovecraft — ROBIN JOHNSON
• Dean Koontz — WREN MONTGOMERY
• Stephen King — JASON ROBINSON

with

• Patricia Highsmith — KATE DAVOLI
• Jane Williams — HANNAH BROWN
• Percy Shelley — LOU SUTCLIFFE
• Mrs Cleveland — JULIA DRAKE
• Edward Ellerker Williams — DAVID COURT
• Train engineer — CANAVAN CONNOLLY
• Human Guy — DEXTER HOWARD
• Human Bruno — BRAD BARNES

plus special guest stars

• HELEN ARNEY as Mary Wollstonecraft's ghost
• MIKE McSHANE as William Huskisson MP

Helen Arney is a science presenter and musical comedienne who has appeared in TV, radio and theatre across the world with her unique mix of stand-up, songs and science. For more information, see helenarney.com.

Mike McShane, veteran of Whose Line is it Anyway?, kindly agreed to record a cameo scream in support of Waverley Care, who provide help to people living with HIV and hepatitis in Scotland. Donations can be made at https://waverleycare.org

Script by Robin Johnson, edited by Bitter Karella, inspired by Patricia Highsmith's novel Strangers on a Train and its film adaptation by Alfred Hitchcock. Elements from copyrighted works are used for purposes of parody and comment.

This episode takes many liberties with history, the Midnight Pals characters are not necessarily representative of the real-life authors with whom they share names (except when they are), and Submitted for the Approval of the Midnight Pals should on no account be regarded as a historical source... but...

• The story that the real Mary Shelley had sex on her mother's grave is often dismissed as myth, but happens to be surprisingly plausible—see this unrolled social media thread by the London Vagina Museum: https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1588162489858117634.html
• Shelley, despite centuries of historical gal-pal-ization, was certainly bisexual and probably did have an affair with Jane Williams, the widow of the man who drowned alongside Percy. See https://bi.org/en/articles/famous-bis-mary-shelley
• William Huskisson, member of parliament for Liverpool, was indeed killed by the first train locomotive, Stevenson's Rocket, during a technical demonstration. He'd probably have survived if he hadn't stopped halfway across the tracks to dither over whether to go left or right, which ought to be a lesson for all politicians. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Huskisson#Death

A transcript of this episode can be found at https://midnight-pals.simplecast.com/episodes/s01e05-the-tale-of-the-strangers-on-a-train/transcript

The Midnight Pals is the creation of Bitter Karella ©

Subscribe to Submitted for the Approval of the Midnight Pals on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Cast, or wherever you find podcasts. If you enjoy the show, please consider leaving us a rating or review. For more information, see https://midnightpals.com

A new candidate for the Midnight Society, insufferable San Francisco hipster Robert Louis Stevenson, attempts to impress the Pals with the story of Henry Jekyll, a Victorian psychiatrist. On the steamship home from a business trip, Jekyll's seemingly chance meeting with a certain Edward Hyde will change his perception of reality forever. In a twist so unexpected that nobody even knows it's a twist, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde turn out to be the same person! An adrenaline-fueled social satire of mischief, mayhem and soup.

Content notes: swearing, discussion of colonialism and colonial violence, mention of death, murder and cannibalism, guns, explosions, themes of mental illness and dissociative identity.

CAST

• Edgar Allan Poe — RODRIGO BORGES
• Mary Shelley — REBECCA D'SOUZA
• Clive Barker — SISTER INDICA
• HP Lovecraft — ROBIN JOHNSON
• Dean Koontz — WREN MONTGOMERY
• Stephen King — JASON ROBINSON

with

• Robert Louis Stevenson — DEXTER HOWARD
• Dr Jekyll — KARIM KRONFLI
• Mr Hyde — SEAN BABAPULLE
• The Major — DAVID COURT
• Poole — DAISY MCNAMARA
• Constable — CANAVAN CONNOLLY
• Resurrection Man — BRAD BARNES
• Fanny Osbourne — SENI RIVERA

Script by Robin Johnson, edited by Bitter Karella, based (very) loosely on The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (1886) by Robert Louis Stevenson. Production and music by Robin Johnson. The sensitivity reader was Rebecca D'Souza, and Daisy McNamara was an audio consultant.

Stevenson's original novella is in the public domain, and can be found on Project Gutenberg at https://gutenberg.org/ebooks/43

A transcript of this episode can be found at https://midnight-pals.simplecast.com/episodes/s01e02-the-tale-of-dr-jekyll-and-mr-hyde/transcript

The Midnight Pals is the creation of Bitter Karella ©

Subscribe to Submitted for the Approval of the Midnight Pals on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Cast, or wherever you find podcasts. For more information, see https://midnightpals.com

Clive Barker takes the stage and relates his cult classic of an eternal battle—gay monsters versus redneck cops. Cabal has always had unsettling dreams of becoming a gay monster, but his personal journey to gay monsterhood is obstructed by queer-gatekeeping monsters, Nazi sheriffs' departments, and unconvincing gimp-mask serial killer David Cronenberg. Frank Belknap Long teaches Dean Koontz to be a furry.

Content notes: swearing, raised voices, sexual content, violence, discussion of homophobic and transphobic propaganda techniques, homophobic and transphobic state violence, riots, guns and military weapons, death and killing, attempted genocide.

CAST:

• Clive Barker—SISTER INDICA
• Edgar Allan Poe—RODRIGO BORGES
• Mary Shelley—REBECCA D'SOUZA
• Dean Koontz—WREN MONTGOMERY
• Stephen King—JASON ROBINSON
• HP Lovecraft—ROBIN JOHNSON

with

• Cabal—JOHN SERRANO
• Lori—LORETTA CHANG
• Sheriff—DEXTER HOWARD
• Deputy/David Cronenberg—JOEL A.S. BUTLER
• Governor/Monster Gatekeeper—CASSIE VULPINE
• Frank Belknap Long—DAVID COURT

Script by Bitter Karella, edited by Robin Johnson, inspired by Clive Barker’s 1990 cult film Nightbreed, an adaptation of his novella Cabal. Elements of copyrighted works are used for purposes of parody and comment.

A transcript of this episode can be found at https://midnight-pals.simplecast.com/episodes/s01e06-the-tale-of-the-nightbreed/transcript

The Midnight Pals is the creation of Bitter Karella ©

Subscribe to Submitted for the Approval of the Midnight Pals on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Cast, Goodpods or wherever you find podcasts. If you enjoy the show, please consider leaving us a rating or review. For more information, see https://midnightpals.com

Neurotic closet-dweller Bram Stoker visits the campfire to tell his iconic vampire story. In Transylvania, hot twink Jon "Jonathan" Harker shacks up with a rich older man who wants to consume his bodily fluids. Meanwhile in England, notorious strumpet Lucy Westenra attempts to ensnare her innocent friend Mina into the dangerous and disgusting world of sex. A cautionary tale about the perils of horniness, as Bram attempts to prove once and for all that vampires are in no way sexy. Mary Shelley invites Anne Rice and Stephenie Meyer just to stir the pot.

Content notes: swearing, raised voices, violence, death, guns, gory sounds, Victorian institutionalisation of mental health patients, strong sexual content.

CAST

• Edgar Allan Poe/Dracula — RODRIGO BORGES
• Mary Shelley/Mina Murray — REBECCA D'SOUZA
• Clive Barker — SISTER INDICA
• HP Lovecraft — ROBIN JOHNSON
• Dean Koontz — WREN MONTGOMERY
• Stephen King — JASON ROBINSON

with

• Bram Stoker/Quincey Morris — JOEL A.S. BUTLER
• Jonathan Harker — THADDEUS STRANGE
• Lucy Westenra — MARNIE WARNER
• Dr Van Helsing/Dr Seward — CASSIE VULPINE
• Renfield — JOHN SERRANO
• Anne Rice — LORETTA CHANG
• Stephenie Meyer — NOMI IBSEN
• Additional voices — EMILY HANNAK, LOU SUTCLIFFE, DAVID COURT

Script by Bitter Karella, edited by Robin Johnson, based loosely on Dracula by Bram Stoker. Production by Robin Johnson. Music by Alex Rancourt, Robin Johnson and Lou Sutcliffe.

Bram Stoker's 1897 novel Dracula is the codifying example of the vampire story in popular culture. The book is in the public domain and can be found on Project Gutenberg at https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/345

Stoker's completely normal letter to Walt Whitman, written on Valentine's Day of 1876, can be read at https://www.themarginalian.org/2019/01/09/bram-stoker-walt-whitman-letter/

A transcript of this episode can be found at https://midnight-pals.simplecast.com/episodes/s01e03-the-tale-of-dracula/transcript

The Midnight Pals is the creation of Bitter Karella ©

Subscribe to Submitted for the Approval of the Midnight Pals on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Cast, or wherever you find podcasts. For more information, see https://midnightpals.com

It's winter at the campfire, and that means one thing—snow-themed holiday special! The Midnight Pals are visited by Junji Ito, adorable catboy and terrifying master of fucked-up-face-filled manga horror, accompanied by original weeaboo Lafcadio Hearn. The pair narrate an ancient Japanese folktale of ripped samurai, distressed noblewomen, and seasonal ice-demons. Lafcadio helps Junji out by using his insightful perspective as a Greek-Irish academic to explain Japanese tradition and culture. HP Lovecraft nearly has an aneurysm.

Content notes: swearing, raised voices, sexual references, discussion of racism and appropriation, violence, death, references to guns.

CAST:

• Edgar Allan Poe — RODRIGO BORGES
• Mary Shelley — REBECCA D'SOUZA
• Clive Barker — SISTER INDICA
• Dean Koontz — WREN MONTGOMERY
• Stephen King — JASON ROBINSON
• HP Lovecraft/Lafcadio Hearn — ROBIN JOHNSON

with

• Junji Ito/Osamu Tezuka — TENEST TANG
• Lord Fujiwara — JON GUTIERREZ
• Lady Minamoto — NICOLETTA GIUSEFFI
• Snow-child — CHIBI
• Naoko Takeuchi — LORETTA CHANG
• Kouta Hirano — JOHN SERRANO

Script by Lou Sutcliffe, edited by Bitter Karella and Robin Johnson. The Japanese sensitivity reader was Minaro Kato-Hopkins, and the Irish accent and swearing coach was Liselle Nic Giollabháin.

Lafcadio Hearn's translation of the Japanese folktale "Yuki-Onna" (The Snow Woman) is included in his collection Kwaidan: Stories and Studies of Strange Things, which is available from Project Gutenberg at https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/1210

A transcript of this episode can be found at https://midnight-pals.simplecast.com/episodes/s01e07-the-tale-of-the-snow-woman/transcript

The Midnight Pals is the creation of Bitter Karella ©

Subscribe to Submitted for the Approval of the Midnight Pals on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Pocket Cast, Goodpods or wherever you find podcasts. If you enjoy the show, please consider leaving us a rating or review. For more information, see https://midnightpals.com