Morbidly Fascinating: The Most Gripping Episodes of the Morbid Podcast
Morbid is a true crime anthology podcast that’s been on since May 2018. The show’s full name is Morbid: A True Crime Podcast, and it’s hosted by Ash Kelley and Alaina Urquhart, two true crime fans, one of whom has experience.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s not morbid as you might think (pun intended), it’s only that Urquhart is an autopsy person and author, so she certainly comes with lots of background knowledge. Kelley is quite the opposite as she’s a hairstylist, but the duo shares a love for true crime, horror, and paranormal — in short, everything morbid.
Ash is Alaina’s niece, but the two often say they are like sisters, primarily for how similar their interests are. Even though they talk about murders, crime, and the macabre, they bring a dash of humor in just the right places to lighten the mood.
They always cover fascinating, scary, and genuinely dark stories about serial killers and other criminals. They have covered cases like Elisa Lam’s disappearance, the West Memphis Three, the Golden State Killer, Devil Woman of Michigan, and many others.
The podcast’s popularity has even birthed a line of merchandise you can browse and buy on the Wondery Shop.
The podcast is now part of the Wondery Network (as of July 2022), and if you still aren’t a fan and want to try the show, you can listen to it via Wondery, but bear in mind that the latest episodes are locked for non-members. However, most Morbid episodes are free, and you can also find them on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, or almost any other platform where you get your podcasts.
There are well over 400 episodes by now, and with new ones coming three times a week, it’s hard to know what you want to hear. Moreover, some stories take so long to cover that they must break them into several episodes.
Episode 186 — The Mysterious Unsolved Death of Elisa Lam
Many have heard about Elisa Lam, the girl found dead in The Cecil hotel’s water tank. The strange thing is that she was missing for three weeks when she was discovered, and no one was sure how she ended up dying. There are plenty of questions and very few answers about this mystery, but Ash and Alaina try to answer at least some.
Episode 208 — The Horrific Murder of Ashley Young
The episode covers the story of Ashley Young and Jared Chance. Ashley was one of the most beautiful human beings one could meet, prepared to be a friend to anyone, and Jared used that in the most horrific way imaginable. No one knows precisely what happened as Jared used his father’s help, a former police officer, to cover up the monstrous deed for ages.
Episodes 122, 123, 125, 126 — The West Memphis Three Parts 1–4
- Listen on Wondery — Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, and Part 4
- Listen on Apple Podcasts
- Listen on Spotify
This story is one of the most mesmerizing the duo has covered in their podcast, and it’s so detailed and nuanced that there are four parts to it. They start with the story of the murders of the three children, and as the story progresses, the duo takes you into the whole investigation and the eventual legendary trial. You’ll have to dedicate more than five hours to all of these, but trust me, they are worth it.
Episode 1 — Golden State Killer
I always believe that going back to the first episode of a podcast you’ve just discovered is a good thing. You get to see the hosts at their best, as all try so hard at their podcast christening that it’s always worth it, even if the production quality is abysmal. Surprisingly, in the case of Morbid, everything is excellent with the first episode that covers the famous Golden State Killer — Joseph James DeAngelo, the former police officer who killed 13 people and raped 51.
Episode 19 — Hinterkaifeck
Unfortunately, horrific murder is not a modern horror — it’s been with us since the dawn of humankind. This episode covers one of the oldest unsolved dreadful murders in the history of Germany. It’s a murder of an entire family and their maid that occurred in 1922. However, the creepy part is that the murderer, or murderers, stayed with the corpses in the house for days. If you like murder mysteries, you don’t want to miss this one.
Episode 178 — The Chicago Ripper Crew
Let’s start with a heavy content warning as the episode covers criminals that are downright monsters. It’s the story of the Chicago Ripper Crew that used to drive through the streets of Chicago in a fire truck picking women — any women, both young and old. They did some unspeakable things to at least 17 women for almost two years in the early 1980s, and the worst thing is that they weren’t punished enough. They executed one; three were imprisoned for life, while one of them was even released.
Episode 152 — The Life and Mysterious Death of Marsha P. Johnson
Marsha P. Johnson was one of the first LGBTQ rights activists who fought tirelessly for gay and transgender rights from the late 60s to 1992 when she was found dead in the Hudson River. The worst thing was that the police ruled the murder a suicide. The case was eventually reopened as a possible murder as Johnson’s friends insisted she didn’t kill herself.
Episode 355 — Kelly Cochran, AKA “The Devil Woman of Michigan”
Kelly Cochran is a two-time murderer who confessed to killing both her lover and husband. The duo of Morbid tells Kelly’s gruesome story that landed her in prison for 65 years. It seems she killed her lover due to a pact they made and then her husband two years later by injecting him with a lethal dose of heroin and smothering him to seal the monstrous deed.
Episode 214 — The Tragic Case of Molly Bish
This is the story of 16-year-old Molly Bish from Warren, Massachusetts, who disappeared in June 2000. She was working as a lifeguard at a small local lake when she suddenly vanished out of thin air. An extensive search was undertaken, but no trace was found. As many as three years later, her body was accidentally discovered just five miles from her home. It’s a perfect mystery for Ash and Alaina to cover.
Episodes 114 and 116 — The Amazing Survival Tale of Michelle Knight, Amanda Berry, and Gina DeJesus
- Listen on Wondery — Part 1 and Part 2
- Listen on Apple Podcasts
- Listen on Spotify
As all of these are gruesome tales, some of which are just incredibly sad, I wanted to end things on a lighter note by choosing one of the best Morbid podcast episodes with an actual happy ending. It’s the story of three girls and their long captivity. However, even though this ends on a good note, it doesn’t mean these girls didn’t go through an unimaginably terrible decade-long experience filled with torture and rape. Listen to the show to find out what exactly happened.