Send us a text

The boundary between life and death has never been as terrifyingly thin as when coffin bells were a necessity. This deep dive into taphophobia—the fear of being buried alive—uncovers centuries of macabre history and the remarkable inventions born from our most primal fears.

From the haunting 14th-century tale of philosopher John Duns Scotus reportedly found outside his coffin with bloodied hands, to the documented case of Alice Blunden in 17th-century England who was buried twice while still alive, these stories fueled generations of anxiety. Edgar Allan Poe masterfully captured this cultural dread in his 1844 short story "The Premature Burial," but the reality behind the fiction is even more fascinating.

The podcast takes listeners through the surprising evolution of safety coffins and burial alarm systems, from Franz Vester's 1868 patent to astonishingly recent innovations like Jeff Dannenberg's 2010 patent for post-burial communication devices. We even explore modern developments like coffin playlist systems and grave jewelry alarm systems—proving our fascination with bridging the gap between the living and dead remains alive and well.

Most compelling is my personal experience when an authentic antique coffin bell—designed to be tied to a corpse's wrists—inexplicably rang during a live performance. The genuine shock experienced by myself, my partner Cassandra, and our audience speaks to something deeper than mere coincidence. As my daughter wisely notes, "There is indeed a world unseen, a world that exists all around us all the time, and every now and then, for whatever reason, we catch a glimpse of it and the dead get in."

Have you experienced something unexplainable? We'd love to hear your story—contact us through the website or call our show line as we continue exploring paranormal themes leading up to Halloween. Remember, telling a story is good for you—and if it's a ghost story, so much better.

Support the show