Charles Parton was born around 1870 into a hard world. Raised in a public house owned by his pugilist father, his future would be no easier. Join Violet and Jim as we follow Charles to the ring, to the floor, around the world and on a tour of prison...

In this edition of Yesterday's Chip Paper Extra!, Violet and Jim read each other's stories from across the centuries, ranging from an unfortunate Scotsman to a monkey who may well write questionable novels. Join us as we delve into the historical...

*There were more, but we liked this title.  The Elliot family was one of the preeminent farming families of 1870s Chemung County, NY. Until, one fateful day, one brother sold another brother some inadequate horses and caused a rift that lasted a...

Scotland-born Samuel Bissett was a man of many talents; shoemaking, brokering and, more famously, making all sorts of animals do all sorts of things that animals don't normally do in front of adoring crowds around the country. Join Jim and Violet as...

In this episode of Yesterday's Chip Paper Extra! Violet and Jim read some stories for the first time, featuring a nonsense and angering riddle, lots of people reacting to situations in the worst possible way and a load of Canadian guys who just cannot...

In honour of International Women’s Day, Violet tells the story of Elizabeth Taylor (also known as Happy Ned) who spent most of her life dressing and working as a man. Having spent many years as a common labourer, she set sail in 1862 to the southern...

From creating instruments of death to starting feuds with fellow inventors, there's nothing Ernest can't do

1890s Indiana, a state in the midst of a boom. A character appears in the newspapers with a talent so strange he becomes a star. He went by the name of Harry Beno, and everything he did should realistically have killed him, from drinking neat poison...

In this episode of Yesterday's Chip Paper Extra! Violet and Jim read out stories from historical newspapers, covering topics ranging from sorcery to the untimely death of a previously featured figure.  Join us as we each host sees their stories...

Sent packing by his mother with 7000 Francs to “have an adventure”, Louis de Rougemont would not disappoint. But his fantastical story soon took a nasty turn, as he journeyed to Australasia only to get stranded on a remote island for two and a...