Podcast · True Crime
by Ballen Studios · English · True Crime
MrBallen Podcast: Strange, Dark and Mysterious Stories is a true crime and mystery podcast that presents strange, dark and mysterious content delivered in story format. The program is hosted by John Allen a.k.a. MrBallen. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes 7-days early and ad-free. Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus.
5 Oct 2026 · 35 minNew
One afternoon in December 1980, one of the most famous comedians in France pulled a stack of letters from his mailbox in Paris. As he flipped through them, one caught his eye: It had no postmark or return address, and there was something small and hard inside. He ripped the envelope open and pulled out a bullet, along with a piece of paper that read: “The next one is for you.”
2 Oct 2026 · 58 min
Tonight, I have a very special guest joining me at the Campfire! Liana is a HUGE MrBallen fan, and I wanted to tell a few stories live, just for her. All proceeds from this episode will be donated to Liana’s family to help with medical expenses following her leukemia diagnosis, as well as her father’s ongoing battle with ALS. If you are able to help, please consider donating to their GoFundMe: https://www.gofundme.com/f/support-lianas-battle-with-leukemia?cp_src=d
1 Oct 2026 · 27 min
Today’s podcast will feature 2 stories that challenge our understanding of reality. The audio from both stories has been pulled from our main YouTube channel, which is just called "MrBallen," and has been remastered for today's podcast.
30 Sep 2026 · 27 min
Today, I’m going to tell you four stories of people who thought their day couldn’t get any worse... but they were wrong.
28 Sep 2026 · 29 min
One night in March 1997, a man carried a muddy, black plastic case into a police station in the small town of Higginson, Arkansas. A local police officer had been murdered just three days ago, and the man desperately needed to see the detective who was leading the investigation. So once the man got inside, he headed straight to the detective’s office, where he immediately opened the black case – and pulled out a gun.
25 Sep 2026 · 37 min
Today's story is a fan favorite that was previously published as Episode 365. On the afternoon of March 24, 2006, an employee at a moving truck rental company in Ohio opened his desk drawer and grabbed a wad of cash. It had been a slow day, so the employee was using his downtime to organize a few recent payments. The money he’d just grabbed was from an all-cash deal that had happened a few days ago. At the time, the employee had been super busy, so he’d just taken the cash from the customer, flipped through it quickly to make sure the amount seemed right, then shoved the money in the drawer…
24 Sep 2026 · 26 min
Today’s podcast will feature 3 stories that involve people who were trapped - with “no way out.” The audio from all three stories has been pulled from our main YouTube channel, which is just called "MrBallen," and has been remastered for today's podcast.
23 Sep 2026 · 27 min
Today, I’m going to tell you four stories about people who thought they had a handle on the situation they were in, but found out – way too late – that they’d really misjudged things.
21 Sep 2026 · 30 min
One morning in January 1990, a man walked into a police station in Marseille, France, clutching a newspaper. He went up to the desk, and said he’d seen a sketch of a murder suspect in the paper that morning – and he knew who it was. He unrolled the newspaper... and held it up next to his own face.
18 Sep 2026 · 37 min
Today's story is a fan favorite that was previously published as Episode 361. On a morning in early 1986 in Arizona, someone sat hunched over a desk, furiously writing a letter. And almost every line of this letter included a direct threat of violence this person was going to inflict on the recipient. They kept writing, embellishing every horrible thing that they wanted to do. Finally, they finished writing and read over the letter – it was explicit and terrifying, just as they’d hoped. They put the letter down, glanced at a cardboard box sitting on the floor, and smiled. Nobody would ever…
17 Sep 2026 · 26 min
Today’s podcast will feature 3 stories that prove the deadliest threats are often the hardest to recognize. The audio from all three stories has been pulled from our main YouTube channel, which is just called "MrBallen," and has been remastered for today's podcast.
16 Sep 2026 · 27 min
Today, I’m going to tell you four stories about people who went through incredibly strange experiences – and came out of them believing that everything that happened, had a purpose.
14 Sep 2026 · 31 min
One morning in March of 1999, a detective in Norcross, Georgia leaned in closely to his computer screen. He was reviewing video footage his team had recorded at a murder scene – and finally, he arrived at the exact frame he wanted. He zoomed in and smiled. Because the thing he was looking for... wasn't there.
11 Sep 2026 · 51 min
Welcome back to the Campfire! Tonight, I’m sitting down with a legend of the outdoors, Steven Rinella from MeatEater. We swap stories in the Montana wilderness, including an experience from my own life that I truly cannot explain. Be sure to WATCH this episode on my YouTube channel!
10 Sep 2026 · 27 min
Today’s podcast will feature 4 stories about how a single decision changed the lives of the people in these stories, as well as millions of others’ lives around the world. The audio from all four stories has been pulled from our main YouTube channel, which is just called "MrBallen," and has been remastered for today's podcast.
9 Sep 2026 · 29 min
Today, I'm going to tell you three stories about people who tried really hard to be something that they were not. And not only do they get caught, but they also face extreme repercussions.
7 Sep 2026 · 36 min
In the fall of 2009, a college student sat in a crowded lecture hall in Southern California, listening to his professor. Suddenly, the doors swung open and three campus police officers walked in, followed by a man in a suit. The officers went over and whispered something to the professor, who leaned into his microphone. And before the professor even said a word, the student’s stomach dropped – because he’d just realized what was about to happen.
4 Sep 2026 · 37 min
Welcome back to the Campfire! Tonight, I have two very weird and equally creep stories to share... perfect stories to be told at the fire. Be sure to WATCH this episode on my YouTube channel on Friday, September 4th!
3 Sep 2026 · 24 min
One summer day, a man named John Randolph was hiking through a remote forest in Colorado when he began to smell something terrible. Intrigued, he followed the smell until it brought him to this clearing, and in the clearing John saw what looked like an old campsite. Now, John is out in the middle of nowhere, so the idea that somebody was camping out out here, in what looked like a long term settlement, was pretty bizarre to John. John walked into the clearing to see what was going on, and when he turned the corner, he saw something in the middle of the campsite he just couldn’t even…
2 Sep 2026 · 28 min
Today, I'm going to tell you three stories about people who thought they'd come up with the perfect plan, but instead, they actually planned out their own demise.
27 Aug 2026 · 26 min
Today’s podcast will feature 4 stories that prove the line between life and death can disappear in an instant. The audio from all four stories has been pulled from our main YouTube channel, which is just called "MrBallen," and has been remastered for today's podcast.
26 Aug 2026 · 27 min
Today, we have three stories about people who found a really amazing pastime that they thought had changed their lives for the better, but ended up realizing that, actually, it was for the worse.
24 Aug 2026 · 34 min
In the fall of 2010, a detective dug through a dresser in a bedroom near Paris. He was looking for evidence, and when he pulled open the last drawer, he found five cell phones hidden inside. He powered one of them on and checked the call history and messages – then he opened the photos app and froze. He swiped to the next photo, then the one after that. There were dozens of them – and they all showed the same thing.
21 Aug 2026 · 50 min
Welcome back to the Campfire! I have a great story to tell. It's a classic ghost story – and not only are the elements in the story quite unnerving, but it also has a high degree of believability. There are quite a few people in this story who, independently, witnessed and experienced these events.
20 Aug 2026 · 28 min
Today’s podcast will feature 3 stories about divers who underestimated what was waiting for them beneath the surface. The audio from all three stories has been pulled from our main YouTube channel, which is just called "MrBallen," and has been remastered for today's podcast.
19 Aug 2026 · 29 min
Today, I'm going to share four stories about people who took big career risks in order to be as successful as possible. But, in each case, the risk did not pay off.
17 Aug 2026 · 32 min
In January 1988, the clerk of a sporting goods store in a small town in Canada looked up as a man walked into his shop. It was below freezing outside, but the man wasn’t wearing a coat. Just sneakers, ripped pants, and a thin, plastic rain poncho. The man grabbed a pair of ski pants off the rack, paid in cash, then hurried out of the store. But after he left, the clerk turned on the radio... and heard a breaking news report about a murder up the road.
14 Aug 2026 · 42 min
Today's story is a fan favorite that was previously published as Episode 346. On a cold winter night in 1999, a man drove down a dark street towards his house in a small Iowa town. Suddenly, he saw something glowing in his headlights, and he slammed on the brakes. He got out of his car. And there, in the lights, he saw a dog standing all by herself. And she was making this soft squeaking sound like she was scared. The man slowly approached, talking to the dog as he walked. He knew everyone who lived in his neighborhood, and he’d never seen this dog before. He knelt down and kept trying to…
13 Aug 2026 · 29 min
Sometimes the truth is stranger than fiction. And today’s podcast features 4 stories that demonstrate that. The audio from all four stories has been pulled from our main YouTube channel, which is just called "MrBallen," and has been remastered for today's podcast.
12 Aug 2026 · 24 min
Today, I am going to tell you three stories about people who were just trying to do their jobs... and ended up facing an extremely unexpected – and dangerous – professional hazard.
MrBallen Podcast: Strange, Dark and Mysterious Stories is a true crime and mystery podcast that presents strange, dark and mysterious content delivered in story format. The program is hosted by John Allen a.k.a. MrBallen. Subscribe to SiriusXM Podcasts+ to listen to new episodes 7-days early and ad-free. Start a free trial now on Apple Podcasts or by visiting siriusxm.com/podcastsplus.
MrBallen Podcast: Strange, Dark & Mysterious Stories is a English true crime podcast from Ballen Studios. Melo plays each episode straight from the publisher's own feed — no ads added, no account needed — and remembers where you stopped, in this browser only.
The Melo app keeps playing with the screen off, works in the car and on your watch, wakes you to your station, and browses the whole catalogue offline. Free, no ads, no account.
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