Learn the secret history of your world
Writer, Director Richard Stanley is your esoteric ringmaster on a journey through the secret history of the world that lurks in the shadows of society.
From the occult to the world of HP Lovecraft, he’ll explore horrors, both fact and fiction that intertwine with his films of the past, present and future. A student of the ancient and macabre shadows of our world, Stanley has contributed papers on the chronicles of esoteric history to the Sauniere Society journal.
Additionally he has written many featured articles for the Fortean Times, the United Kingdom's foremost paranormal journal. His biography of the German Holy Grail historian, Otto Rahn – Grail Hunter will be published in the United States by Inner Traditions in August 2025.
Richard's work has spanned four decades and he is beloved throughout the world for his feature films Hardware (1990), Dust Devil (1992) and in 2019, he directed one of the most highly regarded H. P. Lovecraft adaptations ever, with Color Out of Space.
Stanley was also a contributing writer-director to the 2011 omnibus The Theatre Bizarre, with an adaptation of the short story "Mother of Toads" by Clark Ashton Smith.
In addition to directing, Stanley has continued working as a screenwriter and author. He co-wrote the script for Nacho Cerdà's feature debut The Abandoned (2006) and is currently developing a trilogy of H.P. Lovecraft adaptations starting with The Dunwich Horror.
EPISODE: 01
DESCRIPTION: In the first episode, Richard interviews Peter Levenda is an American author who focuses primarily on occult history. He is best known for his book Unholy Alliance, which is about Esoteric Hitlerism and Nazi occultism. Also known for Gates of the Necronomicon (2006) Peter tells the fascinating tale of the publishing of the book, the story of "Simon", the author of the Necronomicon and more to Richard in this gripping first episode. Peter dives deep into the origins of the book, that derives its title from H. P. Lovecraft's fictional Necronomicon, featured in Lovecraft's Cthulhu Mythos stories.