Utterly interesting

In 1983, Metallica recorded Kill ’Em All in a haunted studio with stolen amps, champagne raids, and no backup guitars. Here’s the chaotic story behind their legendary debut.

In 1980, Turkish Airlines flight 293 was hijacked — and war correspondent Coşkun Aral captured it all. Discover the surreal story of the hijacking where both hijacker and pilot smiled.

In the Public Enemy era of the 1930s, gangsters like John Dillinger turned to underworld plastic surgeons to change their faces and erase fingerprints. Discover the history of outlaw surgery, the doctors involved, and why it never truly worked.

In 2006, the Liberty City Seven were arrested in Miami for plotting to attack the Sears Tower. But were they dangerous terrorists — or hapless men caught in an FBI sting? Here’s the strange story.

Beyond curry and chutney, discover how Indian words like pyjamas, bungalow, loot, shampoo, and jungle entered English during the British Empire and remain part of everyday UK speech.

Sydney’s 1920s criminal women turned mugshots into fashion portraits. Figures like Kate Leigh, Tilly Devine, and Dulcie Markham posed in pearls, furs, and frocks — unforgettable images of crime and style from the City of Shadows archive.

On 6 Sept 1949, Howard Unruh walked through Camden, NJ, killing 13 people in just 12 minutes. Known as the “Walk of Death,” it is often called America’s first modern mass shooting. His chilling story still echoes today.

When Jane Cunningham Croly and her peers were denied entry to a Dickens dinner in 1868, they created their own club. Sorosis became the first women-only club in America, and a catalyst for women’s rights, civic activism, and the power of sisterhood.

In 1975, Lynette “Squeaky” Fromme of the Manson Family aimed a gun at President Gerald Ford in Sacramento. The weapon misfired, Ford survived, and Fromme spent 34 years in prison.

During WWI, thousands of soldiers returned with devastating facial injuries. Sir Harold Gillies gave them back their faces, dignity, and hope. From 11,000 surgeries at Sidcup to pioneering gender-affirming operations, he changed medicine forever.

In April 1976, AC/DC played their first ever UK gig at The Red Cow pub in West London. Discover how a tiny, sweaty venue helped launch one of the world’s greatest rock bands onto the global stage.

On 1 September 2004, militants stormed a school in Beslan, Russia, taking more than 1,100 hostages. After three days, 334 were dead, including 186 children. Nearly twenty years later, the grief and unanswered questions remain.

On March 5, 1959, twenty-one African American boys died in a locked dormitory fire at the Wrightsville reform school in Arkansas. Their forgotten story exposes the neglect and racism of the Jim Crow South.

ack the Ripper’s victims are often remembered as prostitutes, but history tells a different story. At least three of the five women had no connection to sex work. So why has the myth endured for over 130 years?

Roger Stone’s career is a story of scandals, dirty tricks, and crimes. From Watergate to Trump, dictators to voter fraud claims, explore the controversial life of America’s most infamous political trickster.

In 1900, the Chicago Tribune counted down the 20 household items most often used by women as weapons. Broom handles, hat pins, rolling pins, even soup tureens — a quirky list that reveals much about self-defence history.

In 1959, John Howard Griffin darkened his skin to live as a Black man in the segregated South. His book Black Like Me shocked America and remains a landmark in civil rights history.

The murder of 14-year-old Emmett Till in Mississippi shocked America in 1955. His story became a catalyst for the Civil Rights Movement, exposing the brutal realities of the Jim Crow South.

German anthropologist Egon von Eickstedt took thousands of portraits in Kerala during the 1920s. His photographs of Adivasi and Dalit communities document lives and traditions, but also reflect the colonial and racial science of their time.

When we talk about rich athletes today, the numbers can seem dizzying. Cristiano Ronaldo signs a contract for hundreds of millions. LeBron James earns more off endorsements than he does on the basketball court. Lionel Messi’s lifetime earnings top a billion dollars. Sports and money have never been more tightly intertwined.

Adopted from Hawaii as a child, Steve Carter grew up happy in New Jersey. But at 34, he uncovered a shocking truth: he was a missing baby named Marx Panama Moriarty Barnes.

Carl and Anne Braden risked everything in 1954 to help Andrew and Charlotte Wade buy a house in segregated Louisville. Their stand led to bombings, prison, and blacklisting – but also cemented their place as vital allies in the Civil Rights Movement.