This Is Actually Happening podcast

This Is Actually Happening

·

  Wondery  

What if you were trafficked into a cult...or were mauled by a grizzly bear...or were stabbed 27 times by a serial killer - what would you do? This is Actually Happening brings you extraordinary true stories of life-changing events told by the people who lived them. From a man who woke up in the morgue to a woman stranded in a Mexican desert fighting to survive, these stories will have you on the edge of your seat waiting to hear what happens next. Listen to exclusive episodes of This is Actually Happening ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting [wondery.com/links/this-is-actually-happening/] (https://wondery.com/links/this-is-actually-happening/) now.

What if you were trafficked into a cult...or were mauled by a grizzly bear...or were stabbed 27 times by a serial killer - what would you do? This is Actually Happening brings you extraordinary true stories of life-changing events told by the people who lived them. From a man who woke up in the morgue to a woman stranded in a Mexican desert fighting to survive, these stories will have you on the edge of your seat waiting to hear what happens next. Listen to exclusive episodes of This is Actually Happening ad-free by joining Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. Start your free trial by visiting [wondery.com/links/this-is-actually-happening/] (https://wondery.com/links/this-is-actually-happening/) now.

 

#286

What if you could never be what they wanted? [Rebroadcast #246]

Always feeling she had failed the ideals of her strict Muslim, South Asian family and comm... more

02 Sep 2025

45 MINS

45:53

02 Sep 2025


#285

What if you signed a billion-year contract? [Rebroadcast #243]

After a woman’s Mormon family falls apart following the death of her father, her mother br... more

28 Aug 2025

57 MINS

57:39

28 Aug 2025


#284

What if you woke up and couldn’t move? [Rebroadcast #242]

After growing up queer with a complicated father in the 1960s, a man forges his own path, ... more

26 Aug 2025

56 MINS

56:24

26 Aug 2025


#283

Introducing: American Criminal

Henry Lee Lucas and Ottis Toole are two of history’s most prolific serial killers. Or they... more

25 Aug 2025

16 MINS

16:23

25 Aug 2025


#282

What if you went missing? [Rebroadcast #196]

A woman who seeks awakening through myriad healing practices finds her ultimate challenge ... more

21 Aug 2025

1 HR 05 MINS

1:05:40

21 Aug 2025


#281

What if you never stopped searching? [Rebroadcast #195]

Decades after her brother disappeared in the early 1980s, a woman becomes deeply involved ... more

19 Aug 2025

55 MINS

55:06

19 Aug 2025


#280

What if you ran through the pain? [Rebroadcast #208]

A man searches for healing after his father, a disgruntled post office worker, falls into ... more

14 Aug 2025

50 MINS

50:17

14 Aug 2025


#279

What if you entered the belly of the NARCO beast? [Rebroadcast #281]

Escaping the tumult and abuses of his childhood through music, a young man lands a dream g... more

12 Aug 2025

1 HR 03 MINS

1:03:03

12 Aug 2025


#278

374: What if a brutal assault saved your life?

After being violently attacked outside a bar, a man who spent his life motivated by loneli... more

05 Aug 2025

59 MINS

59:55

05 Aug 2025


#277

373: What if your boyfriend ghosted you for his wedding?

Still reeling from an abusive relationship and the loss of her mother, a single woman trav... more

29 Jul 2025

1 HR 00 MINS

1:00:52

29 Jul 2025


#276

372: What if you were lost on the Pacific Crest Trail?

A young woman grows up in chaos and instability but finds strength through education and a... more

22 Jul 2025

56 MINS

56:27

22 Jul 2025


#275

371: What if you survived a catastrophic hurricane?

Born and raised on a remote Bahamian island, a woman who has weathered countless storms mu... more

15 Jul 2025

56 MINS

56:33

15 Jul 2025


#274

370: What if a bullet took your sight but not your vision?

A young father who rose up from the streets to achieve his musical dream is gunned down by... more

08 Jul 2025

56 MINS

56:46

08 Jul 2025


#273

369: What if you lit yourself on fire?

Suffering a life of struggle and addiction in the wake of early childhood abuse, a woman d... more

01 Jul 2025

57 MINS

57:03

01 Jul 2025


#272

368: What if you were the only one left to grieve?

A young girl's world shatters when one night, her mother’s stalker, who has threatened to ... more

24 Jun 2025

54 MINS

54:59

24 Jun 2025


#271

367: What if you were imprisoned in the Federal Supermax?

Witnessing widespread disenfranchisement ignites a young man's radicalization, ultimately ... more

17 Jun 2025

1 HR 04 MINS

1:04:57

17 Jun 2025


#270

366: What if you infiltrated a doomsday hate militia?

A young man channels his early struggles with anger into a dangerous undercover law enforc... more

10 Jun 2025

1 HR 10 MINS

1:10:26

10 Jun 2025


#269

365: What if they believed you staged your own kidnapping? Part 2: Denise

A young woman is kidnapped, assaulted and released by perpetrators, but a far greater trau... more

03 Jun 2025

1 HR 08 MINS

1:08:18

03 Jun 2025


#268

364: What if they believed you staged your own kidnapping? Part 1: Aaron

A privileged young man, on the cusp of reconciling with his true love, is tied up in a hom... more

27 May 2025

59 MINS

59:32

27 May 2025


#267

363: What if you dedicated your life to ending human trafficking?

Dedicated to eradicating human trafficking, a purpose-driven young man's world is shattere... more

20 May 2025

1 HR 02 MINS

1:02:06

20 May 2025


#266

362: What if you wrote your way out of prison?

Cultivating rage as a solution to inherited trauma, a young man commits murder over a five... more

13 May 2025

1 HR 15 MINS

1:15:45

13 May 2025


#265

361: What if your sister’s death was an unsolved mystery?

Driven by her sister's mysterious death, a woman's life transforms into a struggle for und... more

06 May 2025

54 MINS

54:57

06 May 2025


#264

360: What if you were lost in an Arctic blizzard?

A man’s elective amputation sets him free to be the adventurer he’s always wanted to be, b... more

29 Apr 2025

55 MINS

55:06

29 Apr 2025


#263

359: What if you nearly froze to death?

A police cadet takes a risky shortcut home one evening, only to find herself trapped and h... more

22 Apr 2025

41 MINS

41:17

22 Apr 2025


#262

358: What if you were recruited to fight an invisible war?

A young actor, who seeks a greater purpose, is recruited into a clandestine war for humani... more

15 Apr 2025

47 MINS

47:10

15 Apr 2025


#261

357: What if you were the girl locked upstairs?

A vulnerable girl, having already endured abuse from her schizophrenic mother, loses her f... more

08 Apr 2025

56 MINS

56:59

08 Apr 2025