“The Blood Countess” - Elizabeth Bathory

In the 1980s and ’90s, a serial arsonist known as the “Pillow Pyro” terrorizes California—taunting investigators and igniting fires near their annual conferences—until one detective uncovers an unthinkable truth...The culprit is one of their own. Sources for this episode include: ...  Show more

Lizzie Borden took an ax and gave her mother 40 whacks… The popular schoolyard rhyme has withstood the test of time, despite it getting a few details wrong. Over 130 years later, we still don’t really know who killed Andrew and Abby Borden. Lizzie was acquitted, and yet most peop ...  Show more

Real-life vampire or expert sadist? Elizabeth Báthory was allegedly responsible for killing hundreds of young women in 16th century Hungary. Her story is steeped in the kind of hearsay and legend befitting a cruel, untouchable noblewoman. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit m ...  Show more

Throw the name Elizabeth Bathory into your favourite search engine and you will quickly find superlatives like “history’s most prolific female serial killer” and leading questions like “Was Dracula Woman?” She is a figure with a reputation so terrifying that her name has been end ...  Show more

Some say she was a vicious killer, others contend that she was merely a victim of the patriarchy, but Countess Elizabeth Bathory is one of the most notorious figures in history. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices 

Prolific serial killers are reigned in by some specific parameters. Learn more about Elizabeth Bathory and why she was known as "Bloody Mary".