Podcast Summary: MrBallen Podcast: Strange, Dark & Mysterious Stories

Episode: From Beyond Vol. II
Host: John Allen, aka MrBallen
Date: November 6, 2025

Overview

In this chilling episode of the MrBallen Podcast, John Allen (MrBallen) guides listeners through three eerie tales centered around the idea of messages from beyond. Each story explores inexplicable encounters and mysterious phenomena, ranging from possible reincarnation and supernatural visitations to one of the world’s most haunted cemeteries. The episode’s tone is suspenseful, immersive, and tinged with MrBallen’s signature mix of empathy and unnerving narrative detail.

Story 1: "Old Souls"

[01:55 - 10:57]

Story Summary

Set in Pingyang Township, a rural community in southern China, a mother faces a baffling situation when her generally silent twin daughters suddenly begin speaking—conducting adult-level conversations about people and events from another village they’ve never visited. The mother’s concern quickly shifts to acceptance, informed by her community’s deep-rooted belief in reincarnation.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

• Silent Twins: The three-year-old twins, Shih Tsai and Shi Hung Wu, had never spoken a word before and spent their days virtually silent and sleeping—troubling but never explained.
• First Words (and More): The breakthrough occurs when their mother overhears the twins having a detailed, coherent dialogue about a different village and events they should not know about.
  • Memorable moment: The mother describes pressing her ear to the door and realizing her children’s voices were not just “babbling, saying random words. These girls were having like a full blown conversation with each other. Like adult level sentences.” ([05:13])
• Reincarnation in Pingyang: The mother instantly interprets the event through local beliefs. Pingyang is known as a hotspot for alleged reincarnations, with over 100 residents claiming to remember past lives.
  • “Pingyang Township has a very strange secret. ... Over 100 claim to be the reincarnated spirits of people who have died traumatic deaths.” (MrBallen, [06:00])
• Community Response: Acceptance is so strong that even local businesses change practices to accommodate those believed to be reincarnated souls.
  • Example: A butcher quit after a local child claimed to be the spirit of a pig he’d butchered.
• Family Reunion: After the mother spreads word, a couple from another village visits. The twins immediately recognize them as their former parents, explaining detailed memories and revealing they were best friends, not sisters, who died by suicide one month before being reborn.
  • “One of the twins said that this was her mother and father from her previous life.” ([09:07])
• The Girls’ Explanation: The twins explain their silence as an attempt to keep their reincarnation a secret, and their sleeping habits as a way to revisit their past lives in dreams.
  • “The reason they had been silent to this point was because they were trying to keep their reincarnation a secret.” ([09:58])
• Conclusion: No one has offered a better explanation for the twins’ knowledge; the town remains a locus for tales of reincarnation.

Story 2: "More Than a Feeling"

[11:30 - 17:23]

Story Summary

In Los Angeles, 1954, Juliet Exline suffers a surge of unexplained anxiety while her husband is away on a fishing trip. That night, she is awakened by an apparition of her bloodied husband at the precise moment of his death miles away—a haunting convergence of love, loss, and the supernatural.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

• Surge of Anxiety: Juliet, usually calm, feels a deep, inexplicable anxiety the evening her husband, Larry, is away.
  • “There was nothing she could think of that would cause her to feel this way ... she could tell she was super anxious.” (MrBallen, [11:39])
• Supernatural Encounter: At 10:15 pm, Juliet awakens, drenched in sweat, and hears Larry’s voice, then sees him, “hunched over and grabbing his stomach. ... Soaking wet—not with water, but blood.” ([13:03])
  • Quote: “No, don’t touch me. I have to go back.” – Larry’s apparition ([13:19])
• Climactic Phone Call: As she rushes to call a doctor, the phone rings—the sheriff informs her that Larry died in a car accident at exactly 10:15 pm, the same moment Juliet saw his apparition.
  • Quote: “No, that’s not possible. He’s here with me right now.” – Juliet, in shock ([14:00])
• Aftermath: Juliet never sees Larry’s spirit again but remains convinced she witnessed a message from beyond at the exact moment of his death.
  • “Juliet maintained ... after her husband had died, his spirit had somehow survived the accident.” ([15:06])

Story 3: "A Thousand Tortured Souls"

[17:56 - 36:15]

Story Summary

Colin Grant, a minister and self-proclaimed psychic, is called to perform an exorcism at Edinburgh’s infamous Greyfriars Kirkyard cemetery—allegedly haunted by the vengeful spirit of George MacKenzie. The story intertwines historical horror, supernatural violence, and a chilling photo that might have captured a ghost.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

• Historical Atrocity: Greyfriars Kirkyard sits atop a mass grave of over a thousand Covenanters—dissenters tortured and killed by George MacKenzie in the late 1600s.
  • “This lower level cemetery ... was basically a hidden mass burial, were thousands of people who had been starved and tortured to death hundreds of years ago.” (MrBallen, [18:52])
• The Black Mausoleum: Mackenzie, ironically, is buried in an ornate crypt near his victims. The site was peaceful until 1998, when a homeless man fell through its floor, coinciding with a surge in violent paranormal activity.
  • “People were coming out of the cemetery terrified ... getting pushed or tugged on, or scratched or burned or even strangled.” ([22:44])
• Failed Exorcism: Colin, tasked by the city to banish Mackenzie’s spirit, is overcome by dread at the mausoleum’s threshold. He instead attempts to free tortured souls by chanting and using holy water in the adjacent field.
  • “He just felt like he couldn’t go any closer. It felt evil.” ([20:42])
  • Memorable quote: “I failed. ... There were many more that still needed to be freed. And I just didn’t have the strength.” – Colin ([26:36])
• Climactic Ritual: Colin tries a second ritual near the church, creating a circle of candles. As he chants, the candles flicker without wind, and a sense of something uncanny fills the air.
• The Photograph: Photographer Susan takes a picture at the height of the ritual. When she examines it, she sees a dark figure in the locked church window.
  • “You can clearly see in the left window there is a figure in that window looking out at Colin.” ([32:59])
• Aftermath and Legacy: Colin collapses immediately after the ritual, muttering, “This is going to kill me.” He dies a short time later. The figure in the photo is never debunked and the cemetery continues to be infamous for violent hauntings.
  • “That cemetery is considered to be one of the most haunted places in the world. And George Mackenzie’s spirit ... is considered ... one of the most dangerous poltergeists in the world.” ([35:40])

Notable Quotes

• “Pingyang Township has a very strange secret. ... 7,000 people ... 100% believe that these people truly are reincarnated.” – MrBallen ([06:00])
• “No, don’t touch me. I have to go back.” – Apparition of Larry ([13:19])
• "You can clearly see in the left window there is a figure in that window looking out at Colin." – MrBallen describing Susan’s photo ([32:59])
• "This is going to kill me. This is going to kill me." – Colin Grant, after the failed exorcism ([35:02])

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [01:55] – Start of “Old Souls”
• [06:00] – Local beliefs about reincarnation
• [09:07] – Biological mother’s encounter with twins’ “former parents”
• [09:58] – Twins explain their silence
• [11:30] – Start of “More Than a Feeling”
• [13:03] – Juliet’s supernatural encounter with Larry
• [14:00] – The sheriff’s call
• [17:56] – Start of “A Thousand Tortured Souls”
• [18:52] – History of Greyfriars and George MacKenzie
• [20:42] – Colin’s dread at the mausoleum’s door
• [22:44] – Surge in violent hauntings in 1998
• [26:36] – Colin concedes partial failure
• [32:59] – Description of the ghostly figure in the photograph
• [35:40] – Cemetery’s legacy as a haunted site

Tone & Style

MrBallen’s tone throughout the episode is suspenseful, empathetic, and vividly descriptive. He maintains a respectful approach to the stories, mixing folklore, reported fact, and the unexplained in a way that feels both grounded and uncanny.

This summary covers the major story beats and chilling details of "From Beyond Vol. II"—a must-listen for anyone drawn to supernatural mysteries or true crime with a surreal twist.