Attack of the Burping Lecherous Bum Otters (Rivers Week) - That was Genius Episode 30

Episode 30, can you believe it? And to celebrate, this week's episode is particularly silly. We've been looking at rivers.

Tom dives right in with a (quite roundabout) look at the ferrymen of folklore, from Ireland's speedboat-driving Manannán mac Lir and his sword of truth (he doesn't actually have a speedboat), to a battle of wits over a ferry ride between Thor and Odin.

Meanwhile, Sam's gone to Japan to explore the dark and deeply funny folklore of the Kappa, the farting, childish, but deadly imps which haunt Japanese waterways drowning unsuspecting passers by. Unless, of course, you throw them a cucumber. Some of the artwork surrounding the Kappa is brilliant, so do check out our social media to see more (links below)

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Welcome to That Was Genius: Two blokes. A 12-hour time difference. An immature sense of humour. And 10,000 years of human civilisation. A weekly podcast looking at the weirder side of history.

Join Sam Datta-Paulin (he likes history and lives in Britain) and Tom Berry (he also likes history but lives in New Zealand), for a weekly reflection on the bold, the brilliant... And the downright strange.

From bizarre events and stories to equally odd inventions, barely a day goes by without something incredible (or incredibly stupid) happening around the world.

We upload new episodes every Wednesday night/Thursday morning (UK time).

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That Was Genius is produced by Glorious Republic Broadcasting.