When one door closes, another one opens — and that’s not just poltergeist activity.
For Kamloops native and investigator Jason Hewlett, an open door has led to a new podcast exploring the paranormal origin stories of fellow explorers of the uncanny and the theories behind them.
Paranormal Theories will delve into the backgrounds of those in the paranormal community, from investigators and researchers to filmmakers and cryptozoologists. Once the “why” and “how” of their involvement are answered, the conversation naturally shifts to reflections on their experiences.
“There are a lot of podcasts,” the 52-year-old said. “But there are very few where they get into the meat and potatoes of what people think. So, I thought it would be cool to tell the stories of people within the realm.”
So far, Hewlett has recorded enough content for eight episodes, but he has a list of 51 people he hopes to interview. Episode One will feature his longtime collaborator from the Canadian Paranormal Society, Pete Renn.
“He’s one of my closest friends, and we work together,” Hewlett said. “We wrote all those books together, so he was a logical place to start.”
The two co-authored I Want to Believe: One Man’s Journey into the Paranormal, I Want to Believe: An Investigators’ Archive and Dying Light: An Investigation into Near-Death Experiences.
“The conversation Pete and I had before I hit record was full of laughing and joking, just our usual banter,” Hewlett recalled. “Then I pressed record, and he became super serious for the entire conversation — except for me, throwing in the odd joke here and there.”
Future guests include Seth Breedlove from Small Town Monsters, Jeremy Socha of The Infinite Rabbit Hole podcast, filmmaker Eli Watson, Paul Bestall of Ghost Story Guys, and Kelly Berge of the Vancouver Paranormal Society.
Hewlett stays busy. Between investigations, writing a book on the Wendigo, and co-hosting the podcasts Echoes of Fear with Kenton Moore and the mental health podcast In-Te-Greatness with Jolene Dawn, he’s juggling multiple projects.
Still, he’s making room for Paranormal Theories. With episodes already lined up and a growing list of guests, he’s focused on building something that lets him explore the unknown on his terms — without the pressure of tight deadlines or the weight of the crime beat.
A website is also being set up for the new podcast, and the first episode of Paranormal Theories, featuring Pete Renn, will drop on March 3. Once the episode launches, it will be available on Buzzsprout and other services like Spotify and iHeartRadio.