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When the hangman fails, history gets juicy.
This week on Loreplay, host Dayna Pereira dives into the true, twisted, and totally unbelievable 18th-century story of Maggie Dickson — the Scottish fishwife who was hanged… and then walked away alive.
From the gallows of Edinburgh’s Grassmarket to the birth of her legend as “Half-Hangit Maggie,” this episode blends dark history with gallows humor (literally). You’ll learn how a young woman’s secret, a botched execution, and a very loose understanding of “death” turned her into one of Scotland’s most enduring folk heroines.
Was it divine intervention? A medical fluke? Or just the universe saying, “Not today, Satan”? Grab a pint and find out why this ghost story isn’t about death at all — it’s about defiance.
Tune in to Loreplay — where haunted gets hot and bothered with history, and the dead don’t always stay quiet.
Primary Historical References
- “The Trial and Execution of Margaret Dickson” – The Scots Magazine, 1724 archives
- National Records of Scotland: Criminal Trials and Sentences, Edinburgh, 1723-1724
- Edinburgh Grassmarket Historical Society, “Public Executions and Folklore of the Gallows” (local history publication, 2019)
- Old Edinburgh Tales by Robert Chambers (1858)
- Scottish Criminal Cases: The Curious Case of Half-Hangit Maggie, BBC Scotland History Archives, 2017
- The Scotsman – “How Half-Hangit Maggie Survived the Gallows,” May 2020 feature
- VisitScotland.com — “Maggie Dickson’s Pub, Grassmarket”
Supplementary Reading & Tourism Sources
- Edinburgh City Archives: Grassmarket Gallows Map (18th-century execution records)
- Haunted Edinburgh by J.A. Brooks (Amberley Publishing, 2015)
- The Ghosts of Scotland by Peter Underwood (Borgo Press, 1992)
- Oral folklore interviews collected by The School of Scottish Studies Archives, University of Edinburgh
Music & Sound Credits (if applicable)
- Ambient market sounds and gallows atmosphere: Epidemic Sound
- Historical reenactment voice clips: Public domain / Creative Commons
🔗 LINKS
🎧 Listen to all episodes at loreplaypod.com
📸 Follow @LoreplayPod on Instagram & TikTok
🍺 Visit Maggie Dickson’s Pub, Grassmarket, Edinburgh — and toast to the woman who refused to stay dead.
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