Conspiracy Theories
Conspiracy Theories

BEST OF 2025: Time-Slipping Through Europe

December 17, 2025

AI Summary

5 min read

Time-Slipping Through Europe

In 2009, astrophysicist Stephen Hawking threw a party at Cambridge University, and nobody came. He'd intentionally sent out the invitations after the party was over—it was an experiment. Theoretically, any future time traveler who unlocked the secret could go back to 2009 and attend. Nobody showed up, which Hawking took as "experimental evidence that time travel is not possible." But what if humans have already time traveled—by accident, involuntarily, with no control over when or where they end up?

The Moberly-Jourdain Incident

In the summer of 1901, Charlotte Ann Elizabeth Moberly, head of St. Hugh's Hall at Oxford, was looking for a new vice principal. She found a candidate in Eleanor Frances Jourdain, a seasoned educator. Before making it official, they took a trip to Paris to get to know each other. On a day trip to Versailles, they set out to find the Petit Trianon, the smaller palace commissioned by Louis XV and later gifted to Marie Antoinette.

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What you'll learn

  • 1 (00:00) **Episode Introduction & Best of 2025 Context** - Host Carter Roy introduces the "Best of 2025" series and sets up the time-slipping theme
  • 2 (01:12) **Stephen Hawking's Time Traveler Party** - Hawking's 2009 experiment where he sent invitations after the party, and no one showed up
  • 3 (02:19) **Episode Introduction & World Tour Setup** - Host Carter Roy introduces the summer world tour series, stopping in Europe for stories about involuntary time travel
  • 4 (04:54) **The Moberly-Jourdain Incident (Versailles, 1901)** - Two Oxford academics experience a strange, dreamlike walk through the gardens of Versailles
  • 5 (19:26) **Ad Break** - OnStar, Activia, Prime Video
  • 6 (20:28) **Victor Goddard's Future Vision (Scotland, 1935)** - A decorated RAF wing commander sees a restored airfield and unfamiliar planes during a storm, then watches it become reality four years later
  • 7 (28:05) **Ad Break** - Expedia/Visit Scotland, Indeed

+ Full timestamped outline available in the app

Show Notes

Every December we step back and reflect on some favorite episodes from the year…today we're declassifying our best of 2025 picks.

This summer we traveled to every continent… and through time. For our second pick, we’re revisiting Time-Slipping Through Europe.
Our team is already digging deep into stories we want to tell in 2026, so drop us a suggestion in the Spotify comments or on social.


We really appreciate you all. Thank you again for an incredible 2025!

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