Alaina Urquhart is an American podcaster, writer, and producer. She co-hosts the podcast '' Morbid: A True Crime Podcast'' with her niece, Ash Kelley. Urquhart released her debut novel, ''The Butcher and the Wren,'' in 2022. She has degrees in criminal justice, psychology, and biology. She was an autopsy technician by trade.

Career

''Morbid''

Ten years apart and raised as sisters, Urquhart and Kelley contemplated starting a podcast in 2015 and began production of ''Morbid'' in 2018. They used the podcast as a means of bonding and getting closer, sharing stories, and spending time together. Urquhart began working as an autopsy technician in 2016, where she started participating in research for a local pathologist. Her career in pathology provides in-depth knowledge on the process in the morgues and decomposition in discussing cases. The podcast is an anthology series that tells stories on true crime, ghosts, hauntings, and anything scary. They cover notorious killers, such as

Jeffrey Dahmer Jeffrey Lionel Dahmer (; May 21, 1960 – November 28, 1994), also known as the Milwaukee Cannibal or the Milwaukee Monster, was an American serial killer and sex offender who killed and dismemberment, dismembered seventeen men and boys b ...

, the BTK Killer, and

Ted Bundy Theodore Robert Bundy (; November 24, 1946 – January 24, 1989), known colloquially as Ted Bundy, was an American serial killer who kidnapping, abducted, raped and murdered dozens of young women and girls between 1974 and 1978. His ''modus ...

, but they also cover smaller and less reported cases. Urquhart in particular likes to cover cases from the 19th and 20th century: old unsolved cases that they can analyze and debate.

''The ReWatcher''

In 2022, Urquhart and Kelley released ''The Rewatcher: Buffy the Vampire Slayer'', in which they recap and discuss the supernatural television series ''

Buffy the Vampire Slayer ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' is an American supernatural fiction, supernatural drama television series created by writer and director Joss Whedon. The concept is based on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film), 1992 film, also written by Whedon, a ...

''. Urquhart is a huge fan of the show and has been obsessed with it since her adolescence, while Kelley has never watched it.Kelley, A. & Urquhart, A. (2022-present) ''The Rewatcher: Buffy the Vampire Slayer''

udio podcast Udio is a generative artificial intelligence model that Music and artificial intelligence, produces music based on simple text Prompt engineering, prompts. It can generate vocals and instrumentation. Its free Software testing#Beta testing, beta v ...

Wondery. The pair release a weekly show that recaps every episode and Kelley guesses what will happen next.

''Frozen Head''

In 2023, Urquhart and Kelley released ''Frozen Head'', which tells the story of the death of a 90-year old Laurence Pilgeram and how it is linked to

Mike Darwin Michael G. Darwin (born April 26, 1955), formerly known as Michael Federowicz, is a former president of cryonics organization Alcor Life Extension Foundation. He was president from 1983 to 1988, and research director until 1992. He was also the ...

's peculiar quest to cheat death via cryonics. Darwin became one of the leading founders of the cryonics movement in the U. S. and was the president of the

Alcor Life Extension Foundation The Alcor Life Extension Foundation, most often referred to as Alcor, is an American nonprofit, federally tax-exempt, 501(c)(3) organization based in Scottsdale, Arizona, United States. Alcor advocates for, researches, and performs cryonics, the ...

, that freezes human heads until they can defrost them and attach them to younger and healthier bodies. ''Frozen Head'' discusses the case of Darwin and Alcor, while also explaining the absurdity of people wanting to live forever by freezing their brains.

Fiction writing

Alaina Urquhart released her debut thriller novel,'' The Butcher and the Wren,'' in September 2022, which was published internationally in more than twenty languages. Set in New Orleans, the book follows Dr. Wren Muller, a forensic pathologist who is being terrorized by a serial killer called the Bayou Butcher, known for hunting down and dismembering his victims. On September 17, 2024, Alaina Urquhart released "The Butcher Game: A Dr. Wren Muller Novel" whichhttps://www.usatoday.com/story/entertainment/books/2022/09/22/morbid-podcaster-alaina-urquhart-best-selling-books-list/8073818001/ hit number one in new releases on Amazon murder thriller novels.https://www.amazon.com/Butcher-Game-Wren-Muller-Novel/dp/1638931240 Urquhart provides a unique perspective on the thriller genre as she has experience in a morgue, working with experienced pathologists and dead bodies. She can realistically describe decomposition, anatomy, and the procedural process of autopsy. Her experience researching the motivations, backgrounds, and criminal behavior of killers gives her unique insight into the minds of serial killers. In 2022, New York Times bestseller''The Butcher and the Wren'' was picked up to be set for a small screen adaption. It will be produced by

Sister A sister is a woman or a girl who shares parents or a parent with another individual; a female sibling. The male counterpart is a brother. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to ref ...

. Jennifer Yale will serve as showrunner, and it will be directed by

Matt Bettinelli-Olpin Matt Bettinelli-Olpin (born February 19, 1978) is an American director, writer, actor, and musician. He is a founding member of the punk band Link 80 and co-creator of the filmmaking collectives Chad, Matt & Rob and Radio Silence Productions, Rad ...

Tyler Gillett Tyler Gillett (born March 6, 1982) is an American film director, cinematographer, actor, writer, and producer. A co-creator of the filmmaking collective Radio Silence, Gillett co-directed, with Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, the horror films '' Devil's ...

, and Chad Villella.

Personal life

Urquhart lives in

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

with her husband, John White, and her three daughters. She gave birth to twin daughters in 2016, and another in 2019.

Filmography

Podcasts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Urquhart, Alaina Wikipedia Student Program Living people American crime podcasters American thriller writers Writers from Massachusetts Year of birth missing (living people)