I love Paris. I love the song by that title (singing it as well as listening to it), and I love the city, even when it drizzles. 

One morning, a few weeks ago, as I was listening to The Bowery Boys: New York City History podcast, which I wrote about last month, I thought that it’d be fun if I could find a similar podcast about Paris. I searched and found a gem—Paname: The Secret History of Paris, which according to the host Amber Minogue: “…rifles through Paris dirty secrets and then tells you all about them.” It’s awesome.

Every morning, I listen to a Bowery Boys episode, and every evening, I listen to a Paname episode. As serendipity would have it, on Pi Day I listened to the Paname episode called “The Bloody Barber of the rue des Marmousets,” a tale by Paul Féval that takes place in medieval times and is set in a neighborhood near Notre Dame. It’s about a nefarious pair—a barber and a pastry maker—and the story’s plot is similar to the British story of Sweeney Todd. In the French version, after the barber and pastry maker are caught and punished, the story describes what happens after priests who frequented the pastry shop realize they’ve committed the sin of cannibalism. Intrigued? Listen to find out the surprising conclusion.