"Help! I'm a Prisoner in a Sardine Cannery!"

 

When I was young I loved the children's novel Help! I Am a Prisoner in a Toothpaste Factory by John Antrobus. It tells the story of a young boy who is brushing his teeth one day when he sees the message in the title marked on a line of toothpaste. This cry for help sets him off on an adventure. The novel was dramatized in the children's TV series Jackanory, see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RScW_gCsGZs. Now I have found a disturbing real life example that reminded me of it. It doesn't involve toothpaste, but sardines. Customers in Egypt who recently bought cans of sardines from the Janzour company had a bit of a shock. Tucked in amongst the processed fish were pieces of cardboard with messages crudely written on them in biro. Soon afterwards other people in other countries across the Middle East and North Africa reported the same thing. These messages were written in Arabic and varied in their verbatim content, clearly being left by a number of different people; but their meaning was always the same. They were written by individuals claiming to be prisoners of the company. They had allegedly been kidnapped and incarcerated in the cannery and were being forced to work as slaves. Their captors had forbidden them to use telephones or the internet and so they were begging for help in the only way they could. Source: https://x.com/Imposter_Edits/status/1421729971798695939.
 
The Janzour company is based in Libya, a country notorious for using slave labour; at least since Muammar Gaddafi was deposed. (To be accurate he was beaten to death in the streets by a lynch mob organized by Western intelligence.) Of course the term "slave labour" is often used as a pejorative word for any unpleasant and low paid drudgery, even in my own country, the UK; but in this case the term could be applied more literally. I am already aware that Libya employs an entire sector of cheap immigrant workers, mostly from other parts of Africa, but up until now it was assumed that these people were free agents who could come and go as they pleased, and were only putting up with the appalling wages and conditions in Libya because it was comparatively better than what they could achieve at home. This is different. The workers accuse their employers of forcing them to work for them against their will and physically preventing them from leaving. How? Do they have to sleep in locked cells? Are their ankles chained up? Are there warders there with whips? You might wonder why I care, after all I am not a "refugees welcome" person; and I have called repeatedly for immigration to the UK to be stopped by any means necessary, for example see: https://hpanwo-radio.blogspot.com/2026/05/third-rail-radio-programme-240.html. But this does not mean I am a monster. I do not condone the abusive treatment of migrants. I really hope these prisoners are freed at some point, but who is going to do it? Hillary Clinton? MI6? The CIA?... I wonder how much more of this kind of thing is going on in the world. Is it even happening in Wales? My interviews with Alan Tait leads me to suspect so, see: https://hpanwo-radio.blogspot.com/2023/03/programme-498-podcast-alan-tait.html. Will this kind of slavery become more common around the world, even universal? It's a worrying possibility.
See here for more background about Libya: https://hpanwo-radio.blogspot.com/2012/10/programme-19-podcast-david-shayler.html.

Ben Emlyn-Jones on On The Track

 

I have been featured on On The Track with Jonathan Downes, see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39GbFi1u2G4.
Subjects discussed include, my trip to the Isle of Man, Richard Freeman's lard tournament, warm stones appearing in midair and much much more. The programme has a magazine format and also covers the latest happenings in the world of strange animal research.
See here for my HPANWO Radio interview with Jon: https://hpanwo-radio.blogspot.com/2026/09/hpanwo-show-647-jonathan-downes.html.
See here for background: https://hpanwo.blogspot.com/2022/11/cryptozoology-portal.html.

Capturing Bigfoot Fallout

 

Capturing Bigfoot is a new documentary film by Marq Evans claiming to have "Exposed!" the "Truth!" about the Patterson-Gimlin film. The movie is based on several books about the subject that have been around for a while. ("There's always a book!") There have long been accusations against Roger and Bob that have been going on in one form or another almost continuously ever since their film was published, but this new one is different; it supposedly reveals definitive proof that the 1967 "Bigfootage" is a hoax. Capturing Bigfoot was unexpectedly put on general release a couple of days ago on the 20th, National Bigfoot Day. I'm curious to watch it, but unfortunately it is not yet available in my country. As soon as it is I will; however, although I try to avoid reviews of films I have yet to see, I have not been able to avoid the blowback on social media. The film has been harshly criticized from many experts in the Bigfoot research community while other former believers in the PG film have lamented that their dreams have now been shattered by reality. The backslappers bolted desperately in a race to be the first one to agree. As I've noted before, one thing backslappers cannot bear is naiveté in themselves; or, more accurately, to be regarded as naive by others. Conversely they love naiveté, or perceived naiveté, in others; in fact that is their oxygen, sustenance and lifeblood. In themselves though it is anathema. Being taken in by anything false is their worst nightmare, see: https://hpanwo-voice.blogspot.com/2026/04/pie-andrew-dominae.html. Some began posting even before the film dropped. Patrick from Vetted did not win the coveted race, but he made a valiant effort. He Tweeted: "I saw the film too. I'd say the case is closed on the infamous footage." Source: https://x.com/VettedPodcast/status/2112548225790124195.
 
I've stopped watching Patrick of late. This is a pity because I generally like him and we got on well when we met; and I really enjoyed his film Psionics, see: https://hpanwo-voice.blogspot.com/2026/06/psionics-movie.html. However, I've started to find his bottomless negativity irksome, to say the least. He uses the word "bombshell" in all his video titles ironically; because, according to him, there never is a real bombshell. I wonder if Patrick has also studied the critics of Capturing Bigfoot as well. The problem is that backslappers always feel uncomfortable doing that because it might be regarded as "naive!" or "hope porn!" I see this obstacle all the time in UFOlogy; in fact the Travis Walton fiasco is a good example, see: https://hpanwo-voice.blogspot.com/2026/03/travis-accused-again.html. When it comes to a mysterious phenomenon case, in order to maintain their street cred it only takes the tiniest briefest whisper of the word "fake" and they drop it like a hot potato and run. It never occurs to them that a claim of something being faked can itself be a deception. The documentary premiered at the South by Southwest Film Festival and it was revealed then that somebody had found an old 16 mm film reel. Its content was allegedly shot by Roger Patterson in 1966 and shows an actor wearing a Bigfoot costume. This is supposedly a rehearsal for the real hoax the following year. The man in the suit was somebody who has always been regularly accused of being an accomplice, Bob Heironimus. I have seen a clip of this found footage on Twitter and I do not find it at all convincing. That being said, I've yet to learn the full context and so shall reserve judgement until I've watched the movie; but from what I've heard from people whose opinion I've always found reliable, Capturing Bigfoot is not the great skeptic exposé it boasts to be.
See here for background: https://hpanwo.blogspot.com/2022/11/cryptozoology-portal.html.
And: https://hpanwo.blogspot.com/2021/08/skeptics-portal.html.

Where's Amelia?

 

See here for essential background: https://hpanwo-voice.blogspot.com/2025/05/amelia-earhart-plane-update.html.
Another expedition has landed on Nikumaroro, formerly Gardner Island. The atoll in Kiribati has long been a focus of investigation into the disappearance of Amelia Earhart and her co-pilot Fred Noonan, see background link above. A previous landing found some modern items like a woman's shoe, a zip and a sextant. Some bones were found that were never identified and could have come from anybody, seeing at the island used to have a transient population. This new team landed on the now uninhabited island last week to focus on the "Taraia object". This was something spotted on Google Earth in 2020 that pundits thought might be the wreckage of Amelia's Lockheed Electra aeroplane. It was lying on the seabed inside the lagoon in quite shallow water near the beach. Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cmq5n8x106jdo. The investigators from Purdue University and the Archaeological Legacy Institute proceeded with caution, not wanting to get their hopes up. As you can see in the background link, in May last year there was a false lead and disappointment. Regrettably the Taraia object has turned out to be a collection of fallen trees. I actually think it's unlikely Amelia landed on the island. We know that even in the initial search, the US Coast Guard considered this a possibility and overflew Nikumaroro carefully. They saw no aircraft debris or any people there. I'm sure Amelia or Fred would have come out into the open and made themselves known had they seen the plane flying overhead. That being said however, the absence of physical evidence or bodies does not rule out the theory completely. Had Amelia and Fred died on the island their corpses would not have lasted long. The resident coconut crabs are known to be very aggressive. They're sometimes called "robber crabs" because they will literally snatch food out of a person's hand. They are large land crabs which regularly hunt small rodents and birds, but will feed off larger prey if they are dead. So will we ever find Amelia Earhart? Possibly, but it's a long shot. Her plane, most likely with her and Fred inside it, is likely to be on the floor of the Pacific Ocean. Finding anything down there is very difficult indeed. Like with MH370, a similar more recent loss, somebody will give it a try, I have no doubt. I wish them luck. I cover this subject in more details in the latest episode of Third Rail Radio, see: https://hpanwo-radio.blogspot.com/2026/10/third-rail-radio-programme-257.html.
See here for more background: https://hpanwo.blogspot.com/2024/05/mh370-portal.html.

Ben Emlyn-Jones on The Secret Vault 2

 

I have been featured again on The Secret Vault, see: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bULU_fGZ8gk.
I appear only in the first thirty-six minutes. The host in Matthew Williams, a good friend I know through the conference circuit. We dicuss Matthew's recent admission to hospital.
See here for my previous appearance on The Secret Vault: https://hpanwo-voice.blogspot.com/2026/09/ben-emlyn-jones-on-secret-vault.html.

Russell Brand Trial

 

Many people have asked me for my opinion on this subject. Russell Brand has been in court this week facing very serious criminal charges. He's being prosecuted on seven counts of sexual impropriety including rape, sexual assault and indecent assault. He has six accusers, all female, who claim he committed these offences against them between 1999 and 2009. Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/ck8dz6m1d2n6o. There has already been a lot of reaction from the commentariat. The feminists have expressed the predictable mindless outburst of rage; their tirades could almost write themselves: "LOCK HIM UP! THROW AWAY THE KEY!... He 'Raped!' a "Woman!'. We know he's guilty because 'Women!' have said so. We do not need a trial!" If it turns out Brand really did it then, in my view, he is not the only one who needs to be jailed. He was a part of a media and entertainment industry that probably harboured him and gave him a sense of entitlement and immunity. We've seen this process with so many other celebrities. I really don't know if Russell Brand is guilty or innocent. We've not seen enough of the evidence yet. However, I will say this much; I am suspicious about how this trouble only came into his life when he started talking openly about conspiracy theories, for example see: https://hpanwo-voice.blogspot.com/2025/03/icke-vs-brand.html. That's another familiar pattern that we've seen before with people like Julian Assange and Roman Polanski, see: https://hpanwo-voice.blogspot.com/2010/04/ghost-writer.html and: https://hpanwo-voice.blogspot.com/2024/06/assange-is-home.html. The trial continues.

Ben Emlyn-Jones on the Paranormal Peep Show 36

 

I have been on the Paranormal Peep Show again. This programme features an interview with Roger Anderton. Roger has researched UFO's and space exploration, asking whether our understanding of physics might be incomplete or even wrong.
See here for the audio version: https://www.spreaker.com/episode/paranormal-peep-show-roger-anderton-einstein-physics--75807730.
And here for the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PKC5KCJYVWo.
See here for my previous appearance on the Paranormal Peep Show: https://hpanwo-voice.blogspot.com/2026/07/ben-emlyn-jones-on-paranormal-peep-show.html.