THE MAGNUS ARCHIVES #43 - Section 31

MAG043 - Case #0160919 - Basira Hussain
Statement regarding their time investigating strange occurrences as part of Section 31.
The Magnus Archives tells the tale of a police constable who discovers that supernatural events have a dedicated group of officers to investigate them.
Starring: The Archivist - Jonathan Sims; Basira Hussain - Frank Voss
Writer: Jonathan Sims
Director: Alexander J Newall
Editors: Alexander J Newall, Mike LeBeau
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The Magnus Archives is distributed by RustyQuill.com and licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International Licence.

[@purplecatloverrandompizza]

I just have this image of Jon finishing the recordings normally and then just jumping under his desk and going "supplemental"

[@doctorjay8673]

"Statement ends" *Guest leaves* *Jon looks over to see if they're gone* *Immediately ducks under desk in covers* "bEGIN SUPPLEMENTAL"

[@DeannaSusanHealy]

“Jon I don’t know who’s coffee this but I think… it’s… yours…why are you under the desk?”

[@doctorjay8673]

@@DeannaSusanHealy "mAHTIN, I need privacy." **Martin leaves** "mahtin is a piece of shit I lov- I mean hate him"

[@DeannaSusanHealy]

@@doctorjay8673 lol

[@frogonthebikeheh]

@@doctorjay8673 "I lov... I MEAN loathe the guy."

[@poxrael]

She was one of the officers who responded to the trash bag full of teeth episode.

[@beltaya276]

and that jaw breaker episode w the 'spooky clown doll'

[@therakshawolf]

@@beltaya276 Which season is that episode? I don't remember that

[@paulcastle2019]

And the one that the table first appears in with not!Graham

[@yilesse]

@@therakshawolf Strange Music.

[@cezar3169]

was she actually mentioned in all those episodes? Damn, I gotta listen better

[@aaliyahadesida2815]

I really like Basira's character, she seems really genuine

[@someoneawesome8717]

She is genuinely an amazing and loyal person, she deserves a vacation

[@dude59974]

Oh that'll change. Give it time.

[@calimorales9880]

@@dude59974 😃

[@NerveUnderscore]

@@dude59974 Oh, fuck....

[@ryankirkpatrick9068]

13:36 spooky clown doll. She was one of the officers working on that jaw breaking case. Interesting...

[@RelativelyBest]

I like to think that whenever one of these cases mentions the police being called in, Basira always gets assigned to it and all of her reports read like sort of an alternative version of Jonathan's recordings from a different perspective.

[@paulcastle2019]

@noncielo That's what I was thinking. One of the officers is always referred to as being female.

[@someoneawesome8717]

I mean she is one of the few officers "qualified" to handle it

[@realiteaohansi3341]

Love the supplemental bits. Idk why but I find them sort of funny. The way he says "of course we can't investigate futher" then I imagine him hunched in a corner somwhere going "of course I'm going to investigate further" then glancing around furtively

[@tobiascam945]

I know its stupid, but so far this season the thing thats scared me the most is Martin reading the credits. It always surprises me

[@kimmy_future4265]

I know it's the voice actor but I can't shake the feeling it's actually Martin, but he sounds so much more confident and like... in charge. scares me too lol.

[@terezasaric5611]

@@kimmy_future4265 lmao yea he sounds like he isnt anxious. Its weird

[@cezar3169]

@@kimmy_future4265 ikr

[@KateCantDraw]

THE BEAN JUMPSCARE!

[@thirun779]

@@kimmy_future4265 he's the director of the show lol

[@b-blythe6763]

Im ready for Jon and Basira to have a buddy cop duo relationship when it comes to investigating future supernatural cases. Also I feel bad about it but I always laugh when Jon says "supplemental" because he sounds so manic and furtive. Like a kid stealing cookies, only one who hasn't slept in several days and is having an existential crisis.

[@someoneawesome8717]

I think you're going to like their dynamic later

[@allie_678]

A kid manically stealing cookies… nailed it 🤣

[@drzeworyj]

oh c'mon, Jon is OCPD. formalist and perfect for that position.

[@canyousee2578]

you said this and I cannot get it out of my head. please.

[@midnights2631]

Your description of Jon saying "supplemental" made me laugh

[@alicefish8348]

"unless they can point to the spooky clown doll" omg did she go to the calliope call??

[@malteasermidnight7200]

seems like she did according to the other commenters

[@beans_of_jelly]

Noooo, don't mention the calliope. All I can think of is Sasha :(

[@ambe7157]

No, she didn't, that statement was given in 2005, and she became "sectioned" in 2011, so the timeline doesn't add up.

[@Companion92]

Jon should not be so alone in all of this

[@pianos4095]

I know right!!! The end supplementals keep making me sad because Jon sounds like he is slowly digging himself into a hole of 'trust no one, anyone could be an enemy' that might seriously fuck him up in the head and is also sounding increasingly desperate and tired and worried.

[@TransilvanianHunger1334]

He is doing the right thing to do though. He really can't trust anyone. I am engaged with Jon's solo investigation.

[@Companion92]

@@TransilvanianHunger1334 It's true, that he does not know who to trust and that there are people out to get him. But it is also really sad, how this ruins most of his relationships

[@Falcon-doing-doodles]

Maybe he should stop isolating himself then

[@geeegaewlwlwll9328]

.. that's the nicest jon has ever been to a statement giver so far interesting

[@cassou124]

Better to be nice when you’re planning on asking for potentially job- or life-ending favours

[@minuspi8372]

She doesn't beat around the bush about what she experienced, and he has reason to believe her every word. She's his perfect subject

[@thedistinguished5255]

he really wanted those tapes

[@emilyk38]

Basira: Telling you this is super illegal and could get me in so much trouble Jon: You don't HAVE to give a statement? Basira: No no I'm giving a statement and Jon just goes "aight, statement time" lol

[@DarkRelm22]

Her callout of the phrase "I'm not quite sure what I'm looking at" when that phrase has been used damn near every episode so far, scared the h e l l out of me.

[@KhadaJhin04]

Basira in Arabic means the woman with the all seeing eye, could that be of relevance to her character?

[@marymills3581]

thank you for that info, super interesting :o

[@tastychunks]

Wow nice find

[@mistydevillier2197]

No, you'll see.

[@moonbunnygw8342]

Another reason why I think Basira should have been eye aligned, instead of being... Tied with Daisy

[@marylii04]

​@moonbunnygw8342 spoiler It could be that she *is* Eye-alligned, but another entity got to her faster. It's kind of like Martin was *almost* taken by the Web

[@lokimemes4694]

The book at the beginning of the episode. The red one? Is it perhaps... A Jurgen Lightner book...? It seems to be one, from Jon’s ending “suspicion”

[@nialls.9939]

i just asssume all bocks mentioned are from the lightner library

[@charlottemyates629]

Its also the one that gerard was looking for while he was in the hospital with the burn victim.

[@whentheskittlesfightback]

the second i heard "book" i was like LIGHTNER

[@valley2827]

Eliza said it best: TaKE a BreAK. Gosh dang it Jon you need sleep, a nice fluffy blanket, Martin, and a therapist.

[@pianoguy222]

No rest for the wicked, alas. Which means he can't be asleep either, otherwise one of the dozen or so evil organizations/cults/otherworldly beings gets ahead.

[@someoneawesome8717]

And a hot meal

[@someoneawesome8717]

I've come back after getting up to date to tell you that he only gets one of those from the list

[@rosespellman7879]

@@someoneawesome8717 I hope he gets Martin

[@someoneawesome8717]

@@rosespellman7879 it is in fact Martin and a nap, although I'm not sure if collapsing from exhaustion and sleeping for three whole days could be considered a "nap"

[@pipedream2556]

2:12 Jon's voice shaking slightly seems like a tiny chuckle at... A joke? Did Jon just try and make a joke or am I misinterpreting it?

[@everythingcoffee8901]

I believe it's supposed to be a joke but I've never been good with 'social cues' or whatever so I may be wrong lol

[@karenlinares7541]

@@everythingcoffee8901 yeah i think it is But its coming from a traumatized and sleep deprived man so it sounds strange

[@NerveUnderscore]

HE TRIED

[@maple...]

Basira said she's not big on writing, but her chosen career involves a lot of forms to fill in (i.e., a lot of writing)

[@sorrowful.sparrow]

the official transcript says he is “attempting levity” at this point.

[@crystaltodd4737]

I've been listening to tma for a while today and my wireless earbuds started dying. Around 9:15 they decided to tell me so and I just heard "and if you ever hear the phrase BATTERY LOW" and I cracked up laughing in the middle of a store😂

[@maryagrimm8412]

i love it when the supernatural nerds work together

[@sinseer4997]

She was also the officer for the episode with the 2 burn victims. The guy asked if the other guy had a red book on him.

[@linkguist6861]

If we are listening to these, hearing them as Jon intended, does that make us the new archivist which means Jon's dead?

[@sknfmsmr]

Cool theory but it can't be When Sasha saw the table, you know the one, she was replaced by not!Sasha and that part got erased. If what you said was true then we couldn't hear it. So that means we hear it as it happens Edit: I. FRICKING. QUIT.

[@twigthetroll9279]

HECK YOU

[@vanessa2603__]

YOU. How does it feel to have the gift of prophecy.

[@lilaboxx]

I saw all this vague spoilers before i intended to start listening to this and now I'm very worried. Aaaa

[@NerveUnderscore]

.... I'm scared. I don't want this... fuck

[@cha0ticcollector]

I might be wrong but at 6:38 , didn't someone else say this before? From the episode in the hospital, full body burn victims, one of them chanted and the nurse was alone in the hospital (aside from the victims)

[@asterphy]

Yea it is!

[@charlottemyates629]

Yes and gerard asked after a red book being brought in with him.

[@chrono4998]

first aid episode if anyones curios

[@koromoro6682]

John count up to 8 now. At this point I’m concerned about the John army I’m to meet when I’m caught up with this show.

[@pianos4095]

Hello, what do you mean?????? I am very confused?

[@koromoro6682]

Jasmin L. I am counting how many Johns appear in this series. So far there have been 8. That’s about one new John/Jon every 5 episodes.

[@mayormarshmallow]

There are also *so* many michaels

[@fiddlesticksmeow6269]

I mean... it is set in England. I'm surprised there aren't more people called Dave.

[@cezar3169]

if you can, can you tell me what episodes there's Johns, please? You don't need to if you don't want to, though...

[@Pokeboyska]

the suicide man, do we think he was another of the reapers? the people who cheated death in a game?

[@alessiapalma8823]

Could definitely be good theory

[@brandonbaty2291]

That was my first thought. Lots of old games in cases. Multiple gunshot wounds to the face and can't/won't die, etc. Yeah. I'd say a solid theory.

[@fauxclaws]

basira sounds so relieved to be able to talk about the stuff she sees. I hope she comes back and becomes friends with jon

[@RuiKamishiroRealNotClickbate]

i read that as “and becomes jon” 💀

[@f_mva]

ohh is she gonna be a recurring character? i like her

[@hassenfromthemountains3952]

I know this is a old comment but this is my first time watching and I really hope she is because after you know who got taken I feel like we need a woman as paet of the cast that isnt you kno what.

[@agoatinthecircus125]

oh god why is he cut off so abruptly at 15:05

[@SeraphinSnecmel]

Probably because it was when he asked the policewoman if he could get access to the recordings and didn’t want that to be on the official part if the recording

[@beltaya276]

he's definitely gonna work with basira on gertrudes case, but doesnt want any of the other archivists to find out... it sounded like he was going to say 'listen' oooo i hope she said yes, that would be interesting

[@PeterOverbury]

Section 31 is a prejudice based exemption and is subject to the public interest test. This means that not only does the information have to prejudice one of the purposes listed, but, before the information can be withheld, the public interest in preventing that prejudice must outweigh the public interest in disclosure.

[@theartistswings9810]

@lila mansilla i think it means they can withhold information if it risks spreading a false idea or perception.

[@tenacityxl]

I know some first responders and I chuckled when I heard her say “the P word” which is such a first responder specific thing. In emergency services, the word “quiet” is considered to be cursed as whenever you say it, *everything goes wrong*. So it’s shortened to “the ‘Q’ word” as a part of EMS Superstition. Love to see something similar displayed here :)

[@Thisone109]

Man, Jon sucks at lying. It's amazing to go back and hear it now.

[@tamaralso]

I've been relistening to TMA and mostly I've just been marvelling at the level of detail and how much we knew before we knew anything, but this episode I heard Frank Voss and I was like "!!! Hi Basira!!!!"

[@human6629]

wait wait wait, i have a theory. what if John Spencer is Gerard Key? 1. in episode 12, Gerard had burns all over his body which “seemed to stop at his neck, along a clear line”. in this episode Basira says that John Spencer somehow boiled in his bath, which can also explain having burns only to a certain level on his neck. and he got to the hospital together with the mysterious man whose name we now know was Diego Molina! 2. John Spencer was caught trying to burn the book with a Zippo lighter. Gerard has a hobby of burning books, too, and in ep 12 he had a Zippo lighter with an eye design on it. 3. Basira says that John Spencer died, but how does she know? she also says that she never saw him again, so she has no proof, that’s just what she was told. maybe he just got the information he wanted and disappeared from the police. so??? am i just being stupid? or is this true? p.s. sorry to all english natives reading this, i tried my best to formulate this

[@redtobluerose6020]

That's... Actually really well thought out. I have a hard time connecting these cases together sometimes, but this actually makes a lot of sense. The only thing it doesn't explain is how he's able to practically disappear after getting/burning the books

[@coollittlegremlin7243]

Domino cases and trinkets? And not dying? Is it that immortal guy soldier who stabbed himself? Or like. *one* of those guys (this is like. my third relisten and it just hit me lmao)

[@frogwithknives3749]

Martin always sounds so sad in the credits

[@TIGGYQUE]

Basira has such a nice voice

[@frogonthebikeheh]

13:35 Do you notice that she said "the spooky clown doll"? Like a one in episode 24 Strange Music? I love those little Easter Eggs💖

[@Daark_Karma]

Is it just me or are all of the cases she's mentioned cases that have been archived?

[@hp_minecraft522]

There are a lot of parallels between this episode and the one with the tree about the construction worker and the priest.

[@alessiapalma8823]

Please clarify!

[@_leaf-3525]

Jon: obviously we cannot investigate further, that would be incredibly stupid and dangerous and i would never do that Jon: supplemental- I'm investigating further. fuck logic and safety

[@GiubileiFernando]

It must be significant that someone else is reading the after episode disclairment, and they sound almost teary.

[@f_mva]

it's martin

[@lizziejones2183]

First time listener and I just enjoy that many of us are thinking that Jon needs a break and yet here I am at midnight after binging the first season and trying to organize some sort of excel sheet so I can take note of all the shenaniganery happening and not miss a thing. What has this podcast done to me...

[@Misty_Grey744]

Hehehe same. I always get really bad paranoia when watching anything remotely horror themed and I’ve been binging this at night! I’m still surprised that I’m not dead :)

[@Scardy]

This one has so many great lines “...The phrase ‘I’m not sure what I’m looking at...” and “Unless you can point at the ghost or spooky clown doll...” 😆 I keep having to stop to laugh! I know I’ve come into this series after the fact, but it’s now one of my favorites! It’a got this twilight zone vibe with an overarching storyline.

[@redtobluerose6020]

***End of episode spoilers*** "Supplimental: My new cop buddy agreed to smuggle me some juicy record tapes from the basement where my predecessor's body was found"

[@mayormarshmallow]

general shenanigans

[@theprideling]

Mild Spoiler! Definitely some Slaughter or Spiral in the 1st and 100% Desolation in the second. Now I wanna know about the spider... husks...

[@atlaszurum]

The Desolation

[@dilophosaurussk4333]

During quarantine i fell into a couple months of semi-depression during which i lost a bunch of my hobbies, including this podcast, after that i returned to it at like, episode 20 something and now i am slightly pissed off because i have vague memories of previous episodes ive listened to before, but nothing specific so i cant really connect the dots. I might have to rewatch (Relisten?) The entire series so far to refresh my memory.

[@aliyinn3186]

It might help to read the transcripts rather than rewatch everything as that takes less time maybe?

[@raspberry8865]

I’ve been doing the same thing. currently re-listening up to episode 100 💀

[@g.m.9180]

You can use the wiki as well

[@steelar724]

I've been thinking that the "suicide" case possibly being Nathanial Thworp or maybe one of the other people who beat death from the episode cheating death

[@kehlcassidy9562]

I thought the same thing. Gambling tokens? Alive despite mortal wounds? He wasn't a skeleton, so maybe he was a Death who got back half a life and didn't want it. Would rather be dead than half alive?

[@neroquin]

Okay so I'm gonna go back to the beginning and make a summary of every episode and also a list of names and which episodes they appear in. See you some time in the maybe-distant future

[@deerymeimhere]

How's the summary going?

[@petraivan6778]

[CLICK] BASIRA I really shouldn’t be talking about it on tape. ARCHIVIST That’s entirely up to you. You came to us. BASIRA Yeah… Just wanna talk about it with someone, you know? ARCHIVIST Very much so. BASIRA I’m breaking the law by talking to you. You understand that? ARCHIVIST I… think so. Some sort of non-disclosure agreement, I believe? BASIRA Pretty much. D-Do you need my real name? ARCHIVIST Technically no, but from what I understand of your situation, you’d be rather identifiable even without it. This is not the first time we’ve had statements from witnesses in sensitive positions. I’ll mark the tape and file it for internal use only, which means it comes under the Institute’s own, very strict, NDA policy and cannot be referenced or requested by external agencies or authorities. Such as the police. BASIRA [Pointedly] That’s the best you can offer? ARCHIVIST I’m afraid so, though I remind you again you are under no obligation to make a statement if it makes you uncomfortable. Or, if you’re worried about your voice being recognised, you could always write it down. I’ll make an audio copy later. BASIRA I’m not really big on writing. I’m more of a talker. ARCHIVIST Odd choice of career, then; [attempting levity] I hear there are lots of forms to fill in. BASIRA Not much since I became Section 31. ARCHIVIST Yes, you mentioned. This Section Thirty- you know what, we will cover it in the statement. Statement of Police Constable Basira Hussain regarding her time investigating… strange occurrences as part of Section 31. Statement taken direct from subject, September 19th 2016. Statement begins. BASIRA … Now? ARCHIVIST Yes. BASIRA Right, well, first off, I’m not ‘part’ of Section 31. It’s not like a unit or a division within the police force or anything like that. It’s a form you have to sign. Section 31 of the Freedom of Information Act covers exclusions for information pertaining to law enforcement. It just means that any information that could interfere with the prevention or detection of a crime can’t be given out as part of an FOI request. So what happens is, when you stumble across something a bit… weird, then after it’s over you’re taken to one side, and told to sign a form officially declaring what you saw and experienced was directly related to a crime. Then it’s covered by Section 31 and can’t be revealed under the Freedom of Information Act. There’s a whole bunch of other NDA stuff in there as well, but it basically means you have to keep quiet about it. Thing is, signing your first Section 31 really marks you out. Word spreads fast in a station, and once they see you’ve signed one, people start to push you in that direction. They call you ‘sectioned’, which I guess is kind of appropriate? You’re generally assigned to head out with others who’ve signed, and if any officers get a whiff of something weird from a scene, they’ll wait ‘til you arrive, rather than going in themselves and risk getting sectioned themselves. I suppose in some ways it’s kind of a unit, but not one with any funding or training or official power. Just a bunch of burned out cops with a retirement rate five times the average. That’s why it took so long to get a car here when your friend found Miss Robinson’s body. I was on a burglary call-out with Carver, the only other sectioned officer on shift, and you can bet no-one else was responding to a call from the Magnus Institute. No offence. ARCHIVIST None taken. And full names, please. BASIRA What? Oh, PC Richard Carver. ARCHIVIST Thank you. I did notice you seemed less… taken aback by the large number of shrivelled silver worm corpses than I would have expected.

[@petraivan6778]

BASIRA Yeah. I mean, that was easily one of the most disgusting things I’ve seen on the job, but not the weirdest. ARCHIVIST Shall we start at the beginning, then? BASIRA Okay, well, the first time I got hit with a Section 31 was five years ago, August 2011. I’d got my badge the year before that, and was still getting used to some of the more stressful bits of the job. The week before this happened, I’d heard an officer get his leg shattered by some arsehole with a cricket bat. We were speeding towards the scene, but couldn’t do anything but listen to it over the radio. That sort of thing it, it does something to your brain; that mix of adrenaline and helplessness, so… so I was still a bit rattled when the call came in. There was a fire out near Clapham - a residential home had gone up, and the fire brigade were calling for some police back-up. Apparently the homeowner was getting violent, and there were suspicions of arson. I was riding with John Spencer back then. We didn’t really get on - let’s just say I wasn’t a fan of the tone he always used when he said the word “diversity”, though I never had enough to bring any real grievance about it. Even so, he didn’t deserve what happened to him. So we arrive at the smoking ruin of a house, and the firefighters have got it pretty much locked down, just a lot of smoke and damp rubble, except for where we see a couple of firefighters struggling to keep a guy restrained. He was a Hispanic male, probably mid-to-late 40s, heavy set with a completely shaved head. Another of the firefighters, this one with a fresh black eye, comes over to brief us. Apparently the guy had burst out of the house shortly after they arrived, not a single burn mark on him. The fire brigade had approached to see what help he needed, but instead he just started throwing punches and trying to run. That was an assault charge, sure, but why the arson? The fireman just sort of nods to him, and I realise for the first time the bald guy’s saying something. Not loud, but intensely. I mean, this was years ago, so I don’t remember exactly what he was saying, but it definitely involved the words “cleansing fire”, “all shall be ash” and the name Asag, which I later learned is some kind ofSumarian demon. So that’s fun. I reckoned suspicion of arson was probably about right, and Spencer agreed. So he went to arrest the guy, maybe calm him down some, while I got the handcuffs on. There’s still part of me that feels guilty it was that way around. As I was cuffing him, there was this sudden intense pain in my hand. It was just as I touched the metal to close them; it was incredibly hot. I once took a welding class, ages back, just kind of on a whim, and made the mistake of forgetting that just because metal isn’t glowing red doesn’t mean it isn’t scorching hot. It was that same burn, too intense for your mind to process for a second, then all your nerves fire at once. It hurt, is what I’m saying. If I hadn’t managed to get the cuffs closed before the pain really hit, I don’t know what would have happened. As it was I ended up with some badly blistered fingers, while in front of me the guy leaned over to Spencer and whispered something right in his ear. I didn’t hear what he said, but Spencer went completely pale. He was shaking slightly as we shoved the guy in the back of the car, and I had to drive us back to the station. He… refused to tell me what the guy had said. Our arsonist’s name was Diego Molina. He was assistant curator at some Mexican museum, come over with a loan to the Natural History Museum, but they hadn’t heard from him for a few weeks. He didn’t say much in questioning, though his English was clearly fine. Unfortunately, the arson case collapsed pretty quickly, so… we just had to slap him with assault and let him walk with a hefty fine. Spencer didn’t exactly help matters by getting himself suspended. The only thing Diego Molina had on him when we brought him in, was a small book bound in red leather. They caught Spencer in Storage, trying to destroy it with a Zippo lighter. I never saw him again. They told me he killed himself when he got home. Apparently he’d somehow filled the bath full of boiling water and just… just got in. Official story was he’d somehow done it using a kettle, which… that, that’s just about the weakest cover-up I’ve ever heard. [HEAVY SIGH] Anyway, after that happened, and I’d explained my burned fingers, they gave me my very first Section 31. ARCHIVIST I see… I-I see. How many, uh, potentially paranormal events do you generally investigate - a-as a police officer? BASIRA None. No-one says the P-word. Not ‘paranormal’, not ‘supernatural’, not even ‘spooky’. The words you learn to look out for are “weird”, “odd”, “strange” and if you hear the phrase “I’m not quite sure what I’m looking at”, then yeah, you’re not getting much back-up. Almost all of them are false alarms. We get called to a lot of bad drug trips, animal attacks and folks with genuine mental health issues. Those are the ones that have the potential to sound weirdest during initial contact. I didn’t get another genuine Section 31 case for… almost three years. July 18th 2014. I remember because it was the hottest day of the year, and the air con in the car was out, so we were really suffering. It was me and Alice Tonner, who… everyone calls her “Daisy”, but I can never get her to tell me why. Anyway, Daisy was sectioned years before I was even on the force. She’s never been that forthcoming about any of her own experience; takes Section 31 very seriously. The most I could get out of her was that she was originally sectioned for something she referred to as “spider husks”. The way she described it, it sounded like she’d found a bunch of shells, the sort crabs leave behind when they grow, but I could never figure out if it was meant to be the husks of people-sized spiders, or the spider-like husks of people. And Daisy never seemed like she wanted to clarify. I’m sure she mentioned vampires once as well, but… I think she was joking. Probably. Maybe. Anyway, we were headed towards Kensington. This one had originally been called in for the ambulance, but then neighbours had reported gunshots, and we had a very strange call with the paramedics. They had specifically refused to confirm there was a gun on the scene so we didn’t send an armed unit. They were still on standby, but something in the paramedics’ report made the other responders decide they should wait for us to get there. The building was pretty run-down for Kensington. Still nicer than my house, but, you know. The paramedics met us at the door and showed us up. The lift was out, so we headed up the stairs. On each floor I saw faces peering out of the cracks in front doors. They must have been the neighbours who heard gunshots. We, we carried on up, [heavy exhalation] until we reached a door that was already open. The lights inside were off; paramedics said they’ve all been smashed. The windows had all been painted over, and it was like a boiler room in there. But, even in the gloom, it was… it was clear there was a lot of blood around. A lot of blood. We found the ‘victim’ in the living room, sat on a large armchair. His face was a mess. We got a torch on him, and it was clear he’d been shot in the head multiple times at close range. He was male, white, youngish. Age was hard to guess from what was left of his face. His clothes were new, and there were a lot of expensive-looking trinkets about the place. A lot of old-looking domino sets in glass cases.

[@petraivan6778]

Daisy spotted the gun lying next to him, and went over to retrieve it while I-I checked the place for any other signs of life. I’d just turned around when I heard Daisy scream. The guy was moving, trying to gurgle something through what was left of his jaw. He was reaching for the gun. Daisy leapt for it, but it was right next to him and she missed. The man who… he should have been a corpse already… raised the gun, and pointed it into this… mass of flesh that was his head. Daisy grabbed the gun before he could pull the trigger again, and managed to wrestle the gun away from him. Then he made a, he made a noise, just… just a really horrible sound. I think he was trying to cry. The paramedics took him after that. They didn’t really want to, but it was clearly more in their domain than ours. I assume hospitals probably have their own version of a Section 31 those poor idiots had to sign later. Daisy and I told them we’d clear it up on the police side. Just a standard suicide, and the body was taken by the ambulance. It cut down on the forms, and neither of us wanted to sign another goddamn Section 31. ARCHIVIST Fascinating. What other cases have fallen under this classification? BASIRA Officially, I’ve only had one other, and that was yours. ARCHIVIST Officially? BASIRA You get a few dozen calls a year from people who have strange experiences, but they don’t have any evidence. I mean, if what they say is true, then it would be a Section 31, but… there’s nothing that can be investigated or proven, so there’s nothing to report. I always feel bad for them; they’re always so sincere, so sure you can help, but unless they can point to the ghost or the spooky clown doll or whatever, there’s not really a lot we can do. I’ve also been quite lucky, to be honest. I’ve dodged quite a few of the nastier Section 31s over the years. I remember Harry used to get wasted and tell all sorts of grim stories. ARCHIVIST Ah, full names, please. BASIRA Sorry, Sergeant Harry Altman. Worked with him a few years back, before he retired. ARCHIVIST Right. So… just to return to, er, Gertrude’s body. That’s currently considered a para- a weird case? BASIRA I mean, we’re investigating it as a murder because that’s what it is, but you guys are basically an automatic Section 31, so I’ve got almost no help on it. Maybe that’s why I wanted to make a statement, you know? I can’t talk to anybody about this stuff, and then I come here, and you’ve got all this… all these people’s experiences listened to and filed away. It’s… I don’t know. I’ve been meaning to come in ever since that callout. ARCHIVIST Mm. Yes. S-So um… so no-one is helping you with Gertrude’s case? No oversight? BASIRA Not really. I tried making the argument that the murder didn’t seem to connect to any of your ‘paranormal business’, at least not directly, but nope. I’ve got a shot corpse, three boxes of cassettes, and Daisy, who’s CID now, which I suppose means it’s technically her problem, but she’s now the only detective who’s already sectioned so she’s always way too busy. As far as I know, neither of us have even had a chance to actually start listening to the tapes. ARCHIVIST Interesting. Uh, listen- [CLICK] [CLICK] ARCHIVIST Obviously further investigation of the police cases to which Ms Hussain refers is out of the question. Ensuring that the breach of non-disclosure and spreading of confidential information remains hidden is our top priority in this instance. Further investigation, however subtle, could put that in significant danger. Beyond that, Ms Hussain did not appear to expect any such investigation. I can’t say I blame her. Much as I value the deductive powers of my team, they are not trained detectives with the force of the Metropolitan Police behind them, so I imagine there would be little more they could unearth. Certainly nothing worth the risk. If nothing else, it appears we now have a name for our mystery burn victim from Case #0121102. Diego Molina. And I have a suspicion I know where he got that book. It’s a shame he’s dead, of course, but a piece of the puzzle is not something to be ignored. End recording. [CLICK] [CLICK] Supplemental.I have convinced Basira to give me access to the tapes. It won’t be many or often, as they are currently police evidence and thus hard to subtly remove, and she can’t necessarily guarantee the ones I get will be the most pertinent to the case, but it is still a significant victory. I only ever spoke to Gertrude once or twice during her time as archivist. I-I was very new. I don’t remember what her voice sounded like. Part of me worries about what I might find on these tapes, but a bigger part of me worries I will find nothing. This uncertainty is wearing on me, and I don’t know how much more I can take. End supplemental. [CLICK]

[@bonniecornelius3836]

Petra Iván thank you also i have officially decided youre my friend now, youre a bro 👌👌👌

[@petraivan6778]

@@bonniecornelius3836 😁 thank you my official friend!

[@islaridland]

@@petraivan6778 ahhh thank you!!! This episode was especially hard for me to focus on the voices so thank you so much!! You're my savior:3

[@roseopheliashepherd8379]

A racist police office "didn't deserve what happened to him"... It must be pretty, pretty bad

[@epiphanierosenstern5635]

It's hard to take thing seriously when the name of the lady is Gertrude I swear to god

[@takeoats]

such an old lady name

[@levchenkodarya]

??? Why? Sounds like a normal name to me...

[@epiphanierosenstern5635]

Well for me, where I live it's a really old lady name, which make sense, but also that the name we use by default for talking about old people and make jokes so it's sounds a bit silly for me

[@rodneybelcher4025]

“spooky clown doll” uh what

[@alkalimepie]

👀

[@chrono4998]

piano episode

[@redtobluerose6020]

Gotta say, the scariest part of these stories is always if/when someone has been attacked by a real person Or themsleves... This episode was kind of raw

[@levchenkodarya]

"Spooky clown doll" Oddly specific, considering that there, indeed, was a statement about spooky clown doll...

[@shanefung9788]

Me saying I was gonna stop at 30 for the night here I am

[@birbelle]

is the old man supposed to be one of those immortal people 👁👄👁

[@hermajestythewhat2533]

The "full names please" is confusing me for no reason.... Jon's so paranoid, poor guy.

[@madiham4735]

It's just so he can do his research properly later, as you can't work very well with just people's first names, and definitely not if she's using nicknames. But also yeah he's so sad

[@misterpigeon6479]

First episode of the day. Here we go again :]

[@chyzhovnyk]

Omg he thinks he's so subtle 😭 Basira: we have the tapes, and nobody even listened to them Jon: interesting... *recording cuts off* Jon: ofc we won't investigate further , bc it's illegal and wrong Like yeah, I believed, very believable

[@moonlight_scribe]

I was really hoping the supplemental would have something to do with him asking for access to the missing tapes. Yay!

[@elijahmoths]

spider husks? arachnophobia moment

[@holicandy01]

My cellphone stoped at the end of the epidode, google assistant had the massagem "say take a selfie" fuuuuck you google aasistant, dont give me a mini heart attack

[@jackbelmont4389]

Go on take the selfie :)

[@legodoc1853]

Me: *an avid trekkie, reads the title* Also me: Okay, who gave Section 31 interdimensional travel?!

[@cezar3169]

Jon deserves the whole world

[@klbzplb]

spoilers hearing basira be nice is.... a weird feeling. im dreading s4. she deserved so much better than what happened to her.

[@barborazahradnickova6145]

spoiler why do the Fears "want" to be unknown to the public? do their worshippers think that people will fear more when they don't know what is happening? Do they want to foster the fear of the unknown?

[@emilyk38]

SPOILER AHEAD It's a lot harder to be afraid in quite the same way of something you know the details of. Plus some of the fears literally are of not being known, like the stranger etc. And as you get later on in the series, more knowledge of the fears actually is very damning - the more you know the harder it seems to be to escape. But beyond that I suspect the fears themselves don't really care, and this is more a choice of the humans working around the, and the fact that most people would not believe any of this on just being told about it.

[@midnights2631]

I love Barisa already, I hope to hear more of her. :D

[@elliesteele2027]

1:05 Statement (Desolation, End) [Basira Hussain] 15:07 Post-Statement 16:14 Supplemental

[@nightberry7]

15:43 Case episode is S1 Ep12- First Aid

[@cattrickie]

basira my beloved

[@odothedoll2738]

Is no one gonna mention how this whole thing is a Star Trek reference?

[@Idran]

Nah, they've said that that's just a coincidence. Section 31 is a real life part of the law around the UK's Freedom of Information Act, it's basically exactly what Basira said here: an exclusion for information that could compromise criminal investigations

[@odothedoll2738]

@@Idran thank you for that information it makes this whole thing so much more funny

[@Idran]

@@odothedoll2738 you're welcome I 100% agree

[@pyrosianheir]

Basira iiiiisssss the best. Love her.

[@linkguist6861]

And the dominos start falling...

[@capn_toad]

as a star trek fan seeing the title set off alarm bells in my head

[@pauldiamond1583]

Section 31? What is this... A Deep Space Nine episode?

[@non-bb4756]

I really want someone to take away the tape recorder so Jon can get some sleep

[@Youeverthinkthat]

MARTINS VOICE ACTOR AT THE END GAVE ME A HEART ATTACK-

[@ann-margretparke9525]

Spider Husks! Yum. Also - eternal tooth doner?

[@ValoraxeGaming]

Wait was that cop who resigned the father in the murderer uses dark magic to save litle girl from darkness monster epp???????

[@marisapyav4688]

Frank 👏 Voss 👏 That's it

[@kuerbiskruemel5144]

15:03 Is it just me or does he sound... more entranced/slyer? (idk if they're the right words) Like quieter, breathier, words stretch longer, higher pitch, bigger breath pauses. Reminiscent of the voice of some treacherous creature like eg Gollum but also like it isn't Jon himself who speaks but like as if sb/sth entranced him and now is speaking through him.

[@radlee0123]

Big Lore Episode

[@nemnyoom]

ASHES O'REILLY???

[@epsyblue7714]

Wait wasn't Daisy mentioned before?

[@katara2021]

Please tell me who she is if you have figured it out.

[@epsyblue7714]

@@katara2021 so far, I don't think she was. She comes up later though.

[@katara2021]

@@epsyblue7714 Thanks for replying.

[@epsyblue7714]

@@katara2021 No problem 👍🏾

[@joaovictorbastianini7878]

É muita coisa acontecendo num Statement só não consigo acompanhar

[@wonderwhatsgonnahappen579]

I like Basira. Hope to see more of her.

[@fauxclaws]

I wonder if the section 31 here is a reference to the section 31 in star trek?

[@lilalino]

What if the human-sized spider husk was about the spider episode (i think it was episode 16)?? Also when i heard "spider husk" the hazbin hotel brainrot made me go "huskerdust?!" lmao

[@phemyda94]

Section 31??? Basira... like Bashir?? Is Jonny a trekkie? 🤔🤔🤔

[@Idran]

Just a coincidence unfortunately :( It's a real life part of the UK's Freedom of Information Act that's basically exactly what Basira described here; Jonny said in a Q&A that he's never watched Star Trek and didn't realize the coincidence until fans started asking him about it

[@DarkRelm22]

I heard the titlecard as "Section 41" and got confused that I was on episode 43... so how could it be 41...? haha

[@MrLordbubasith]

Start 1:05

[@aftsl946]

ashes o’reilly!!! :)

[@lisastadtmuller3455]

What burn victim are they talking about? Which case was it from?

[@JNDDS1]

Is section 31 a référence to star trek deep space nine ? (season 6 episode 18 : Inquisition)

[@Idran]

No, it's just a coincidence; it's a real life part of the law around the UK's Freedom of Information Act, it's basically exactly what Basira said here: an exclusion for information that could compromise criminal investigations

[@JNDDS1]

@@Idran Thank you ! That is really interesting ^^

[@Idran]

@@JNDDS1 you're welcome :D

[@benruniko]

Wait, like the Star Trek section 31?

[@fauxclaws]

hehe, I thought that to. nice little reference if so

[@Wilbehr]

I wonder if the man was unable to die. Dominoes you say?

[@Pani_lastivka]

Im non-native eng speaker but my english pretty good I might to say BUT SWEET JESUS WHAT THE HELL IN THE BEGINNING IM NOT A FUCKING SCIENTIST

[@triforceofcourage100]

Huh no mention of the Federation eh Section 31 always did prefer to do things off the book

[@NyloElLobo]

As a Star Trek fan, I wonder what I'm gonna find in this episode...

[@sadiazaman1296]

0121102

[@benruniko]

Also NOTHING IS WORTH THE RISK

[@zinganeatsr4011]

13:30 I HEARD THAT! SPOOKY CLOWN DOLL 🫵