Zoic

About Zoic

Hawley Heights, once semi-famous for its Haunted Taxidermy Trail (until the incident, anyway) is not the place where anyone dreams of returning. But when Robin finds herself back in her hometown (and running a moderately illegal and largely pointless radio tourism show), strange things begin to happen. Power outages. Odd sounds over the radio waves. New/old bones that really shouldn't be in these woods. Plus - why is there a creepy sculpted T-Rex skull with taxidermied rabbit ears in the hardware store? Something's going down in Hawley Heights, and it's up to Robin and a group of intrepid, kinda cracked weirdos to figure it out! Zoic is a slightly surreal and certainly strange comedy/horror podcast from the people behind Academicasaurus. It was created by Mary O'Reilly and Amanda Funk Hilton, and is written and produced by Mary. New episodes, during the season, are posted weekly on Mondays.

Publisher

Haunted by Birds

Category

fiction · fiction

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

28 Aug 2025

Latest episode

3 Nov 2025

Latest episodes

11 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   3 Nov 2025

   Ad Break

   In the aftermath of the failed Harvest Festival, Robin and the gang are trying to get back to some semblance of normal (or, at least, as normal as Hawley Heights can get). However, a voice from the past points towards the future - and season two! -------------------------------------- Our performers this episode are Amanda Funk Hilton as Robin, Peter Brinson as Officer Ben, Lisa Brinson as Deputy Coral, Noah Moran as Hammer Mike, Maryna Matlock as Lotte, Bernard O'Reilly as Harold, and Sara Lynn Dix as Charlotte DeBernier. Featuring Karl and Nora as the kids on the tape, and introducing Elyse Eltrich as Mallory Irvine! Zoic was created by Mary O'Reilly and Amanda Funk Hilton, and was written, directed, and edited by Mary. Our theme song is…changing, apparently. All other music is done by Mary, with sound effects from iMovie. You, traveler, have reached the season one finale for Zoic. Fear not - season two is coming next fall! If you enjoyed your first Hawley Heights Harvest Festival, please let us know by subscribing, or giving us a like or a comment (depending on what platform you find yourself visiting), or tell three friends - no more, no less - about us. You can also always be old fashioned and drop us a note at academicasaurus@gmail.com! We do have an old ko-fi account at Ko-fi.com/academicasaurus if you think that providing some caffeine might help us work a bit faster, but honestly, we'd just be happy to hear from you. Thanks for listening to season one of Zoic! Sleep tight, town bound travelers. Don't let the Bunnysaurus Rex bite.

2. 

   27 Oct 2025

   The Hawley Heights Harvest Festival

   Well, town-bound travelers, the night of the Hawley Heights Harvest Festival is here!! Finally, after a 30 year absence, the festivities have resumed. What could possibly go wrong? -------------------------------------- Our main cast performers this episode are Amanda Funk Hilton as Robin, Noah Moran as Hammer Mike, Natalie Fee as Vivian Lovegrove, Bernard O'Reilly as Harold, Michele Metych as Ruth, Richard Diaz as Truth Bagley, Cindy Burke as Jonah, Barb Podbielski as Maple, Dave Opilka as Lyle Lanley, Ramona Mourir as Rose, and Maryna Matlock as Lotte. Our townspeople and tourists are Linda Lowery as our "nuts" tourist, Maty Parzival as the Odd Ground Tourist, and Barb Podbielski - again!  - as the Weird Tree tourist. We also had Barbara Matlock as the townsperson who goes to battle with the Venerable Vincenzo. Speaking of - we'd like to introduce Marquis Jackson as the Venerable Vincenzo, along with Sara Lynn Dix as Charlotte duBernier, Cara Dossett as Phoebe Lancaster, and Brad Keefauver as Cutter Cope himself! Oh - and let's not forget Violet, stepping in as Edgar the Pudlepointer. This episode was written and produced by Mary O'Reilly. Music in this episode is from Mary and an unmarked cassette tape left in the tape deck, with sound effects from the iMovie sound files. Please subscribe on iTunes! You can also find us on YouTube, Instagram, and Spotify under Zoic Podcast.

3. 

   20 Oct 2025

   Faulty Frequency

   Robin takes the radio show on a daytime trip to check out the progress on the Haunted Taxidermy Trail in the week before the big Hawley Heights Harvest Festival. -------------------------------------- Starring Amanda Funk-Hilton as Robin, Ramona Mourir as Rose, Maryna Matlock as Lotte, and introducing Richard Diaz as Truth Bagley! This episode was written and produced by Mary O'Reilly. Music in this episode is from Mary and an unmarked cassette tape left in the tape deck, with sound effects from the iMovie sound files. Please subscribe on iTunes! You can also find us on YouTube, Instagram, and Spotify under Zoic Podcast.

4. 

   13 Oct 2025

   Displacement Design

   A second attempt at the Gas Station Book Club is predictably derailed by comings and goings as the Harvest Festival draws ever nearer. Concerns are aired, and a questionable marketing ploy is unleashed when a new face attempts to join the book club and winds up dropping a big announcement. -------------------------------------- Starring Amanda Funk-Hilton as Robin, Michele Metych as Ruth, Bernard O'Reilly as Harold,  Ramona Mourir as Rose, Maryna Matlock as Lotte, Barb Podbielski as Maple, Cindy Burke as Jonah, Petra Vannucci-Henkel as Emily Clack, Dave Opilka as Lyle Stanley, and Joe Tychewicz as The Voicemail. This episode was written and produced by Mary O'Reilly. Music in this episode is from Mary and an unmarked cassette tape left in the tape deck, with sound effects from the iMovie sound files. Please subscribe on iTunes! You can also find us on YouTube, Instagram, and Spotify under Zoic Podcast.

5. 

   6 Oct 2025

   History/Onics

   A quiet night at the radio station derails as Harold calls in asking a weird question, a local bookseller wants Robin's thoughts about a strange new release, Rose needs details about Mallory Irvine's disappearance, and Emily has some news about Lotte's bones. -------------------------------------- Starring Amanda Funk-Hilton as Robin, Bernard O'Reilly as Harold, Natalie Fee as Vivian Lovegrove, Ramona Mourir as Rose, Petra Vannucci-Henkel as Emily Clack, and Noah Moran as Hammer Mike. Also, we're getting reports that the strange voice may be provided by someone named Joe Tychewicz? Hmm. We're going to need to do some more investigation. This episode was written and produced by Mary O'Reilly. Music in this episode is from Mary and an unmarked cassette tape left in the tape deck, with sound effects from the iMovie sound files. Please subscribe on iTunes! You can also find us on YouTube, Instagram, and Spotify under Zoic Podcast.

6. 

   29 Sept 2025

   Small Town Politics

   A Cope with the Arts board meeting has convened at the town hall, and Robin is on site - if a smidge more outside than she'd like - to get the scoop. However, a new figure stirs up town nostalgia in an unexpected direction. -------------------------------------- Starring Amanda Funk-Hilton as Robin, Noah Moran as Hammer Mike, Maryna Matlock as Lotte, Barb Podbielski as Maple, Ramona Mourir as Rose, Bernard O'Reilly as Harold, and Michele Metych as Ruth. Featuring Stephanie Streight as the Parent, and Karl and Ben as the kids. Also - that strange voice is back again! This episode was written and produced by Mary O'Reilly. Music in this episode is from Mary and an unmarked cassette tape left in the tape deck, with sound effects from the iMovie sound files. Please subscribe on iTunes! You can also find us on YouTube, Instagram, and Spotify under Zoic Podcast.

7. 

   22 Sept 2025

   Fund the Sciences, Man!

   It's Emily Clack Day, our sweet artist (and non-artist) friends! The AM 686 studio is defying (someone's) fire safety laws following two town power outages, but answers must be had from the local paleontologist. Not everyone, though, is thrilled with the proceedings. -------------------------------------- Starring Amanda Funk-Hilton as Robin, Noah Moran as Hammer Mike, Barb Podbielski as Maple, Michele Metych as Ruth, Ramona Mourir as Rose, Maryna Matlock as Lotte, Cindy Burke as Jonah, and Petra Vannucci-Henkel as Emily Clack, with a new, mysterious voice at the end. This episode was written and produced by Mary O'Reilly. Music in this episode is from Mary and an unmarked cassette tape left in the tape deck, with sound effects from the iMovie sound files. Please subscribe on iTunes! You can also find us on YouTube, Instagram, and Spotify under Zoic Podcast.

8. 

   15 Sept 2025

   Hybrid-Hybrid Taxidermy

   Robin is joined this fine evening/early morning by some guests in the AM 686 studio! Rose brings a bunch of questions about the town and Cutter Cope, Maple brings some tentative suggestions, and Lotte brings a dirty burlap sack. -------------------------------------- Starring Amanda Funk-Hilton as Robin, Ramona Mourir as Rose, Maryna Matlock as Lotte, and Barb Podbielski as Maple Cope. This episode was written and produced by Mary O'Reilly. Music in this episode is from Mary and an unmarked cassette tape left in the tape deck. Please subscribe on iTunes! You can also find us on YouTube and Instagram, and Spotify under Zoic Podcast.

9. 

   8 Sept 2025

   The Gas Station Book Club

   On this fine evening, Robin brings all three of her AM 686 listeners with her as she attends the first meeting of the Gas Station Book Club (rebranded, of course, after the library ban). However, what begins as a perfectly normal discussion of A Brief History of the Mesozoic Midwest: The Missing Fossil History quickly turns chaotic as Lotte arrives with derision and a discovery. -------------------------------------- Starring Amanda Funk-Hilton as Robin, Ramona Mourir as Rose, Barb Podbielski as Maple Cope, Bernard O'Reilly as Harold, and Maryna Matlock as Lotte. This episode was written and produced by Mary O'Reilly. Music in this episode is from Mary, the iTunes library (and a Garageband loop),  and also from an unmarked cassette tape left in the tape deck. Please subscribe on iTunes! You can also find us on YouTube and Instagram under Zoic Podcast.

10. 

    1 Sept 2025

    The Traveler's Information Station

    Welcome to Hawley Heights, home of the world's friendliest (?) taxidermy, and former home (thanks to The Incident) of the Haunted Taxidermy Trail! Meet Robin, your late night tour guide, as she begins her moderately illegal radio journey in this weird, frequently power-outaged little town. -------------------------------------- Starring Amanda Funk-Hilton as Robin, Noah Moran as Hammer Mike, Barb Podbielski as Maple Cope, Michele Metych as Ruth Rutherford, Cindy Burke as Jonah, and Maryna Matlock as Lotte. This episode was written and produced by Mary O'Reilly. Music in this episode is from Mary and also from an unmarked cassette tape left in the tape deck. Please subscribe on iTunes! You can also find us on YouTube and Instagram under Zoic Podcast.

11. 

    28 Aug 2025

    Introducing: Zoic! A new Podcast!

    Hawley Heights, once semi-famous for its Haunted Taxidermy Trail (until the incident, anyway) is not the place where anyone dreams of returning. But when Robin finds herself back in her hometown (and running a moderately illegal and largely pointless radio tourism show), strange things begin to happen. Power outages. Odd sounds over the radio waves. New/old bones that really shouldn't be in these woods. Plus - why is there a creepy sculpted T-Rex skull with taxidermied rabbit ears in the hardware store? Something's going down in Hawley Heights, and it's up to Robin and a group of intrepid, kinda cracked weirdos to figure it out! *~*~*~* Zoic is a slightly surreal and certainly strange comedy/horror podcast from the people behind Academicasaurus. It was created by Mary O'Reilly and Amanda Funk Hilton, and is written and produced by Mary. New episodes, during the season, are posted weekly on Mondays. Season one begins on September 1st, 2025!

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.8 / 5

20 ratings

Contact Zoic

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.