Turbo Granny: Japanese Urban Legend of the Highway Phantom (Ep. 161)
A fleet-footed grandmother runs alongside your car at 140 km/h, and she has friends with basketballs and pogo sticks
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Show Notes
You're driving through a tunnel at 140 kilometers per hour when you hear knocking on the back window. You glance over your shoulder and see an old woman with long white hair running alongside your car, keeping perfect pace.
This is Tābō Baba—Turbo Granny. But she's not alone. There's Basketball Granny, Mikan Granny, Pogo Stick Granny, and Bonnet Granny too.
Why do these high-speed grandmothers haunt Hyōgo Prefecture's tunnels? What happens if you catch the basketball or make eye contact with the orange seller? And how did one pronunciation difference turn "affectionate grandmother" into "disrespectful old hag"?
I explain the Japanese language nuances, share the comedian who licked a muddy handprint on Mount Rokkō, and connect these legends to the DanDaDan manga character.
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Credits
Music by Julyan Ray Matsuura
About SpectreVision Radio
SpectreVision Radio is a bespoke podcast network at the intersection between the arts and the uncanny, featuring a tapestry of shows exploring creativity, the esoteric, and the unknown. We're a community for creators and fans vibrating around common curiosities, shared interests and persistent passions.
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