New true crime podcast tells Harvard Medical School body parts scandal

Audio Always is launching its latest gripping true crime podcast, Head Number 7.

Available exclusively on Wondery+, the series the story of the case of Cedric Lodge, the former head of the mortuary at Harvard Medical School, who was accused of a shocking and gruesome crime.

Head Number 7 explores how Cedric Lodge may have gone from a once-respected figure in the Harvard community, to the mastermind behind a network of human oddity collectors, profiting from the sale of body parts online.

The story is told by Professor Turi King, a presenter and forensic genealogist who specialises in unlocking the secrets held in human remains and solving ancient cold cases.

Dr King is host of shows including the BBC’s DNA Family Secrets with Stacey Dooley, and is renowned for cracking what’s been called “the biggest forensic DNA case in history” – the identification of the remains of Richard III from where he lay buried in a Leicester car park. 

Turi finds out about the real people behind the headlines – individuals who donated their bodies to science, only to have their remains sold for profit. She also examines how Lodge’s actions not only betrayed the trust of donors and their families but also raised ethical questions about who really owns our body after we die.

Through interviews, expert insights, and research, the podcast not only tells the story of a crime that made headlines across the world, but also explores society’s relationship with death and dying…from hearing about the cadavers that made our cars safer to asking difficult questions about the human remains in museums today.

Head Number 7 is available exclusively and ad-free by joining Wondery+ on the Wondery App, and it’s also available through Apple Podcasts or Spotify.