This week: The Jews who tried to escape to Northern Ireland on the eve of World War Two; and a forgotten history of the occult.

The Saved and the Spurned: Northern Ireland, Vienna and the Holocaust

In the summer of 1938, on the eve of World War II, hundreds of persecuted Jews in Nazi-occupied Vienna, tried to escape - to Northern Ireland. They had heard that Northern Ireland's government was willing to consider applications from skilled foreign workers, under an industrial scheme. And for many, these letters represented their last hope of escape.

It’s a powerful and little-known story explored in the book The Saved and the Spurned: Northern Ireland, Vienna and the Holocaust which is published by New Island.

The author is Noel Russell, who joins Myles from a studio in Belfast.

Holy Men of the Electromagnetic Age: A Forgotten History of the Occult

The period between the two world wars was a golden age of the occult: a time when clairvoyants, fakirs, theosophists, mind-readers and miracle-workers captivated audiences worldwide.

In a world profoundly shaken by the aftermath of war, political upheaval and economic depression, people sought comfort and answers beyond the bounds of conventional science or organised religion. The result was a widespread fascination with the supernatural. And this wasn't just a Western trend - it was a transnational movement in which cultures and ideas blended in unexpected ways.

Those themes are explored in a new book, Holy Men of the Electromagnetic Age: A Forgotten History of the Occult, by Dr Raphael Cormack, Assistant Professor in the School of Modern Languages and Cultures at Durham University. The book is published by Hurst.

Raphael joins Myles to discuss the eccentrics, gurus and prophets who brought East and West together in ways that still resonate today.