How Wasson Influenced Western Awareness of Mushrooms

In this episode of the Drug Science podcast, we speak to Dr Andy Letcher, a religious scholar and author of the book Shroom: the Cultural History of the Magic Mushroom. He explores his complimentary background in science and the humanities, depicting how this combination structured his thinking. Noting the religious potential of psychedelic experiences, Letcher links the spiritual with the psychedelic, explaining what he sought to capture in his book and where it has gone since. Finally, he discusses how his interest in transdisciplinary perspectives on psychedelics has coalesced in the University of Exeter’s psychedelic postgraduate courses.

 
PSYCH SYMPOSIUM 2025 

Links
Shroom: A Cultural History of the Magic Mushroom

Psychedelics: Mind, Medicine, and Culture

Psilocybin

Seeking the Magic Mushroom by R. Gordon Wasson

Psychedelia Britannia: Druids on Drugs