Mystery Incorporated – Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy and Scooby-Doo – have been investigating supernatural events for over fifty years and, in that time, there has never been a serious study into the make-up of the show … until now. Scooby was the regular supernatural fix for an entire generation; the ultimate ‘pleasing terror’ and a foundation stone of The Haunted Generation.

The show has always been far more than a straight children’s cartoon about solving mysteries and unmasking villains. It has from its outset been a social and political commentary, a study on the supernatural, an exploration of the gothic and the hauntological landscape and a microcosm of the worlds of horror, the occult and more. There is much to learn about the genre from a (not so) simple Saturday morning entertainment.

The show has always drawn on real-world folklore and myth in its representations of ghosts, witches, monsters and more. It has parodied literature and film in its explorations of horror and the supernatural. In return, it has been a strong influence on our own pop culture through urban myth and linguistic references such as ‘Zoinks’ and ‘Scooby Snacks’. The Nickelodeon vehicle Scooby-Doo: Mystery Incorporated features the character of Professor Hatecraft, lecturer as Miskatonic University, who tells Velma that “Jinkies is not a real word”. This presentation begs to differ, and provides the proof!

‘Zoinks! The Spooky Folklore Behind Scooby-Doo’ is based on the presenter’s groundbreaking book which pulls off the mask and reveals the truth behind the fiction. Written with input from a number of the show’s writers and producers and with an afterword from one of the voices of Scooby and Shaggy, Scott Innes, it uses film and TV analysis, folkloric knowledge and gothic theory to examine the construction of the Scooby world and the background behind the characters and landscapes.