Podcast Episodes

Welcome To Bavaria, U.S.A.

Episode 1239

oday, the small town of Leavenworth in Washington is known for its Bavarian-themed hotels, restaurants, shops and festivals, but when it was incorporated on 5th September, 1906, its main claim to fam…

Published on 1 day, 18 hours ago

The Quiz Show That Won The Jackpot

Episode 1238

On 4th September, 1998, the debut episode of the world-conquering game show Who Wants to Be a Millionaire? aired in the UK. 

Initially titled Cash Mountain, the show format had been offered to nearl…

Published on 2 days, 18 hours ago

Who Invented The Air Fryer?

Episode 1237

Fred van der Weij, a Dutch electronics engineer with a craving for healthier chips, spent years tinkering in his garage to create the “frit air” - launched by Philips as the “Air Fryer” at Berlin’s …

Published on 3 days, 18 hours ago

Queen Of The Cuban Sea

Episode 1236

Endurance swimmer Diana Nyad was 64 years old when she became the first person to swim from Cuba to Florida without the use of a shark cage for protection on 2nd September, 2013.

Nyad completed the 1…

Published on 4 days, 18 hours ago

Why Japan Loves Baseball

Episode 1235

How come baseball, that most American of games, is even more popular in Japan than in its home country? 

It’s a story with roots into the nineteenth century, as Arion, Olly and Rebecca discover while…

Published on 5 days, 18 hours ago

The Last Of His Tribe

Ishi, a native American man who was widely acclaimed as the “last wild Indian” emerged from the wilderness on 29th August, 1911.

His arrival came as a huge surprise to the people of Oroville, Califor…

Published on 1 week, 1 day ago

The First Gay Games

Over 1,300 athletes from 12 countries gathered at Kezar Stadium in San Francisco for the first-ever Gay Games, on 28th August, 1982. 

Intended as the “Gay Olympics,” the event had to change its name …

Published on 1 week, 2 days ago

The 38 Minute War

Episode 1231

The shortest war in history began at 09:02 on 27th August, 1896 - and was over 38 minutes later - when The British Empire, at the peak of its power, flexed its military might over the African island …

Published on 1 week, 3 days ago

Colin The Caterpillar - A Cultural Odyssey

Episode 1230

Equally beloved at office boardrooms and toddler birthday parties, Colin the Caterpillar - a £7 swiss roll cake with white and milk chocolate and buttercream - was launched at an unsuspecting public …

Published on 1 week, 4 days ago

Beavers on the Moon

Episode 1229

The ‘Great Moon Hoax’ was published by the New York Sun on 25th August, 1835, claiming over six instalments that renowned English astronomer John Herschel had spotted bat-men, unicorns, and bipedal b…

Published on 1 week, 5 days ago