Podcast Episodes
Back to SearchThe Colosseum: Rome's Arena of Death
Episode 369
“Are you not entertained?!”
The emblem of Rome, the Colosseum was the unsettling but glamorous home of Roman violence, used for gladiatorial bouts, n…
2 years, 6 months ago
The History Behind Hogwarts: Ancient Schools and Revolting Students
Episode 368
“To be a boy at one of these schools was to be alternately tyrant and slave.”
More gruesome even than the Battle of Hogwarts, 18th century British Pub…
2 years, 6 months ago
The Real Harry Potter: Magic, Empire and Beastly Bullies
Episode 367
Eclectic traditions, obscure codes and cryptic ancient languages: the world of Harry Potter has captivated the imagination of children from all backg…
2 years, 6 months ago
The Architect of Modern China
Episode 366
“Let us advance courageously, to change the backward condition of our country, and turn it into a modern and powerful socialist state!” Deng Xiaoping…
2 years, 7 months ago
Le Marquis de Sade: Sex and Violence
Episode 365
The father of sadism and a prophet of totalitarianism, the Marquis de Sade was a French aristocrat and writer, an uncompromising and unashamed libert…
2 years, 7 months ago
Introducing... The Rest Is Money
Does money really make the world go round? Economics, business and finance have long been subjects we leave to the stockbrokers, hedge fund managers …
2 years, 7 months ago
Sixties Fashion: Swinging London
Episode 364
In a swirling world dominated by miniskirts, feather boas, posh photographers, youth culture, Jimi Hendrix and the Beatles, London has been transform…
2 years, 7 months ago
Sixties Fashion: The Teenage Revolution
Episode 363
The Sixties is one of the only moments in history when Britain could claim to be the epicentre of world fashion, and in this episode Tom and Dominic …
2 years, 7 months ago
The Taj Mahal: Love and Death
Episode 362
“The mutual affection and harmony between the two had reached a degree never seen between a husband and wife…” The Taj Mahal, built by the Mughal Emp…
2 years, 7 months ago
The Lost Library of Alexandria
Episode 361
One of the greatest institutions of the ancient world, the Library of Alexandria was the embodiment of ultimate learning, and a “repository of everyt…
2 years, 7 months ago