Podcast Episodes

Politics, class and democracy in interwar Britain 1918-39

During the interwar years Britain became a dramatically more democratic society, following the extension of the franchise in 1918 and 1928. British society began to change gradually with the challeng…

Published on 6 years, 3 months ago

Czechoslovakia's anti German ethnic cleansing 1945

At the end of the Second World War, Czech prime minister in exile Eduard Benes petitioned both western allies and the USSR to expel all ethnic Germans from Czechoslovakia. This permission was granted…

Published on 6 years, 3 months ago

Special Update: Report on the Coup: Part Two

The second in my reports on the current political crisis here in Great Britain.

Explaining History helps you understand the 20th Century through critical conversations and expert interviews. We conne…

Published on 6 years, 3 months ago

Truman's Domestic Failures 1945-52

By 1945 the political landscape in America was changing in ways that would be far less favourable to Truman than the previous years had been to Roosevelt. An impressive and far reaching domestic agen…

Published on 6 years, 3 months ago

Special Update: Report from the coup August 2019

This is an unprecedented podcast for Explaining History, but in 2019 here in Britain we're in uncharted constitutional territory. I try not to engage too much in political podcasting because I wanted…

Published on 6 years, 3 months ago

The Origins of Fascism: Part Three

Continuing the study of the background to European fascist thinking, this episode focuses on the impact of the ideas of Friedrich Nietzsche on fascist thinking and ideas.

Explaining History helps you…

Published on 6 years, 3 months ago

Stalinist social cleansing 1929-37

The Stalinist regime, in the mid 1930s brutally purged towns and cities of those they considered to be socially deviant. Beggars, gypsies, prostitutes and thieves were exiled and sent to labour colon…

Published on 6 years, 3 months ago

British Society on the eve of World War Two (Part Two)

This podcast continues the examination of Britain's social, economic and political circumstances on the eve of the First World War.

Explaining History helps you understand the 20th Century through c…

Published on 6 years, 4 months ago

The Aftermath of Pearl Harbour 1941

Following the surprise attack on Pearl Harbour on December 7th 1941, the strategic decision making of America, Japan, Germany and Britain shaped the eventual outcome of the war itself. Japanese milit…

Published on 6 years, 4 months ago

Maoist social cleansing 1949

In the aftermath of the Chinese Civil War, the beginnings of dramatic and brutal social change in China were evident in Mao's attitudes towards the urban poor. Those deemed socially unproductive, beg…

Published on 6 years, 4 months ago