Podcast Episodes
Back to SearchHow do you solve a problem like Napoleon?
Episode 2450
In the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars, it fell to Britain to maintain the balance of power in continental Europe – but how could a small island man…
6 months, 2 weeks ago
What does history teach us about protest?
Episode 2449
The past 12 months have seen protests around the world make headlines and dominate social media feeds. But how have such popular demonstrations chang…
6 months, 2 weeks ago
Hatshepsut: life of the week
Episode 2448
Hatshepsut is one of ancient Egypt’s most extraordinary figures: a pharaoh who deftly asserted her right to the throne, reigned over an era of prospe…
6 months, 2 weeks ago
Tragedy and triumph: a 500-year history of Mexico
Episode 2447
The chaos of the Spanish conquest, the humiliation of military defeat to the United States, the disruption of the revolution… Mexican history is ofte…
6 months, 2 weeks ago
Jane Austen’s final chapter – and lasting legacy
Episode 2446
What does Austen’s later writing tell us about her changing ideas? And what factors contributed to her death? In this fourth and final episode of our…
6 months, 2 weeks ago
Prophetesses & she-preachers of the 17th century
Episode 2445
A prophetess who warned Oliver Cromwell against killing the king. A Yorkshire maidservant who gained an audience with the Ottoman Sultan. The religio…
6 months, 3 weeks ago
New Year's Eve, newts and Nessie: a history of British folklore
Episode 2444
Why should you be careful about who's first through your door on New Year's Day? What led people to believe that newts and earwigs were responsible f…
6 months, 3 weeks ago
Augustus: life of the week
Episode 2443
‘Evil genius’ is a phrase that could have been invented to describe Augustus, the first emperor of Rome. Augustus butchered his way to power in the c…
6 months, 3 weeks ago
Inside the Viking battle of the genders
Episode 2442
What do we know for certain about Old Norse ideas about masculinity and femininity, and can Viking Age mythology provide any answers? In conversation…
6 months, 3 weeks ago
A house of one’s own: Jane Austen’s ‘golden years’
Episode 2441
It was at Chawton House, a cottage in rural Hampshire, that Jane Austen experienced one of the most fruitful episodes of her writing career. In this …
6 months, 3 weeks ago