Podcast Episodes

Bayeux Tapestry politics & natural disasters: history behind the headlines

Episode 2328

In the latest episode of our monthly series charting the historical background of current news events, regular panellists Hannah Skoda and Rana Mitte…

8 months ago

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Deadly bellringing and fatal bacon: grisly accidental Tudor deaths

Episode 2327

From drowning and agricultural mishaps to getting stabbed during a football match, crushed by a pig, scalded by porridge or suffocated by a fish, the…

8 months ago

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Beer history: everything you wanted to know

Episode 2326

Beer is one of the world’s most popular alcoholic beverages. From refreshing lagers to amber ales and creamy stouts, there’s a style for virtually ev…

8 months, 1 week ago

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Mein Kampf: Hitler's dark vision for the future

Episode 2325

Published 100 years ago in 1925, Adolf Hitler's Mein Kampf was one of the most consequential books of the 20th century. It laid out Hitler's politica…

8 months, 1 week ago

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King vs parliament: the moment that sparked civil war

Episode 2324

Over the winter of 1641-2, England stood on the precipice of civil war. Historian and author Jonathan Healey charts how the relationship between the …

8 months, 1 week ago

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The Mitford sisters | 2 : life of the week

Episode 2323

Like many families, the Mitfords emerged from the Second World War bearing scars. Yet as the world entered a new, uncertain era, the sisters' knack f…

8 months, 1 week ago

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Slavery on the medieval Silk Road

Episode 2322

Slavery was a grim but omnipresent reality across the Silk Road during the Middle Ages. Speaking to Emily Briffett, Claire Taylor unpacks the complex…

8 months, 1 week ago

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The history of women's football: everything you wanted to know

Episode 2321

Who was Nettie Honeyball? Why was the First World War a golden age for female factory teams? And why did the English Football Association move heaven…

8 months, 2 weeks ago

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Live Aid: pop's Big Bang moment

Episode 2320

It may be hard to believe for those of you who can remember it, but this month marks the 40th anniversary of the iconic music extravaganza that was L…

8 months, 2 weeks ago

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Exploring the medieval world with Marco Polo

Episode 2319

You may be familiar with the name of Marco Polo – the 13th-century Venetian merchant who travelled along the Silk Road, journeyed through Asia and sp…

8 months, 2 weeks ago

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