Podcast Episodes
Back to SearchThe West's enduring fascination with Asia
Episode 1889
Asia has long enthralled people in the west, with voyages of discovery and military expeditions setting out in search of wealth, wisdom and the chanc…
2 years, 1 month ago
Seven Wonders of the Ancient World: everything you wanted to know
Episode 1888
Did the hanging gardens of Babylon really exist? How was Egypt's Great Pyramid built? And could any one person have seen all seven ancient wonders? I…
2 years, 2 months ago
Nicholas Winton: the 'British Schindler'
Episode 1887
Shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War, a British stockbroker worked tirelessly to rescue hundreds of Jewish children from Nazi-occupied…
2 years, 2 months ago
Conspiracy | 2. Was Pearl Harbor an inside job?
Episode 1886
On 7 December 1941, Japan attacked the US naval base at Pearl Harbor. It's one of the most notorious surprise attacks in history, but how much of a s…
2 years, 2 months ago
Ireland's tangled relationship with empire
Episode 1885
Often described as England's first colony, Ireland has a long – and deeply complicated – relationship with empire. Rhiannon Davies speaks to historia…
2 years, 2 months ago
Life of the Week: Harold Godwinson (Harold II)
Episode 1884
King Harold II is famous for getting an arrow to the eye at the battle of Hastings. But is that story even true? And what else should we know about t…
2 years, 2 months ago
Britain's long love affair with sport
Episode 1883
Britons may not always be the best at playing sports. But, as David Horspool tells Spencer Mizen, when it comes to inventing, codifying and becoming …
2 years, 2 months ago
The Silk Road: everything you wanted to know
Episode 1882
The Silk Road is one of the most famous trade routes in history, a vast interconnected network along which not only goods but ideas, knowledge and cu…
2 years, 2 months ago
The Renaissance: an explosion of creativity
Episode 1881
From the nightmarish creations of Hieronymus Bosch to the intricate flying machines of Leonardo da Vinci, the Renaissance was a time of experimentati…
2 years, 2 months ago
Conspiracy | 1. Was Elizabeth I a man?
Episode 1880
In her most famous speech, delivered on 9 August 1588, Queen Elizabeth I declared that she had the "heart and stomach of a king". Was that just rheto…
2 years, 2 months ago