Podcast Episodes
Back to SearchWhat Norse poetry reveals about the Viking age
Episode 1631
What can Viking poetry reveal about the era in which it was written, and the people that wrote it? And why are ships, love and death some of its most common recurring motifs? Judith Jesch and Carolyn…
Published on 2 years, 8 months ago
WW2 the big questions: the early years of the conflict
Episode 1630
Why did Hitler make the fateful decision to invade Poland in 1939? How did Churchill turn defeat at Dunkirk into a victory on the home front? And why did Japan’s imperial designs lead to war in east …
Published on 2 years, 8 months ago
Life in the trenches: everything you wanted to know
Episode 1629
What was it really like to live and fight in WW1 trench? Why was throwing your empty food tins into No Man’s Land a death sentence? And what was the worst care package a Tommy could receive from home…
Published on 2 years, 8 months ago
Nuclear apocalypse in Britain
Episode 1628
If – or when – a nuclear bomb was dropped on Cold War Britain, the nation was primed to react fast. When the sirens sounded, children would run home from school using the quickest familiar route. Fam…
Published on 2 years, 8 months ago
Wild urban spaces: a history
Episode 1627
In recent years, discussions about sustainability and how we can create greener, more environmentally conscious urban spaces have been at the forefront of city planning. But to what extent are these …
Published on 2 years, 8 months ago
Boudica’s rebellion: a blood-soaked blow to the Roman empire
Episode 1626
Rome’s conquest of Britain in the first century AD was a brutal affair, as was the revolt against it led by Boudica. Duncan Mackay guides David Musgrove through the course of the rebellion, sharing t…
Published on 2 years, 8 months ago
What did the Tudors wear?
Episode 1625
How many pieces of clothing did the average Tudor own? Did women in the 16th century have specialised maternity wear? And what was behind the fascination with codpieces? Jane Malcolm-Davies stitches …
Published on 2 years, 8 months ago
WW2 the big questions: the build up
Episode 1624
In the first episode of our podcast series The Big Questions of the Second World War, historian and broadcaster Laurence Rees explains some of the short and long term causes of the global conflict – …
Published on 2 years, 8 months ago
British castles: everything you wanted to know
Episode 1623
What was the interior design like in medieval castles? Why were so many of these fortresses built in Wales? And what was it like to live in one? In our latest ‘Everything you wanted to know’ episode,…
Published on 2 years, 8 months ago
The mindset behind the Holocaust
Episode 1622
The Holocaust is an event so vast and terrible it can often be hard to wrap our heads around it. But what motivated those who perpetrated horrific crimes in the name of the Third Reich, and how did t…
Published on 2 years, 8 months ago