Podcasts

Six Wives: Katherine of Aragon

Six wives - six lives that we think we know everything about.  But beyond their mostly doomed marriages to Henry VIII and, in most cases,...

Hidden History of Garden Gnomes

Garden gnomes have a secret life all of their own. If you don't believe us, then go ask Paris Hilton.

Today we discover the hidden history...

Spartacus: Life or Legend

‘I am Spartacus!’ In the field of epic film making, the 1960 historical drama ‘Spartacus’ is legendary. Directed by Stanley Kubrick, and...

Jane Seymour: Henry VIII’s Third Queen

Jane Seymour is a paradox. Of Henry VIII’s six wives, she is the one about whom we know perhaps the least. She was the most lowly of the queens,...

Richard the Lionheart

King Richard I of England - Richard the Lionheart - is one of those historical figures whose reputation stands out so much that the legends cover...

History of Monogamy

From the earliest iterations on the plains of Africa, to 21st century reconsiderations of it: are humans meant to be monogamous?

Joining...

The Opium Wars

2/2. The British Empire aggressively pursued the opium trade well into the 19th century, fueling an addiction epidemic within China. The Qing...

Great Irish Famine: Coffin Ships & the Dark Truth (Part 2)

1847 was the darkest year in the spiralling horror of the Great Irish Famine. It is known in Ireland as 'Black '47'. The British Government...

Portuguese Missionaries in Japan

When Portuguese merchants ran aground on the Japanese isle of Tanegashima in 1543 two worlds collided - Europeans had encountered Japan for the...

Henry VIII's Sister, Margaret Queen of Scots

Margaret Tudor - daughter of King Henry VII, sister to Henry VIII - was married at 13 to James IV of Scotland, learning the skills of statecraft...

The British Empire, China and Opium

1/2. Victorian readers were captivated by descriptions of smoke-filled opium dens among backstreet brothels and pubs in London's East End in Oscar...

The Real Hamilton: An American Myth?

11 Tonys, a Grammy, a Pulitzer Prize and broken box office records - there's no denying the impact of Lin-Manuel Miranda's...