History Hit Podcasts

Who Was the Real King Arthur?

Was King Arthur a real historical figure or merely a mythical hero?

Tristan Hughes and Dr. Miles Russell delve into the myth and mystery of...

Final Days of Rasputin

Grigori Rasputin, Russian mystic, survived multiple assassination attempts on the same night. He was poisoned, he was shot, he was drowned in a...

The Great Fire of London

In the early hours of September 2, 1666, a small fire broke out on the ground floor of a baker's house in Pudding Lane. In five days that small...

Midwinter Medieval Traditions

Ever wondered how Christmas was celebrated in Medieval times? Dr. Eleanor Janega and Matt Lewis explore the fascinating world of Medieval festive...

Remembering Jimmy Carter: Life & Legacy

In this special episode, Don Wildman is joined by experts Jonathan Alter and Jefferson Cowie to delve into the remarkable life of the 39th...

Japanese in America

When the US turned to Japan for workers in the late 19th Century, they probably never foresaw that one day soon they would imprison those who...

Sir Christopher Wren

Celebrate the 350th anniversary of Sir Christopher Wren's masterworks with Professor Suzannah Lipscomb as she and Professor Adrian Tinniswood OBE...

When Was The First Boob Job?

Cosmetic procedures are a huge part of (most of our) worlds.

With new ones seemingly cropping up all the time, the boob job feels like an...

Is the Loch Ness Monster real?

What lurks beneath the dark waters of Loch Ness? The legendary monster? A piece of Celtic folklore? A warning of the Nazis' rise to power? A...

The Fall of Constantinople

Assassin's Creed Revelations transports us to Constantinople, only a couple of generations after its conquest by the Ottoman Empire. It is one of...

The Fall of Constantinople

May 1453 saw the siege that would lead to the fall of the Eastern Roman Empire. It was the culmination of an age-long struggle between...

Emperor Constantine

How did Constantine the Great conquer his rivals and shape the Roman Empire?

Tristan Hughes discusses the dramatic rise of Roman Emperor...

Did Ancient People Have Sex Toys?

Dating back some 30,000 years, sex toys have a long (no pun intended) and fascinating history.

What were the earliest sex toys like? How did...

What happened to the Princes in the Tower?

Did Richard III really murder the Princes in the Tower?

Join Matt Lewis to dive into the enigmatic tale of the Princes in the Tower, joined...

The Origins of Istanbul

Today we dig into the history of Istanbul, the city at the crossroads of East and West. Across thousands of years, the city has survived the rise...

Lexington & Concord: The First Battles of the Revolutionary War

The shot heard ‘round the world'; the start of the American Revolution. An event that would have profound consequences for world history,...

Tomb of King Herod

Did Herod really order the massacre of thousands of infants? Tristan Hughes revisits the scandalous and captivating story of the discovery of King...

Six Wives: Jane Seymour & Anne of Cleves

In this second special Christmas edition, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb offers another chance to hear the fascinating series from earlier this year...

Mystery of the Ghost Ship: Mary Celeste

In 1872 the ghost ship Mary Celeste is found sailing across the Atlantic without a single crew member left on board. Theories over what happened...

Charles Dickens' Christmas

Just as Scrooge wanders London's streets on a cold Christmas night, Dan Snow follows the ghosts of Charles Dickens' past to discover the city that...

Sex Life & Scandal of Charles Dickens

Like it or not, there's no escaping Charles Dickens at this time of year.

But who was the man behind classics such as A Tale of Two Cities,...