History Extra Podcast

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 utterly obsessed by them, they are bona fide world beaters. From the brutality of medieval jousts to the mega-bucks of the Premier League, David reveals how sport has embedded itself in the fabric of British life over the centuries. (Ad) David Horspool is the author of // More Than a Game: A History of How Sport Made Britain // (John Murray Press, 2023). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/More-Than-Game-History-Britain/dp/1529363276/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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 culture flowed. Sam Willis joins Rebecca Franks to discuss its remarkable history and answer listener questions on the subject, spotlighting unforgettable ancient cities, Marco Polo’s colourful tales of travel and asking whether the Silk Road ever entirely disappeared. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

From the nightmarish creations of Hieronymus Bosch to the intricate flying machines of Leonardo da Vinci, the Renaissance was a time of experimentation and cultural exploration. Speaking to Charlotte Hodgman, art critic and writer Jonathan Jones takes a closer look at this period of seismic change and explores its enduring significance in European history. (Ad) Jonathan Jones is the author of Earthly Delights: A History of the Renaissance (Thames & Hudson, 2023). Buy it now from Waterstones: https://go.skimresources.com?id=71026X1535947&xcust=historyextra-social-histboty&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.waterstones.com%2Fbook%2Fearthly-delights%2Fjonathan-jones%2F9780500023136 The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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 rhetoric? Or could England’s iconic Tudor queen actually have been a man masquerading as a woman? In this new episode of Conspiracy, Tudor historian Tracy Borman speaks to Rob Attar about the bizarre 'Bisley Boy' conspiracy theory that was popularised by none other than Dracula author Bram Stoker. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Who shot JFK? Have the Knights Templar been hiding the Holy Grail? And what really landed at Roswell in 1947? In the second series of Conspiracy from HistoryExtra, Rob Attar investigates some of history’s most popular and persistent conspiracy theories in the company of expert historians who are battling to set the record straight. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

From the Huns, Mongols and Magyars to the Turks, Xiongnu, Scythians and Goths, these nomadic people of the Eurasian steppes built long-lasting empires, facilitated global trade via the Silk Road and widely disseminated religion, technology, knowledge and goods. Speaking to Emily Briffett, Kenneth Harl details how these nomads profoundly shaped the course of history. (Ad) Kenneth Harl is the author of Empires of the Steppes: The Nomadic Tribes Who Shaped Civilisation (Bloomsbury, 2023). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Empires-Steppes-Nomadic-Tribes-Civilization/dp/1526630400/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1699632260&sr=1-1&tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Having run away from a life of slavery as a young man, Frederick Douglass went on to forge his own path as an abolitionist, orator, writer and statesman. In this 'Life of the Week' episode, Clare Elliott guides Paul Bloomfield through Douglass's life story, explaining how he came to play such a significant role in the fight for rights in the 19th-century US and beyond. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

From women who worked in vital wartime intelligence centres like Bletchley Park to those who parachuted behind enemy lines as part of SOE operations, Helen Fry introduces the women who dealt in intelligence during the world wars. In conversation with Elinor Evans, she reveals some of their fascinating stories, including knitting coded messages to aid the Belgian intelligence network ‘La Dame Blanche’ and interrogating German 'ace' pilots. (Ad) Helen Fry is the author of Women in Intelligence: The Hidden History of Two World Wars (Yale University Press, 2023). Buy it now from Waterstones: https://go.skimresources.com?id=71026X1535947&xcust=historyextra-social-histboty&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.waterstones.com%2Fbook%2Fwomen-in-intelligence%2Fhelen-fry%2F9780300260779 The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

From the groundbreaking novels of Virginia Woolf to the economic theories of John Maynard Keynes, the Bloomsbury Group shook up British culture in the early 20th century. In conversation with Rebecca Franks, Frances Spalding answers listener questions on this daring set of intellectuals, artists and writers, revealing what united their varied talents, and exploring how their personal lives (and tangled love affairs) were often just as fascinating as their work. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The birth of psychiatry in the early-19th century changed the way that 'madness' was understood, with beliefs in the supernatural becoming evidence of insanity. Charlotte Hodgman spoke to Professor Owen Davies about the men and women who found themselves placed in asylums as a result of their supernatural beliefs, and investigates how old beliefs clashed with new ideas in a rapidly changing world. (Ad) Owen Davies is the author of Troubled by Faith: Insanity and the Supernatural in the Age of the Asylum (Oxford University Press, 2023). Buy it now from Waterstones: https://go.skimresources.com?id=71026X1535947&xcust=historyextra-social-histboty&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.waterstones.com%2Fbook%2Ftroubled-by-faith%2Fowen-davies%2F9780198873006 The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Why does the Boston Tea Party still loom so large in the popular story of American independence today? Is it right that it holds so much significance? And what has been the impact of the protest in global history? In the final episode of our series, experts Benjamin Carp, Sarah Churchwell and Sarah Purcell weigh up the complicated legacy and discuss how we should regard the protest in the 21st century. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Romantics were obsessed with Mount Vesuvius, climbing up to peer into its bubbling depths, and even using it as a metaphor to describe some of the tumultuous changes revolution was wreaking in Europe at the time. Rhiannon Davies spoke to John Brewer to learn more about this fascinating historical episode. (Ad) John Brewer is the author of Volcanic: Vesuvius in the Age of Revolutions (Yale University Press, 2023). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Volcanic-Vesuvius-Revolutions-John-Brewer/dp/0300272669/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Josef Stalin is a titan of modern history – and one of its most infamous leaders, responsible for the deaths of millions. Danny Bird spoke to Robert Service to chart the Soviet tyrant's life, from his childhood in Georgia to his rise to become the dictator of the Soviet Union and an architect of the post-war world. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

James Longstreet spent the American Civil War as one of the leading generals in the Confederate Army. But after 1865 he became a supporter of reconstruction and black voting, even leading an interracial force in battle against former Confederates in New Orleans. In this episode, Longstreet's latest biographer, Elizabeth R Varon, talks to Rob Attar about his remarkable life and extraordinary change of heart. (Ad) Elizabeth R Varon is the author of Longstreet: The Confederate General Who Defied the South (Simon & Schuster, 2023). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Longstreet-Confederate-General-Defied-South/dp/1982148276/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Who were some of the most influential popes of the Middle Ages? What did you have to do to earn the title of 'anti-pope'? And which pope was believed to keep a pet demon? Kev Lochun spoke to historian Brett Whalen to find out more about the fascinating role of the papacy in this period. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Songs can trigger a range of emotions in their listeners: intense joy, sadness or even disgust. But how did this type of musical composition develop and become what it is today? The acclaimed singer and author John Potter takes Jon Bauckham on a tour through the history of song in Europe, covering everything from the works of Schumann and Sting to the musical troubadours of medieval Provence. (Ad) John Potter is the author of Song: A History in 12 Parts (Yale University Press, 2023). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Song-History-Parts-John-Potter/dp/0300263538/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The consequences of the protest are vital in understanding the role of the Boston Tea Party in the revolution that was to come. In episode four, we hear more about the immediate fallout from the destruction of the tea, and the brutal crackdown by Britain’s government that proved to be a turning point in uniting the 13 American colonies, and a crucial staging post on the road to war. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine and BBC History Revealed. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Why did warfare play such a pivotal role in Aztec society? How could claiming captives benefit a warrior in life and death? And what was 'Flower War'? Speaking to Emily Briffett, Caroline Dodds Pennock takes a look at the warriors and weaponry of the Aztecs to consider how warfare played a prominent part in everyday life, from the cradle to the grave – and beyond. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The latest instalment of our monthly sees Hannah Skoda and Rana Mitter look back at the history behind the big stories of 2023 – and what they might tell us about the year to come Our monthly series exploring how the past informs today’s world returns with a special episode catching up on some of 2023’s biggest stories, and considering how they might shape the events of 2024. Regular panellists Hannah Skoda and Rana Mitter discuss the surprisingly brief history of elections, the panda democracy phenomenon, and the long roots of the Oxford Word of the Year – ‘charisma’. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

How did British agents bug German PoWs during the Second World War? What qualities do you need to be a successful spy? And how are deepfakes changing the face of modern warfare? Amanda Mason introduces Spencer Mizen to some of the 150 objects starring in the new Imperial War Museums’ exhibition, Spies, Lies and Deception. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices