HistoryExtra podcast

Working-class girlhood in 1930s Bolton

20 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Hester Barron and Claire Langhamer discuss their new book, Class of ’37, which looks at what we can learn from essays written in 1937 by 12- and 13...

Censorship: waging war on free speech

18 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Eric Berkowitz describes the lengths to which rulers – from the first Chinese emperor to Henry VIII – have gone to suppress freedom of speech   H...

The history hidden in British heritage sites

17 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Fatima Manji talks about her new book Hidden Heritage: Rediscovering Britain’s Lost Love of the Orient, which explores the objects and landmarks th...

Monarchs, fascists & communists: Romania’s modern history

16 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Paul Kenyon discusses his book Children of the Night, which charts the story of modern Romania, and its colourful, chaotic and often corrupt leaders ...

Early Medieval Britain: everything you wanted to know

15 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the latest episode in our series tackling history’s biggest topics, Dr Rory Naismith, author of Early Medieval Britain, c500–1000, responds to...

Bewitched cars & mail-order charms: witchcraft in modern France

14 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

From bewitched cars and mail-order charms to murder investigations, Will Pooley delves into the surprising history of witchcraft in France from the Re...

Witnesses to the Berlin Wall

13 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

As we approach the 60th anniversary of the Berlin Wall’s construction, Major General Sir Robert Corbett and journalists Mark Wood and Alastair Stewa...

Robespierre’s brutal downfall

11 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Colin Jones tells the story of Maximilien Robespierre’s fall from power – a dramatic 24 hours that ended with the revolutionary titan facing the g...

How should we teach the slave trade?

10 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Teachers Richard Kennett and Tom Allen discuss how they have worked with six other teachers to create a new textbook on this previously overlooked ele...

Building utopia after WW1

09 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Left traumatised by the horrors of the First World War, between the 1920s and 1940s people around the world set out to create “perfect” societies ...

The Ottoman empire: everything you wanted to know

08 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Eugene Rogan answers listener questions on one of history’s most powerful – and long-lasting – empires   How did the Ottomans dominate swathes ...

Portraits, power and royal wigs

07 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Sue Pritchard, curator of a new exhibition of royal portraits at the National Maritime Museum, discusses how wigs were used to convey royal power   S...

Wartime Britain’s mixed-race babies

06 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

During the Second World War, an estimated 2,000 babies were fathered by African-American GIs stationed in Britain. Lucy Bland reveals how these mixed...

The transformation of India’s glamorous golden couple

04 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

John Zubryzcki shares the story of the party-loving royals of the House of Jaipur, who turned to politics following Indian independence   In the 1950...

Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, on historical fiction

03 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York, and Marguerite Kaye join us to discuss their new historical romance novel, Her Heart for a Compass, which follows Vic...

Oliver Cromwell’s remarkable rise to power

02 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Historian Ronald Hutton discusses Oliver Cromwell’s early life and career, exploring the brilliance and cruelty of the future Lord Protector and exp...

Modern Welsh history: everything you wanted to know

01 Aug 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Martin Johnes tackles listener questions about the history of modern Wales, from the Industrial Revolution to devolution   In the latest episode in o...

George II: reassessing a much-forgotten monarch

31 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Norman Davies introduces a long-maligned and overlooked monarch, George II, King of Great Britain and Ireland and Elector of Hanover, considering the ...

A hard-fought history of trespass

30 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Nick Hayes discusses the contested history of land ownership in England, from William the Conqueror to the Kinder trespass   Nick Hayes, author of T...

Antwerp: city of innovation & intrigue

28 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the 16th century, Antwerp was a global centre of trade, talked about around the world. Michael Pye considers its rise and bloody fall   In the 16t...

How the 1964 Tokyo Olympics redefined Japan

27 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

With the Olympics underway in Tokyo, Chris Harding looks back at 1964 – the last time Japan hosted the competition   With the Summer Olympics unde...

Australian bushrangers: folk heroes or common criminals?

26 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Meg Foster discusses the bandits that lived outside the law in Australia’s bush – from Ned Kelly to surprising lesser-known figures    Meg Foste...

Olympic history: everything you wanted to know

25 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

As the world’s best athletes congregate in Tokyo for the 29th Summer Games, David Goldblatt answers your questions on the history of the Olympics  ...

Why were the Georgians fixated with fatness?

24 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Dr Freya Gowrley reveals how Georgian satirists used images of fatness to comment on the anxieties of the age    From Britain's heaviest man who bec...

How assassinations have changed history

23 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Michael Burleigh discusses his book Day of the Assassins: A History of Political Murder, which considers what we can learn from looking at assassinat...

The slave trade: a family history

21 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Alex Renton discusses his new book, Blood Legacy, which offers an unflinching account of his ancestors’ involvement in the slave trade. He also con...

The piano: a musical history

20 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

For more than 300 years, the piano has captivated audiences, while composers have pushed the instrument’s boundaries. Susan Tomes, author of The Pi...

Should they stand or fall? The great statue debate

19 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

As statues of controversial historical figures continue to hit the headlines, Alex von Tunzelmann – author of Fallen Idols: Twelve Statues that Mad...

The church in medieval England: everything you wanted to know

18 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Did medieval people have sex in churches? What was a boy bishop? And why did women have to sit in the ‘safe side’ of a church in the Middle Ages? ...

Madness & misery in Antarctica

17 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In 1897 the Belgian Antarctic Expedition set sail in search of the south magnetic pole, but their journey was scuppered by a long, arduous winter trap...

The battle over the Benin Bronzes

16 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Looted from Benin City in 1897, the Benin Bronzes are one of the most impressive collections of artworks ever created – and their future is under de...

Britain & France: enemies or economic partners?

14 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

From the Falklands to North America, British and French soldiers spent much of the 18th century locked in battle. Yet many influential thinkers believ...

Watergate in 100 days: how President Nixon fell

13 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Author and former Washington Post journalist Michael Dobbs talks about his new book King Richard, which charts 100 pivotal days as the Watergate sc...

Contraception, consent & erotic connection: sex through history

12 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Fern Riddell, author of Sex: Lessons from History, discusses what we can learn from looking at sexual culture in the past, and gives her thoughts on...

The Highland Clearances: everything you wanted to know

11 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Who was to blame for the Highland Clearances? Why did they happen? And what became of those who were forcibly evicted? In the latest episode in our se...

Running to escape the horrors of war

10 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Jonathan Westaway explores why there was a boom in the popularity of endurance running following the First World War   Following the First World War,...

The glamour & danger of Cairo’s 1920s nightlife scene

09 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

During its heyday in the roaring 20s, Cairo’s nightlife district was the place to go for a world-class night out – from glitzy variety shows in sm...

The Viking Great Army: the latest discoveries

07 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Julian Richards discusses the Viking Great Army, which wreaked havoc on the kingdoms of Anglo-Saxon England from 865-878   From 865-878, the Viking G...

Glee-man, high-deedy & bendsome: a language to save England

06 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Poverty and riots racked 19th-century rural England, but one eccentric Victorian cleric was convinced he had the solution – inventing a new languag...

Healthcare before the NHS

05 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Professor Barry Doyle explains what kind of treatment you could expect If you were ill before the National Health Service was founded in 1948    If ...

The Medici: everything you wanted to know

04 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

How did the Medici influence the Renaissance? Just how rich were they? And what dark family secrets were lurking in their past? In the latest episode ...

From hysteria to wandering wombs: women and medicine through history

03 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Elinor Cleghorn discusses her new book Unwell Women, which traces the long history of the misdiagnosis and mistreatment of women’s health issues, a...

Hogarth: the chronicler of the 18th century

02 Jul 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Jacqueline Riding discusses her new biography of William Hogarth, which charts the life and work of the famed artist and satirist. Hogarth was a large...

Digging into the Klondike gold rush

30 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

From grizzled gold miners to fresh-faced boys in search of adventure, 100,000 prospectors set out for the remote Yukon in search of gold. Stephen Tuff...

The Cold War battle for Berlin

29 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Any illusions that the wartime entente between the western Allies and the Soviet Union would flourish in the new postwar world were shattered when the...

The history and mystery of UFOs

28 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Following the release of the Pentagon’s much anticipated report on UFOs, Dr David Clarke explains how the idea of extra-terrestrials in mysterious f...

Canadian history: everything you wanted to know

27 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the latest episode in our series tackling big historical topics, historian Donald Wright answers listener questions on the history of Canada, from ...

Forgotten heroes: Japanese Americans in World War Two

26 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Bestselling author Daniel James Brown reveals how a group of young Japanese Americans overcame suspicion and prejudice to become some of the most deco...

The trials of Ethel Rosenberg

25 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Historian and author Anne Sebba explores the life of Ethel Rosenberg, an American woman and mother of two who was executed for espionage in 1953 in on...

Socialite, countess, WW2 spy: Aline Griffith

23 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Larry Loftis details the life and work of Aline Griffith, a model-turned-spy who rose to the upper echelons of society in WW2 Spain, mingling with eve...

Murder: a legal history

22 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Kate Morgan chronicles the legal history of murder, discussing the cases that shaped UK murder laws   Lawyer and writer Kate Morgan chronicles the le...

The merits of meritocracy

21 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Adrian Wooldridge discusses his new book Aristocracy of Talent, which explores meritocracy’s role in forging the modern world, and weighs up the ch...

The Enlightenment: everything you wanted to know

20 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Ritchie Robertson responds to listener questions on the intellectual and philosophical movement that swept Europe in the 17th and 18th centuries   Ho...

African Europeans

19 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In a conversation recorded as part of our virtual lecture series, Olivette Otele discusses her book African Europeans: An Untold History, which chart...

Women secret agents in Nazi-occupied France

18 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Kate Vigurs discusses the 39 female agents of the Special Operation Executive’s F-section, a diverse cohort of women recruited to carry out resistan...

Introducing: HistoryExtra Plus

17 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

We’re launching a brand-new premium podcast feed, HistoryExtra Plus – a subscription channel where we take you on a deep dive into the past, with...

Censorship, contradiction & controversy: a decade in the life of DH Lawrence

16 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

DH Lawrence’s work – such as The Rainbow, Women in Love and Lady Chatterley’s Lover – broke new ground and appalled censorious literary ...

Who was Britain’s greatest prime minister? Secrets of being a successful leader

15 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

For the concluding episode of our series on the prime ministers that experts believe accomplished most during their time in 10 Downing Street, Anthony...

Unearthing Britain’s prehistoric secrets

14 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Broadcaster and academic Alice Roberts joins us to discuss her new book Ancestors: A Prehistory of Britain in Seven Burials, which reveals what archa...

The Titanic: everything you wanted to know

13 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Tim Maltin answers listener questions about the sinking of RMS Titanic in 1912   Did the band really play on as the Titanic sank into the icy dep...

What can we learn from past catastrophes?

12 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

From the eruption of Vesuvius to Chernobyl and Covid-19, Niall Ferguson charts how disasters have changed the course of history   From the eruption ...

Women reporters of WW2

11 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Judith Mackrell explores the experiences of six women war correspondents who broke some of the key stories of the Second World War   From the German ...

Knights, dragons and beasts: the strange world of medieval romances

09 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

With their tales of supernatural beasts, death-defying quests and dashing knights that always got the girl, romances were the must-reads of the Middle...

Who was Britain’s greatest prime minister? Margaret Thatcher

08 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the latest episode of our new series profiling the prime ministers that experts believe accomplished most during their time in 10 Downing Street, h...

Wolfson History Prize 2021 special

07 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The Wolfson History Prize celebrates the very best history books that combine academic rigour with popular appeal. Ahead of the announcement of the wi...

Everything you wanted to know: British prisons

06 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Dr Rosalind Crone answers all the key questions on the history of British prisons   Just how bad was life in Victorian prisons? How hard was hard lab...

Ravenna: from Roman powerhouse to artistic hub

05 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Once the capital of the western Roman Empire, the Italian city of Ravenna was claimed in turn by Ostrogoths, Byzantines, Lombards and Franks, turning ...

Britain’s secret Jewish commandos

04 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Leah Garrett tells the story of X-troop, a group of Jewish commandos who became one of Britain’s most potent weapons against the Nazis   X-troop wa...

William Blake: “artist or genius, or mystic, or madman”

02 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

John Higgs discusses the unconventional life and extraordinary art of poet and painter William Blake. He explains how an eccentric outsider once mocke...

Who was Britain’s greatest prime minister? Lord Salisbury

01 Jun 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the latest episode of our series profiling the prime ministers that experts believe accomplished most during their time in 10 Downing Street, histo...

The curious tale of an Anglo-Saxon giant

31 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Tom Morcom and Helen Gittos discuss the Cerne Abbas Giant, a huge hill-carving in Dorset which has recently been re-dated to the Anglo-Saxon period  ...

The golden age of piracy: everything you wanted to know

30 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Rebecca Simon responds to your questions on the ‘golden age’ of piracy, when bands of buccaneers menaced the high seas, preying on merchant vessel...

Why are we living longer than our ancestors?

29 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Steven Johnson discusses the Extra Life project, which includes a book and new BBC Four series co-presented with David Olusoga. He chronicles a revolu...

Painting the Tudors: Hans Holbein the Younger

28 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Having painted the cream of Tudor society, including King Henry VIII, Anne of Cleves and Thomas Cromwell, Hans Holbein the Younger’s work offers an ...

Bretons, Britons, Celts & King Arthur

26 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Barry Cunliffe considers the story of Brittany from prehistory to today, and explores the region’s connections with Britain   Why is Brittany calle...

Who was Britain’s greatest prime minister? Winston Churchill

25 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the latest episode of our series profiling the prime ministers that experts believe accomplished most during their time in 10 Downing Street, Jerem...

What the Stasi did next

24 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

For decades the Stasi were a pervasive and terrifying force in the lives of millions of East Germans. Former FBI agent Ralph Hope reveals how officers...

The Anarchy: everything you wanted to know

23 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The Anarchy – a 12th-century civil war for the English crown that pitted Empress Matilda against Stephen of Blois – is remembered as one of the mo...

Busting myths about the Anglo-Saxons

22 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Historian Marc Morris tackles some of the most common misconceptions about the Anglo-Saxon era   What do we get wrong about the Anglo-Saxon era? Marc...

Napoleon the art thief

20 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Napoleon didn’t just humiliate his European rivals on the battlefield, he also looted their finest works of art. Author Cynthia Saltzman tells us ab...

Marcus Aurelius: thinker or fighter?

19 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Shushma Malik explores the life and career of Rome’s renowned philosopher-emperor Marcus Aurelius   Classicist Shushma Malik explores the life and ...

Who was Britain’s greatest prime minister? Pitt the Younger

18 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the latest episode of our new series profiling the prime ministers that experts believe accomplished most during their time in 10 Downing Street, h...

The rise and fall of Britain’s motor city

17 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Mark Evans charts the history of Coventry’s pioneering car industry, from the turn of the 20th century until the present day   Mark Evans, presente...

Samurai: everything you wanted to know

16 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the latest in our series tackling the big questions on major historical topics, Professor Michael Wert responds to listener questions and internet ...

The quest to find Alexander’s lost city

15 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Classicist Edmund Richardson tells the astonishing story of a British deserter from the East India Company who embarked on a quest to find a lost city...

Katharine Parr: secrets of a Tudor survivor

14 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Historian and novelist Alison Weir discusses the life of Katharine Parr – from her relationship with the king to her secret faith and other marriage...

Blackface: a brief history

12 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Ayanna Thompson discusses the history of blackface – a story spanning William Shakespeare, US race relations and Dartmoor Prison   Professor Ayanna...

Who was Britain’s greatest prime minister? Harold Wilson

11 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the latest episode of our new series profiling the prime ministers that experts believe accomplished most during their time in 10 Downing Street, C...

Madness, property and power: the strange case of Mary Davies

10 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Leo Hollis untangles the bizarre 18th-century court case surrounding Mary Davies: a wealthy heiress married in mysterious circumstances   In 1701, Ma...

The Vietnam War: everything you wanted to know

09 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Historian Mark Atwood Lawrence responds to listener questions and popular internet search queries on one of the most seismic events of the Cold War, A...

Medieval Ethiopia’s diplomatic missions

08 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Ethiopia was a Christian kingdom during the medieval period, and in the 15th and 16th centuries its kings sent diplomatic missions to their counterpar...

Uncovering the truth about WW2’s Katyn massacre

06 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Jane Rogoyska explains how more than 20,000 Polish prisoners-of-war were murdered on Stalin’s orders in 1940, and explores the decades-long coverup ...

The changing shape of slimming clubs

05 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

From Weight Watchers to Rosemary Conley’s fitness empire, slimming clubs have been a staple of British culture for decades. But, as Dr Katrina Mos...

Who was Britain’s Greatest Prime Minister? Clement Attlee

04 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the latest episode in our new series profiling the prime ministers that experts believe accomplished most during their time in 10 Downing Street, h...

How close to nuclear war did the Cuban Missile Crisis get?

03 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962 saw a confrontation between the United States and the Soviet Union escalate to the edge of nuclear war. Historian Ser...

Prohibition: everything you wanted to know

02 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Was Al Capone’s brother really a Prohibition agent? What was the atmosphere in a speakeasy like? And why did Americans think that banning booze woul...

The Danelaw: a Viking kingdom in England?

01 May 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Dr Ben Raffield explains how in the ninth and tenth centuries, Scandinavian laws and customs prevailed across a swathe of what’s now northern and ea...

Britain’s great postwar party

30 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

Harriet Atkinson takes us back to 1951’s Festival of Britain, a celebration of a nation rising from the ashes of war   The Festival of Britain of 1...

The Peasants’ Revolt: who were the rebels of 1381?

28 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

The Peasants’ Revolt of 1381 was a key moment in the reign of King Richard II. New research is revealing just how well-organised an operation it was...

Who was Britain’s greatest prime minister? Stanley Baldwin

27 Apr 2021

Contributed by Lukas

In the second episode of our new series on the prime ministers that experts believe accomplished most, Dominic Sandbrook champions Stanley Baldwin   ...