History Extra podcast

The History Extra podcast brings you gripping stories from the past and fascinating historical conversations with the world's leading historical experts.


Produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine, History Extra is a free history podcast, with episodes released six times a week. Subscribe now for the real stories behind your favourite films, TV shows and period dramas, as well as compelling insights into lesser-known aspects of the past. 

 

We delve into global history stories spanning the ancient world right up to the modern day. You’ll hear deep dives into the lives of famous historical figures like Cleopatra, Anne Boleyn and Winston Churchill, and explorations of intriguing events from the past, such as the Salem witch trials, the battle of Waterloo and D-Day. 

 

Expect fresh takes on history, helping you get to grips with the latest research, as we explore everything from ancient Roman archaeology and Viking mythology to Renaissance royals and Tudor kings and queens. 

 

Our episodes touch on a wide range of historical eras – from the Normans and Saxons to the Stuarts, Victorians and the Regency period. We cover the most popular historical subjects, from the medieval world to the Second World War, but you’ll also hear conversations on lesser-known parts of our past, including black history and women’s history. 

 

Looking at the history behind today’s headlines, we consider the forces that have shaped today’s world, from the imposing empires that dominated continents, to the revolutions that brought them crashing down. We also examine the impact of conflict across the centuries, from the crusades of the Middle Ages and the battles of the ancient Egyptians to World War One, World War Two and the Cold War.  

 

Plus, we uncover the real history behind myths, legends and conspiracy theories, from the medieval murder mystery of the Princes in the Tower, to the assassination of JFK.  

 

Featuring interviews with notable historians including Mary Beard, Tracy Borman, James Holland and Dan Jones, we cover a range of social, political and military history, with the aim to start conversations about some of the most fascinating areas of the past. 

Unlock full access to HistoryExtra.com for 6 months for just 99p https://www.historyextra.com/join/

History
1326
The big questions of LGBTQ history
We mark LGBT+ History Month with a panel discussion tackling some of the biggest themes in LGBTQ history
50 min
1327
Chaos & communism: China’s 1949 revolution
Graham Hutchings discusses how China was convulsed by the communist revolution of 1949.
38 min
1328
Elizabeth Barrett Browning: poet, activist, tra...
Fiona Sampson speaks about the extraordinary life of the Victorian poet, who battled chronic illness and family troubles to write ground-breaking poetry.
53 min
1329
Is “Blitz Spirit” a myth?
Ahead of their new BBC One documentary on the subject, Lucy Worsley, Joshua Levine and Yasmine Permaul discuss how Londoners really reacted to the devastating bombing raids
46 min
1330
Fatal accidents and violent injuries in the Mid...
Dr Jenna Dittmar, who has been studying medieval skeletons, reveals what her findings can tell us about injuries and violence in the era
34 min
1331
The Dissolution: everything you wanted to know
Dr Hugh Willmott responds to listener questions on Henry VIII’s suppression of the monasteries in the 16th century
52 min
1332
The forgotten mothers of civil rights leaders
Anna Malaika Tubbs shines a light on how Martin Luther King Jr, Malcolm X and James Baldwin were influenced by their mothers.
43 min
1333
Sex, romance and rights: women's lives since 1950
Historian Carol Dyhouse talks about how women's lives, dreams and loves have transformed in the decades since 1950, from the advent of the pill to the impact of second-wave feminism.
58 min
1334
Victorian pet cemeteries: animals in the afterlife
In the 19th century, devoted pet-owners established Britain’s first pet cemeteries. Dr Eric Tourigny explains what they tell us about Victorian attitudes to animals
31 min
1335
How slavery fuelled the British empire
Padraic X Scanlan discusses how slavery fuelled the British empire and explores the complicated motivations of abolitionists
43 min
1336
17th-century London: a city shaped by catastrophe
Margarette Lincoln reveals how a century that saw plague, fire, revolution and civil war transformed England’s capital
29 min
1337
Medieval forgeries
Forgery was the dirty little secret of the Middle Ages. Levi Roach explains who counterfeited medieval manuscripts and why
30 min
1338
Daily life in ancient Egypt: everything you wan...
Egyptologist Joyce Tyldesley responds to listener questions about everyday life in ancient Egypt, from governance to dental care and cat mummies.
60 min
1339
Novelist Kate Mosse on The City of Tears
Author Kate Mosse talks about her historical novel The City of Tears, which transports readers back to the Wars of Religion in 16th-century France
31 min
1340
The Dark Ages: a ‘black hole’ in Britain’s history
Max Adams pieces together the evidence to uncover what happened after the fall of Roman Britain.
42 min
1341
1962: London’s big freeze
Juliet Nicolson reveals how the frozen winter of 1962 helped change Britain for good.
35 min
1342
Edward I’s letters
Dr Kathleen Neal explains what we can learn about Edward I, the famously militaristic “Hammer of the Scots”, from his letters
46 min
1343
Cary Grant: from humble beginnings to Hollywood...
Mark Glancy reveals how Cary Grant made the journey from working-class Bristol lad to the most celebrated actor in Hollywood.
33 min
1344
Blitz spirit or broken morale?
Jeremy Crang investigates reports on British morale made during the Second World War and considers what they can tell us about the ‘Blitz spirit’
39 min
1345
The Black Death: everything you wanted to know
Professor John Hatcher answers listener questions about the medieval pandemic, and reflects on how the Covid-19 crisis might shape our understanding of the plague
61 min
1346
Why do we fight wars?
Margaret MacMillan gives a lecture on the reasons for conflict throughout history – and how warfare has shaped the human story.
37 min
1347
A guide to the Norse gods
From Thor to Odin, Carolyne Larrington discusses the legendary figures of Viking mythology
52 min
1348
The hunt for Caesar’s killers
Peter Stothard reveals how Julius Caesar’s assassination triggered a brutal power struggle, one that would transform ancient Rome.
41 min
1349
Werewolves of the ancient world
Daniel Ogden explores the origins of the werewolf legend in stories from ancient Greece and Rome.
23 min
1350
Rich vs poor in Regency Britain
Historian Ian Mortimer discusses how a vast chasm between rich and poor marked society in the early 19th century
34 min