Aspects of History
The editor of Aspects of History, Ollie Webb-Carter, interviews historians and authors on the past - from the ancient world right up to the modern day. In each episode, Ollie seeks to get to the bottom of a story or scrutinise a figure from history. There are bonus episodes too, from current events and anniversaries to the Aspects of History Film Club.
76
The Gunpowder Plot with Peter Tonkin
Remember, remember, the 5th of November, Gunpowder, treason and plot.
50 min
77
The SAS in Italy with Gavin Mortimer
Early on the 10th July 1943, advance units of elite British troops landed on the island of Sicily, and began series of raids against the Germans to allow the larger force to land on the beaches.
55 min
78
Film Club: Alexander (2004)
This month’s film club is the epic Alexander, directed by Oliver Stone, starring Colin Farrell, Angelina Jolie and Val Kilmer.
82 min
79
Blair 'Paddy' Mayne with Damien Lewis
Blair Paddy Mayne was one of the most decorated soldiers of the Second World War, and one of the original members of the SAS.
48 min
80
The Battle of Trafalgar with Michael Barritt
On the 21st October 1805, 27 ships of the line of the Royal Navy, under the command of Admiral Horatio Nelson engaged the combined fleets of France and Spain.
47 min
81
Horatio Nelson with Dominic Sandbrook
On the evening of 21st October 1805 Great Britain won perhaps her finest military victory, defeating the navies of France and Spain in one of the bloodiest naval battles at Trafalgar
53 min
82
Christendom vs. the Caliphate with Simon Mayall
On the 11th September 1683, at the great city of Vienna, the armies of the Ottoman Empire were preparing to storm the city, but their scouts to the west noticed a vast cavalry force approaching.
57 min
83
Ovid with Fiona Forsyth
Publius Ovidius Naso was a Roman poet much of whose life coincided with the reign of Augustus.
37 min
84
Naples 1944 with Keith Lowe
Within months of the allies liberation of Naples in October of 1943 the city was plunged into the horrors of disease, starvation, prostitution and racketeering.
45 min
85
Henry V with Dan Jones
On the 25th October 1415 Henry V led the English army onto the field of Agincourt.
50 min
86
Film Club: A Bridge Too Far (1977)
Our Operation Market Garden series concludes with a chat on the 1977 classic directed by Richard Attenborough.
80 min
87
Operation Market Garden with Gordon Corrigan & ...
At 3 o’clock in the afternoon on the 20th September 1944 in Nijmegen, Holland, men of the 504th regiment, US 82nd Airborne embarked in canvas rowing boats and began an amphibious assault that was one of the most heroic in military history.
83 min
88
Operation Market Garden: Black Tuesday with Al ...
On Sunday the 17th September 1944 the 1st Airborne Division began dropping into Arnhem to begin a battle that remains iconic to this day.
48 min
89
Operation Market Garden: Arnhem with Saul David
Arnhem was one of the greatest battles fought by the British in World War Two. 10,000 men went in, but only 2,000 came out.
49 min
90
Vienna with Jane Thynne
On the 12th March 1938 German troops crossed the border into Austria, thus completing the Anschluss, the annexation by Germany.
38 min
91
18 Historical Figures at 18 with Alice Loxton
By the 1960s Richard Burton was the highest paid movie star in the world.
39 min
92
Film Club: Anthropoid (2016)
On the On 27 May 1942 Czech SOE agents and local resistance fighters attacked Reinhard Heyrdrich's Mercedes as it drove through Prague.
55 min
93
Hitler, Himmler, Goebbels & Heydrich with Richa...
Hitler and his cronies are often derided as monsters, but that lets them off the hook.
54 min
94
Historical Fiction with Jane Thynne, Paul Lay &...
Sensitivity readers; fake history; favourite authors and actors, all are discussed in this bonus episode to coincide with the upcoming Buckingham History Festival.
42 min
95
The Liberation of Paris with Patrick Bishop
80 years ago on the 25th August 1944, the great city of Paris was liberated as the German garrison surrendered and Allied troops arrived along the Champs Elysée.
58 min
96
The Fall of the Ottoman Empire with Alec Marsh ...
On the 1st September 1922 the Turkish Parliament in the new capital of Ankara formally abolished the Sultanate, so ending more than 600 years of Ottoman Rule.
49 min
97
1930s Traitors with Alex Gerlis
On the 9th February 1933 the Oxford Union held a debate with the motion “That this House will under no circumstances fight for its King and country."
30 min
98
Socrates with Armand D'Angour
Armand D'Angour joins to discuss his new pod, but then we go into a really interesting conversation about Socrates and whether he really is the origin of Western Thought?
48 min
99
18th Century Europe with Adam Zamoyski
The French Revolution, the rise of Napoleon, the Industrial Revolution and the collapse of Poland, all these major events were witnessed by Izabela Czartoryski, a Polish aristocrat who was self-taught
44 min
100
Books of the Year So Far with The Gang
This week three writers join to talk summer reading recommendations from the world of history and historical fiction.
82 min