HistoryExtra podcast

Preview: Toast – a surprising slice of history

Today on the HistoryExtra podcast, we’re bringing you a taster of the new season of History’s Greatest Dishes – the series in which food historian Annie Gray talks to Emi

King Arthur: a tale of demon sex and dog-headed monsters

You may think of King Arthur as a chivalrous ruler, surrounded by noble knights, living in splendour in Camelot and setting out on amazing quests. However, that story ori

Secrets of history's greatest commanders

Which battlefield victory did Napoleon rank as his most brilliant? How did Julius Caesar squeeze that extra one per cent commitment out of his soldiers? And what cunning

What really sparked the Tudor Reformation?

Why did Henry VIII decide to break with Rome? From his turbulent personal life to a desire to rid the Catholic church of corruption, the Tudor king’s motivations have lon

The WW2 nurses who saved lives in the skies

You might be forgiven for thinking there were no women on the frontline in the Second World War. But, that's not the case. In this episode of the HistoryExtra podcast, La

King Harold: tragic hero of the English

King Harold II of England – otherwise known as Harold Godwinson – famously died at the battle of Hastings, with his demise at the hands of Duke William of Normandy usheri

Ancient goddesses: love, violence and ecstatic experiences

What do goddesses of love have in common with goddesses of war? Historian Ronald Hutton argues that some of the ancient world’s most powerful female deities were united b

Life and death in the Viking age

Who was the first Viking? Why did Norse people believe they could turn into animals? And what does all of this have to do with the fall of the western Roman empire? In th

D-Day’s secret hero: the true story behind Pressure (In paid partnership with StudioCanal)

What comes to mind when you think D-Day? Perhaps it’s the tactical brilliance of the commanders, or the brutal combat fought by the troops. But, what about meteorologist

Why we believe in the supernatural

Ghosts, witches, flying nuns, and spirits summoned from beyond the grave might seem to belong to a less rational age. But were our ancestors really so different from us i

How to build the ultimate medieval castle

If you had to survive a siege, which medieval fortress would you choose to be holed up inside? In today's episode, Dan Jones surveys the world's historic fortifications t

Richard III's traumatic childhood

Richard III is one of the most divisive kings in all of English history – a man whose seizure of the throne in 1483 has provoked fierce debate for more than five centurie

How Ghosts makes history funny – without getting it wrong

How do you make history hilarious without mangling the facts? As Ghosts: The Possession of Button House arrives on the big screen, co-creator, writer and actor Laurence R

America's anti-Chinese laws: a forgotten history

From the middle of the 19th century, Chinese people in the United States found themselves increasingly policed, as legislation was introduced that contained and controlle

An African king in the Roman empire

He was barely a toddler when he was paraded as a captive in a Roman triumph in 46 BC, but young North African prince Juba went on to marry a daughter of Antony and Cleopa

Everyday life in a slave trading town

In 1665 the Portuguese Inquisition arrested Crispina Peres, a powerful slave trader in the west African port of Cacheu. The records of her case provide a remarkable windo

From plague 'searchers' to strawberry birthmarks: a history of women's bodies

What was 'nidgeting'? How did women know they were pregnant before modern tests? And what did people in the past believe a mother’s imagination could do to her unborn chi

The country house at war

It might be assumed that the owners of Britain's country houses weren't hugely affected by the Second World War, and that they continued to live in luxury in their vast e

The pioneering surgeon who stood up to Rasputin

She pioneered lifesaving battlefield surgery, challenged the medical establishment, stood up to Rasputin, and became the world's first female professor of surgery – yet t

The stolen Native Americans who shaped US history

Between 1492 and 1880, as many as 600,000 Native Americas were enslaved in the area that would become the United States. That’s the figure estimated by historian Linford