Trashy Royals

214. The Plantagenets | Eleanor, Mother of Dynasties, featuring Richard the Lionheart and Berengaria of Navarre

Eleanor’s life was no less interesting following the death of Henry II. Rather than fade into the background, her son, King Richard I, instead made her his most powerful

213. The Plantagenets | Eleanor of Aquitaine featuring Henry II

After Eleanor finally succeeded in ending her marriage to Louis VII of France, she had a brief turn of wedded bliss to the future Henry II of England. It’s not that the m

212. The Plantagenets | Eleanor of Aquitaine Before Henry II

There are no Plantagenet kings after Henry II without Eleanor of Aquitaine. History is not without examples of powerful women, to be sure, but even in that pantheon, El

211. Royal Tea-Time | As the Windsors Turn and Listener Letters!

It's a sad week, friends, and we are distracted by the losses of Dolly Parton and Tim Curry. Today, we do a little Royals Round Up with chatter about Harry and Meghan, An

210. The Stormin' Normans | Matilda and Stephen

After the unfortunate incident with the boating accident that killed Heir Presumptive William in 1120, King Henry I had a choice to make when it came to succession planni

209. The Stormin’ Normans | William the Conqueror, William II, and Henry I

Today we travel back nearly a millennia to investigate the House of Normandy, the beginning of the line of non-English Kings. William the Conqueror was the first Norman (

208. Put Up Your Dukes | Dukes and Duchesses

A few weeks ago, we ranked the royals in the UK system. Today, Alicia takes us into the peerage to talk their top of the heap, Dukes and Duchesses. Sponsors Upgrade yo

207. Princess Margaret

When Queen Elizabeth II was born in 1926, there were years of her childhood that were, compared to other future monarchs, quite normal. After all, she was never supposed

206. The Mad-Lib That is Roald Dahl's Grandson's Life - He Married, and Divorced, Jordan's Princess Raiya (A Trashy Divorces Crossover)

As she was idly scrolling Bluesky a few days ago, Alicia (@alicianwonderland.bsky.social) came across the ultimate Mad-Lib of a skeet: "roald dahl's grandson is a former

205. Sarah Ferguson's Windfall?

Alicia - at the prompting of a listener - started to deep dive into Andrew and Sarah's adult daughters when she learned that an old boyfriend of Sarah's, who has also bee

204. Anne, Princess Royal

While we're ranking the Royals, Alicia thought it was worth taking a moment to appreciate the hardest working of the bunch, the current Princess Royal, Princess Anne. An

203. Ranking the Royals: Kings, Queens, Princes, and Princesses

Alicia realized that some of our Good Nobles (especially American Good Nobles) may not be fluent in the various ranks of the English aristocracy. So why start at the bott

202. Corruption at Court | Thomas Howard and Katherine Knyvet, 1st Earl and Countess of Suffolk

As a follow-up to our episode about Frances Howard and the Thomas Overbury Affair, Stacie introduces us to Frances's parents, Thomas Howard and Katherine Knyvet. The coup

201. Consuelo Vanderbilt Balsan, Duchess of Marlborough

Come aboard, friends - today we have a Gilded Age roller coaster!  Consuelo Vanderbilt wasn't born royal - she wasn't even born in a monarchy! But she did grow up in a s

200. Louis and Edwina Mountbatten | Dickie Solo

After the death of Edwina Mountbatten in 1960, Dickie still had another 19 years of living to do, and while he was single, he was in no way alone. He had romances with pl

199. Louis and Edwina Mountbatten | Comrades in Arms

As Edwina took pains to lay low in Malta after the scandals of her affairs, Italy decided to exit the League of Nations and invade Ethiopia. To protect their children, sh

198. Louis and Edwina Mountbatten | Careless People

Programming note: This episode is a bit more explicit than most, including strong language and descriptions of sex. If you listen with wee ones, use your judgment. The e

197. Louis and Edwina Mountbatten | Unconventional Marriage

As the Roaring '20s turned into the '30s, Edwina's appetite for other lovers showed no sign of diminishing, and eventually led to a breaking point with her long-suffering

196. Louis and Edwina Mountbatten | Let the Affairs Begin!

It didn't take long for Edwina, young, rich, and alone while her husband Louis was away with the Navy, to begin flirtations and then affairs with various suitors. There w

195. Louis and Edwina Mountbatten | The Wedding and The Honeymoon... Is Over

While Louis and Edwina Mountbatten would have a 38-year-long marriage, it isn't quite right to say it was a happy union. That first six months or so though - when they tr