History Podcasts
The History Hit network gives you access to a growing range of podcasts presented by and featuring historians at the forefront of research and debate.
Scroll down to listen to the most recent episodes from our network.
Dan Snow’s History Hit explores the deep history behind today’s headlines – giving you the context to understand what is going on today. Everything has a history, every challenge made easier by understanding its nature, its genesis. In a world of fast opinions, we put historians into the debate, women and men who bring real knowledge built over careers spent researching.
The Ancients, hosted by historian Tristan Hughes, is dedicated to discussing our distant past. Historians and archaeologists join Tristan to discuss specific themes from antiquity, from Neolithic Britain to the Fall of Rome.
Professor Suzannah Lipscomb presents Not Just the Tudors. Together with expert interviewees, she covers the sweeping range of the early modern period: everything from the Aztecs to witches, Velázquez to Shakespeare, Mughal India to the Mayflower.
Gone Medieval is hosted by historians Matt Lewis and Eleanor Janega, who shine a light on one of the most fascinating yet misunderstood periods of history: the Middle Ages. In each episode, experts lead listeners beneath the skin of captivating stories to uncover new insights.
In Betwixt the Sheets join historian, Kate Lister as she unashamedly roots around the topics which seem to have been skipped in history class. Everything from landmark LGBTQ+ court cases, to political scandal, to downright bizarre medieval cures for impotence.
In American History Hit, join Don Wildman twice a week for your hit of American history, as he explores the past to help us understand the United States of today. We’ll hear how codebreakers uncovered secret Japanese plans for the Battle of Midway, visit Chief Powhatan as he prepares for war with the British, see Walt Disney accuse his former colleagues of being communists, and uncover the dark history that lies beneath Central Park.
After Dark: Myths, Misdeeds & the Paranormal joined History Hit’s award-winning podcast network in October 2023, hosted by actor, writer and historian Anthony Delaney and writer, broadcaster, historian Maddy Pelling. Together, the duo unpick history’s spookiest, strangest and most sinister stories – from the disappearance of HMS Terror to the origins of Halloween.
War historian and broadcaster James Rogers hosts our Warfare podcast, which opens up fascinating new perspectives on how conflict has shaped and changed our world. James teams up with fellow historians, veterans, and experts to reveal astonishing new histories of inspirational leadership, breakthrough technologies, and era defining battles.
Patented, hosted by Dallas Campbell, dives into stories of flukey discoveries, erased individuals and murky marketing ploys with the help of experts, scientists and historians.
Click on any of the listings below to listen to the most recent episodes from our network.
All Podcasts
33:58
VE Day
6 May 2025When the Second World War finally ended 80 years ago, there was a mixed reaction in Britain. Today, we hear about these varying responses, from...
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40:47
The Hangwoman of 18th Century Ireland
6 May 2025Imagine an executioner. Are they big, strong, cloaked and masked? Are they male? Probably - because most executioners in history have been. Today,...
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1:02:31
Conclave: Picking Popes
6 May 2025Choosing a new Pope has always been a blend of the sacred, the political, and the downright theatrical. In the middle ages, the papal election was...
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50:58
Jonestown: The Birth of Peoples Temple
5 May 2025On November 18th, 1978, over 900 people died at an American settlement in the jungle of Guyana called Jonestown. In this first of two episodes, we...
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52:37
How Victorian London Was Brought To Life In Assassin's Creed Syndicate
5 May 2025For the past few weeks, Matt Lewis has investigated the history behind Assassin’s Creed Syndicate. In this episode, Matt joins historian and...
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37:32
The Dark Side of Ancient Rome
5 May 2025As a lot of new listeners have joined us, and it's a bank holiday in the UK, we thought we'd re-run one of our earliest, goriest episodes. Trust...
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49:31
The Elizabethans and Islam
5 May 2025Elizabeth I's excommunication by the Pope in 1570 marked the beginning of an extraordinary - and little-known - English alignment with Muslim...
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41:33
How did Andrew Jackson Change the U.S. Presidency?
4 May 2025A hero to some, and a villain to others, the seventh president of the United States was a populist firebrand who reshaped America and left a...
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1:14:33
The Fall of Rome: Origins
4 May 2025The Roman Empire, once an ancient powerhouse, experienced a dramatic fall from its golden age to eventual collapse.
Tristan Hughes and...
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57:23
Magna Carta 1225
2 May 2025What's the true story behind the Magna Carta, and how did a 17-year-old King Henry III shape a document that impacted the course of...
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47:49
What Made You Ugly In Ancient Rome?
2 May 2025What was a Roman skincare routine like? Why did the beard make a comeback under Emperor Hadrian? And what did it mean to be ugly in this...
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30:54
Germany After Hitler
1 May 202580 years ago, as the war in Europe drew to a close, the world began to come to terms with the horrors of the Third Reich. This is the story of the...
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35:42
Spring-Heeled Jack: Terror of Victorian London
1 May 2025The grimy streets of Victorian London were stalked by a shadowy menace: Spring-Heeled Jack! He had glowing eyes and blue flames came out his...
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58:29
The Dark Side of Sir Francis Drake
1 May 2025For centuries, Sir Francis Drake has been celebrated as a national hero - the first Englishman to circumnavigate the globe. But behind the Drake...
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37:23
The Fall of Richard Nixon
1 May 2025Who was the real Richard Nixon? There are sides to him that get overlooked, like that he had a deeper understanding of foreign affairs than any...
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57:43
Prehistoric Ireland: Newgrange
1 May 2025An astonishing ancient tomb is Ireland's most famous prehistoric monument; Newgrange. Tristan Hughes is joined by Dr Muiris O’Sullivan, an...
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37:38
The Death of Hitler
29 April 2025Warning: this episode contains discussion of suicide.
Berlin, April 1945: After nearly 12 years, the "Thousand-Year Reich" is crumbling....
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32:07
The Truth About Medusa
29 April 2025You could be forgiven for thinking the Greek myth of Medusa has zero relevance to us today. Snake for hair?!
But as you'll hear in today's...
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59:39
Genghis Khan's Pax Mongolica
29 April 2025Dr. Eleanor Janega is joined by Dr. Jeremiah Jenne to explore the incredible impact of the Mongol Empire on medieval history. From Marco Polo's...
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38:53
Vietnam: The End of the War?
28 April 2025How did the US get out of Vietnam? In this episode, we are diving into how 'peace' was agreed in Paris, and what it really meant for...
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46:34
Tudors & Their Dogs
28 April 2025What was life like for man's best friend in the court of Henry VIII? Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is led by the pawprints of history by Mike Loades...
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