History Podcasts | History Hit

 

 

History Hit 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

40:04

Bayeux Tapestry

16 October 2021

The Bayeux Tapestry is one of the world’s most prominent pieces of medieval art. Depicting the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England, the...

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43:01

Climate Wars

15 October 2021

As the planet heats up, competition for resources rises and populations migrate. Even without the impact of natural disasters it’s enough to raise...

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33:32

The Haitian Revolution

14 October 2021

In 1791 the slaves of the French colony of Sant-Domingue rose up against their colonial masters and after a long and bloody struggle, defeated them...

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59:06

How Catherine of Aragon Learnt to be Queen

14 October 2021

The Spanish infanta Catalina of Aragon was raised to be a Queen, betrothed at the age of three to the heir apparent of the English throne, Arthur...

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32:11

Ai Khanum: A Greek City in Afghanistan?

14 October 2021

A theatre, a gymnasium and houses with colonnaded courtyards: these are the hallmarks of an Ancient Greek city. So what are they doing in the...

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55:42

The Battle of Hastings

13 October 2021

On 14 October 1066, the armies of William, the Duke of Normandy, and the Anglo-Saxon King Harold Godwinson clashed near Hastings in one of the most...

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17:45

Italy in WW2

13 October 2021

On 13 October 1943, one month after surrendering to the Allies, Italy declared war on its former partner, Nazi Germany. In this episde from the...

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50:11

Lady Jane Grey

12 October 2021

On a cold February morning in 1554, Lady Jane Grey was beheaded for high treason. Named as King Edward VI as his successor, Queen Jane had reigned...

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29:02

Galloway Hoard

12 October 2021

In September 2014, a metal detectorist discovered the rarest collection of Viking-age objects ever found to date in Britain. The Galloway hoard...

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21:56

Maurice Hilleman: Vaccine Creator

11 October 2021

Dr Maurice Hilleman was a leading American microbiologist who specialised in vaccinology and immunology. He discovered nine vaccines that are...

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53:01

The 1549 Kett's Rebellion

11 October 2021

In 1549, the Tudor establishment was rocked by a series of popular rebellions, born of deep discontent over the enclosure by wealthy landowners of...

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28:53

Protesting Nuclear Weapons: Greenham Common

11 October 2021

In September 1981 a small group of 36 Welsh women marched 120 miles from Cardiff to RAF Greenham Common and chained themselves to the gates. They...

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27:05

Jack the Ripper Retold

10 October 2021

In 1888 a series of brutal killings took place in Whitechapel, London which might be the most famous unsolved murders of all time. The case and...

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1:20:20

Alexander the Great's Greatest Victory

10 October 2021

In October 331 BC, one of the most important battles of world history occurred on the plain of Gaugamela. Alexander III of Macedon, better known...

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26:55

Operation Jubilee: Disaster at Dieppe

9 October 2021

In August 1942 the Allies launched a daring raid across the Channel to capture the port town of Dieppe and hold it for 24 hours. It ended in disaster...

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48:46

Medieval Manuscripts & Their Makers

9 October 2021

Medieval manuscripts can shed light on some of the most important events of the past. But what about the physical manuscripts themselves? And what...

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38:34

IEDs in Afghanistan

8 October 2021

October 7th, 2001 marks the beginning of the bombing campaign against Taliban forces. Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) caused havoc in...

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26:11

Gangsters, Pimps & Prostitutes: London's West End

7 October 2021

London's West End attracts people from across the world to its many theatres, restaurants and famous nightlife but how did this centre of pleasure...

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47:07

17th & 18th Century Sexual Revolution

7 October 2021

For most of western history, sex outside of marriage was forbidden by law, with adulterers even facing the death sentence. The church, the state...

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51:30

Nefertiti

7 October 2021

Very few figures in history are recognizable from their silhouettes, but included in this small group is Nefertiti, one of the most famous queens of...

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46:48

Al Qaeda

6 October 2021

Their attacks of 11 September 2001 sparked a War on Terror which echoes loudly to this day, but where did Al Qaeda come from, how did their...

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