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

45:20

The Nazis & Rommel in the Middle East

14 June 2021

Erwin Rommel, the ‘Desert Fox’, known as such because from 1940 until the end of 1942, he led his troops across the deserts of North Africa and...

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28:22

Gordon Brown on How To Save the World

13 June 2021

Gordon Brown stood at the pinnacle of UK politics for 13 years first as Chancellor of the Exchequer and the as Prime Minister but it is as a private...

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48:40

Berenike and the Red Sea Spice Route

13 June 2021

Situated on the western coast of the Red Sea in antiquity were a series of thriving seaports, bringing in trade from as far as way as Sir Lanka....

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27:53

The Euros

12 June 2021

England holds the slightly unwanted title for the most appearances in the Euros without ever reaching a final, so why the excitement when it comes...

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35:48

Medieval Africa

12 June 2021

It’s no secret that Africa’s early history is documented quite differently from its European counterparts, relying instead on elements such as...

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31:54

Alexander the Great’s Corpse and the Greatest Heist in History

11 June 2021

Alexander the Great is one of the most famous generals and empire builders in history, but the story of his death is almost as remarkable as his...

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25:05

WW2: Death Marches

11 June 2021

As the Allies advanced through Europe in early 1945, the Nazis embarked on one final escalation of the Holocaust. Hundreds of thousands of prisoners,...

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55:39

Japan's Edo Period

10 June 2021

After a century of Civil War, changes in the way Japan was ruled from 1600 onwards meant that Europeans and Christianity made few inroads into...

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20:18

The Mary Rose and Her Ethnically Diverse Crew

10 June 2021

The Mary Rose, a Tudor warship in Henry VIII's navy, sank in the Solent on 19 July 1545 with the loss of most of her 415 strong crew. Recent...

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1:01:48

Nero: Taking to the Stage

10 June 2021

In popular culture, Nero is thought of as the Emperor who played the fiddle as Rome burned to the ground. Whilst this might not be strictly factual,...

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49:56

The Crusades with Dan Jones

9 June 2021

The two Dans are back. And this time, they're talking all things crusades. In this rerun episode, Dan Jones provides his namesake host with a...

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1:00:38

How to Be a Spy

9 June 2021

Charlie Higson and Ben McIntyre talk about the facts and fictions of working in espionage. Having both encountered the recruitment process for the...

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35:49

Stalin's War

8 June 2021

The Second World War is often depicted as a straight battle between good and evil but it was perhaps less straightforward than that. Whilst the Nazi...

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28:58

Viking Raid on Lindisfarne

8 June 2021

1228 years ago, on June 8 793, Vikings attacked a monastic settlement on the island of Lindisfarne. This raid had such an impact across Europe that...

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40:14

The French Historie: A Gory Poem

7 June 2021

In 1589, Anne Dowriche, the wife of a Puritan minister from Devon, wrote a long and gory poem about the bloody, ongoing conflict between Catholics...

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22:12

The History of Head Transplants

7 June 2021

The superpower rivalry of the Cold War had many different fronts, space, the rice paddy fields of south-east Asia and even the operating theatre. The...

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38:45

After D-Day: The Fight Out Of Normandy

7 June 2021

Few days hold such a strong position in history as D-Day. However, as David O'Keefe tells us in this episode, 6 June 1944 was followed by 76 days of...

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30:26

New D-Day Shipwrecks Discovered

6 June 2021

D-Day on 6 June 1944 saw the largest amphibious landing in history take place as more than 150,000 allied troops stormed five assault beaches in...

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54:21

Iron Age British and Roman Racing Chariots

6 June 2021

How truthful are modern depictions of ancient chariots? In this second episode, Mike Loades explores the reality behind the scythed chariot shown in...

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19:17

The Profumo Affair

5 June 2021

It was the scandal that shook the British political world to its core leading to ministerial resignations and helping to bring down a prime...

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54:36

Unravelling Medieval Buildings

5 June 2021

From spiral stairs, to tunnels leading to pubs and brothels, to witch markings; join us as we find out the truth about medieval buildings. Matt is...

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