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
38:04
Orgasms & Skincare According to a Medieval Nun
11 October 2024Hildegard of Bingen, the 12th century nun, was a certified genius and a true polymath.
From her many side hustles to her skincare...
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23:35
How to Build a Castle
11 October 2024Castles in Medieval Britain didn't just serve a military purpose, they were central to the social and cultural life of society. In the second...
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23:04
Scotland & England's Union
10 October 2024The union between the nations of Great Britain goes back to 1707. On each side of the border, statesmen started to realise that a closer...
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38:04
Outlaws: John Dillinger | Public Enemy Number One
10 October 2024What does it take to be the first person named as 'Public Enemy No.1' by the US Bureau of Investigation?
In this episode, we're going to...
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47:41
Anubis and the Underworld
10 October 2024Tristan Hughes and his guest Dr. Joyce Tyldesley OBE are heading to the Underworld for the final installation of The Ancients exploration of the...
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50:08
Bodies in the Walls: Postwar London's Darkest Crime
10 October 2024John Reginald Christie was the most notorious murderer of his era. On the outside he was every inch the Old Fashioned Englishman, respectable...
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36:37
Elizabeth I's Conjuror: John Dee
10 October 2024A trusted advisor to Queen Elizabeth I, Dr. John Dee was an astronomer, mathematician, astrologer, and navigator with ties to the...
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29:45
Scotland's Disastrous Attempt at Empire
8 October 2024In the late 17th century, Scotland tried to establish a colony in Panama - and it all went horribly wrong.
In July 1698, a fleet of five...
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33:10
The Silk Road: Where Cultures Collided
8 October 2024At the edge of the Gobi Desert, Dunhuang was once a bustling oasis on the famous Silk Road connecting China and the Mediterranean. For more...
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41:51
Sex & Scandal in Catherine of Aragon's Court
8 October 2024When Henry VIII wanted a divorce from Catherine of Aragon, he needed to prove that she was not a virgin when they wed.
One woman was key to...
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46:38
Who Was Christopher Columbus?
7 October 2024Did Columbus really think the Earth was flat? Where did he come from? Where did he get to? To untangle the myths of Columbus and his complicated...
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39:46
Who was Jack the Ripper? The Doctor (Suspect 4)
7 October 2024Part 4/4. By looking at the men accused of being Jack the Ripper, we uncover dark truths about Victorian society - and our own. Why were these...
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42:28
Floral Messages in the Tudor Court
7 October 2024The Tudor Rose was a well-known symbol which dominated the national identity of England. But for both the Tudors and Stuarts, flower imagery...
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59:28
Robert the Bruce, King of Scots
6 October 2024Robert the Bruce is best remembered as a rebel king, and for good reason. He was an unrelenting thorn in the side of any English monarch with...
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50:02
Darius the Great, Persian King of Kings
6 October 2024One of the most famous and recognisable Persian kings of antiquity, Darius the Great was an Achaemenid superstar, ruling the Achaemenid Persian...
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59:07
Richard II vs. Henry IV
4 October 2024For the Plantagenets, family might be a curse as often as a boon. They could provide invaluable support, or dangerous rivalry. At the end of the...
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44:24
Illegitimacy: Sex & Secrecy in the 18th Century
4 October 2024Why were children punished for illegitimacy in the 18th century? And what does the word even mean?
The truth is quite shocking, and probably...
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41:00
Rise of the Medici
3 October 2024The House of Medici ruthlessly wielded control of Florence for nearly 300 years. Through financial and political machinations, they transformed...
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39:57
Outlaws: Bonnie & Clyde
3 October 2024Just how murderous were Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow? Where did those famous photos come from? And how did the press lead to the pair's...
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44:54
Burke & Hare: Scotland’s Most Notorious Serial Killers
3 October 2024Discover the true story of Burke and Hare’s murderous rampage through the streets of Edinburgh, all to serve the needs of the city’s...
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34:50
The Rise and Fall of Jane Boleyn
3 October 2024In 1542 Jane Boleyn was executed for having aided and abetted Henry VIII's fifth wife Catherine Howard to commit adultery. It was the second...
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