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
39:26
California Gold Rush
1 June 2023From the rings on our fingers, to coins in our pockets and, for a select few, the medals hanging around our necks. Gold is one of the most coveted...
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44:09
Origins of Horse Riding
1 June 2023Human and Horse relationships have long be intertwined; from the ancient Eurasian plain, through to modern cowboys. But how did these huge,...
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44:22
Shakespeare's First Folio
1 June 2023Four hundred years ago in 1623, the first collected edition of Shakespeare's plays was printed. Known as the First Folio, the book was integral to...
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22:35
Love and Lust in WWII
31 May 2023Though rarely spoken about, love, lust and sexuality were key to many soldiers' experiences of the Second World War. Veterans might allude to them...
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32:52
Stone Tools: The First Ever Invention
31 May 2023Stone Tools are technology 1.0. They’re where it all begins. For millions of years, Stone Tools were our primary piece of technology. At some...
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41:39
Murder in the Roman World
30 May 2023The Ancient Romans are often thought of as ahead of their time. They invented concrete, sophisticated road systems and even underfloor...
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44:51
Origins of Scottish Independence
30 May 2023For the first time in 18 years, the Declaration of Arbroath - an iconic document in the story of the struggle for Scottish independence in the...
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39:12
The Rise of Celebrity Culture
30 May 2023Any of us who have happened to see a celebrity in the wild can admit to the strange thrill you get.
It doesn’t matter if it’s C,...
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41:22
Why Empires Fall
29 May 2023For centuries, the Roman Empire commanded unparalleled control over the world around it. It expanded its borders through trade and conquest,...
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40:04
Lincoln & God: Scepticism to Spiritualism
29 May 2023He's the best president that the United States has ever had ... at least according to one 2021 C-span study.
But how did Lincoln's religious...
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36:07
Henry Kissinger
29 May 2023A prominent American Diplomat, and influential American statesmen, Henry Kissinger is a name known around the world. Serving as National Security...
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42:59
Great Fire of London
29 May 2023Why do we call the Great Fire of London in 1666 “great”? Was it because of the significant challenge it posed to authorities and residents as...
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19:26
How the Mongols Changed the World
28 May 2023After the death of Chinggis Khan, the founder and first Emperor of the Mongol Empire, the land became the largest contiguous empire in...
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41:52
Babylon and the Bible
28 May 2023When looking at the Hebrew Bible, the city of Babylon plays a prominent role - especially in the Old Testament. A city famed for it's...
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40:39
Colours: from Cave Paint to Nanotube Black
28 May 2023There's a theory that the invention of paint had something to do with the dawn of humanity. We are on a never-ending quest to create brighter,...
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34:10
The Giggling Granny serial killer
26 May 2023Picture a serial killer in your mind’s eye. What do you see? More often than not it will be a man.
Statistically that’s accurate, but it...
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29:48
Julian of Norwich: England's First Woman Writer?
26 May 2023The writings of Julian of Norwich are the earliest surviving English language works by a woman and the only surviving English language...
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46:02
Battle of Aden
26 May 2023In March 2015, a ten-nation coalition of Gulf states launched an attack against Houthi insurgents in Aden. With Iran seeking to dominate the...
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1:05:40
5. Story of England: Modern Warfare
25 May 2023From the First World War to the Cold War, conflict in the 20th century has been crucial in shaping England as we know it. This is the final...
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33:25
The Birth of the American Flag
25 May 202313 equal horizontal stripes in red and white, with a navy blue square in the top left bearing 50 small white five pointed stars. It's recognisable...
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50:55
Tudors in Ireland
25 May 2023King Henry VII and his Tudor heirs knew very little about Ireland, over which they ruled in name at least. During the 118 years of Tudor rule, not...
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