James Gillray: life of the week

Showbusiness, spying and civil rights - the extraordinary life of Josephine Baker had it all. From difficult beginnings, Baker transformed herself into the world's first black superstar, before turnin...

12 Touko 202545min

From rainmaking queens to dogged isolationists, the lives and reigns of Africa’s female rulers have long been shrouded in mystery, misunderstanding and misogyny. Over the centuries and throughout the ...

11 Touko 202539min

It's considered to be the bloodiest civil war in history, but there's a fair chance you've never heard of it. The Taiping Rebellion convulsed China from 1850 to 1864, leading to over 20 million deaths...

10 Touko 202556min

All eyes have been on the Vatican in recent days, as the conclave have decided who will be the next pope. But how does the process today compare to that of past centuries? What have been some of the m...

8 Touko 202538min

Nazi Germany had finally been defeated. And, for 24 hours, Britons could let their hair down and celebrate. But not everyone was in the mood to party. As 2025 marks the 80th anniversary, John Willis t...

6 Touko 202527min

Nikola Tesla is remembered as an enigmatic, eccentric genius who harnessed the power of electricity. But if we strip away some of this myth, what can we really say about the inventor's life and legacy...

5 Touko 202538min

In the 1840s, famine hit Ireland with devastating consequences. But what were the circumstances that turned a potato blight into a catastrophe that shattered societal structures and caused around a mi...

4 Touko 202542min

In 1861, the kingdom of Italy was proclaimed, unifying the various Italian states under one national banner. But what did it mean to be 'Italian' in the mid-19th century? How did the pope react to the...

3 Touko 202544min