How and Why History: The Philosophers of Ancient Greece
From the 6th century BCE, philosophy was used to make sense of the world – including astronomy, mathematics, politics, ethics, metaphysics and aesthetics. But why did philosophy flourish in Greek cult...
25 Aug 202032min
The Neanderthals
Rebecca Wragg Sykes joined me on the pod to discuss our perception of the Neanderthals, which has undergone a metamorphosis since their discovery 150 years ago, from the losers of the human family tre...
25 Aug 202037min
Assassination and Coverups in The Cold War Congo
I was joined by an award-winning investigative journalist, Ravi Somaiya, to discuss the mysterious death in 1961 of UN Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld. Although Dag Hammarskjöld was called ‘the gre...
23 Aug 202019min
Magic and Witchcraft
Suzannah Lipscomb joined me on the pod to discuss the history of magic, witchcraft and the occult. Examining the beliefs and suspicions from the ancient era to the modern world, we discussed everythin...
22 Aug 202028min
Charles I Reconsidered
On 22nd August 1642, Charles I raised his standard at Nottingham marking the start of the English Civil War. It was the result of years of ongoing tensions which could no longer be resolved with diplo...
21 Aug 202042min
The Spartans
I was thrilled to be joined by Andrew Bayliss, a Senior Lecturer in Greek History at the University of Birmingham. He's an expert on Sparta and Ancient Greece, and he joined me on the pod to mark the ...
20 Aug 202023min
Freemasonry
John Dickie joined me on the pod to discuss the international story of an organisation which now has 6 million members across the globe. Tracing the origins from local fraternities of stonemasons at t...
19 Aug 202021min
How and Why History: Pilgrimage in the Middle Ages
In the Middle Ages, the Holy Land, as well as sites in Europe and around Britain became popular sites for pilgrimage. It was believed that praying at shrines or in front of holy relics could absolve y...
18 Aug 202031min
