James Gillray: life of the week

In the latest episode of our monthly series charting the past behind the present, historians Rana Mitter and Hannah Skoda explore the ways the Second World War continues to shape the world of today. P...

2 Juni 202545min

From merriment to mummification, new year revelries to funerary rites, wine played a key role in ancient Egyptian culture. Islam Issa speaks to Matt Elton about why the alcoholic drink was so importan...

1 Juni 202535min

In everything from the social sciences and technology to art and architecture, 18th-century Scotland saw a flowering of ideas and innovation. But what made the Enlightenment in Scotland different to t...

31 Maj 202537min

During the Second World War, a promise by President Roosevelt to provide supplies to nationalist China led to the creation of an ill-fated air supply route from India, across a perilous stretch of the...

29 Maj 202545min

Victoria, Ella, Irene and Alix of Hesse were four young European princesses and granddaughters of Queen Victoria, whose marriages would change the face of early 20th-century Europe. Speaking to Elinor...

27 Maj 202536min

Calamity Jane roars into the popular imagination atop the Deadwood Stage with a 'whip-crack-away' and her pistol ready-loaded. A bold and resourceful frontierswoman, Calamity held her own among the me...

26 Maj 202544min

Tahra Bey became a celebrity with his apparent ability to control his pulse, stab himself without pain and even bury himself alive. Dr Dahesh, meanwhile, was a spiritualist who sparked an entire relig...

25 Maj 202534min

Nothing beats a well-loaded cheeseboard. But while so many of us enjoy a stinky stilton and ripe brie, or chuck a reliable old cheddar into our basket at the supermarket each week, what do we actually...

24 Maj 202538min