The Black Death: a global contagion
The Black Death is remembered as one of the most devastating catastrophes in human history – a pandemic that swept across continents and killed millions. But where did it come from? How did it travel ...
2 Maj 34min
George Orwell's final chapter
Did you know that George Orwell only found national acclaim as an author in the final years of his life, as his health was worsening? Or that, with the growing prospect of death looming increasingly l...
30 Apr 40min
Was Elizabeth II's reign a golden age?
When the late Queen acceded to the throne in 1952, Britain, though left bankrupt and reeling from the Second World War, was still a major global power. By the end of Elizabeth II’s reign in 2022 – the...
28 Apr 37min
Johannes Vermeer: life of the week
Johannes Vermeer is now regarded as one of the leading lights of the Dutch Golden Age, and indeed one of the greatest artists of all time. But in his own lifetime he was hardly known outside his own c...
27 Apr 42min
When did Roman Britain really end?
How did England – and Englishness – emerge from the final days of Roman Britain? And what separated Englishness from Britishness? Emeritus professor Nicholas Higham –whose latest book is How England ...
26 Apr 32min
How the Vikings reshaped Anglo-Saxon England
Alfred the Great’s victory over the Vikings at the battle of Edington brought the campaign of the Great Heathen Army to an end – but it didn't conclude the wider story. In the final episode of our Sun...
25 Apr 35min
Preview: The surprising history of pizza
It's now among the world's most popular foods – but what do we know about the origins of pizza? Today on the HistoryExtra podcast, we're bringing you a slice of our new series, History's Greatest Dish...
24 Apr 14min
