The Real Casanova

How did a working class illiterate woman become King Charles II's favourite mistress?Nell Gwyn was an incredibly talented comedy actor who came from a working class background, and was part of a group...

15 Apr 202543min

Have you ever heard of the Emperor who made his horse a senator? Seems like a top bloke, right? Today on Betwixt the Sheets we’re going to meet (possibly) the most debauched Roman Emperor.From stealin...

10 Apr 202546min

Today, it is one of the most commonly performed surgeries. But when was the hysterectomy, the removal of the uterus, first performed? How has this procedure interacted with ideas such as femininity an...

8 Apr 202548min

How 'mad, bad and dangerous to know' was Lord Byron really?We know the Romantic poet had a bit of a reputation, but how true was it? And how unusual would his behaviour have been?In the first episode ...

4 Apr 202543min

Possibly the first recorded sexually transmitted disease, gonorrhoea is still one of the most common.We're back on the itchier side of history today to find out more about the story of this difficult-...

1 Apr 202531min

For better or (mostly) worse, Jiang Qing left her mark on the 20th century.Even before she was married to Chairman Mao, Jiang was a charismatic actor, and her passion for culture helped her spearhead ...

28 Mars 202543min

When the music hall dancer, Belle Ellmore, disappeared in January 1910, it was her performing colleagues who raised the alarm.Her murder by Dr. Crippen became a media sensation, and he became the star...

25 Mars 202549min

Nadezhda Alliluyeva was born into a revolutionary family, but was it always her fate to marry Joseph Stalin?She was independent, intelligent and highly politicised. Indeed, Stalin was a hero of hers g...

21 Mars 202540min