Dangerous delights: Victorian Britain’s cocaine habit
In the 19th century, a magic new drug took the medical community by storm, riding a wave of scientific endeavour. But, as this Long Read written by historian Douglas Small…
Daily life in the age of Queen Elizabeth I
Join Professor Tracy Borman as she uncovers the vibrant world of 16th-century life—from the Tudor queen's unusual habits and her dazzling dress sense to the lavish lifestyles of courtiers and…
Why Africa’s history is more than just the slave trade
Has our focus on the impact of the transatlantic slave trade blinded us to the diversity and complexity of Africa's past? That's one of the arguments at the heart of…
The Great Stink: everything you wanted to know
Why, in the 1850s, was the excrement of thousands of people being deposited straight into the Thames? How lethal were Victorian London's cholera outbreaks? And why is Joseph Bazalgette one…
Robot history: everything you wanted to know
When did automatons first emerge? Which science-fiction depiction of robots is the most accurate? And why did so many people fall for a hoax machine called the "Mechanical Turk"? In…
The Indian Rebellion of 1857: everything you wanted to know
What ignited resentment at British rule in India into outright violence? How brutal was British troops' suppression of the uprising? And how did the events of 1857 poison relations between…
A Victorian cult: inside the strange world of the Agapemone
In the 1840s, a strange, secretive community known as the Agapemonites set up camp in Spaxton, Somerset. Presided over by a rogue Anglican priest who believed he had a hotline…
Shopping and snacking: a social history of the high street
Daring department store stunts. Warming cups of cocoa. Argumentative bartering with butchers. What can revisiting high streets gone by reveal about British social history? Historian Annie Gray takes listeners on…
An African perspective on the history of Africa
Africa's story has long been presented in western narratives as one that only 'began' with the arrival of non-Africans – yet modern science has revealed that the African continent was,…
Plague, leprosy & murder: unlocking the secrets of medieval bones
What secrets can medieval human remains unlock? With exciting new developments in the science of palaeopathology, researchers are able to glean much more from human bones than ever before. Speaking…