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The History Extra podcast brings you gripping stories from the past and fascinating historical conversations with the world's leading historical experts.
Produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine, History Extra is a free history podcast, with episodes released six times a week. Subscribe now for the real stories behind your favourite films, TV shows and period dramas, as well as compelling insights into lesser-known aspects of the past.
We delve into global history stories spanning the ancient world right up to the modern day. You’ll hear deep dives into the lives of famous historical figures like Cleopatra, Anne Boleyn and Winston Churchill, and explorations of intriguing events from the past, such as the Salem witch trials, the battle of Waterloo and D-Day.
Expect fresh takes on history, helping you get to grips with the latest research, as we explore everything from ancient Roman archaeology and Viking mythology to Renaissance royals and Tudor kings and queens.
Our episodes touch on a wide range of historical eras – from the Normans and Saxons to the Stuarts, Victorians and the Regency period. We cover the most popular historical subjects, from the medieval world to the Second World War, but you’ll also hear conversations on lesser-known parts of our past, including black history and women’s history.
Looking at the history behind today’s headlines, we consider the forces that have shaped today’s world, from the imposing empires that dominated continents, to the revolutions that brought them crashing down. We also examine the impact of conflict across the centuries, from the crusades of the Middle Ages and the battles of the ancient Egyptians to World War One, World War Two and the Cold War.
Plus, we uncover the real history behind myths, legends and conspiracy theories, from the medieval murder mystery of the Princes in the Tower, to the assassination of JFK.
Featuring interviews with notable historians including Mary Beard, Tracy Borman, James Holland and Dan Jones, we cover a range of social, political and military history, with the aim to start conversations about some of the most fascinating areas of the past.
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2435 Episodes
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From social-media accounts to TV shows and video games, recent decades offer an enormous wealth of material for future historians to explore. But what are the challenges presented by this vast amount of data? And how will historical researchers a hundred years from now make sense of 2025? Matt Elton spoke to historians Jane Winters and John Wills to answer these questions – and find out how the ephemeral digital archives of our current era might differ from the historical sources of previous generations.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
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Malcolm X was one of the most influential – and, sometimes, divisive – figures of the civil rights movement in the United States, a political activist whose approach proved both powerful and controversial. Speaking to Matt Elton, Ashley D Farmer discusses his life, times and legacy, and highlights some of the figures who shaped his worldview.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
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1Why are we so spooked – and yet so fascinated – by things that go bump in the night? And can science really prove that ghouls exist? Alice Vernon talks to Jon Bauckham about the evolution of ghost-hunting over the past 200 years, and how tales of pesky poltergeists and ectoplasm-filled séances have turned even some of the hardest sceptics into true believers.
(Ad) Alice Vernon is the author of Ghosted: A History of Ghost Hunting and Why We Keep Looking (Bloomsbury, 2025). Buy it now from Waterstones: https://go.skimresources.com?id=71026X1535947&xcust=historyextra-social-histboty&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.waterstones.com%2Fbook%2Fghosted%2Falice-vernon%2F9781399418706.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
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In the autumn of 1605, Catholic conspirators believed they were about to strike a blow to the heart of the English state – but then a mysterious letter exposed their plan. In this second episode of our four-part series on the plot, Danny Bird speaks to historian John Cooper about the Gunpowder Plot’s dramatic collapse. They examine Fawkes’s arrest and forced confession, the grisly public trials and executions that followed, and how James VI & I turned the plot's failure into political dynamite – consolidating power and turning treason into an abiding warning to posterity.
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GO BEYOND THE PODCAST
Want to know more about the Gunpowder Plot? Danny Bird has curated a selection of essential reading from the HistoryExtra and BBC History Magazine archive to help you explore the religious tensions, political intrigue and lasting impact of this infamous act of treason: https://bit.ly/3WDunPw.
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(Ad) John Cooper is the author of The Lost Chapel of Westminster: How a Royal Chapel Became the House of Commons (Apollo, 2024). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lost-Chapel-Westminster-John-Cooper/dp/1801104514#:~:text=debate....-,John%20Cooper's%20The%20Lost%20Chapel%20of%20Westminster%20is%20a%20meticulously,beating%20heart%20of%20parliamentary%20debate/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Tabloid journalists often get a bad press. From publishing libellous headlines to hacking celebrities’ phones, recent years have not exactly done much to enhance Fleet Street’s reputation. But where did tabloid journalism originally come from? And have media barons always had such a profound influence on current affairs? Journalism lecturer Terry Kirby talks to Jon Bauckham about the evolution of the popular press, covering everything from Georgian gossip sheets to the rise of Rupert Murdoch’s media empire.
(Ad) Tery Kirby is the author of The Newsmongers: A History of Tabloid Journalism (Reaktion Books, 2024). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Newsmongers-History-Tabloid-Journalism/dp/178914941X/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
When we think of Europe in the 11th century, one date stands out: 1066. However, as Professor Charles West explains, this was a century of great change, and great events, across all of Europe. In conversation with David Musgrove, Charles talks about why we should perhaps be more concerned with the battle of Manzikert than the battle of Hastings, and why the 11th century is a story of cities and popes as much as it is of conquest and the Normans.
(Ad) Charles West is the author of Europe in the Eleventh Century: Beyond Revolution and Reform (Oxford University Press, 2025). Buy it now from Amazon: http://www.awin1.com/cread.php?awinmid=3041&awinaffid=489797&p=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2FEurope-Eleventh-Century-Revolution-Medieval%2Fdp%2F0198860234%2F%3F_encoding%3DUTF8%26pd_rd_w%3DnAZG5%26content-id%3Damzn1.sym.a7785aa2-ac28-4769-b3eb-cff7b9738627%26pf_rd_p%3Da7785aa2-ac28-4769-b3eb-cff7b9738627%26pf_rd_r%3D130-4414563-4593041%26pd_rd_wg%3DfXSDe%26pd_rd_r%3D5b153ec9-1b16-4286-8ae5-7ff403b76e63&clickref=historyextra-social-histboty.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
William Shakespeare is one of history’s most famous names – but how much do we really know about the man himself? And how did his family, education and marriage shape his works and influence his worldview? Speaking to Emily Briffett, Dr Paul Edmondson charts Shakespeare’s story, from humble beginnings to global cultural afterlife.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
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What did ordinary Tudors eat and drink on a daily basis? How did they keep themselves clean without baths and showers? And what surprising beliefs did they hold about sex, religion and childhood? Social historian Ruth Goodman – presenter of a new HistoryExtra Academy on Tudor life – reveals the often surprising realities of everyday existence in the era in conversation with Rachel Dinning.
Don’t miss Ruth’s new HistoryExtra Academy video series on Tudor Life. The seven episodes, filmed on location at Plas Mawr in Conwy, cover everything you need to know about daily life in the Tudor era – from childhood and marriage to food and religion. Download the HistoryExtra app to access the latest episodes, ad-free: https://bit.ly/4n2t0oo.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
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In the autumn of 1605, Robert Catesby and Guy Fawkes led a desperate band of Catholic gentlemen in one of history's most daring conspiracies. Having smuggled 36 barrels of gunpowder beneath the Palace of Westminster, their plan was to blow up James VI & I, along with the majority of England’s Protestant elite, paving the way for the restoration of Catholicism. In this first episode of our four-part series on the plot, Danny Bird speaks to historian John Cooper to uncover a world of persecution, espionage and faith-driven extremism. They unfurl the conspirators’ bold plan and interrogate the powerful spy networks of late Elizabethan and early Jacobean England that set the scene for an explosive act of treason.
–––––
GO BEYOND THE PODCAST
Want to know more about the Gunpowder Plot? Danny Bird has curated a selection of essential reading from the HistoryExtra and BBC History Magazine archive to help you explore the religious tensions, political intrigue and lasting impact of this infamous act of treason: https://bit.ly/3WDunPw.
–––––
(Ad) John Cooper is the author of The Lost Chapel of Westminster: How a Royal Chapel Became the House of Commons (Apollo, 2024). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Lost-Chapel-Westminster-John-Cooper/dp/1801104514#:~:text=debate....-,John%20Cooper's%20The%20Lost%20Chapel%20of%20Westminster%20is%20a%20meticulously,beating%20heart%20of%20parliamentary%20debate/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
The phrase 'Make America Great Again' is indelibly associated with President Trump – yet a very similar version of the slogan – 'Let's Make America Great Again' – was in fact used by his predecessor Ronald Reagan. What can this parallel tell us about the United States of the 1980s? And does drawing such comparisons reveal anything about the US today? Speaking to Matt Elton, author and documentarian Phil Tinline offers his take.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
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From armed uprisings in the Caribbean to the hidden power of ritual, song and solidarity, the story of enslaved people’s resistance is far richer and more radical than has often been told. In this episode, Sudhir Hazareesingh speaks to Danny Bird about his new book Daring to be Free, which draws on fragmentary archives and oral traditions to highlight the forgotten people who resisted their enslavers, explores the global reverberations of the Haitian Revolution, and reveals the central role of women in shaping struggles for freedom.
(Ad) Sudhir Hazareesingh is the author of Daring to be Free: Rebellion and Resistance of the Enslaved in the Atlantic World (Allen Lane, 2025). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Daring-Free-Rebellion-Resistance-Enslaved/dp/0241606500/ref=sr_1_2?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.b6yN3LvCqOXHnbafxbsRtFVXi1MIfRs1ljt6Ar5Io28.-VyNROFt1yj3lPJ-vTK5dfBMlgWatp58lQMUrAJTHgM&dib_tag=se&qid=1757509896&refinements=p_lbr_books_authors_browse-bin%3ASudhir+Hazareesingh&s=books&sr=1-2&tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
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Aneurin Bevan's commitment to social justice led to the creation of the National Health Service in 1948 – one of the most ambitious social reforms in British history. He was an MP who stuck to his principles in the face of serious opposition, but was not without criticism in both his professional and personal life. Speaking to Lauren Good, Nye Davies charts Bevan's journey from the coalfields of South Wales to the corridors of Westminster.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
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Which crimes were most common in Scotland in the 17th century – and what can those crimes reveal about society at the time? In today's episode, we're delving into a world of violence, vengeance, bandits and blasphemers, as historian Allan Kennedy speaks to Emily Briffett about his recent book Serious Crime in Late Seventeenth-Century Scotland. He explores what constituted a crime, who committed them, and how justice was pursued in a society shaped by intense religiosity and complex legal systems.
(Ad) Allan Kennedy is the author of Serious Crime in Late Seventeenth-Century Scotland (Edinburgh University Press, 2025). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Serious-Crime-Late-Seventeenth-Century-Scotland-Kennedy/dp/1399533169/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
After five years we come to our final 'everything you wanted to know about' episodes. We revisit our first episode where Marc Morris, author of an acclaimed history of the Norman Conquest, tackles some of the big questions about William the Conqueror and his followers.
Our brand new multipart specials begin next Sunday starting with a look at the Gunpowder Plot.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
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The assassination ofJulius Caesar is one of the most infamous plots of the ancient world, but the dictator's death wasn't the only moment in his life and afterlife marked by political machinations. Speaking to Emily Briffett, Jessica Clarke reveals how careful curation and stage management transformed Caesar's funeral from a quiet moment of mass mourning to a bloody spectacle of revenge.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
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Samuel Pepys is well-known for his brilliantly evocative diary, which gives an unsurpassed insight into daily life in Restoration London. However, it turns out Pepys also had a sinister side. Something that has been overlooked or ignored in his diaries for centuries, is that Pepys was a self-confessed sexual predator and abuser of women. Biographer Guy de la Bédoyère explains all to David Musgrove.
(Ad) Guy de la Bédoyère is the author of The Confessions of Samuel Pepys: His Private Revelations (Abacus, 2025). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Confessions-Samuel-Pepys-Private-Revelations/dp/034914740X/ref=tmm_hrd_swatch_0/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
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Margaret Tudor was the daughter of a king, the sister of a king, and the wife of a king. But she was a political power player in her own right, carefully balancing family loyalties to both the crown of England and the crown of Scotland. She also left an extraordinary legacy of correspondence detailing her life as a princess, queen, regent and mother. Drawing on her research surrounding these letters, historical linguist Dr Helen Newsome-Chandler explores Margaret's life in conversation with Emily Briffett.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
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Women's role as slaveowners is often overlooked – but, just like men, they both profited from and maintained the institution of slavery. Speaking to Ellie Cawthorne, historian Miranda Kaufmann profiles several 'Caribbean heiresses' who married into the British aristocracy and brought huge wealth generated from slavery into the country.
(Ad) Miranda Kaufmann is the author of Heiresses: Marriage, Inheritance and Caribbean Slavery (Oneworld, 2025). Buy it now from Waterstones: https://go.skimresources.com?id=71026X1535947&xcust=historyextra-social-histboty&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.waterstones.com%2Fbook%2F9780861548019.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
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If you could sneak a peek past the front door of a Roman home, what could you expect to find? Why was having a hole in your ceiling a clever feat of engineering in the ancient world? How could sharing a communal toilet actually still be a very private act, and why was central heating a luxury in ancient Rome? Emily Briffett is joined by historian Dr Hannah Platts, as they step inside the ancient Roman home to uncover more.
The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
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Historian, author and broadcaster David Olusoga is among the famous faces to feature on new TV series The Celebrity Traitors, which launches in the UK next Wednesday, 8 October on BBC One. But what are the opportunities, and dangers, when historians become celebrities? And to what extent should history be entertainment? Regular panellists Hannah Skoda and Rana Mitter share their thoughts. Plus: history’s most incredible imposters
Find the full episode and never miss an episode by heading to History Behind the Headlines or following this link: https://play.megaphone.fm/4csqwegyqeca-lg7yumskq
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United States
bullshit
marc.... h20. please!
This is not an African perspective, it's what a white colonizer woman believes is the African perspective. There is a lot of 'I think' or 'I believe'. I can find a colonizer perspective anywhere, I wanted a truly african perspective, this is absolutely not it.
How we are today. inserting ourselves into foreign wars as articulation point for super power. simultaneously absorbing the displaced from all this as refugees and migrants. RIP great Britain .
Since when is Buxton in Yorkshire!
love this dude. knows all about the cheese. Wallace loves you.
Blessed be the cheesemakers!
60000, Australians served in Vietnam, not one mention, typical arrogance of the Americans
This guy is a zionist, and couldn't care less about the holocaust currently being carried out in Gaza.
oh my God I guess you could read this woman's work, listening to her speak is like nails down a chalkboard. too bad I'm sure she's smart and it's an interesting subject. public speaking might be something to add to her expertise.
I listened to the first 3 minutes and it was exactly as unhinged as I had a imagined. Your guest need to stick to England and discuss the parallels between every single labor leader and the Communist apparstchic found in China, the old Soviet Union and North Korea. Not one of them have started a business, run a business, understand finance, markets, or set foot on a farm.
One sided propaganda from the BBC... As per usual.
Great story! Note Guy Scholefield is said 'Skolfield'. Pronunciation of Oamaru, a Maori name, also needs work.
It was chancellor Willy Brandt, who fell on his knees in Warsaw in 1970, not President Richard von Weizäcker.
Pathetic- so if you’re spanish your a liar , very racist propaganda
this isn't about museums as mich as a whine fest about how some women didn't get enough credit in the museum biz.. bummer
Fantastic episode. As an Australian who has a picture of my forebears from my DNA test, its so interesting having this fleshed out and brought to life across the early centuries.
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I don't find any of this convincing. She seems to be arguing that medieval people always told the truth and hated murder.
Always enjoy hearing Prof Tyldesley