logo
episode-header-image
Oct 2021
45m 26s

What would you ask a historian?

IMMEDIATE MEDIA
About this episode

Greg Jenner talks about his latest book, Ask A Historian, which tackles 50 burning questions that people have about the past

 

Public historian Greg Jenner talks to Elinor Evans about his latest book, Ask A Historian, which tackles on 50 questions exploring some unexpected chapters of history that people have always wanted to know about – from whether people really ate powdered mummies, to the best historical figures to choose for an Oceans’ Eleven-style heist.

 

(Ad) Greg Jenner is the author of Ask A Historian: 50 Surprising Answers to Things You Always Wanted to Know (Orion, 2021). Buy it now from Waterstones:

https://go.skimresources.com?id=71026X1535947&xcust=historyextra-social-viewingguide&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.waterstones.com%2Fbook%2Fask-a-historian%2Fgreg-jenner%2F9781474618618


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Up next
Jul 8
Exploring the medieval world with Marco Polo
You may be familiar with the name of Marco Polo – the 13th-century Venetian merchant who travelled along the Silk Road, journeyed through Asia and spent time at the court of Mongol emperor Kublai Khan. Famously, he documented his experiences in a detailed account that has inspire ... Show More
44m 59s
Jul 7
The Mitford Sisters | 1 : life of the week
For much of the 20th century, six sisters from Britain’s minor aristocracy had a knack for making headline after scandalous headline. They were Nancy, Pamela, Diana, Unity, Jessica and Deborah Mitford. Now, the sisters' incredible shared story has been adapted into a TV drama cal ... Show More
49m 28s
Jul 6
Beyond the trenches: a new take on WW1
When you think of the First World War, what springs to mind? Is it trench warfare? The myth that troops would be home by Christmas? Or perhaps the idea that the whole thing began because of the assassination of an Austro-Hungarian archduke? In this episode, we’re going beyond the ... Show More
44m 12s
Recommended Episodes
Feb 2023
How to Write Historical Fiction | Interview with historian and author Dan Jones on his new novel Essex Dogs
Every historian I know has a secret dream of writing historical fiction, but few ever do it. Dan Jones, a longtime friend of Tides of History and an outstanding historian, has actually done it: Essex Dogs, his fantastic debut novel about a group of soldiers during the Hundred Yea ... Show More
58m 38s
Jan 2021
14. Historical Fiction
Is the author’s responsibility to the quality of the novel or the truth of history? What makes a great historical novel and which authors have contributed to our understanding of history. Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook range across literature in search of the best of historica ... Show More
1h 1m
Dec 2022
Dan Snow's History Hit Quiz!
Fingers on buzzers for a very special History Hit end-of-year treat. Tricky expert questions, history in the headlines, historical fact or fiction? It can only be the History Hit Big Quiz of 2022 - a seasonal test where you can pit your wits against our in-house history brains, o ... Show More
42m 59s
Jul 2023
HistoryExtra Long Reads
Take a deep dive into the past as we bring you the very best of BBC History Magazine, Britain’s bestselling history magazine. With a new episode released every Monday, enjoy fascinating and enlightening articles from leading historical experts, covering a broad sweep of the centu ... Show More
3m 35s
Jul 2022
Formidable Heroines of History
From the notorious thief Mary Frith in the seventeenth century to industrialist and LGBT trailblazer Anne Lister in the nineteenth, these heroines redefined what a woman could be and what she could do in pre-twentieth-century Britain. Holly Kyte, author and literary critic, joins ... Show More
26m 13s
May 2023
330: Herodotus: The Birth of History
Born on the Western edge of an empire that stretched all the way to India, Herodotus was a Greek historian of the 5th century BC. His major work The Histories, a long and detailed account of the Greco-Persian Wars and the cultures of the ancient world, is considered the founding ... Show More
56m 45s
Nov 2021
Writing a New History of the Middle Ages: Interview with Dan Jones on Powers and Thrones
Friend of the Show, TV presenter, author extraordinaire, and historian Dan Jones returns to Tides to discuss his new book, Powers and Thrones: A New History of the Middle Ages. It’s a wonderful book and a tremendous achievement, written with both a consummate grasp of the huge sc ... Show More
52m 36s
Jul 2017
Introducing Tides of History
History does not repeat itself, but it does rhyme, said Mark Twain. From the fall of the Roman Empire to the rise of the modern world: history ebbs and flows over the centuries, driven by great tides of economic, social, political, religious, and cultural change that shape the wo ... Show More
1m 49s