Jean-Baptiste Lully

This 2018 episode covers Libertalia, which, in truth, may be completely fictional. It's called a pirate settlement, though the man who spearheaded it claimed he wasn't actually a pirate.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. 

Tracy shares the topics she considered for the recording in the Bahamas but decided against. Holly talks about her admiration for Thomas Huxley.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. 

Huxley is an example of having a good attitude about publicly acknowledging errors and learning from them. He earned the nickname “Darwin’s bulldog” for his very vocal support of Darwin’s work, and he wanted to promote science and education, particularly to people that didn’t nor ... Show More

Famously temperamental, this musical genius is celebrated today as one of the most influential cultural figures in history. His story has stood the test of time; a difficult childhood, marked by an abusive, alcoholic father, would serve as his inspiration to seek a better life. S ... Show More

Just a glance at a biography of Le Chevalier should have every movie producer salivating. He was the son of a 17 year old slave and her white owner. He was an expert athlete, known as the greatest fencer in all of France. He led a legion of black troops to fight during the French ... Show More

<p>In the late 1700s, one man became a celebrated fixture of Parisian salon culture: he was a prodigy fencer, and then a brilliant composer and violinists. He befriended Marie Antoinette and lead one of the city's most famous orchestras. And he was the son of an enslaved woman, f ... Show More

Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Professor Jan Clarke to explore the life, legend, and legacy of Jean-Baptiste Poquelin — better known as Molière. From his audacious rejection of bourgeois expectations to his controversial plays that rattled the Catholic Church and deligh ... Show More

Greg Jenner is joined by historian Prof Olivette Otele and comedian Sophie Duker in 18th century France to meet the Chevalier de Saint-Georges. Born the son of a slave and a white plantation owner, he lived a remarkable life in France, becoming a master fencer, violin virtuoso, c ... Show More