Look at a Tudor family portrait, and you’ll often find children depicted like miniature adults, standing confidently alongside their parents in their doublets and dresses. But how far is this an accurate portrayal of what childhood was like in the 16th century? Nicholas Orme, author of new book Tudor Children, joined Emily Briffett to talk about the lives of ... Show More
Apr 30
George Orwell's final chapter
Did you know that George Orwell only found national acclaim as an author in the final years of his life, as his health was worsening? Or that, with the growing prospect of death looming increasingly large, he sought refuge on a remote Scottish island? Historian Robert Colls tells ... Show More
40m 12s
Apr 28
Was Elizabeth II's reign a golden age?
When the late Queen acceded to the throne in 1952, Britain, though left bankrupt and reeling from the Second World War, was still a major global power. By the end of Elizabeth II’s reign in 2022 – the longest in Britain’s history – the nation and its place in the world was marked ... Show More
37m 45s
Dec 2023
400. Victorian Britain's Maddest Mystery
In 1854, the twenty-five year old aristocrat Roger Tichborne, heir to an impressive fortune, died in a shipwreck ....Or did he? His mother, certain of her son’s survival, advertised extensively with a tantalising reward for her son’s return. Twenty years later a rough, corpulent ... Show More
45m 35s
Jul 2023
Tudor Gifts: How to Win Friends and Influence People
<p>How meaningful can a gift - especially of a book - be? In the fickle world of the Tudor court, the strategic gifting of books was a common practice, bound up in relationships of power, politics and protest. A new exhibition exploring this subject at the Bodleian Library, Oxfor ... Show More
41m 54s
May 2024
Henry VIII's Sister, Margaret Queen of Scots
<p>Margaret Tudor - daughter of King Henry VII, sister to Henry VIII - was married at 13 to James IV of Scotland, learning the skills of statecraft that would enable her to survive his early death and to construct a powerful position in Scotland. </p><br><p>In this episode o ... Show More
41m 16s
Jul 2023
The Clifton Star Chamber Case and Kidnapped Child Actors
<p>In Early Modern England, there was a rash of abductions of boys, who were being forced to work as actors. Then a child was taken whose father was in a position to actually do something about it. </p> <p><strong>Research:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Soth, Amelia. “Her Majesty’s Kidna ... Show More
36m 28s
<p>It's our third installment of shows about the origins of Mother Goose nursery rhymes. Spoiler alert: Many of the real stories are hard to pin down. </p> <p><strong>Research:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Cheadle, Roberta Eaton. “Dark Origins – Here We Go Round the Mulberry Bush.” Writ ... Show More
