logo
episode-header-image
Aug 2023
51m 39s

356: The Blood-Drinking Bride of Christ

Goalhanger
About this episode
A woman of immense influence on medieval Christendom, Catherine of Siena was one of the first female Doctors of the Church, who married Christ in her own bedroom. Living through a time of great anxiety due to the onset of the Black Death, she healed the sick, convinced the Pope to return from exile in France, appeased riotous crowds, and even brought her own ... Show More
Up next
Mar 19
653. London’s Golden Age: The Shadow of the Madhouse (Part 4)
Who did Samuel Johnson fall in love with towards the end of his life, and why did it break his heart? How did it enrage his old friend James Boswell? And, why did he fear imprisonment in an asylum…? Join Tom and Dominic as they reach the fascinating, but devastating conclusion of ... Show More
1h 7m
Mar 16
652. London’s Golden Age: The Ghosts of Culloden (Part 3)
What adventures occurred during Samuel Johnson and James Boswell’s journey into the heart of Scotland? How was their trip a gateway to the history of Scotland’s union with England in 1707? And, was Dr Johnson embroiled in the bloody Battle of Culloden…? Join Tom and Dominic as th ... Show More
1h 4m
Mar 12
651. London’s Golden Age: Sex and Scandal in Georgian Britain (Part 2)
Why was London such a cauldron of sexual scandal and political tumult in the 18th century? What licentious escapades did the infamous Scottish nobleman, James Boswell, get up to there? And, how did his legendary first meeting with the renowned wit Samuel Johnson, unfold? Join Tom ... Show More
1h 8m
Recommended Episodes
Jun 2024
Catherine Parr - The Real Firebrand
Catherine Parr is remembered as Henry VIII’s 6th and final wife, the one who survived the murderous monarch. But while earlier wives, who ended their Queenship more tragically are glamorized, Catherine is often hidden in the background. The new film Firebrand tells the harrowing ... Show More
33m 12s
May 2024
Henry VIII's Mother & Grandmothers
Henry VIII’s is infamous for his relationships with women. The domineering King took 6 wives during his 36 years on the throne. And he disposed of them with as much scandal as he wooed them – Divorced, Beheaded, Died, Divorced, Beheaded, Survived. But three other women had an imp ... Show More
28m 28s
Mar 2024
135. Helena: Queen of the World and Finder of the One True Cross
Born in poverty at a time when the Roman Empire was in danger of cracking up and disintegrating, Helena was set for a life of obscurity as a stable hand, bar maid, and, according to some, a prostitute. Yet, in the most improbable tale she rose through the social hierarchy to be p ... Show More
56m 51s
Apr 2022
Mary Magdalene
<p>Who was Mary Magdalene? Jesus' confidant, a devout follower, or a sex worker?</p><br><p>In this Easter special, Tristan is joined by Professors Helen Bond and Joan Taylor, authors of 'Women Remembered' to explore Mary Magdalene and her role in the bible. Through looking at bot ... Show More
39m 26s
Mar 2023
11. Christiana Edmunds
Lucy Worsley looks at the crimes of Victorian women from a contemporary, feminist perspective. In the first case in her new series, Lucy explores the story of Christiana Edmunds, a respectable spinster who embarks on a mass poisoning spree when the man she loves fails to return h ... Show More
29m 20s
Jun 2023
Benedetta Carlini
<p>What's your favorite Paul Verhoeven film? We knew you were going to say Showgirls–but we'll put in a word for his latest, Benedetta, with Charlotte Rampling acting up a storm and nuns diddling each other with dildos carved out of statues of the Virgin. Improbably, the film is ... Show More
1h 19m
Jul 2024
Domina: Women Who Shaped Rome
<p>The crisis of the Roman Republic is a period littered with iconic male power players. Julius Caesar, Mark Antony, Pompey, Brutus and the Gracchi brothers. But less famous, and often overlooked are the women that shaped these famous Roman states<em>men</em>.</p><br><p>In today' ... Show More
51m 42s
Apr 2021
Black Jesus
On Easter Sunday 1967 the Reverend Albert Cleage renamed his church in Detroit the Shrine of the Black Madonna. He preached that if man was made in God's image there was little chance that Jesus was white as most of the world's population is non-white. Reverend Cleage also pointe ... Show More
10m 15s
May 2022
Early Christian Martyrdom
Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the accounts by Eusebius of Caesarea (c260-339 AD) and others of the killings of Christians in the first three centuries after the crucifixion of Jesus. Eusebius was writing in a time of peace, after The Great Persecution that had started with Empe ... Show More
53m 3s