Ian Mortimer is frustrated. The historian and author of “Medieval Horizons: Why the Middle Ages Matter” says the problem is that most people seem to think they don’t.
“You realize how little people know about the world around them,” Mortimer tells New Lines magazine’s Lydia Wilson. “They tend to make judgments based on the world as it is today.”
But tha ... Show More
Nov 24
Why the Internet Got Bad, and How To Fix It
<p>On this week’s episode, bestselling author and tech blogger Cory Doctorow joins Faisal Al Yafai on the podcast to discuss why the internet has steadily, but noticeably, become unusable, as he sets out in his new book “Enshittification.”</p>
<p>Produced by Finbar Anderson</p>
59m 38s
Feb 2023
Why the Middle Ages matter
The Middle Ages have often been shrouded in myth and mystery, but was it actually as unchanging, uncivilised and muddy as we might think? Historian and author Ian Mortimer challenges these popular perceptions, arguing how the period has often been overlooked in favour of later ce ... Show More
45m 3s
Oct 2020
Classic Tides | Peasants and the Medieval Countryside
<p>When we think of the medieval world, our minds usually turn to knights, royalty, and clergy. But the backbone of the medieval economic and social order was the humble peasant. In this rebroadcast from 2018, we explore the world and lives of the vast bulk of the people who actu ... Show More
54m 48s
Jul 2023
How to Survive Plague and War in the Middle Ages
<p>Throughout history, there have been plenty of hugely destructive, catastrophic moments. And yet somehow the human race managed to live on until today. So how did people in the Medieval period find ways to survive, for example, a siege of their city, or a natural disaster, or p ... Show More
25m 16s