Today, special guest Liz Rosenfeld discusses the choreographer Jerome Robbins. Born in New York to Jewish immigrants, Robbins pursued dance and radical politics––until, under the threat of being blacklisted and exposed for his sexuality, reporting on his former comrades to the House Committee on Unamerican Activities. As one of Broadway's star choreographers ... Show More
May 2025
Josephine Baker: life of the week
Showbusiness, spying and civil rights - the extraordinary life of Josephine Baker had it all. From difficult beginnings, Baker transformed herself into the world's first black superstar, before turning her talents to espionage on behalf of the French Resistance. Hanna Diamond tel ... Show More
45m 17s
Aug 11
Molière: Satire, Scandal & the Stage
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
49m 38s
Feb 2025
Sojourner Truth: American abolitionist, suffragist, preacher
Greg Jenner is joined in 19th-Century America by Dr Michell Chresfield and comedian Desiree Burch to learn all about abolitionist and suffragist Sojourner Truth. Born into slavery in a Dutch-speaking area of New England, Sojourner Truth fought to free herself and then others, bec ... Show More
57m 49s
Mar 2025
Aphra Behn: Revolutionary, Author, Spy
<p>Aphra Behn was a true original. Not only was she the first woman to earn a living by writing, she was also a spy, a political propagandist and a revolutionary. Publicly she was all brash sexuality and outspoken politics, but what is known about the woman beneath? Professor ... Show More
40m 26s
Nov 2024
Sally Rooney's "Intermezzo": Our Book Club Conversation
<p>Sally Rooney is a writer people talk about. Since her first novel, “Conversations With Friends,” was published in 2017, Rooney has been hailed as a defining voice of the millennial generation because of her ability to capture the particular angst and confusion of young love, f ... Show More
38m 55s
Sep 2024
Frederick Douglass (Radio Edit)
Greg Jenner is joined by special guests Prof Emily Bernard and comedian Toussaint Douglass in 19th-Century America to meet Frederick Douglass. Born into an enslaved family, Frederick fought against all odds to secure his freedom and went on to become a famed abolitionist, orator, ... Show More
28m 13s
Sep 9
History's Worst F*ckboys: Raphael
The Renaissance is known for its heady combination of sex, art and exciting new ideas about the world.Was Raphael, one of the superstar painters of the period, a Renaissance top shagger? Were sex workers essential to the artistic process of painting nudes? Why did historians thin ... Show More
34m 39s
Sep 30
Ballads of Love and Death
In this enchanting episode, Dr. Eleanor Janega dissolves the boundaries between history, folklore, and music to explore the haunting world of medieval ballads. Joined by author Amy Jeffs, illustrator Gwen Burns and composer/singer Natalie Brice, Eleanor uncovers the timeless stor ... Show More
1h 1m