logo
episode-header-image
Aug 2025
44m 44s

CLASSIC: The Bizarre Origin of the Oxfor...

iHeartPodcasts
About this episode
tail spinning
Up next
Yesterday
The Ridiculous Secret of "Supreme" Pizza
The results are in: pretty much everyone loves pizza... but what doth a pizza make varies from place to place. Obsessed with a game-changing message from a former pizzaiolo on the inside, Ben, Noel and Max dive into the delicious (and arguably disturbing) conspiracy of what makes ... Show More
48m 45s
Mar 21
CLASSIC: When West Virginia Begged the USSR for Foreign Aid
In this week's Classic episode: Were it not for the coal mine, the town of Vulcan, West Virginia may well have never existed. As a rural and geographically isolated community, Vulcan relied on a single, small bridge for its connection to the larger world. When the bridge failed, ... Show More
29m 53s
Mar 19
Knitting as Espionage, Part Two: Legendary Spies -- and One Traitor
Espionage takes many forms. As Ben, Noel and Max learned in the first part of this two-part series, one of those forms was knitting. In today's episode, the guys explore the stories of phenomenal spies who used knitting as a form of top-secret communication.See omnystudio.com/lis ... Show More
33m 37s
Recommended Episodes
Dec 2020
32. The Oxford Dictionary Words of the Year 2020! (English Vocabulary Lesson)
Today, i want to introduce you to some of the Oxford English Dictionary’s 2020 words of the year. For the first time ever, the Oxford Dictionary was unable to choose one single standout word from the previous 12 months. Instead, as a consequence of the unprecedented events of 202 ... Show More
18m 19s
Apr 2025
History's Worst F*ckboys: Casanova
<p>Can you imagine being SO smooth-talking and seductive your surname becomes an actual noun in the dictionary to describe someone who has a reputation for being an expert at in the sack?</p><br><p>Well today we’re going to be talking about a man who was just that…Giacamo Casanov ... Show More
28m 41s
Sep 2024
25: The smartest man who ever lived - history of William James Sidis
Meet William James Sydis, the “smartest man who lived.” Sydis’ IQ score is estimated by some, to be somewhere between 50 and 100 points greater than that of Albert Einstein. By the time he was just 18 months old, Sydis was able to read The New York Times. At age 2, he taught hims ... Show More
42m 32s
Nov 2025
The Dictionary Wars! with Gabe Henry
<p>Remember being a teen and coming up with “cool” ways of spelling common words? Well, just like the teenager it was, the United States in the 18th century was annoying their mom, England, with the hip words that were being edited and added to their lexicon. The antagonistic pai ... Show More
1h 12m
Jun 2025
Murder, Madness and The Unusual Life of William Minor
When you pick up a dictionary and look up a word, have you ever stopped to consider who it was that compiled such meticulous work? Was it a scholar, or group of scholars, holed up in a musty backroom somewhere dedicating their lives to the task, or a wide group of volunteers, cro ... Show More
56m 55s
Jul 2024
CLASSIC: Will the real Shakespeare please stand up?
Playwright William Shakespeare is widely acknowledged as one of the most influential writers in the English language, and his plays have been read or performed millions of times around the world. He was also quite prolific: Between about 1590 and 1613, Shakespeare wrote at least ... Show More
1h 3m
Aug 2024
Your English Five a Day #43.2
tail spinning
12m 37s
Jan 2025
A Hodgepodge of Hangover History
tail spinning
42m 36s
May 2025
Word Weavers: Enheduanna
Enheduanna was a high priestess, poet, and princess of ancient Mesopotamia. She is widely considered the world's first known author by name. Her deeply personal hymns and poems, many dedicated to the goddess Inanna, mark the first time an author writes using the pronoun I. For Fu ... Show More
6m 1s
Aug 2024
472. A Call for the Sane - Beauty, Truth, & Purpose | Douglas Murray
Dr. Jordan B. Peterson sits down with journalist, author, and political commentator Douglas Murray. They discuss his current U.S. speaking tour, the difference between malevolent and genuine protests, the upending of cultural institutions at the altar of false virtue, and how the ... Show More
1h 43m