BBC History Magazine now has an Alexa skill, available on all Alexa devices.

It's free to enable and includes short biographies of historical figures* including Henry VIII, Queen Victoria, Julius Caesar and Winston Churchill.

Check out the BBC History Magazine skill

How do I enable the BBC History Magazine skill for Alexa?

• The easiest way to enable the skill is to speak to your Alexa unit: "Alexa, enable BBC History Magazine"
• You can also log into your Amazon account and enable the skill via a link: BBC History Magazine skill
• For Alexa device owners who have the Alexa companion iOS app (or Android or Kindle Companion App):
  • Open the Alexa companion App
  • Tap on the top left burger icon once in the App
  • Tap 'Skills & Games'
  • Search for 'BBC History Magazine'
  • Tap the entry in the list
  • Tap 'Enable'

Once you've enabled the skill, explore by saying to the Alexa device: "Open BBC History Magazine"

Then once the greeting has finished say: "Tell me about a historical figure"

*The initial version includes information for 20 historical figures, and we'll be adding more in the future.