Ancient history podcast episodes
Browse our archive of podcast episodes on ancient history, from the innovation of Roman Britain to the ghosts of ancient Mesopotamia…

Published:
Browse our archive of podcast episodes on ancient history, from the innovation of Roman Britain to the ghosts of ancient Mesopotamia. Scroll down for interviews with Mary Beard, Simon Schama, Natalie Haynes and Daisy Dunn…
Joyce Tyldesley answers listener questions on ancient Egypt’s royal rulers
Paul Cartledge responds to listener queries and popular search enquiries about one of the most renowned and influential ancient civilisations.
As a major new exhibition arrives in London, we speak to Tarek El Awady about the remarkable artefacts buried with Egypt’s boy king
Joyce Tyldesley explores the life and legacy of the last queen of Egypt
Jane Desborough speaks about a new Science Museum exhibition, Ancient Greeks: Science and Wisdom
Roderick Beaton explores 4,000 years of Greek history, from the glories of Mycenae to the life of a modern European nation
Andrew Bayliss discusses the Ancient Greek city-state of Sparta, exploring the Spartans’ military prowess and the darker aspects of Spartan history
Classicist Natalie Haynes tackles listener questions on Greek myths, from ancient origins to modern reinterpretations
Toby Wilkinson gives a lecture on the archaeologists and adventurers whose discoveries helped transform our understanding of the ancient Egyptians
Egyptologist Joyce Tyldesley responds to listener questions about everyday life in ancient Egypt, from governance to dental care and cat mummies
Hannah Platts offers a multisensory tour of the Roman home – from the smells of the kitchen to the surprises of the dinner table
Are there any treasures left to be excavated in Egypt? Chris Naunton gives a lecture on some of the most fascinating ancient figures whose tombs are yet to be discovered
History’s greatest mysteries What happened to the Roman Ninth Legion? . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.
The Ninth Legion of the Roman army was last recorded in York in around AD 107. After that it simply vanished from history. To this day no-one knows what caused the destruction of this elite army…
As we approach the 1900th anniversary of the building of Hadrian’s Wall, Rob Collins answers listener questions on the Roman fortification
Sophie Hay answers listener questions on the Roman city that was destroyed by a volcanic eruption in AD 79
Simon Schama discusses his experiences of making the major new BBC arts history series Civilisations
Shushma Malik explores the life and career of Rome’s renowned philosopher-emperor Marcus Aurelius
Professor Judith Herrin responds to listener questions about the Byzantine empire, which emerged in late antiquity and survived until the end of the Middle Ages
History’s greatest mysteries Was the Trojan War fact or fiction? . This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.
In the latest in our series on history’s biggest conundrums, the author and classicist Daisy Dunn seeks out evidence of the Trojan War
From necromancy and the underworld to getting rid of troublesome spirits, Irving Finkel discusses ghost beliefs in ancient Mesopotamia
Professor Matthew Restall tackles listener questions and popular search queries about the central American civilisation
Dr Melanie Giles unravels some of the mysteries around amazingly preserved human remains found in bogs – and reveals what we can learn from them
Daniel Ogden explores the origins of the werewolf legend in stories from ancient Greece and Rome
Is it strange that we go to museums to look at dead bodies? Angela Stienne delves into the ethical debates around displaying ancient human remains