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A purple and blue illustration shows a young woman in a long dress with frilly sleeves, holding a red book. Around her, there is a pirate ship and a man dressed in white robes, sitting crossed-legged on a rug

In 1756, a young Englishwoman was taken hostage by Barbary pirates. This is her story.

The SECRETS of Anne Boleyn's most treasured possession.

How do you solve a problem like Napoleon?.

A Victorian-era journalist snuck into an infamous asylum, and what she exposed shocked New York

A black and white photograph of a man and a woman close together. The man has his arms around the woman and they are both in stage dress: her in a long dress and him with a ruff and feathered hat

Keep calm and carry on singing: why Britons fell in love with opera during World War Two.

What does history teach us about protest?.

Beyond the podcast: Pompeii

Episode 4The DARK secrets behind ancient Egyptian worship.

Step inside a Roman home, and you might be surprised by what you find

Hatshepsut: life of the week.

Tragedy and triumph: a 500-year history of Mexico.

Jane Austen’s final chapter – and lasting legacy.

This 16th-century portrait of Lady Margaret Beaufort, found in St John’s College, Cambridge, depicts the formidable matriarch of the Tudor dynasty. Mother of Henry VII, Beaufort has sometimes been implicated in later rumours surrounding the fate of the Princes in the Tower — accusations modern historians largely dismiss.

Was a ruthless Tudor matriarch behind the disappearance of the Princes in the Tower?

A large drawing showing multiple different sea creatures in a light blue ocean

From krakens to serpents: 5 fearsome sea monsters from history.

This 12th-century tapestry detail from Skog Church in Hälsingland, Sweden, depicts key figures from Norse mythology. Odin appears on the left, one-eyed and carrying an axe beside the sacred tree on which he sacrificed himself; Thor stands at the centre with his hammer, Mjölnir; and the fertility god Frey holds an ear of corn.

Thor was the Vikings’ “archetypal masculine god” – so why did he dress as a bride?

An image of a man and an old image of a young woman in a venn diagram style

She defied the Nazis and paid the ultimate price: why I'm in awe of Sophie Scholl's courage

New Year's Eve, newts and Nessie: a history of British folklore.

Episode 3What the ancient Egyptians REALLY thought about the pyramids.

A detail from the Bayeux Tapestry showing a moment of violence between the Anglo-Saxons and Normans.

After 1066, this medieval fine was imposed to deter anti-Norman violence

Augustus: life of the week.

Nero's doomed love affair: did a failed romance trigger his descent into madness?.

Inside the Viking battle of the genders.

A house of one’s own: Jane Austen’s ‘golden years’.

Medieval illustration of warriors riding horses.

Warhorses were one of the most deadly weapons on a medieval battlefield. But why didn’t they run away?

A sketch showing a woman surrounded by men. One man is putting a hood over her head and another is reading from a book next to her

These are four of the most brutal Victorian murders. Were women really the perpetrators?.

Æthelstan: the king who made England.

Marty Reisman and Timothee Chalamet as Marty Mauser in the 2025 film Marty Supreme.

No, Marty Supreme isn’t a true story. But the history of the real Marty Reisman is just as exciting

A group of soldiers playing football during the First World War.

First World War

The First World War’s Christmas truce is a heartwarming story – but it never happened

Did the WW1 Christmas truce really happen?.

A poster for The Sound of Music edited to include the real von Trapp family.

Second World War

Is The Sound of Music a true story? The astonishing real history of the von Trapp family’s escape from Nazism