Paul Lockhart is brilliant on the history of guns (and firepower more widely). He is interested not just in the... more

Ed Watts is one of the most engaging writers and speakers on Roman history I have talked to. In this... more

In October 1950 the Americans are racing to the Yalu river, trying to bring the war in Korea to a... more

 Everyone has heard of the Silk Road but this is The Silver Way. It is the story of the Manilla... more

The story of the siege of Constantinople in 1453 is a rich one. Roger Crowley tells the story absolutely brilliantly... more

In the year 617 the Roman Empire stands on the brink of extinction. In the West the empire is long... more

Stephen Greenblatt wrote a fascinating book The Swerve about the rediscovery in 1417 of a work of philosophy from antiquity.... more

In 1889 a woman calling herself Pearl Hart holds up a stagecoach in Arizona. In this episode John Boessenecker talks... more

Edward Watts startled me with his claim that the Western Roman Empire didn't fall in AD 476. And he has... more

Zareer is a a renowned historian and broadcaster. Clive of India is out of fashion these days but Zareer remains... more

Laurence Bergreen threads the needle for me. He tells Magellan's story in a way that is exciting and moves with... more

It is hard to describe Peter Henderson's adventures without lapsing into cliche. Hair raising, eye popping and so on. A... more

Thony Christie has a blog called the Renaissance Mathematicus. It covers the history of science and is one of the... more

David Rooney is the author of About Time: A History of Civilisation in Twelve Clocks. He talks about clocks (in... more

Freddie, Abe and I talk about movies. Three blokes talking about feminism in movies. Well of course. But much more... more

Julian Sancton is a wonderful guide to the Belgian expedition to Antartica in 1898.  The crew of the Belgica included... more

Kenji Tierney is a wonderfully engaging speaker. Starting with memories of being introduced by his grandmother to sumo by way... more

Robin Gaster's book Behemoth, Amazon Rising: Power and Seduction in the Age of Amazon is available to buy on, naturally,... more

Emiko Ohnuki-Tierney is a professor of anthropology at the University of Wisconsin. Here she recalls her life as a young... more

Roger Crowley tells the story of how Portugal built its empire in the Indian ocean from 1498. The Portuguese were... more