History Is Sexy
109 episodes - English - Latest episode: about 2 months ago - ★★★★★ - 141 ratingsHistory is Sexy is a podcast presented by historian Dr Emma Southon and writer Janina Matthewson answering listener questions about history. What did the Romans do for us? Where did marrying for love come from? What was world war one all about? Produced and edited by Oliver Kealey. Theme music by Ketsa.
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Episodes
#87 - Janina's Top 3 Shipwrecks
May 22, 2024 12:12 - 1 hour - 88.8 MBJoin Emma and Janina on the high seas as Janina tells us all about her favourite shipwrecks
Episode #86 - Napoleon III
April 19, 2024 11:02 - 1 hour - 88.8 MBHow big of a dickhead was Napoleon III, anyway?
Episode #85 - What Did The Romans Eat?
March 30, 2024 10:18 - 1 hour - 82.5 MBDormice? Sow's Uterus? What on earth did the Romans eat? Join Emma and Janina for a culinary odyssey through the world of Roman Food.
Episode #84 - Badass Saints
February 21, 2024 12:23 - 1 hour - 147 MBWho are some of the most badass saints? What were their lives like? What's a "desert father"? Find out all of this and more!
Episode #83 - The Borgias
February 06, 2024 16:35 - 1 hour - 172 MBThe most devious, murderous cut-throat family of renaissance Italy.. or misunderstood victims of slanderous propaganda? Emma and Janina take a look at one of Italy's most infamous families, their rise, and fall.
Episode #82 - What Makes The Dark Ages "Dark"?
January 24, 2024 11:01 - 55 minutes - 127 MB... and were they really so dark? Listener survey link: https://forms.gle/78wMyX42uQvpHf1Y8 Show notes: https://historyissexy.com/show-notes/episode-82-what-makes-the-dark-ages-dark
Episode #81 - History is Rexy! Anne Boleyn (feat. Rex Factor)
December 20, 2023 20:29 - 1 hour - 85.3 MBGraham and Ali from Rex Factor are here and we're talking about England's most consequential Queen Consorts, and all the skulduggery she got up to! ⚠ Listener survey! ⚠ We want to get to know our wonderful audience (that's you) a little better, and find out how we can improve our podcast to be the best that it can be. To help us figure this stuff out, please answer whichever questions you can (none are mandatory, if you don't want to answer, just skip it). -> https://docs.google.com/forms/d/...
Episode #80 - What's The Deal With Empress Elisabeth?
November 30, 2023 05:46 - 1 hour - 108 MBWillkommen in Österreich! Emma is joined by History Is Sexy producer and Austria Correspondent Oliver to have a look at a story that's captured Austrian hearts for a hundred years, the life of Empress Elisabeth. ⚠ Listener survey! ⚠ We want to get to know our wonderful audience (that's you) a little better, and find out how we can improve our podcast to be the best that it can be. To help us figure this stuff out, please answer whichever questions you can (none are mandatory, if you don't wa...
Episode #79 - The Ptrouble With Ptolemys - Part 2! (Feat. HR Owen)
November 15, 2023 16:38 - 43 minutes - 59.3 MBEmma is joined by HR Owen once again to discuss the most dramatic family in Classical Egypt! ⚠ Listener survey! ⚠ We want to get to know our wonderful audience (that's you) a little better, and find out how we can improve our podcast to be the best that it can be. To help us figure this stuff out, please answer whichever questions you can (none are mandatory, if you don't want to answer, just skip it). -> https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSf5BqExg24ETNNN0Z3roCcyDpW6rlQ3qsaGeS2Nrb3YQEt...
Episode #78 - The Ptrouble With Ptolemys, Part 1 (feat. HR Owen)
November 04, 2023 19:46 - 1 hour - 93.4 MBJanina's on a bit of a break, but history never sleeps, so Emma is joined by acclaimed podcaster HR Owen for a deep dive into perhaps one of the most dramatic families in history, the Ptolemys. ⚠ Listener survey! ⚠ We want to get to know our wonderful audience (that's you) a little better, and find out how we can improve our podcast to be the best that it can be. To help us figure this stuff out, please answer whichever questions you can (none are mandatory, if you don't want to answer, just...
Episode #77 - Why Is The UK "United"?
September 21, 2023 10:51 - 1 hour - 98.2 MBHow did the various states that've existed on the British Isles/North Atlantic Archipelago coalesce, fracture, and coalesce over and over until it became the country we know today? A thousand years of history, all in just over an hour! ⚠ Listener survey! ⚠ We want to get to know our wonderful audience (that's you) a little better, and find out how we can improve our podcast to be the best that it can be. To help us figure this stuff out, please answer whichever questions you can (none are ma...
Episode #76 - The Story of Boudica
September 06, 2023 19:51 - 54 minutes - 74.8 MBIn 60CE, Boudica, Queen of the Iceni, led a violent uprising of unprecedented scale that tore across the southeast of Britannia, burning London and shocking the Roman world. But what's the real story? Was she real? Was she a literary construct? How are our modern conceptions of Boudica affected by the Victorians and Elizabethans?
Episode #75 - On Debutantes, Balls, and "The Season"
August 16, 2023 12:17 - 1 hour - 97.2 MBPut on your gown and get ready to enter high society, as Emma and Janina walk you through the bizarre world of Debutantes, Balls, and "The Season"
Episode #74 - What's The Deal With Matriarchal Societies In History?
July 28, 2023 10:16 - 1 hour - 89.9 MBThis time, Dr Emma Southon and Janina Matthewson take a deep dive into matriarchal societies in classical and pre-history, did they really exist?
Episode #73 - Caligula (1979)
July 04, 2023 22:00 - 1 hour - 94.5 MBCaligula is a 1979 film made by pornographers, starring Malcolm McDowell, Helen Mirren, Sir John Gielgud, and Peter O'Toole. It's also completely bananas. Join Emma (seen it dozens of times) and Janina (not seen it before) as they discuss this scandalous and notorious historical film.
Episode #72 - What Was So Great About Alexander?
June 08, 2023 10:01 - 57 minutes - 79.1 MBAnd why was he so special?
Episode #71 - What's the Deal with Wild Children?
May 25, 2023 03:16 - 55 minutes - 76.4 MBEmma and Janina investigate the mystery of wild children, and whether any of them were actually raised by olves.
Episode #70 - When Did Men's Clothes Get So Boring?
May 10, 2023 22:00 - 57 minutes - 79 MBWhat's "The Great Masculine Renunciation?" Who was Beau Brummell? Why are men's clothes so boring now?
Episode #69 - What's The Deal With Vikings, Part 2
April 26, 2023 19:58 - 53 minutes - 73.6 MBEmma and Janina are back behind the mast of the longship! This time, we're discussing sagas, eddas, and other various mythological titbits. www.historyissexy.com
Episode #68 - What's the Deal with Vikings, Part 1
April 13, 2023 06:56 - 1 hour - 61 MBWe're back, and better than ever! This time, Emma and Janina will be answering a few questions about everyone's favourite nordic seafaring pirate raiders, the Vikings! Were the Vikings the ISIS of the 9th century? Were the Vikings criminal outcasts from their homelands? Did we like Assassin's Creed: Valhalla? Tune in to find out!
A Small Update
August 29, 2022 08:00 - 6 minutes - 5.32 MBA quick update to promise you that we are not dead and encourage you to stop giving us money. Please stop giving us money until 2023! <3
Episode #67 - Why Do We Think The Victorians Were Prudes?
May 26, 2022 07:00 - 1 hour - 64.6 MBWhere did the idea that Victorians were all repressed weirdos come from? Is it true? Did they cover their piano legs for modesty? What's going on? Show notes and links and get in contact at www.historyissexy.com
Episode 67: Why Do We Think The Victorians Were Prudes?
May 26, 2022 07:00 - 1 hour - 64.6 MBWhere did the idea that Victorians were all repressed weirdos come from? Is it true? Did they cover their piano legs for modesty? What's going on? Show notes and links and get in contact at www.historyissexy.com
Episode 66: Did the Illuminati Cause the French Revolution
February 03, 2022 08:00 - 1 hour - 58.7 MBWho were the Illuminati? Did they cause revolutions all over the world, or were they just a bunch of nerds? Are philosophers to blame for everything? And did the French make books out of the skins of those they guillotined? Show Notes at https://historyissexy.com/show-notes/episode-66-did-the-illuminati-cause-the-french-revolution Support us at www.historyissexy.com
Episode #66 - Did the Illuminati Cause the French Revolution?
February 03, 2022 08:00 - 1 hour - 58.7 MBWho were the Illuminati? Did they cause revolutions all over the world, or were they just a bunch of nerds? Are philosophers to blame for everything? And did the French make books out of the skins of those they guillotined? Show Notes at https://historyissexy.com/show-notes/episode-66-did-the-illuminati-cause-the-french-revolution Support us at www.historyissexy.com
Episode #65 - Petra
January 13, 2022 12:41 - 55 minutes - 50.6 MBWhat's the history of Petra? Why was it considered lost for so long? Why aren't Bedouin people allowed to live there any more, and other things colonialism has ruined. Show notes at https://historyissexy.com/
Episode #65 - What's the History of Petra?
January 13, 2022 12:41 - 55 minutes - 50.6 MBWhat's the history of Petra? Why was it considered lost for so long? Why aren't Bedouin people allowed to live there any more, and other things colonialism has ruined. Show notes at https://historyissexy.com/
Episode #65 - What's the History of Petra
January 13, 2022 12:41 - 55 minutes - 50.6 MBWhat's the history of Petra? Why was it considered lost for so long? Why aren't Bedouin people allowed to live there any more, and other things colonialism has ruined. Show notes at https://historyissexy.com/
Episode #64 - What's the History of Alchemy?
November 25, 2021 15:09 - 1 hour - 70.9 MBThis week we explore the weird and wonderful world of alchemy, from ancient China to Isaac Newton. Show notes https://historyissexy.com/show-notes/episode-64-whats-the-history-of-alchemy
Episode 64: What's the History of Alchemy?
November 25, 2021 15:09 - 1 hour - 70.9 MBThis week we explore the weird and wonderful world of alchemy, from ancient China to Isaac Newton. Show notes https://historyissexy.com/show-notes/episode-64-whats-the-history-of-alchemy
Episode #63 - Did a girl from Cork become a Moroccan Empress and other stories
October 28, 2021 11:57 - 1 hour - 59.2 MBPeople who's lives turned out to involve things no one could have predicted. Show notes: historyissexy.com/show-notes/cqcz3d5vh0ftaryie0kdkbw8s5ht7g
Episode #63 - "Did A Girl From Cork Become a Moroccan Empress?" And Other Stories
October 28, 2021 11:57 - 1 hour - 59.2 MBPeople who's lives turned out to involve things no one could have predicted. Show notes: historyissexy.com/show-notes/cqcz3d5vh0ftaryie0kdkbw8s5ht7g
Episode #62 - Where Did The Idea Of Human Rights Come From?
October 14, 2021 07:54 - 1 hour - 67 MB*Reuploaded* This episode we talk political philosophy, chaos, revolutions and war crimes and the messy path to human rights theory. Show notes, merch and contact form at www.historyissexy.com
Episode #62: Where Did the Idea of Human Rights Come From
October 14, 2021 07:54 - 1 hour - 67 MB*Reuploaded* This episode we talk political philosophy, chaos, revolutions and war crimes and the messy path to human rights theory. Show notes, merch and contact form at www.historyissexy.com
Episode #62 - Where Did the Idea of Human Rights Come From
October 14, 2021 07:54 - 1 hour - 67 MB*Reuploaded* This episode we talk political philosophy, chaos, revolutions and war crimes and the messy path to human rights theory. Show notes, merch and contact form at www.historyissexy.com
Episode 62: Where did the idea of human rights come from?
October 13, 2021 21:38 - 1 hour - 66.9 MBThis week we talk political philosophy, revolutions, atrocities and and the long slow process of human universalism and human rights. Show notes at www.historyissexy.com
Episode #61 - Did Jesus Really Exist?
September 30, 2021 11:13 - 1 hour - 68.1 MBDid a real human man called Jesus actually live and was he really crucified or did the church make the whole thing up? Show notes: https://historyissexy.com/show-notes/episode-61-did-jesus-really-exist
Episode #60 - How Smelly Was the Past?
September 02, 2021 07:00 - 1 hour - 64.6 MBWas the past stinky? Were medieval peasants covered in poo like Monty Python? Did people really piss out of windows like in Blackadder? Were the streets of medieval London rivers of animal guts and dung? Or were the people of the past just like us? Let's find out! Show notes: https://historyissexy.com/show-notes/episode-60-how-smelly-was-the-past
Episode #59 - How Big a Dickhead Was Oliver Cromwell?
August 19, 2021 12:35 - 1 hour - 82.4 MBWe debate Oliver Cromwell and whether, massacres and puritanism aside, he was really such a bad guy. Show notes at historyissexy.com/show-notes/0pd9rhjo7tx1caqc6baqevdinck1y3
Episode #58 - Were the Amazons Real?
August 05, 2021 11:50 - 1 hour - 62.8 MBWas there really an all female tribe of warrior women in the ancient world? Did they cut off one boob? Why would they do that? Emma and Janina discuss the evidence. Show notes: https://historyissexy.com/show-notes/episode-58-were-the-amazons-real
Episode #57 - History's Greatest Escapes
July 22, 2021 00:00 - 1 hour - 63.2 MBThe greatest escapes in history, or; how we learned the most tried and true escape methods. Show notes and merch available at https://historyissexy.com/
Episode #57 - What Are History's Greatest Escapes?
July 22, 2021 00:00 - 1 hour - 63.2 MBThe greatest escapes in history, or; how we learned the most tried and true escape methods. Show notes and merch available at https://historyissexy.com/
Episode 56 - What's The History of Timbuktu?
July 08, 2021 07:00 - 1 hour - 57.3 MBA continuation of the last episode on Arabic libraries and centres of learning, today we visit West Africa and learn how Timbuktu became a focus of Islamic scholarship and learning. Show notes historyissexy.com/show-notes/episode-56-whats-the-history-of-timbuktu
Episode #56 - What's The History of Timbuktu?
July 08, 2021 07:00 - 1 hour - 57.3 MBA continuation of the last episode on Arabic libraries and centres of learning, today we visit West Africa and learn how Timbuktu became a focus of Islamic scholarship and learning. Show notes historyissexy.com/show-notes/episode-56-whats-the-history-of-timbuktu
Episode #55 - Arabic Libraries
June 24, 2021 13:23 - 1 hour - 61.7 MBWe talk about the great libraries of Baghdad and Cordoba. Includes a truly thrilling escape story that for some reason hasn't had a big budget HBO series made about it? Show notes and merch available at historyissexy.com/
Ep #55 - Arabic Libraries
June 24, 2021 13:23 - 1 hour - 61.7 MBWe talk about the great libraries of Baghdad and Cordoba. Includes a truly thrilling escape story that for some reason hasn't had a big budget HBO series made about it? Show notes and merch available at historyissexy.com/
Episode #54 - What's the History of Malta?
June 10, 2021 08:00 - 1 hour - 72.1 MBSieges, sieges and more sieges! Turns out there's more to Malta than just seiges, but there are a lot of them. Janina and Emma discuss knights, crusades, mother goddesses and endless, interminable wars. Show notes and links at www.historyissexy.com
Episode 54: What's the History of Malta
June 10, 2021 08:00 - 1 hour - 72.1 MBSieges, sieges and more sieges! Turns out there's more to Malta than just seiges, but there are a lot of them. Janina and Emma discuss knights, crusades, mother goddesses and endless, interminable wars. Show notes and links at www.historyissexy.com
Episode #54 - What's the History of Malta
June 10, 2021 08:00 - 1 hour - 72.1 MBSieges, sieges and more sieges! Turns out there's more to Malta than just seiges, but there are a lot of them. Janina and Emma discuss knights, crusades, mother goddesses and endless, interminable wars. Show notes and links at www.historyissexy.com
Episode #53 - Ra Ra Rasputin Part III
May 20, 2021 00:00 - 1 hour - 61.5 MBThe final part of our Rasputin series features Boney M, Anastasia, and Rasputin's alleged dick! Show notes and merch available at https://historyissexy.com/