Tales of History and Imagination
145 episodes - English - Latest episode: 13 days ago - ★★★★★ - 3 ratingsEccentric tales from History by Simone Whitlow
Homepage Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Episodes
Jack Parsons - Babalon‘s Rocketeer (Part One)
May 21, 2021 09:34 - 21 minutes - 24.2 MBContent warning! I discuss a violent death in this Tale, and allude to another. When John Whiteside Parsons – Jack to his friends – died suddenly in an explosion, one may have expected platitudes to the man. As a pioneering rocket scientist, the world - and the future would owe much to his innovations. Instead, all anyone could talk about was the gossip about his lifestyle – and membership to a cult which worshipped a man known as ‘The Great Beast' Over the next two episodes, we're talki...
12: Jack Parsons - Babalon's Rocketeer (Part One)
May 21, 2021 09:34 - 21 minutes - 24.2 MBContent warning! I discuss a violent death in this Tale, and allude to another. When John Whiteside Parsons – Jack to his friends – died suddenly in an explosion, one may have expected platitudes to the man. As a pioneering rocket scientist, the world - and the future would owe much to his innovations. Instead, all anyone could talk about was the gossip about his lifestyle – and membership to a cult which worshipped a man known as ‘The Great Beast' Over the next two episodes, we're talki...
Grace O‘Malley
May 04, 2021 21:00 - 17 minutes - 20 MBThis episode we attend a meeting at Greenwich palace, the date, some time in September 1593. The ‘Fairy Queen’ of England, Elizabeth I, awaits the arrival of one Grace O’Malley – the pirate Queen of Connaught. The two rulers had been at loggerheads for decades and in some ways they seemed wildly different characters – one a genteel Law-lord in charge of a nation.... the other a swashbuckling Warlord from beyond the Pail. Were they all that different? The philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson remin...
11: Grace O‘Malley
May 04, 2021 21:00 - 17 minutes - 20 MBThis episode we attend a meeting at Greenwich palace, the date, some time in September 1593. The ‘Fairy Queen’ of England, Elizabeth I, awaits the arrival of one Grace O’Malley – the pirate Queen of Connaught. The two rulers had been at loggerheads for decades and in some ways they seemed wildly different characters – one a genteel Law-lord in charge of a nation.... the other a swashbuckling Warlord from beyond the Pail. Were they all that different? The philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson remin...
11: Grace O'Malley
May 04, 2021 21:00 - 17 minutes - 20 MBThis episode we attend a meeting at Greenwich palace, the date, some time in September 1593. The ‘Fairy Queen’ of England, Elizabeth I, awaits the arrival of one Grace O’Malley – the pirate Queen of Connaught. The two rulers had been at loggerheads for decades and in some ways they seemed wildly different characters – one a genteel Law-lord in charge of a nation.... the other a swashbuckling Warlord from beyond the Pail. Were they all that different? The philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson remin...
Ten: Mithridates- The Poison King
April 20, 2021 20:50 - 21 minutes - 23.9 MBThis week's Tale takes place in 63 BC. The setting, the kingdom of Pontus – a once powerful Black Sea empire – now a region of Eastern Turkey. Mithridates VI Eupator paces, knowing his time is up. Like Hannibal, he spent decades at war with Rome – and like Hannibal he would meet his end like a caged lion. A renowned freedom fighter, he was also a genocidal despot. A paranoid megalomaniac, raised to believe a series of comets and other omens marked him out as a messiah. Saviour of the East. ...
Mithridates- The Poison King
April 20, 2021 20:50 - 21 minutes - 23.9 MBThis week's Tale takes place in 63 BC. The setting, the kingdom of Pontus – a once powerful Black Sea empire – now a region of Eastern Turkey. Mithridates VI Eupator paces, knowing his time is up. Like Hannibal, he spent decades at war with Rome – and like Hannibal he would meet his end like a caged lion. A renowned freedom fighter, he was also a genocidal despot. A paranoid megalomaniac, raised to believe a series of comets and other omens marked him out as a messiah. Saviour of the East. ...
Admin: It’s About to Get Bumpy…
April 20, 2021 12:00 - 1 minute - 1.4 MBHi all just dropping an admin note between old episodes. Basically, I recorded the first two seasons on a Blue Yeti microphone straight into an old laptop. I then mixed those episodes without headphones… Some of them sound pretty rough. In January 2022 I upgraded my mic, and bought a podcasting console in April 2022. Since then I’ve re-recorded several older episodes. Basically everything from The Pendle Witches onwards is on the new gear, and everything before The Pendle Witches is in th...
Nine: Buried Alive!
April 13, 2021 08:56 - 7 minutes - 8.99 MBThis week's Tale is a quick, bonus tale. I’ll be back with proper episodes 21st April. Content warning this episode is all about premature burial – and was first posted Halloween 2020. You can read the episode here. Yes, voice is scratchy... someone in my bubble keeps passing round a cold, I've been checked and it is a cold... Also, yes I did ditch on the proposed episode – apologies for that. ‘Ungern's Army’ is recorded, and mixed – but an episode on a monster who killed thousands of Ch...
Buried Alive!
April 13, 2021 08:56 - 7 minutes - 8.99 MBThis week's Tale is a quick, bonus tale. I’ll be back with proper episodes 21st April. Content warning this episode is all about premature burial – and was first posted Halloween 2020. You can read the episode here. Yes, voice is scratchy... someone in my bubble keeps passing round a cold, I've been checked and it is a cold... Also, yes I did ditch on the proposed episode – apologies for that. ‘Ungern's Army’ is recorded, and mixed – but an episode on a monster who killed thousands of Ch...
Buried Alive! (Re-Upload)
April 13, 2021 08:56 - 7 minutes - 8.76 MBThis is a re-upload of the original Episode 9, Buried Alive! It’s the same script as in 2020, but recorded with much better gear. I’ll be re-uploading the first 25 or so throughout 2022 and 2023 This week's Tale is a quick, bonus tale. I’ll be back with proper episodes 21st April. Content warning this episode is all about premature burial – and was first posted Halloween 2020. You can read the episode here. Support the show on Patreon for $2 US a month and get access to exclusive content,...
Eight: Three Short Tales
March 03, 2021 08:52 - 10 minutes - 12.4 MBWhat do pirates, Lombards and 80s cultural phenomena have in common? Besides the time I bundled three short Tales from history together for a quick blog post (hey! I was exhausted that week) .... possibly nothing? This week, three short Tales, which do examine elements of human behavior, set in very different settings. This week’s episode was originally published October 20th 2020. You can read the episode here. If anyone is curious, my voice is back... but I recorded this episode in Nove...
Three Short Tales
March 03, 2021 08:52 - 10 minutes - 12.4 MBWhat do pirates, Lombards and 80s cultural phenomena have in common? Besides the time I bundled three short Tales from history together for a quick blog post (hey! I was exhausted that week) .... possibly nothing? This week, three short Tales, which do examine elements of human behavior, set in very different settings. This week’s episode was originally published October 20th 2020. You can read the episode here. If anyone is curious, my voice is back... but I recorded this episode in Nove...
Sophxit! – The Tale of Count Konigsmarck and Princess Sophia Dorothea
February 17, 2021 05:00 - 15 minutes - 17.7 MBToday’s tale is set Hanover, a small Germanic Duchy whose royal family would go on to become kind of a big deal. The date, July 1st 1694. A handsome young man, aided only by moonlight, sails along the Leine river till he reaches the Leineschloss – the palatial riverside home of the duke and his family. He moors his boat, then cautiously enters the property. Little does he know at the time, but within hours he’d disappear without a trace. Never to be seen again. This week’s tale is all about...
Seven: Sophxit! – The Tale of Count Konigsmarck and Princess Sophia Dorothea.
February 17, 2021 05:00 - 15 minutes - 17.7 MBToday’s tale is set Hanover, a small Germanic Duchy whose royal family would go on to become kind of a big deal. The date, July 1st 1694. A handsome young man, aided only by moonlight, sails along the Leine river till he reaches the Leineschloss – the palatial riverside home of the duke and his family. He moors his boat, then cautiously enters the property. Little does he know at the time, but within hours he’d disappear without a trace. Never to be seen again. This week’s tale is all about...
Six: Sabbatai Zevi/ Dorothy Martin‘s Flying Saucer.
February 03, 2021 05:00 - 18 minutes - 21 MBThis episode is based on two blog posts, with a unified theme. Apologies for the croaky voice this week. Let's discuss some Messiahs and aliens. One. The year is 1666, the setting Adrianople in the Ottoman Empire – modern day Turkey. A middle aged preacher named Sabbatai Zevi, held captive since his arrival there, mulls over a difficult choice. Tomorrow he will be brought before the Ottoman Sultan Mehmet IV and be told to make a choice, a Monty Hall problem if ever there was one – though i...
Six: Sabbatai Zevi/ Dorothy Martin's Flying Saucer.
February 03, 2021 05:00 - 18 minutes - 21 MBThis episode is based on two blog posts, with a unified theme. Apologies for the croaky voice this week. Let's discuss some Messiahs and aliens. One. The year is 1666, the setting Adrianople in the Ottoman Empire – modern day Turkey. A middle aged preacher named Sabbatai Zevi, held captive since his arrival there, mulls over a difficult choice. Tomorrow he will be brought before the Ottoman Sultan Mehmet IV and be told to make a choice, a Monty Hall problem if ever there was one – though i...
Sabbatai Zevi/ Dorothy Martin‘s Flying Saucer.
February 03, 2021 05:00 - 18 minutes - 21 MBThis episode is based on two blog posts, with a unified theme. Apologies for the croaky voice this week. Let's discuss some Messiahs and aliens. One. The year is 1666, the setting Adrianople in the Ottoman Empire – modern day Turkey. A middle aged preacher named Sabbatai Zevi, held captive since his arrival there, mulls over a difficult choice. Tomorrow he will be brought before the Ottoman Sultan Mehmet IV and be told to make a choice, a Monty Hall problem if ever there was one – though i...
Five: The Beast of Gevaudan
January 20, 2021 05:00 - 10 minutes - 11.8 MBToday’s tale is set in the former province of Gevaudan in South-Central France. The years between 1764 and 1767, following the bloody, and costly Seven Years War – a Proto World War if ever there was one – which had left deep scars in the psyche of many a European nation – France included- and left many a monarch broke in its’ wake. An isolated, rugged, rural spot – The terrain rough and mountainous – it is far too rocky to grow much by way of crops. The locals eke out a living in the hills...
The Beast of Gevaudan
January 20, 2021 05:00 - 10 minutes - 11.8 MBToday’s tale is set in the former province of Gevaudan in South-Central France. The years between 1764 and 1767, following the bloody, and costly Seven Years War – a Proto World War if ever there was one – which had left deep scars in the psyche of many a European nation – France included- and left many a monarch broke in its’ wake. An isolated, rugged, rural spot – The terrain rough and mountainous – it is far too rocky to grow much by way of crops. The locals eke out a living in the hills...
The Beast of Gevaudan (Re-Upload)
January 20, 2021 05:00 - 10 minutes - 12.4 MBThis is a re-upload of the original Episode 5, The Beast of Gevaudan. It’s the same script as in 2019, but recorded with much better gear. I’ll be re-uploading the first 25 or so throughout 2022 and 2023 Today’s tale is set in the former province of Gevaudan in South-Central France. The years between 1764 and 1767, following the bloody, and costly Seven Years War – a Proto World War if ever there was one – which had left deep scars in the psyche of many a European nation – France included- ...
Four: The Incident on Eilean Mor
January 06, 2021 05:00 - 5 minutes - 6.89 MBThe Flannan Isles, sometimes referred to as the 7 Hunters, are a tiny group of islands on the outside of the Outer Hebrides – a string of islands in the North of Scotland. Uninhabited, hilly and rocky, covered only by grass … people generally had little to do with these islands. For centuries Shepherds would use the islands to store sheep away from poachers. They themselves never stayed overnight – folklore warned of malevolent spirits on the islands. The lighthouse keepers were another case...
The Incident on Eilean Mor
January 06, 2021 05:00 - 5 minutes - 6.89 MBThe Flannan Isles, sometimes referred to as the 7 Hunters, are a tiny group of islands on the outside of the Outer Hebrides – a string of islands in the North of Scotland. Uninhabited, hilly and rocky, covered only by grass … people generally had little to do with these islands. For centuries Shepherds would use the islands to store sheep away from poachers. They themselves never stayed overnight – folklore warned of malevolent spirits on the islands. The lighthouse keepers were another case...
Eilean Mor (Re-upload)
January 05, 2021 21:00 - 6 minutes - 7.72 MBThis is a re-upload of the original Episode 4, Eilean Mor. It’s the same script as in 2019, but recorded with much better gear. I’ll be re-uploading the first 25 or so throughout 2022 and 2023 The Flannan Isles, sometimes referred to as the 7 Hunters, are a tiny group of islands in the Outer Hebrides – a string of islands in the North of Scotland. Uninhabited, hilly and rocky, covered only by grass … people kept well clear of these, allegedly haunted isles. In 1899 a lighthouse was build on...
Three: Tipu‘s Tiger
December 23, 2020 05:00 - 6 minutes - 8.09 MBOne day, a young prince named Tipu went out hunting in the jungle with a friend – sometimes portrayed as a French mercenary in the service of the prince’s father – the fearsome Hyder Ali. While tracking a local deer or antelope the two men were surprised by a giant tiger leaping out at them from the undergrowth. This fortnight’s tale focuses on the Mysore Kingdom’s ruler Tipu Sultan, and his macabre taste in musical instruments. The script of this episode is based on a blog post on Tales o...
Three: Tipu's Tiger
December 23, 2020 05:00 - 6 minutes - 8.09 MBOne day, a young prince named Tipu went out hunting in the jungle with a friend – sometimes portrayed as a French mercenary in the service of the prince’s father – the fearsome Hyder Ali. While tracking a local deer or antelope the two men were surprised by a giant tiger leaping out at them from the undergrowth. This fortnight’s tale focuses on the Mysore Kingdom’s ruler Tipu Sultan, and his macabre taste in musical instruments. The script of this episode is based on a blog post on Tales o...
Tipu‘s Tiger
December 23, 2020 05:00 - 6 minutes - 8.09 MBOne day, a young prince named Tipu went out hunting in the jungle with a friend – sometimes portrayed as a French mercenary in the service of the prince’s father – the fearsome Hyder Ali. While tracking a local deer or antelope the two men were surprised by a giant tiger leaping out at them from the undergrowth. This fortnight’s tale focuses on the Mysore Kingdom’s ruler Tipu Sultan, and his macabre taste in musical instruments. The script of this episode is based on a blog post on Tales o...
Tipu’s Tiger (Re-upload)
December 22, 2020 22:02 - 7 minutes - 8.33 MBThis is a re-upload of the original Episode 3, Tipu’s Tiger. It’s the same script as in 2020, but recorded with much better gear. I’ll be re-uploading the first 25 or so throughout 2022 and 2023 One day a prince named Tipu went out hunting in the forest with a friend. The experience would affect him for the rest of his life - reflecting in his art, signature, uniforms…. And musical instruments? The blog post of the episode is here. Support the show on Patreon for $2 US a month and get a...
Tipu’s Tiger - Re-upload
December 22, 2020 22:02 - 7 minutes - 8.33 MBOne day a prince named Tipu went out hunting in the forest with a friend. The experience would affect him for the rest of his life - reflecting in his art, signature, uniforms…. And musical instruments? The blog post of the episode is here. Support the show on Patreon for just $2 a month and get access to exclusive content. Membership gets you access to a growing catalog of bonus episodes. Please leave us a like and review. The best way you can help support the show is to share an...
Hannibal in Bithynia (Re-upload)
December 09, 2020 11:14 - 7 minutes - 8.4 MBThis is a re-upload of the original Episode 2, Hannibal in Bithynia. It’s the same script as in 2019, but recorded with much better gear. I’ll be re-uploading the first 25 or so throughout 2022 and 2023 Today’s we’re Asiatic town of Libyssa, in Bithynia – modern day Turkey. The date, some time around 182 BCE. Hannibal Barca, one of the greatest Generals to ever live, is pacing his enclosure like a caged Barbary Lion. His life, from the age of nine had lead to this point – ever since his ...
Hannibal in Bithynia
December 09, 2020 05:01 - 7 minutes - 8.15 MBToday’s tale is set in the Asiatic town of Libyssa, in Bithynia – on the periphery of what is now Turkey. The date, some time around 182 BCE. Hannibal Barca, perhaps one of the all time great generals in world history is pacing the room like a caged Barbary Lion. His life, from the age of nine had lead to this point – ever since his father made him take an oath he would “Never be a friend of Rome.” How did it all come to this for the Carthaginian strongman? Simone discusses. The script of t...
Two: Hannibal in Bithynia
December 09, 2020 05:01 - 7 minutes - 8.15 MBToday’s tale is set in the Asiatic town of Libyssa, in Bithynia – on the periphery of what is now Turkey. The date, some time around 182 BCE. Hannibal Barca, perhaps one of the all time great generals in world history is pacing the room like a caged Barbary Lion. His life, from the age of nine had lead to this point – ever since his father made him take an oath he would “Never be a friend of Rome.” How did it all come to this for the Carthaginian strongman? Simone discusses. The script of t...
Martial Bourdin
December 02, 2020 05:00 - 12 minutes - 14.1 MBMartial Bourdin At 4:45pm precisely, GMT, on 15th February 1894 the grounds of Greenwich Park, London – home of the Royal Observatory, and a clock we’ll discuss later – are shaken by a resounding boom. Staff at the observatory recalled a “sharp and clear detonation, followed by a noise like a shell going through the air”. They peered out the windows in trepidation attempting to work out what just happened. A park warden and a group of students ran towards the epicenter of the blast – where ...
One: Martial Bourdin
December 02, 2020 05:00 - 12 minutes - 14.1 MBMartial Bourdin At 4:45pm precisely, GMT, on 15th February 1894 the grounds of Greenwich Park, London – home of the Royal Observatory, and a clock we’ll discuss later – are shaken by a resounding boom. Staff at the observatory recalled a “sharp and clear detonation, followed by a noise like a shell going through the air”. They peered out the windows in trepidation attempting to work out what just happened. A park warden and a group of students ran towards the epicenter of the blast – where ...
Martial Bourdin (Re-upload)
December 01, 2020 23:00 - 11 minutes - 12.9 MBThis is a re-upload of the original Episode 1, Martial Bourdin. It’s the same script as in 2019, but recorded with much better gear. I’ll be re-uploading the first 25 or so throughout 2022 and 2023. “At 4:45pm precisely, GMT, 15th February 1894, the grounds of Greenwich Park, London – home of the Royal Observatory, and a clock we’ll discuss later – are shaken by a resounding boom. Staff at the observatory recalled a “sharp and clear detonation, followed by a noise like a shell going through...
Episode Zero - An Introduction
November 30, 2020 05:21 - 1 minute - 1.27 MBHey all, this is just an introductory episode for new folk. Ever heard the Tale of the anarchist who attempted to kill time?The unkillable man eater who stalked a remote French region in the 1760s? What about the time a pioneering female reporter’ faked madness to bring down an insane asylum? On Tales of History and Imagination I talk about killer peers, pirate queens, the cult leader who fathered modern rocketry. The proto-hippy nudist who wrote a mega hit for Nat King Cole. Supposedly ...
Update: Season 2 is Coming! ...
April 18, 2020 08:36 - 4 minutes - 5.57 MBHey everyone, hope you're all keeping well in these crazy times. Just a quick update from myself. Season 2 IS on it's way, though .... well hit listen :)Simone.
Episode Eight: Mt Tambora, a Butterfly Effect in Four Acts
February 24, 2020 21:00 - 31 minutes - 32.5 MBOn April 10th 1815 the world experienced a near cataclysmic event - a volcanic eruption which burnt through as much energy in three days as the whole planet uses in three months' power consumption - in 2020. The statistics are shocking, and ultimately the eruption on Indonesia's Mount Tambora, would cost an estimated 10 million lives. It also acted as a prompt for a number of innovations that affect our lives today. Today's tale is the story of the tragedy of the Mount Tambora eruption, and ...
Episode Seven: The Unstoppable Adrian Carton de Wiart
January 26, 2020 08:46 - 34 minutes - 36.9 MBA lifelong, professional soldier, Adrian Carton de Wiart's career started off on horseback in the late 19th Century - and wrapped up in the nuclear age. In this time he suffered 11 major gunshot wounds, multiple wars, two plane crashes, captivity, bombardments... you name it. In this episode Simone dives into the life and career of one of Britain's greatest warriors.
Episode Six: Grace O'Malley, the Pirate Queen
January 07, 2020 21:05 - 24 minutes - 26.3 MBThis tale begins close to it's chronological end, in September 1593, at a meeting between two queens - one Ralph Waldo Emerson's typical law-lord, the other a good, old fashioned warlord. Though both come from decidedly different backgrounds, they also had much in common, including an ugly conflict which dated back to the late 1550s. In this week Simone looks into the life and times of Grace O'Malley, pirate queen of Connaught.
Episode Five: Simone's Christmas Carol
December 20, 2019 09:19 - 21 minutes - 23.8 MBHi all, seasons greetings! In Simone's latest tale we tell the stories of William Sydney Porter aka O Henry, and one of the greatest Christmas tales of all time.... and Lee Shelton aka Stagger Lee, and how a barroom murder turned a young pimp and murderer into a folk hero.
Episode Four: Altamont: The Ballad of Meredith Hunter
November 29, 2019 10:19 - 36 minutes - 39.2 MBIf Woodstock was the zenith of the hippy counterculture movement, a high point of peace, love and understanding, then The Altamont Racetrack Free Concert of December 6th 1969 had to have been it's nadir - a fine day in hell. Simone T. Whitlow examines just what happened, why it happened, and why it was such an important event.
Episode Three: Spring Heeled Jack
October 30, 2019 07:56 - 30 minutes - 33.3 MBHalf a century before a certain other Jack stalked the ladies of Whitechapel, England, Spring Heeled Jack - The Terror of London roamed the streets of London looking for mischief. Who, or what, was this claw-handed, seemingly super-human revenant who attacked perhaps dozens of women from 1837 till maybe as late as 1904, and how has our perceptions altered his legacy?
Episode Two: Ignaz Trebitsch Lincoln
October 01, 2019 09:51 - 44 minutes - 53.9 MBTo some the tale of Ignaz Trebitsch Lincoln is a spy story... I tend to take the long view and sell it as a picaresque novel. In the picaresque the protagonist - you can't always say hero cause sometimes they aren't very heroic - is a likeable rogue... lowly born, who has to live by their wits in a cruel, often corrupt world....The following tale is the story of one such rogue, and the many twists and turns his remarkable life took.
Episode One: Something Wicked This Way Comes.
September 15, 2019 04:00 - 35 minutes - 38.4 MBOn 20th August 1612, in Pendle, Lancashire - 8 women and one young man were executed - largely on the testimony of a 9 year old girl. In the time leading up to this trial two others would die, one by hanging, another- the octogenarian 'Old Demdike' as a result of the squalid conditions prisoners were kept in, in those times. The cause? a young lady by the name of Alizon Device had an argument with the pedlar John Law, and things got out of hand. Bertrand Russell once said "Fear is the main s...