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Every episode
Not Just the Tudors
30 episodes
True Crime: Mass Murderering Artist Cellini
Ep 557 · Aug 17, 2026 · 48 min
How did a murderous, swaggering, wildly unreliable goldsmith become one of the most celebrated artists of the 16th century? Does genius excuse monstrous behaviour? Benvenuto Cellini's story is as shocking as it is dazzling, taking him from the bloody streets of Florence to the Sack of Rome, papal prisons, accusations of sodomy, spectacular jailbreaks and timeless artistic masterpieces. Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Dr. Noah Charney to explore Cellini's outrageous life. MORE Vasari: In…
C.S. Lewis & Narnia: Renaissance Origins
Ep 556 · Aug 13, 2026 · 41 min
Why does C.S. Lewis's Narnia - with its images of winter, sacrifice, kingship and renewal - continue to resonate with generations of readers? How did Lewis weave Renaissance symbolism and Christian imagination into one of literature’s best-loved fantasy worlds? Lewis’s deceptively simple children’s stories were shaped by his scholarship in classics, literature and theology. Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Professor Alister McGrath, to uncover the intellectual and historical influences b…
The Star Chamber: Murder, Witch & Libel Trials
Ep 555 · Aug 10, 2026 · 41 min
What really happened inside England’s most feared court? Was the Star Chamber a sinister instrument of royal tyranny, or a vital route to justice for those ignored by ordinary law? From its rise under Henry VII to its abolition in 1641, the Star Chamber heard cases involving murder, witchcraft, libel, corruption, riots, political dissent and scandalous family feuds. Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Dr. Daniel Gosling to explore the dramatic history of one of the most controversial instit…
William Cecil: The Power Behind Elizabeth I
Ep 554 · Aug 6, 2026 · 39 min
Who really ruled Elizabethan England? For almost four decades, William Cecil, 1st Baron Burghley, guided Queen Elizabeth I through religious turmoil, assassination plots, the threat of the Spanish Armada, the execution of Mary, Queen of Scots, and the unresolved question of succession. Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Jon Culverhouse to explore the life and legacy of the meticulous, fiercely Protestant statesman who became the indispensable power behind the Tudor throne. More Royal Favou…
Witnesses to the French Revolution
Ep 553 · Aug 3, 2026 · 53 min
What was the French Revolution like for those who lived through it? What can private journals reveal that speeches, pamphlets and official records cannot? From the storming of the Bastille to the Terror and the guillotine, ordinary witnesses recorded the personal impact of 1789, political violence, revolutionary identity and everyday life in Paris. In this final episode of our mini-series on the French Revolution, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb finds out more from historian Michaela Kalcher. More:…
New Discovery: Who Really Wrote Elizabeth I's Letters?
Ep 552 · Jul 30, 2026 · 44 min
Was Elizabeth I really as angry and bad tempered as history has always claimed? How did some of her most secret state letters come to be penned by a Spaniard, while England was at war with Spain? Professor Suzannah Lipscomb breaks the news of groundbreaking research that proves Elizabeth's secretaries - especially her 'spymaster' Francis Walsingham - put words into the Queen's mouth to amplify her tough image. Suzannah finds out more from Dr. Clodagh Murphy and Professor Nadine Akkerman. MORE Sp…
Robespierre & Revolutionary Terror
Ep 551 · Jul 27, 2026 · 1 hr 8 min
How did the French Revolution, built on liberty, become ruled by fear? And how did Robespierre - the man who had sent kings, nobles and priests to their deaths - himself end up beneath the blade of the guillotine? Professor Suzannah Lipscomb and Professor Marisa Linton explore the rise and fall of the lawyer, revolutionary, and architect of the Reign of Terror, MORE: Marguerite de Navarre: Mother of Renaissance France Listen on Apple Listen on Spotify True Crime: Medici Murder at the Louvre List…
How Protestants Justified Slavery
Ep 550 · Jul 23, 2026 · 53 min
Was the Protestant Reformation ever truly global? How did radical theology, empire, slavery and missionary ambition collide across the early modern world? The global spread of Christianity was marked by failure, compromise and moral evasion. Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Dr. Alec Ryrie to uncover the forgotten history of Protestant missions beyond Europe: from Lapland to Chile, from Barbados to Taiwan. MORE What did Henry VIII Believe? Listen on Apple Listen on Spotify Dissolution of…
French Revolution: Storming of the Bastille
Ep 549 · Jul 20, 2026 · 55 min
What drove a hungry city to storm a fortress? How did the fall of the Bastille become the defining symbol of the French Revolution? In this second episode of our series, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb and Professor Marisa Linton visit Paris on the verge of revolt. Together they explore the build-up to the storming of the Bastille, one dramatic day which changed the heartbeat of the French Revolution. MORE Who Lit the French Revolution? Listen on Apple Listen on Spotify Marie Antoinette Listen on Ap…
True Crime: Murder & the Popish Plot
Ep 548 · Jul 16, 2026 · 43 min
Was a London magistrate, found dead in a ditch in 1678, the victim of a Catholic conspiracy, political convenience, or secrets too dangerous to survive? Why did Edmund Berry Godfrey's murder send England into hysteria? Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Dr. Andrea McKenzie to reopen the case. Drawing on newly deciphered letters, secret correspondence and neglected archives, they uncover a murky world of espionage, faction, coded messages and lethal knowledge, where truth itself became dang…
Who Lit the French Revolution?
Ep 547 · Jul 13, 2026 · 54 min
How did a kingdom of palaces, privilege and powdered wigs collapse into revolution? What turned hunger into uprising? In this first episode of our series on the French Revolution, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb and Dr. Charles Walton discuss the slow-burning crisis that transformed frustration into revolt. Together they explore life in Paris in 1789, where soaring bread prices, royal debt and radical new ideas pushed ordinary people to imagine a different world. MORE Montaigne: Philosopher of the F…
Bess of Hardwick: Elizabethan England's Richest Woman
Ep 546 · Jul 9, 2026 · 45 min
How did a Derbyshire gentlewoman become England’s richest woman after Elizabeth I? Why does she still fascinate us as her 500th anniversary approaches? From four marriages and vast wealth to Hardwick Hall, Chatsworth and the Cavendish dynasty, Bess of Hardwick turned survival into power. Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Professor Lisa Hopkins to discover a gripping story of female ambition, marriage, captivity, betrayal and court politics. MORE Bess's Hardwick Hall Listen on Apple Listen…
Edmund Halley & His Comet
Ep 545 · Jul 6, 2026 · 57 min
How did our understanding of the universe begin in a London coffee house? How did a man who had a comet named after him change science forever? From his youthful voyage to St Helena to chart the southern skies, to his pioneering studies of navigation, longitude, gravity, and the Earth’s atmosphere, Edmund Halley’s curiosity knew no bounds. Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by David K. Love to explore the remarkable life of one of the great figures of the Scientific Revolution. MORE Isaac New…
The Mayflower and its Pilgrims
Ep 544 · Jul 2, 2026 · 48 min
Why did the Pilgrims risk everything in search of a new life and religious freedom? Why does their contested history still matter ahead of the 250th anniversary of American independence? In 1620, the Mayflower carried English religious separatists, across the Atlantic to found Plymouth Colony. Professor Suzannah Lipscomb speaks with Professor John G. Turner about their dangerous Atlantic crossing, and the human stories behind the legendary Pilgrim Fathers. MORE The Bible Listen on Apple Listen o…
Jamestown: From Colony to Cannibalism
Ep 543 · Jun 29, 2026 · 57 min
**This episode contains graphic explorations of starvation and cannibalism** What happens when a colony reaches the edge of survival? In this third episode leading up to the 250th anniversary of American independence, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb and Dr Rachel Winchcombe examine the so-called Starving Time of 1609-1610, when Jamestown settlers faced famine, desperation and cannibalism. Together they reveal the complex human story behind early colonial America’s most infamous crisis. MORE Raleigh…
True Crime: Moll Cutpurse - London's Cross-Dressing Criminal
Ep 542 · Jun 25, 2026 · 48 min
How did one woman scandalise sixteenth century London by refusing to live by its rules? Mary Frith - aka Moll Cutpurse - rejected the expectations of respectable womanhood, wore men’s clothes, smoked a pipe, carried weapons, and frequented London’s taverns, theatres, prisons and courtrooms. Professor Suzannah Lipscomb and Dr. Holly Marsden explore the extraordinary life and afterlife of Moll - pickpocket, performer, and notorious Roaring Girl of Elizabethan and Jacobean England. MORE Murderous W…
Pocahontas & the Virginian Venture
Ep 541 · Jun 22, 2026 · 58 min
How did the Stuarts turn fragile American outposts into an empire? How did English settlers, Native peoples - including Pocahontas - and London investors shape 17th-century Virginia, and why do these early colonial encounters still matter as the 250th anniversary of American independence approaches? Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined again by Distinguished Professor Peter C. Mancall to discuss Stuart America, the Virginia Company and the founding of Jamestown. MORE Elizabethans in America Lis…
How Guns Changed the World
Ep 540 · Jun 18, 2026 · 47 min
How did the gun become a fashion item in Renaissance Italy? Why do debates over firearms, self-defence and public safety sound so familiar today? Professor Suzannah Lipscomb and historian Catherine Fletcher trace the rise of guns from battlefield technology to coveted courtly accessory. Together they discover how firearms transformed warfare, society and empire-building, and why the history of gun regulation five centuries ago still echoes in modern politics today worldwide. MORE: Henry VIII's B…
Elizabethans in America
Ep 539 · Jun 15, 2026 · 59 min
How did two Indigenous men help shape Elizabethan England's dreams of empire? What do these early encounters tell us about the contested beginnings of colonial America? In the 1580s, English explorers ventured west in search of land, influence and advantage. But this was not an inevitable march toward empire. As the 250th anniversary of American independence approaches, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb and Distinguished Professor Peter C. Mancall explore a story of uncertainty, encounter and conflict…
Great Plague of London
Ep 538 · Jun 11, 2026 · 55 min
What effect did the Great Plague have on Londoners, their society and the wider state? Professor Suzannah Lipscomb and Rebecca Rideal revisit the summer of 1665, as a few suspicious deaths grew into a crisis that swept through the city with devastating speed. Entire households vanished, fear curdled into suspicion, outsiders were written out of the official record - and Restoration England was reshaped forever. More: Great Fire of London Listen on Apple Listen on Spotify Diary of Samuel Pepys Li…
Anne Boleyn: Ambition or Faith?
Ep 537 · Jun 8, 2026 · 47 min
Was Anne Boleyn a seductress, a schemer, or something far more radical? What happens when we look at Anne not through the lens of sex and scandal, but through religion? From Tudor observers to Six the Musical, Anne Boleyn has been labelled the woman who tempted, manipulated and overreached. But Professor Suzannah Lipscomb's guest Reverend Canon Martha Tatarnic, an Anglican priest, instead offers new insights into Anne’s faith, agency and historical significance. MORE Anne Boleyn at Hever Castle…
Rise & Fall of James IV of Scotland
Ep 536 · Jun 4, 2026 · 57 min
How did a teenage rebel become Scotland’s king, and rule a realm riven by feuds and shifting loyalties? James IV balanced chivalry, diplomacy, and danger, yet led his country to catastrophe. Professor Suzannah Lipscomb and Prof. Michael Brown explore how James transformed himself into the most remarkable Renaissance monarch. MORE Henry VIII's Sister, Margaret Queen of Scots Listen on Apple Listen on Spotify How to Kill a Scottish Witch Listen on Apple Listen on Spotify Presented by Professor Suz…
True Crime: Medici Murder at the Louvre
Ep 535 · Jun 1, 2026 · 52 min
**Warning: Contains graphic description of the mutilation of corpses** In April 1617, Concino Concini, Marshal of France, was shot dead as he entered the Louvre. But his murder was only the beginning of a terrifying chain of events. How did the assassination of this hated royal favourite unleash mob violence, propaganda and a new political order? And what fate awaited the woman blamed for bending France to a foreigner’s will? Professor Suzannah Lipscomb and Dr Una McIlvenna explore scandal, miso…
The Tudors Abroad
Ep 534 · May 28, 2026 · 56 min
What did it mean to be English when merchants, sailors, captives, diplomats, and migrants were constantly crossing borders? Pirates, a Kentish man becoming a Samurai and a king on the warpath; Professor Suzannah Lipscomb and Professor Nandini Das trace tales of reinvention, danger and belonging in this exciting, hugely changing world. MORE: England’s First Ambassador to India: Thomas Roe Listen on Apple Listen on Spotify Giordano Bruno: Mystic, Heretic, Spy Listen on Apple Listen on Spotify Pres…
Royal Favourites: Hatton, Elizabeth I's Favourite
Ep 533 · May 25, 2026 · 41 min
How did Sir Christopher Hatton became one of Elizabeth I’s favourites? How true were the rumours that they were lovers? After catching the Queen's eye in 1561, Hatton was quickly promoted to the Privy Council, making a significant impact on Elizabeth's complex religious policy. Yet he has often been overshadowed by her other favourites like Dudley, Cecil and Walsingham. In the final episode of our series on Royal Favourites, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb finds out more about Hatton’s rise fr…
Battle of the Eras: Medieval v. Early Modern
Ep 532 · May 21, 2026 · 56 min
What if the medieval world did not end with a bang, but with a messy argument over who gets to define history itself? Professor Suzannah Lipscomb spars with Gone Medieval's host Matt Lewis over Gutenberg, the Reformation, witchcraft, plague, the Renaissance, and the Wars of the Roses to ask where medieval ends and early modern begins. The result is a lively, surprising fight over power, change, and the making of the modern world. More: Mother of All Tudors: Margaret Beaufort Listen on Apple List…
Royal Favourites: Queen Anne & Sarah, Duchess of Marlborough
Ep 531 · May 18, 2026 · 48 min
How did Sarah Churchill become the most powerful woman in Queen Anne’s court? What happens when a royal friendship turns into a political battlefield? How did one absent set of jewels signal the beginning of the end? Professor Suzannah Lipscomb continues her series on royal favourites with biographer Ophelia Field. Together they explore the extraordinary story of Sarah Churchill, Duchess of Marlborough — the intimate friend, political operator and fierce chronicler whose influence shaped Queen A…
Louis XIV: Sun King and Propagandist
Ep 530 · May 14, 2026 · 47 min
How did Louis XIV use his day-to-day life, especially his marriage, to help create the mythology of the Sun King as semi-divine, radiant and unrivalled? In 17th-century France, monarchy was performed, witnessed, and widely circulated. Using portraits, medals, sculptures and official pamphlets, Louis XIV meticulously constructed his own image, appearing as Apollo, Jupiter, Hercules, Neptune, a Roman emperor, and even as the sun itself. Professor Suzannah Lipscomb and Dr. Abby Zanger explore the S…
Royal Favourites: James I and George Villiers
Ep 529 · May 11, 2026 · 1 hr 3 min
How did a relatively humble gentleman become the most powerful man in Stuart England? Few figures embodied the glamour and instability of the Jacobean court more completely than George Villiers, who rose to become one of the most influential men in England. To some he was charismatic, brilliant, and irresistible; to others, he was reckless, arrogant, and dangerously powerful. In the second episode of our series on Royal Favourites, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb explores the extraordinary rise and…
Hoaxes and Lies in the Enlightenment
Ep 528 · May 7, 2026 · 56 min
How did a ghost story bring London to a standstill? Was it a haunting, a fraud, or something even more revealing about Georgian society? Why did rational, educated people fall for elaborate hoaxes? Professor Suzannah Lipscomb is joined by Dr.Madeleine Pelling, co-host of History Hit’s After Dark podcast, to uncover the darker side of the Age of Enlightenment. Why was this period remembered for science, reason, and progress, also fascinated by hoaxes, imposters, fake identities, ghost stories, se…
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