Continuing on from Margaret of Anjou, today we have a new episode for the #MightyMargaret series. This one is about MARGARET OF YORK, or as she became known after marriage, Margaret of Burgundy. This of course is the sister to Edward IV, George, Duke of Clarence, and Richard III. The in/famous Duchess who helped strengthen the links between England…

Stuart Spring continues! Please welcome historian Gareth Russell and we’lll be talking today about his latest book Queen James, published by William Collins. This is a new biography of James VI of Scotland, I of England, which makes us see James in a whole new light. Let’s find out more. Get Queen James: https://harpercollins.co.uk/products/queen-j…

Right trusty and well beloved, we greet you well! Today we’re sitting down with historian Lauren Johnson and talking about the life and times of Margaret of Anjou, the long-suffering wife of Henry VI of England. She was called the She-Wolf of France, she was villainised by the Yorkists during the Wars of the Roses and by Shakespeare long after her …

Welcome to our Royal Romance season. We’re continuing with the #StuartSpring series, but this is the finale of the Royal Valentines season. Today we’re going to look at two Stuart couples that found love within their marriage, despite their unions being arranged. First up, we have Mark Turnbull who will tell us all about Elisabeth Stuart, daughter …

Right trusty and well beloved, we greet you well! Welcome to SEASON EIGHT of If It Ain’t Baroque…your independent history podcast! This new season we’re kicking off with a brand new mini series dedicated to the Stuarts, titled #StuartSpring. As our guest today we have Steven Veerapen, and we’ll be chatting all things Mary Queen of Scots. I say chat…

Welcome to our 150th episode! As a treat, we have something very special for you today. Heather R Darsie is back on the show, once more we talk of her upcoming book "Katharine of Aragon: Spanish Princess: I Am Not as Simple as I May Seem", published by Amberley Books. This book dives deep into Katharine’s life when she was a young princess in Spain…

Welcome to our Royal Romance season. On this episode, we’ll be talking about Georgian Couples that didn’t have a happy ending. Please welcome Catherine Curzon back as we learn more about the Georgian couples whose Happily Ever After seemed to have an expiration date. We’ll talking about George III of Great Britain & Queen Charlotte of Mecklenburg-S…

This is still Shakespeare Week, and today we present our latest episode celebrating this great poet and playwright. Words, words, words, indeed. Next up, we have Carol Ann Lloyd, an author of several books on the Tudors, and she’s also a researcher at the Folger Shakespeare Library. On this episode, Carol Ann and Natalie are exploring Shakespeare's…

This is Shakespeare Week, so we have a mini series of episodes celebrating this great poet and playwright. Words, words, words, indeed. Next up, we have Ramie Targoff and we’ll be talking about her latest book Shakespeare’s Sisters which celebrates the lives of William’s near contemporaries - the ladies who wrote. Anne Clifford, Aemilia Lanyer, Mar…

This is Shakespeare Week, so we have a mini series of episodes celebrating this great poet and playwright. Words, words, words, indeed. Today our guest is Matt Pinches, the co-founder of Guildford Shakespeare Company. And we’ll be talking about The Comedy of Errors, the play that the company is putting on a bit later in the year… Find GSC: https://…

Today is the anniversary of William Shakespeare’s death, as well as his potential birthday. We’re here to honour this great playwright and poet with a mini season of episodes, all to do with him. First up, is Darren Freebury-Jones with his latest book - SHAKESPEARE'S BORROWED FEATHERS - published by Manchester University Press, it’s all about Willi…

Royal Love Stories Told Wrong: Cupid Painted Blind On this episode we’re looking at the royal love stories which are different from how they’re usually told. To help sort out fact from fiction, we have great historians with us today. The couples we’ll be talking about include: Isabella of France & Edward II of England (Sharon Bennett Connolly) Anne…

On the 19th April 1824 at the age of 36, George Gordon Byron, the 6th Baron died in Greece. Today we sit down and talk to Emily Brand, a Georgian historian and the biographer of the Byron family. We’ll be discussing her book The Fall of the House of Byron: Scandal and Seduction in Georgian England released by John Murray Press (Hachette UK). Welcom…

Please welcome Darren Baker back on the podcast, and we’re going to talk about his latest book - The Confessions and Chronicle of Lord Edward, meaning we’re going to be digging up dirt on the young future Edward I, also known as Longshanks. Darren's Books: Henry III, his brother, his sister and his wife https://thehistorypress.co.uk/publication/hen…

Today is the anniversary of the Battle of Culloden where in 1746 the British Army defeated the Jacobites, the supporters of the House of Stuart. It’s considered to be the last civil war fought on British soil. Let’s welcome Dr Callum Watson back on the show. Callum works at the site of the Battle of Bannockburn and who recently released a book on t…

We Found Love Right Where We Are: Arranged Love Blossoming On this episode we’re looking at the Royal Couples, who were brought together by an arranged marriage. Despite this, they found love and comfort in the union. We have great historians with us today. Darren Baker, Sharon Bennett Connolly and Heather R Darsie. The couples in question saluted …

Please welcome Dan E Parkes back to the podcast, the author of Titanic Legacy: The Captain, the Daughter and the Spy with Amberley Publishing. He also has a Youtube channel called Captain Titanic where he searches for the truth about this great ship. Today is the anniversary of the ship’s sinking, so we’ll be busting a lot of myths about Titanic’s …

Join us as we explore the love stories of the past. Uneasy Lies the Spouse that Wears the Crown: Trouble in Paradise... On this episode, we’ll be talking about the many royal couples that didn’t have a happy ending. Their Happily Ever After seemed to have an expiration date. Please welcome Sharon Bennett Connolly, Heather R Darsie and Amy McElroy b…

On the 9th April 1806 in Portsmouth, Hampshire, a little boy was born. Few could have predicted the impact his work would have on the world. His name was Isambard Kingdom Brunel. As a special treat in honour of Mr Brunel’s birthday, today I talk to Rob Bell, an engineer, podcaster and TV presenter. You may recognise him from Channel 5 documentaries…

Join us as we explore the love stories of the past. Swiped Left: Strange Royal Bedfellows... On this episode, we’ll be talking about the many royal couples that didn’t take to each other and thus the union weren’t ultimately successful. Sharon Bennett Connolly kicks us off with the story of Philip II of France and Ingeborg of Denmark, and we’ll con…

Please welcome John Matthews to the show. And we’ll be talking about his upcoming book Voyages with the Celtic Saints: Stories and Wisdom for Travellers in Search of Truth. Voyages of Celtic Saints: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Voyages-Celtic-Saints-Stories-Travelers/dp/0764368796/ (UK) https://www.amazon.co.uk/Voyages-Celtic-Saints-Stories-Travelers-e…

Welcome to our Romance Royale series. On this episode, we’ll be talking about the King’s many grannies. The royal couplings that had to happen to further the family tree. We’re looking at five such couples today, James I of Scotland and Joan Beaufort, Owain Tudor and Catherine of Valois, Edmund Tudor and Margaret Beaufort, Henry VII and Elizabeth o…

Many people know the Hundred Years’ War, and almost everyone in the English speaking world has heard of the Battle of Agincourt, but not many would be familiar with the The Battle of Baugé which was fought on the 22nd March 1421 between the English and the Franco-Scottish forces in the territory of Baugé in France. Let’s ask Callum Watson more abou…

Welcome to season SEVEN of our podcast! Everybody knows Shakespeare. However, perhaps not as well known to most is that beneath the surface, much of Shakespeare’s work surrounds ideas of gender and queerness. Many of the plays are concerned with cross-dressing, gender fluidity, and same-sex friendships that many scholars have interpreted to be much…

On this episode, we’ll be talking about Royal Couples that truly fit the trope of Friends to Lovers. The title of the episode is Give Me Your Hand and Let Me All Your Fortunes Understand, meaning our couples today knew each other of old and had to get married for practical reasons, but they grew to love each other with time. On the Royal Menu today…

Please welcome James Tejani on the show. We’re talking about his book A Machine to Move Ocean and Earth: The Making of the Port of Los Angeles and America. Published last year with WW Norton and Company. Let’s find out more about the San Pedro Bay and how it transformed into one of the most imPORTant locations in the world. Pun intended. What was t…

Welcome to our Royal Romance season. On this episode, we’ll be talking about Royal Pairs that never got together. The couples in question were considered by the powers that be, or they took a fancy to each other, but they either weren’t allowed to follow through with their plans, or fate decided otherwise. We’re looking at four such couples today, …

Right trusty and well beloved, we greet you well! Gemma Hollman is back on the show! This time with her latest book Women in the Middle Ages: Illuminating the World of Peasants, Nuns and Queens (Abbeville Press). This book has women’s stories told with some serious help from contemporary art. How were women depicted in paintings, pictures and drawi…

Join us this month and explore the love stories of the past. Over the next few weeks we’ll be sharing with you our chats to various historians and we’ll be covering all the ways that Royals can come together, be it through arranged marriage, secret engagements or chance meetings. My Heart Flies to Your Service... On this episode of our Valentines S…

Please welcome to the podcast Dan E Parkes, he has just released a book called Titanic Legacy: The Captain, the Daughter and the Spy with Amberley Publishing. What happened to the family of Titanic’s captain E J Smith after the sinking? Where their lives affected by other disasters of the 20th century? Is it true that his daughter’s husband is the …

This month please join us in exploring the love stories of the past. Over the next few weeks we’ll be sharing with you our chats to various historians and we’ll be covering all the ways that Royals can come together, be it through arranged marriage, secret engagements or chance meetings. On this episode, we’ll be talking about Royal Couples who fac…

Let’s talk about murder that was happening in Anglo-Saxon England, who was killing whom, why and what was the punishment? With kings and queens, Did primogeniture or the lack of it made any difference? What were the most gruesome cases? Annie Whitehead wrote a book on True Murder History in Anglo-Saxon England, with the tagline Justice, Wergild, Re…

This month please join us in exploring the love stories of the past. Over the next few weeks we’ll be sharing with you our chats to various historians and we’ll be covering all the ways that Royals can come together, be it through arranged marriage, secret engagements or chance meetings. On this, the first episode of our Valentines series of 2025, …

Please welcome to the podcast Ada Palmer, who is talking about her new book - Inventing The Renaissance, just published with Head of Zeus. Let’s dive in and debunk some myths, shall we? Get Inventing the Renaissance: https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/inventing-the-renaissance-9781035910120/ (UK) https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/I/bo246…

Let’s talk about women’s lives in the medieval era, did you know that they wrote books under their own names? They had a sense of humour? Let’s talk of those women who lived lives on their own terms… We’re sitting down with Hetta Howes, who has recently published her first book with Bloomsbury, called Poet Mystic Widow Wife. Welcome, Hetta! Get Poe…

Today we’re sitting down with Anna Abney, who has written a historical fiction quadrilogy set in Stuart England, the first book is called The Master of Measham Hall, published by Duckworth Books. Let’s dive deep into the Restoration era with the Great Plague making its mark. As the story progresses, it will take us all the way to the Glorious Revol…

Let’s welcome back Amy McElroy, to talk about Mary Tudor, daughter of Henry VII, sister of Henry VIII, Queen of France by first marriage and Duchess of Suffolk by second. If you remember the Showtime series The Tudors, that’s the one who marries Henry Cavill, and if you watched the recent Amazon Prime show My Lady Jane, which is awesome, by the way…

Today we have a very special guest. He is an OBE and a Grammy award nominee. He has conducted Baroque music the world over, and today he joined us for a chat about his decades-long career, his love of music, the history of his family and of course, his upcoming 75th birthday. Welcome, Nic! Find Nic: https://www.nicholasmcgegan.com/ Listen to Nic: h…

Heather R Darsie is back on the podcast, this time with her upcoming new book "Katharine of Aragon: Spanish Princess: I Am Not as Simple as I May Seem", published by Amberley Books. Let's re-evaluate what we know of Katharine, as the daughter of Spain. What family drama did she leave behind? What was going on the continent when Henry was trying to …

This is one of our Bonus Episodes for the Katharine of Aragon Festival which happens this weekend in Peterborough, as it does every year. In this mini episode we’re chatting to Nicola Tallis about the great Tudor Matriarch, Margaret Beaufort. Welcome, Nicola! Join the Festival: Cathedral: https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/peterborough/peterbo…

This is one of our Bonus Episodes for the Katharine of Aragon Festival which happens this weekend in Peterborough, as it does every year. In this mini episode we’re chatting to Dr Elizabeth Norton as she prepares for her talk on Reigning Spanish Queens. Welcome back, Elizabeth! Join the Festival: Cathedral: https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/p…

This is one of our Bonus Episodes for the Katharine of Aragon Festival which happens this weekend in Peterborough, as it does every year. In this mini episode let’s chat to Peter Stiffel as he teases us on the topic of his upcoming talk at the festival Welcome, Peter! Join the Festival: Cathedral: https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/whats-on/peterboroug…

This is one of our Bonus Episodes for the Katharine of Aragon Festival which happens this weekend in Peterborough, as it does every year. In this mini episode let’s chat to Nathen Amin as he teases us on the topic of his upcoming talk at the festival Welcome back, Nathen! Get Son of Prophecy: https://www.amberley-books.com/author-community-main-pag…

This is one of our Bonus Episodes for the Katharine of Aragon Festival which happens this weekend in Peterborough, as it does every year. Let’s talk to Jackson van Uden - the man in charge of the festival and find out more about this celebration of Katharine of Aragon. Please enjoy this bonus episode. Join the Festival: Cathedral: https://www.ticke…

How were people educated in the 16th century England? Did girls and boys have different curriculums? Did Henry VIII’s antics influence education at all? And what were the whipping boys? Let’s welcome Amy McElroy, and we’ll be talking about her book Educating the Tudors, published by Pen & Sword. Find Amy: https://amymcelroy.blog/ Educating the Tudo…

Today our guest is Ashley Wood, and we’re talking about his new Amberley Published book - Henry’s Shadow, which tells us about the life and times of John Morton, a cleric who was a very important figure during the Wars of the Roses. John Morton was born during the reign of Henry V, with the memory of Henry IV still in the air, and died during the r…

Welcome to season SIX of our independent history podcast. Today we’re talking to Sharon Bennett Connolly, about her upcoming book “Scotland’s Medieval Queens”, soon to be published by Pen & Sword. What do you call a collection of Royal Margarets? A Crown? A Madge? In Sharon's latest book, there is a significant and above average congregation of Roy…

It is the 7th January 1536, Katharine of Aragon dies a few weeks after her 50th birthday. She dies ignored by her husband Henry VIII and unable to see her daughter. Let's talk to Jackson van Uden and find out more about the death of this great Queen... Please enjoy this bonus episode. Find Jackson here: https://historywithjackson.co.uk/ https://www…

It is the 30th December 1460, the Battle of Wakefield is about to unfold... This is one of the lesser known conflicts of the Wars of the Roses, yet its legacy is immense. Let’s talk to Jackson van Uden and find out why… Find Jackson here: https://historywithjackson.co.uk/ https://www.instagram.com/historywithjackson/ https://www.youtube.com/channel…

For this #StuartSunday , Let’s talk about the habits of the Stuarts, what did they wear, what did they believe? How does the pomp and piety go together? And what makes the 17th century so great and unique? Today we chat to Ben Norman, who’s written a book Pomp and Piety: Everyday Life of the Aristocracy in Stuart England, published by Amberley. Get…