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Helpful Histories

Helpful Histories

By Julie

Join me and my guests to find out all the questions you ever wanted answered about little bits of history. Find out about Cleopatra's drinking club, Pablo Escobar's elastic band fund and why the ancient Egyptians were concerned about a heart eating crocodile!
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Christmas Special

Helpful HistoriesDec 24, 2021

00:00
31:18
Christmas Special

Christmas Special

Join me for the Christmas special!  Find out about the pagan origins of Christmas, how Christianity grew it and how so many of the traditions we know today came to be.  Not only will Santa make an appearance but so to will Krampus his demon/goat counterpart!  

Dec 24, 202131:18
Halloween

Halloween

Halloween, the spookiest time of the year. Find out how an ancient Irish tradition spread across the world becoming the festival of horrors that we know today. Where do Jack O'Lanterns come from, what kind of creatures come through from the other side and is there an odd romantic side of All Hallows Eve? Join me for this Halloween special of Helpful Histories.
Oct 31, 202130:25
Witches

Witches

Today we know that evil witches don’t exist but that wasn’t the case back in the medieval world. Find out how to detect and defeat a witch and also the terrible consequences for being found guilty. Side note I have had some sounds issues with this episode so I apologise in advance.
Sep 21, 202157:06
Black Death

Black Death

Join me and my friend Tom as we discuss The Black Death, the worst pandemic in history, and all the VERY weird treatments that came with it! Learn about the origins of quarantine, ring a ring of roses and find out if a Pidgeon had any health benefits for humans (spoiler alert they don't)!
Sep 07, 202156:14
Henry VIII Part Two

Henry VIII Part Two

Henry VIII is one of the most famous kings who ever lived and nothing is more famous than his love life. Join me and my friend Beth as we discuss Henry's first two wives Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn and how Henry's temper and desires ruined both these women's lives and changed English history forever. This episode is part two of two.
Aug 24, 202141:20
Henry VIII Part One

Henry VIII Part One

Henry VIII is one of the most famous kings who ever lived and nothing is more famous than his love life. Join me and my friend Beth as we discuss Henry's first two wives Catherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn and how Henry's temper and desires ruined both these women's lives and changed English history forever. This episode is part one of two so stay tuned next week for part two!
Aug 17, 202147:45
Fairy Tales

Fairy Tales

Fairy tales are wonderful, magical stories that we are all told as children from Little red riding hood to Rumpelstiltskin but if we look at the original versions we see that this wasn't always the case.  Most are violent tales that include everything from incest to kidnapping.  Join me as I go through three of the most famous tales to show just how different they really are and the reasons behind this.  This episode includes mentions of rape, violence and adult topics which aren't suitable for children.

Aug 02, 202138:06
Mental Illness

Mental Illness

Join me and my friend Tara from the Scratching the Surface podcast as we talk about mental illness throughout history by looking at some particular historical figures. We discuss how differently they were treated because of their illnesses and what impact this has had.
Apr 27, 202101:03:36
Pablo Escobar

Pablo Escobar

Pablo Escobar, worlds most famous drug lord, connoisseur of elastic bands, villain to most, hero for some. Join me and my friend Laura as we find out about the man behind one of the biggest drug smuggling operations of all time. Just a little disclaimer this episode is not for younger listeners as there is multiple drug and violence references and some language.
Apr 06, 202153:50
Marie Antoinette

Marie Antoinette

Marie Antionette the doomed Queen of France, of let them eat cake fame. Join me and my friend Lisa as we look into the truth behind the many, many lies of her life. Word of warning there is talk about her sex life so probably not suitable for kids.
Mar 23, 202101:17:55
Egyptian Gods and the afterlife

Egyptian Gods and the afterlife

We can't talk about Ancient Egypt without looking into their mythology and afterlife, it's simply to good to miss!  Join me and Tara this week to find out about their creation story, mummies and magic kites and the crocodile who would eat your heart!  Word of warning we do talk about how the gods came to be so that may not be suitable for younger listeners.  

Mar 09, 202155:39
Cleopatra

Cleopatra

Cleopatra, one of the most famous women in history. Join us as we answer all the questions you ever wanted asked! How does Cleopatra the woman compare to the legend? How did she stay in power? Did she really die from a snake bite? Small disclaimer for anyone listening with kids we do discuss cleopatras romantic life and the words used to describe it!
Feb 23, 202101:00:58