Interviews

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  • Tom Holland on the Birth of Islam

    Historian Tom Holland shares his fascination at how the events of ancient history can resonate in the modern world. The author of Islam: The Untold Story talks to Dan Snow about the birth of this rich and sophisticated civilisation, tracing its history through the centuries, and its interaction a...

  • The German Invasion of Poland with Roger Moorhouse

    The German invasion of Poland in September 1939 is often seen as a contest between the might of Hitler's war machine and an antiquated Polish military. But this perception of a modern, German force sweeping aside a fragile, backward enemy is far from the truth. Dan sat down with Roger Moorhouse t...

  • The Room Where it Happened

    1 season

    In this series, Dan Snow chairs an expert panel as they weigh in on turning points in history.

  • Reassessing King George III: With Andrew Roberts

    Was King George really mad? Could the American Revolution have been avoided? Does the play Hamilton get George III right? To find out Dan Snow spoke to historian Andrew Roberts, biographer of Churchill, Napoleon and now George III.

    George III ruled through an extraordinary period of revolutiona...

  • The Real Life of Gladiators in Ancient Rome

    Tristan Hughes sits down with Alexander Mariotti, a leading speaker on gladiatorial life, combat, and weaponry as well as a historical consultant on Ridley Scott's 'Gladiator' movie (2000).

    Together they discuss what life was really like for these men entering the arenas of the Roman Empire, wh...

  • Quickfire Questions with Author Bernard Cornwell

    English author Bernard Cornwell, best known for his novels about Napoleonic Wars rifleman Richard Sharpe, sits down with Dan Snow to answer some quickfire questions for the fans. Ever wondered if an early 19th Century infantryman could really fire three rounds a minute? Or whether Bernard plans o...

  • Ask a Historian: With Greg Jenner

    Dan chats to Greg Jenner about how we should interpret the past and what the role of a historian is - featuring meringues, ear trumpets and Agincourt!

  • Chernobyl

    In today's episode, Dan is joined by Serhii Plokhii, professor at Harvard University and author of Chernobyl: The History of a Nuclear Catastrophe. They explore what caused the disaster at the plant in 1986, and the after effects of it.

  • Unruly: A History of England's Kings and Queens with David Mitchell

    Who was the worst King and Queen of England? What made a King or Queen successful?

    To coincide with the US release of his new book, 'Unruly: A History of England's King and Queens', comedian and author David Mitchell, sits down with historian Dan Snow to explore how England's monarchs, while act...

  • Dan Snow's Favourite Historical Movies

    In this Easter special episode of History Hit Live on Timeline, Dan Snow takes us through some of his favourite historical movies from the most accurate, to the most technically impressive - and perhaps a couple of guilty pleasures…

  • D-Day Veteran Interviews

    1 season

    A collection of interviews with D-Day Veterans

  • The Seven Deadly Sins: With Stephen Fry

    Actor, writer and legendary broadcaster Stephen Fry joins Dan to talk about the 7 Deadly Sins.

  • Dan Snow and Dan Jones Talk Crusades

    Dan is joined by fellow history presenter Dan Jones to talk about the Knights Templar and the crusades.

    If you love Dan Jones, then join him at our book club. He is the History Hit Book Club's author for October/November 2022. The book club is a community of people who are passionate about histo...

  • The Medieval Dancing Plague with Eleanor Janega

    When people think of Medieval diseases, hysterical dancing is not usually what first comes to mind. Yet in 14th and 15th century Germany, dozens of ordinary people claimed to be infected by the ‘dancing plague’. What was this mysterious phenomenon? What caused it? And was it even a real disease?
    ...

  • The Crusaders' Last Battle for the Holy Land

    Roger Crowley is the author of the new book, Accursed Tower: The Crusaders' Last Battle for the Holy Land. The city of Acre, powerfully fortified and richly provisioned, was the last crusader stronghold. When it fell in 1291, two hundred years of Christian crusading in the Holy Land came to a blo...

  • D-Day Veteran Interviews: WarGen

    A series of four D-Day veteran interviews from WarGen - an online repository of oral history from the people who lived through World War Two. Short versions of these interviews with Arthur Davis, Ken Stone, Harry Appleton and Jack Bracewell also feature in our documentary D-Day: As It Happened.

  • Dunkirk

    This week marks 80 years since the miracle at Dunkirk, in which a quarter of a million allied troops were evacuated from German-held France. Historian Josh Levine, historical advisor to Christopher Nolan's 'Dunkirk', joins Dan Snow to talk about that fateful moment in WWII.

  • What Killed Alexander the Great?

    Alexander the Great forged one of the largest empires of ancient history. But his early death, aged 32, ensured that it came crashing down within decades of his passing. In many ways, the story of this extraordinary conqueror’s early demise is more fascinating than that of his life.

    Over the yea...

  • The Complete History Of Vladimir Putin's Rise To Power

    Vladimir Putin is the modern face of dictatorship, rising out of the ashes of the chaotic Yeltsin years. In the 90's, Putin was a relatively unknown figure would go on to occupy an untouchable position in a country spanning 11 timezones. We delve inside the twisted mind of Vladimir Putin.

  • The Peterloo Massacre with Robert Poole

    The Peterloo Massacre was a critical moment in the reform movement at the start of the 19th century. Thousands of people gathered at St Peter's Fields near Manchester to protest for an expansion of the franchise. The local magistrates summoned yeomanry to dispel what they saw as a riot, but as th...

  • The French Revolution with David Andress

    The French Revolution was one of complete transformation, the first time in European history that the population of a country rose up with a political agenda. Professor of Modern History David Andress talks Dan through the French Revolution: the causes, the context, its significance and its wide-...

  • Debunking Myths of Spartan Warriors

    Characterised as super soldiers, formidable fighters who would rather perish than surrender - their reputation truly did proceed them.

    But how accurate is this image - and does it correlate with what the ancient sources actually tell us?

    In this filmed episode of The Ancients podcast Sparta mi...

  • The Knights Templar: With Dan Jones

    They might be more famous today for their cameos in The Da Vinci Code and Assassin’s Creed, but in real life they were an army of valiant, daring Crusaders famous for their self-discipline, who fought in the Middle Ages' most bloody battles. They were allowed no sex, no personal possessions, and ...

  • Ernest Shackleton: With Ranulph Fiennes

    In this fascinating interview, Dan Snow chats to the world's greatest living explorer Ranulph Fiennes about Ernest Shackleton and his heroic expeditions in the Golden Age of Antarctic Exploration.