A legend of the great Greek city of Athens, Themistocles rose from obscurity to save ancient Greece and helped shape one of the greatest naval powers in history. Yet his story ends in exile, condemned as a traitor and serving the very empire he once defeated: Persia.

In this episode of The Ancie...

On the night of Saturday, the 9th of March, 1566, a pregnant Mary Queen of Scots was having a dinner party. It was a night that ended in the brutal murder of one of her closest friends, David Rizzio, led by her husband, Lord Darnley. How did this happen? How did Mary handle this traumatic moment?...

For the third episode in our mini-series on the Crusades, we dive into the 1291 Siege of Acre - the desperate, violent last stand that ended two centuries of crusading in the Holy Land. We hear how, outnumbered, divided and desperate, the Christian defenders fought to the bitter end against the M...

Paleoanthropologist Ella Al-Shamahi joins Tristan Hughes to explore the relationship between Neanderthals and Homo Sapiens.

What interactions between early Homo sapiens and Neanderthals may have been like, from communication and cultural exchange to interbreeding and the possibility of hybrid c...

For the second episode in our mini-series on the Crusades, we explore the legendary rivalry between two extraordinary medieval orders: the Assassins and the Templars. Separating myth from history, we uncover their beliefs, covert operations and lasting legacy, revealing how truth and legend becam...

He's known as one of history's most murderous kings, but was he always a monster? Or was he acting in ways expected of a king during his time.

Joining Anthony as special guest co-host is author and historian Gareth Russell, to explore the theories that support the latter.

Did the break from R...

This episode contains graphic descriptions of violence, including suicide.

What really happened to Judas Iscariot? From shifting accounts in the Gospels to the 30 pieces of silver, Tristan Hughes is joined by Professor Paul Middleton to trace the stories that made Judas Christianity’s most infam...

The book and TV series "Outlander" has introduced millions of fans to Scottish history and the story of the Jacobites.

One of those fans is Maddy Pelling! Maddy is back (in a pre-recorded episode) to delve into the tragic story of the Bonnie Prince Charlie and his army.

Joining her today is Dr...

To launch our mini series on the Crusades, we've put together your complete guide to almost two centuries of holy war - from start to finish. We untangle faith, politics and myth, and reveal how the Crusades reshaped Europe, the Middle East and relations between Islam and Christianity forever.

F...

What did it take to become a Roman centurion? To command, to punish and to lead from the very front of Rome’s armies?

In this episode of The Ancients, Tristan Hughes is joined by Dr Ben Kane to uncover the reality behind one of the most iconic ranks of the ancient world. From the brutal discipli...

Peaky Blinders. Who were the gangsters behind the myths? And what was life actually like in the backstreets of late 19th and early 20th-century Birmingham?

We’re joined by social historian Carl Chinn to uncover the true story of Birmingham’s infamous gangs. Carl is the author of ‘PEAKY BLINDERS:...

It was the original modern ghost hunt, the one that set the template for all the haunted houses to come. When a wealthy plantation family moves into a crumbling Georgian mansion in the 1760's the haunting begins. By the end, even royalty were on tenterhooks. Eleanor Janega joins Anthony Delaney ...

What happened to the Princes in the Tower? Did Richard III kill them? In this After Dark podcast episode, Eleanor Janega, Anthony Delaney and Matt Lewis answer these questions.

It's one of history's greatest mysteries - 'what happened to the Princes in the Tower?' In 1483, young Edward V and hi...

In September 1999, just weeks after 46-year-old Vladimir Putin became Russia’s prime minister, a series of apartment bombings ripped through Russian cities, killing hundreds as they slept and plunging the country into fear. The government blamed Chechen militants—but questions soon emerged. Some ...

Roel Konijnendijk is on this new episode of The Ancients with Tristian Hughes about Herodotus.

What drove Herodotus to write the first great story of history? Tristan Hughes speaks with Dr. Roel Konijnendijk to uncover the world of Herodotus of Halicarnassus—the traveler, investigator, and stor...

Eyewitness accounts of life during the Black Death are surprising. Sure, there's horror. But there's also d*ck jokes, complicated scientific theories, and buttock-obsessed priests. Taking Anthony through it all is Dr Eleanor Janega, from our sister podcast 'Gone Medieval'.

Anthony is joined by Eleanor Janega to tell the story of the most famous murder of the medieval world - Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury.

How did a bromance between Thomas and his king turn into a deadly divide between church and crown?

In this episode, we explore the dramatic love story between King Edward VIII and the twice-divorced American socialite Wallis Simpson - a romance that shook the British monarchy to its core. Set against the backdrop of rising tensions in 1930s Europe, the scandal divided the government, the publi...

This podcast episode is about Ancient Egypt and the fall of Ramesses II.

“Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair.” Ramesses II reigned as Egypt's unchallenged champion for more than sixty years. But within decades, the dynasty of Egypt’s greatest pharaoh had fallen apart.

In this episode of...

Today, we trace Julius Caesar’s dramatic invasions into Britain - two bold expeditions that tested Rome’s reach at the very edge of the known world. Ships were battered by storms, soldiers struggled with unfamiliar tides, and British warriors offered fierce resistance. Caesar never secured a last...

Maddy and Anthony get their Tarot cards read by Melissa Mercury! As well as reading their cards, Melissa tells us about the history of Tarot cards and who is responsible for their iconic design.

Find out why Swords aren't always bad and why the Death card can be good news!

In 1381, after plague, famine and war had pushed England to the brink, a final blow sparked an extraordinary uprising. This episode explores the Peasants’ Revolt, not as a chaotic riot, but as a coordinated challenge to royal and religious power in England.

To cut through the myths, we're joined...

Join Anthony and Maddy for a journey back to 17th-century England to learn about the horrific methods of Matthew Hopkins, the infamous witch hunter.

This episode of After Dark explores the brutal reality of the witch trials, the flawed logic of his "tests," and the manual he wrote that fuelled ...

In the depths of ancient Jericho, beneath layers of earth dating back 10,000 years, archaeologists uncovered something extraordinary: human skulls cast in plaster, their faces carefully reconstructed and their eyes set with shells. Who were these haunting figures meant to represent?

In this epis...