20th Century
Defined by a rise of nationalism, two world wars, clashing super powers, nuclear weapons and space exploration, the 20th Century is certainly not void of fascinating history. Enjoy our enormous library of documentaries on key events such as D-Day or the sinkng of the Titanic, interviews with leading experts such as Tom Holland, David Cannadine and fascinating podcasts on the history of warfare.
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π§ Battle of Britain: What Were the Germans Thinking?
Victoria Taylor is an aviation historian who is just completing her PhD in the Luftwaffe and its politicisation under the Nazis. She talked to me about how the Germans approached the Battle of Britain. Were they the mighty Goliath to Britain's David or were they in fact more evenly matched? And w...
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π§ Battle of Britain: Why the RAF Won
80 years ago, in 15 September 1940, the Luftwaffe made a gigantic aerial assault on London in the belief that the Royal Air Force was down to its last few fighters. This, they hoped, would be the decisive clash that finished the RAF, and force Britain to the negotiating table or even pave the way...
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π§ Battle of the Somme: Part Five - A French Perspective with Stephanie Trouillard
Stephanie Trouillard is a journalist at France 24, specialising in sports and international history.
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π§ Battle of the Somme: Part Four - The War Above with Joshua Levine
Joshua Levine is a historian and author, his latest book The Secret History of the Blitz is out now.
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π§ Battle of the Somme: Part One - The Pals with Professor Peter Doyle
Professor Peter Doyle is a geologist and military historian of twentieth-century conflict. He has a particular interest in World War One and recently co-authored Kitchener's Mob: The New Army to the Somme.
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π§ Battle of the Somme: Part Six - The Irish Experience with Heather Jones
Dr Heather Jones is Associate Professor at the Department of International History London School of Economics and Political Science. Dr Jones is the author of Violence against Prisoners of War in the First World War.
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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.
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π§ Battle of the Somme: Part Three - A German Perspective with Robin SchΓ€fer
Robin SchΓ€fer is a German military historian. His latest book Fritz and Tommy: Across the Barbed Wire is co-authored with Peter Doyle.
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π§ Battle of the Somme: Part Two - The Skylarks with Paul Reed
Paul Reed is a military historian and author specialising in the First and Second World Wars.
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U. S. S Indianapolis: The Legacy
The Legacy Project tells the fate of the World War II heavy cruiser USS Indianapolis using exclusively first-person accounts. The last crew and their families share gripping stories of kamikaze attacks, invasions, a secret mission, and ultimately a devastating torpedo attack that killed three fou...
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The Western Front Tunnels
The creation of man-made underground tunnels played a huge role in the outcome of the First World War. They were first dug to mine under enemy positions and detonate bombs or attack in desperate and fierce fights. As the war dragged on, nevertheless, they developed another purpose: providing sold...
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π§ Big Week with James Holland
Dan sits down with James Holland to talk about Operation Argument in February 1944, the biggest air battle of World War Two.
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Legacies of Eugenics
Eugenics is a set of ideas that cast a long shadow over the 20th century and beyond. In this film, historian Marius Turda takes us on a tour of a new exhibition about Eugenics, exploring how it spread, who it affected and how to confront it.
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π§ Blitzed: Drugs in Nazi Germany
The Nazis presented themselves as warriors against moral degeneracy. As Norman Ohler reveals, the entire Third Reich was permeated with drugs: cocaine, heroin, morphine and, most of all, methamphetamines, or crystal meth, used by everyone from factory workers to housewives, and crucial to troops'...
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The Pursuit of Endurance: On the Shoulders of Shackleton
In the heart of the Antarctic, nine adventurers are about to live an extraordinary story. They come from very different backgrounds, but one thing brings them together: a passion for adventure and testing the limits.
Their goal: to follow in the footsteps of one of the greatest legends of the go...
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π§ Bloody Sunday 100 Years On
Diarmaid Ferriter joined me on the podcast to talk about the events of Bloody Sunday on 21st November 1920, which marked a decisive turning-point in Irish history.
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π§ Bomb Disposal with Peter Gurney
Peter Gurney had a prolific career as a bomb disposal expert, from defusing bombs during the Troubles, to addressing bomb scares outside Downing Street. He tells Dan his best stories, explains how he learned to defuse bombs and just how scared he was most of the time. Producer: Peter Curry
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Women of the Second World War: Courage and Conviction
By 1944, a third of the civilian population in Britain was engaged in war work, including over 7 million women. From compiling weather reports, maintaining aircraft, serving on airfields or working in intelligence, the work of women was crucial in the fight against Nazi Germany. Alice Loxton trac...
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Ghost Ships: Forgotten Wrecks of the River Dart
All around the UK, in rivers and streams, and in the mud on the side of riverbeds are the remains of our maritime past, which helps us understand who were are today.
In 2013, a survey around the UK identified 199 different assemblages of hulks, remains of craft. These included paddle ships, ferr...
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π§ Britain and Empire in the 20th Century with David Edgerton
David Edgerton attacks outdated views of the British nation and the British Empire during the 20th century with his new book. He revitalises discussion about declinist views of empire, and challenges the idea that the new British nation was forged in World War Two by Britain's isolation. Producer...
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1979: Women of the Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution of 1979, also known as the Islamic Revolution, was a series of events that culminated in the overthrow of the Pahlavi dynasty under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, and the replacement of his government with an Islamic republic under the rule of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
The...
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π§ Britain and the Birth of the Modern World with Ben Wilson
Ben Wilson is a Historian. He is author of Empire of the Deep: The Rise and Fall of the British Navy (2013) and Heyday (2016).;Episode music;Mike Skinner - You Better Be;Laura Mvula - Green Garden Presented by Dan Snow @thehistoryguy;Produced by Dan Morelle @danmorelle
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π§ Britain in the 1980s
Dominic Sandbrook is one of Britainβs most prolific historians, currently working his way through a series on Britain since the Second World War. His most recent book examines the pivotal early years of Margaret Thatcherβs premiership in Britain. In this podcast, Dominic and I discuss the social ...
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π§ Britain's Black Power Movement
Leila Hassan Howe and Amanda Kirton joined me on the podcast to talk about the history of the Black Power movement in Britain.