History Extra podcast

Serhii Plokhy discusses the historical backdrop that helps make sense of the current conflict between Russia and Ukraine

Robin Waterfield considers what we know really about the life of Plato of Athens, and why his work was so pioneering

Stephanie E Jones-Rogers reveals how white women across the American South played crucial roles in perpetuating the system of slavery

David Carpenter charts a tumultuous year in the mid-13th century when one of England’s longest reigning monarchs was removed from power

Joshua Levine tackles listener questions about the origins of Britain’s most famous special forces unit

Adam Clulow explores how fears of a sprawling conspiracy took hold in a remote Dutch East India Company fort in 1623 – with deadly consequences

Honor Cargill-Martin outlines the sexual scandals and ruthless success of the notorious Julio-Claudian empress Messalina in the first century AD

Professor Michael Scott sheds light on some of the most exciting and impressive stories of archaeological exploration

From “barbaric” trousers to decadent drinking cups, Jamie Fraser and Kelly Accetta Crowe explore how ideas about luxury and power shaped the Greco-Persian world

Simon Schama discusses how scientific ingenuity and the fear of contagion combined to produce life-saving vaccines