History Extra podcast

Toby Wilkinson explores the remarkable reign of Ramesses II and considers whether he really was the most accomplished of all Egyptian pharaohs

Nicholas Orme uncovers what infancy and childhood were like in the 16th century

Dr Gabrielle Storey investigates what Richard I can reveal about medieval concepts of masculinity, and why whispers about the crusader king’s sexuality might not be all they seem

Alwyn Turner answers listener questions on British history in the decade of Major, Blair and Britpop

From secret surveillance and popular protest to work, school and family life, Katja Hoyer weighs up what life was like for ordinary people during the GDR’s 40-year history

Dr Elizabeth Norton and Dr Tracy Borman reveal how the woman commonly mocked as a “Flanders mare” actually led a full and fascinating life

Christopher Clark charts the causes and consequences of the wave of revolutions that swept across Europe in the 1840s

Watchmaker Rebecca Struthers charts the history of watches and other timekeepers – and reveals how they have revolutionised humanity’s perception of time

Ned Blackhawk discusses the central role that Indigenous people have played in centuries of United States history

Peter Heather answers listener questions about the ancient Germanic tribes that shared a frontier with the Roman empire