History Extra podcast

Fashion historian Kate Strasdin reveals what an extraordinary collection of fabric scraps can reveal about style, culture and ordinary women’s lives in the Victorian era

Joseph Bristow explores the court case against Oscar Wilde for “gross indecency”, and the dangers of living in a society where homosexuality was illegal

Professor Christopher Dyer answers listener questions about the daily life of medieval peasants, from diets and dentistry to leisure and life expectancy

This week we are featuring episode one from our brand new series, History’s greatest cities.

Lydia Zeldenrust tells the story of the first book ever printed in the English language

Ian Mortimer reveals just how transformative the Middle Ages was as an era and challenges popular misconceptions about the medieval past

Seamus O’Mahony tells the dramatic story of the intertwined lives of three 20th-century doctors: Sigmund Freud, Ernest Jones and Wilfred Trotter

From ancient baby bottles to the perceived moral dangers of wetnursing, Joanna Wolfarth investigates what we can learn from changing attitudes to breastfeeding through history

Harry Sidebottom shares the sensational story of the notorious Roman emperor whose short time in power was packed with sex, violence and decadence

Matt Houlbrook answers listener questions about British life in the 1920s and 1930s