Biography

Winston Churchill is one of the most recognizable figures of the twentieth century. Voted ‘the greatest Briton’ in 2002, he’s remembered for his unfailing leadership throughout the Second World War, as he steered Britain through its darkest hour to eventual victory. But what is the real story behind the myth? How did the rise of Hitler thrust Churchill into the spotlight? And why was he dumped by...

Charles Dickens is widely considered one of the greatest English novelists. His works shone a light on prevalent issues of his era, such as poverty, disease, and inequality, and called for widespread social change. They have been translated into 150 languages, and have never been out of print. But how did a boy from Portsmouth turn into one of the world’s most celebrated literary figures? Why were...

Jane Austen is probably the most famous female writer in history.  Her novels have gone on to inspire countless films, plays, and television dramas all over the world, and have been translated into almost 50 different languages.  But how did this eighteenth-century parson's daughter create stories that are still beloved today? What makes her characters so timeless?  And, while we kn...

Margaret Thatcher was one of the most controversial figures of the 20th Century. Praised by some as a fearless leader and feminist icon, and despised by others as a heartless politician, the Iron Lady caused divisions wherever she went. But why did Britain’s first female Prime Minister inspire such extreme hatred? What policies did she implement, how did they affect the communities of Britain? And...

Joan of Arc is a historical superstar, a peasant who rose above her rank and gender to help free France from foreign occupation. Claiming to be acting under the orders of saints and angels, she became a symbol of national freedom. But how did a near-illiterate teenage girl win the hearts and minds of soldiers and citizens alike? What was behind her angelic visions? And why was she abandoned to a b...

Marilyn Monroe was one of the most famous screen actors of all time. Known for her charisma and beauty, her private life and turbulent health made headlines throughout her career, and her early death cemented her iconic status. But how was she shaped by her disrupted childhood? Did she change Hollywood – or did it destroy her? And why does her legend still inspire and exert such power, sixty years...

The first truly global celebrity, Charlie Chaplin was once the most famous man in the world.  The king of the silent movie, over the course of 82 films his wistful slapstick saw him light up the silver screen like no one else.  But how did he leave behind the extreme poverty of his London childhood? What’s the truth about his complicated love life?  And how did personal and politica...

Thomas Edison was one of history’s greatest inventors, a man who gave the world not only electric light but other landmark innovations in sound recording and moving pictures. He accumulated more patents in his lifetime than anyone had before, and filled over 4,000 notebooks with his work. But how did this ordinary, home-schooled boy from the American mid-West overcome ill-health and hearing loss t...

Though he ruled for just thirteen years, Alexander the Great casts a long shadow, famed as much for his hedonistic lifestyle as his military genius. But how did he become one of the best known military leaders in history? What inspired such loyalty among his troops? And what drove this young man in his endless quest to conquer the known world? This is a biography of Alexander the Great. A Noiser p...

From the day he burst onto the scene, Muhammad Ali changed boxing history. But he also influenced the American civil rights movement, the perception of Islam, the view of the war in Vietnam, and the self-branding of athletes themselves. So how did his beliefs affect his career? What drove him to keep fighting for so long – even when boxing itself was taking away the gifts that made him famous? And...

Frida Kahlo is as much a modern icon for her personal flair as she is for her paintings. But how did her style develop, and what did she intend it to communicate? What was so subversive about her work, and the subjects she chose to portray? And why is she such an enduring figurehead for feminists, women with fertility issues, the queer community, and those living with disabilities and chronic pain...

No single writer has shaped the way we speak and think more than William Shakespeare. Whether we’re being cruel to be kind, wearing our hearts on our sleeves, or wrestling with the green eye’d monster — it’s almost impossible to use the English language without quoting him. But who was Shakespeare? And what vaulting ambition drove a young writer from a sleepy town in the West Midlands to stardom i...

Pocahontas is probably the best known Native American in history. But the true story of her life has been eclipsed by a fictionalised version, played out as a romance between an intrepid English captain and a wild native princess. So what is known about the real Pocahontas, and her life before the arrival of the white colonisers? How did she spearhead a period of truce between her tribe and the Eu...

Abraham Lincoln’s life reads like an American folk tale: the story of a boy born into poverty, whose drive and determination saw him become the most powerful man in the nation. But how did he navigate a path for a youthful country so deeply divided over slavery? What was his role in the devastating civil war? And how did one man attract both public adoration and murderous wrath all at the same tim...

Vincent van Gogh was one of the most important and influential figures in the history of art. But though he created thousands of drawings and paintings, his life was one of commercial failure, instability and unhappiness. Who was Van Gogh before he discovered his passion for art? What caused him so much suffering? And who were the people who supported him, right up to his tragic death at the age o...

Albert Einstein overhauled our understanding of the universe—from the sub-atomic level to beyond the edges of the cosmos. Today his ideas are in evidence everywhere, from televisions and GPS systems, to our understanding of black holes and the Big Bang. But who was Einstein as a person? What were his theories that upended established scientific beliefs? And how did his work inadvertently contribut...

The last of the Ptolemaic Pharoahs, Cleopatra has captivated our imaginations for centuries. Though some write her off as a manipulative femme fatale, her competence as a ruler restored her country to superpower status. But what were the early experiences that shaped her? How did she form both political and personal alliances with two great Roman generals? And what is the true story of her dramati...

As one of the great pioneers of air travel, Amelia Earhart was the first woman to fly solo across the Atlantic. She pushed aviation technology to its limits, broke countless records, and became famous throughout the world for her skill, bravery and determination. But what prompted her to take to the skies, despite the overwhelming risks? And what really happened on her mysteriuos final flight—an e...

As the Queen’s family life grew more complex, the relationship between palace and press intensified. But balancing the need for security and privacy against her very public responsibilities was never simple. So who was the real woman beneath the crown? How did she deal with the darkest years of her reign, and the grief of losing her beloved husband? And how will history remember her extraordinary...

Spanning seventy years, Queen Elizabeth II’s reign saw the world change beyond recognition. From her earliest public appearances, representing her father King George VI, to her roles as sister, wife, mother, and mother-in-law, she was never far from the headlines. But what was life like for the young princess, who dreamed of a baby brother who might take the throne instead? How did she modernize a...

In 1509, at just seventeen years old, Henry VIII was crowned King of England. Over the next four decades, he would burn through six marriages, bankrupt the nation, and vandalise his country’s cultural heritage in his quest for supreme power. But how did England’s most eligible bachelor degenerate into a bloated despot, and one of the worst husbands in history? Was Henry simply a psychopath, or a c...

Forged by the Great Depression, Bonnie and Clyde became icons of lawlessness, thrilling and shocking America with their crime sprees and doomed romance. But what drove them to lives of such violence? How did they evade the full might of the police for so long? And what finally brought their adventure to an end? This is a biography of Bonnie and Clyde. A Noiser podcast production. Hosted by Paul Mc...

Despised by the English, mistrusted by the Scottish nobles, and revered by his countrymen, William Wallace is synonymous with the battle for Scottish freedom. But scratch away at the legend, and even the most basic details are disputed. Where he was born, who he married, and what he did after his famous battle at Stirling Bridge. Thanks to the brutal nature of his death, he doesn’t even have a gra...

By the time she died in 2005, Rosa Parks was known around the world as an icon of activism. Her act of defiance one ordinary Thursday afternoon in Montgomery, Alabama catapulted her to the forefront of the battle for racial equality in America. But what was her story before that fateful moment in 1955? And what course did her life take afterward? This is a biography of Rosa Parks. A Noiser podcast...

In the early eighteenth century, one man made his name as the most notorious pirate of all time. The legend of Edward Thatch, aka "Blackbeard", has spawned television shows, novels, and major motion pictures. Stories abound of his wild eyes striking fear into enemy hearts, of the six pistols strapped to his chest, and of his arrival in battle with his jet-black beard set ablaze. But how much is fa...