Spill the Mead

Just when we thought we were finished with Jane Seymour… one. final. asterisk. In the middle of this series, historian Elizabeth Norton published Jane Seymour: Patronage, Material Culture and Image Crafting , the newest academic study of Jane’s life and queenship. And how could I call this a proper Jane Seymour series DEEP DIVE if we ignored the newest research?? Not here. No way. I promised I’d c...

On October 12, 1537, at around 2am. Jane Seymour gave birth to the son England had waited decades for. In the final chapter of our Jane Seymour series, we step inside the celebrations surrounding Edward’s birth and christening before everything begins to change. We explore Jane’s prolonged labor, childbed fever, and what she may have experienced in her final days. Because saying “Jane died in chil...

In this record-breaking episode, we begin with a deep dive into Tudor medicine, conception, pregnancy, and the complicated ways sixteenth-century people understood the female body. Then we return to Jane herself following the timeline of her life during her last days outside the chamber walls. We reconstruct the world of Tudor confinement: its protocols, preparations, rituals, rooms, rules, and th...

When you hear “Henry VIII” a few key words may come to mind, and “athlete” may not be one of them. In this episode of Spill the Mead: Uncorked , I’m joined by Jackson Van Uden to look at this key aspect of Henry’s personality that often gets overlooked. Sport wasn’t simply something Henry did for fun. It was a huge part of his identity, until one day it was all suddenly ripped away. We explore wha...

In Part B of the Pacificator , Mary is alive, but still absent from court. It feels like the moment to pay her a visit, so we open this episode with Jane and Henry doing exactly that. Jane (and the rest of us) hold our breath to see whether Henry will finally invite her back. What if we told you that none of what has happened so far has been considered by historians the greatest political crisis o...

Anne Boleyn is dead. Jane Seymour is queen. And everyone expects England's problems to disappear. Whoops. As plans for Jane's coronation move forward, Henry VIII grows increasingly unpredictable, his health deteriorates, and the future of the Tudor dynasty remains uncertain. Meanwhile, Jane is tasked with an impossible mission: helping to reconcile Princess Mary with the father who declared her il...

Was Jane Seymour trapped? Was she used? Or was she playing the game all along? In Part Two of our Jane Seymour series, we follow Jane from Anne Boleyn's household to the threshold of queenship. Along the way, we explore the role of Elizabeth Seymour, trace the royal progress of 1535, examine Henry VIII's life-changing injury, and uncover what Jane's place at court may have really looked like. Then...

Before the court, there was the country. Episode 1/5 begins at Wolfhall, where ongoing archaeological excavations are still uncovering the world that Jane would have known. We talk about the fascinating (and not to be dramatic - but groundbreaking) finds they have uncovered as we attempt to understand the elusive Jane Seymour. Meanwhile at court, Catherine of Aragon’s marriage begins to fracture u...

In this episode, Dr. Emerson returns to Spill the Mead to revisit the captivating Capturing a Queen exhibit at Hever castle and discuss some of the details he couldn’t fully speak on during our first conversation. We talk more about the exhibit itself, the portraits on display, and the stories surrounding Anne Boleyn. Then, naturally, things descend slightly into chaos as we play a game assigning...

This week on Uncorked , Dr. Erica Canela joins us to dive into the wild, weird, and unexpectedly chaotic world of Quaker history. Yes, the Quakers were unhinged, and yes, they’ve had a major glow up. We break down the evolution from radical early Quaker antics to the modern-day Friends, some of whom are kind of attractive. Naturally, this leads to a very serious scholarly exercise we call “Quaker...

Ok, yes, it's a football episode BUT DISCLAIMER: you do NOT have to be familiar with or like football for this episode! As long as you like a WIDE range of historical figures, people fighting for their lives to make a case over an imaginary scenario, and Nicholas Cage... you're in the right place. Madi & Chris choose their historical dream team with potential "legends of the line" like Julius...

"Ra-Ra-Rasputin, love of the of the Russian Queen!" Except he probably wasn't. In this episode, we really get to know Rasputin. From what he preached, to his alleged healing abilities, to a trip to his apartment for tea... we give you the nitty gritty of all of the gossip surrounding the man who helped bring an end to the House of Romanov. We also look at an alternate theory to what happened on th...

Welcome to our brand-new segment: Movies & Mead In this series, Madi & Gabby watch a listener-chosen historical film and break down the real historical context, the key players, the cast, the gossip, and of course all the behind-the-scenes drama. We wrap it up by handing out our very official AcadeMEAD awards and rating the movie. For our first episode, we’re diving into The VVitch — a spo...

Imagine growing up surrounded by the harsh beauty of wild moorlands. A gothic, windswept, haunting landscape right outside - and a few steps from your front door is a church graveyard that you watch slowly fill up with members of your own family. Welcome to growing up Bronte! Let Coco take you on a journey through the Bronte childhood experience, where hardship and loss were in no short supply and...

Part two of our season opener finds us in the middle of France during the Hundred Years War, where we meet a young but capable man with knighthood in his blood. Boucicaut’s name struck fear into the hearts of men - a legend from a young age. His determination and dedication to training made him fast, fearless and impossibly strong. Losing a duel to this man was a mark of prestige. Though not known...

Welcome to a new season! And our new annual series, where we research 2 historic knights and give you all the information you need to decide who would win in a duel today! First up is William Marshal, they one who they call "the world's greatest knight". Madi goes over all of details you need to know to make your decision: the armor, the sword, the fighting style of William Marshal. We also hear a...

Be sure you check this episode out on YouTube! Welcome to our first ever episode of Uncorked with the legendary Dr. Owen Emmerson. Watch Madi live out her dream, and finally be able to ask him all the questions she's been dying to know: 1.) Where/what at Hever Castle would Anne still be able to recognize today? 2.) Was the tragic (and suspicious in our opinion) death of Purkoy Boleyn-Tudor an acci...

Listen to (and watch this episode on YouTube!) Chris Riley raw dog 22 kings of England in our SEASON FINALE!! From Edwards the Confessor to Henry VIII, Chris will describe each king with one single word (don't get too hung up on that part), stopping to elaborate on kings chosen by YOU, HONEYBEES! You voted on social, and we listened. We think you're going to love this one. We will see you NEXT YEA...

In this episode we will be covering the stories of not one, not two, but THREE archers who were SO GOOD that they were actually written into their culture's mythology. Decide for yourself how much of their stories are true, and how much is just hot gossip. AD FREE LISTENING on Patreon as well as tons of extra content! https://www.patreon.com/c/spillthemead You can purchase Spill the Mead merchandi...

TRIGGER WARNING ON ALL THIS! It's a scary one... well, except for the absolute DELIGHT of a story at the very end. Get there. Tale 1(ish): SKINWALKER TALES. Yes, that is right. Gabby found us a collection of modern day Skinwalker stories, which is reeeaaally just some modern-day folktales if you really think about it. She begins by giving a run down on just what a Skinwalker is, and then we go thr...

The modern vampire is depicted as sophisticated, sexy, dangerously charming - a masterful seductive force of superhuman strength, thirsty for blood. . But did you know vampires didn’t start out this way? From ancient soul-sucking succubi to hopping spirits that drained your life force, to grotesque plague spreaders and dead men walking, the vampire legend has evolved from the truly disgusting to t...

Not many names invoke as much fear and/or dread as Vlad the Impaler - and this guy had TWO super sick nicknames. Why is a lame title like “The Handsome” when you could terrify people with “The Impaler”? . But how exactly does one earn such a name? Well unfortunately Coco is going to tell you in very specific detail EXACTLY how this particular Wallachian prince did, and a whole lot of other things...

Here is an example of what is just sitting on Patreon, waiting for you! For only $5 a month! We loved this series so much, we NEEDED to share it with the world. Enjoy a Patreon experience. Part Two of The Legend of Sleepy Hollow finds us back in the bosom of Tarry Town, and introduces us to pretty coquette Katrina, Bad Boy Brom Bones, and an insane amount of birds. Form your own conclusions on thi...

Here is an example of what is just sitting on Patreon, waiting for you! For only $5 a month! We loved this series so much, we NEEDED to share it with the world. Enjoy a Patreon experience. Part Three of Washington Irving's The Legend of Sleepy Hollow is HERE - and hitting harder than Ichabod's nasally psalmodies right in your bosom. Meet us at old Balty Van Tassel's farm for the party of the seaso...

Here is an example of what is just sitting on Patreon, waiting for you! For only $5 a month! We loved this series so much, we NEEDED to share it with the world. Enjoy a Patreon experience. Ok so, this one proooobably starts off with a little more Squatch talk than you would expect for a Sleepy Hollow episode, but oh boy do we get there. We get there, to Sleepy Hollow, where the bosoms of the mount...