A Fork In Time: The Alternate History Podcast

Send a Message to the Team In 1890, Buffalo Bill's Wild West show toured Europe and during a performance in Berlin, American exhibitionist sharpshooter Annie Oakley shot the ashes off the cigar held in the mouth of a volunteer from the audience--Kaiser Friedrich Willhelm II. What if Oakley had missed and accidentally killed the young German ruler?  How might the late 19th and early 20th centu...

Send a Message to the Team On April 24, 1980, United States special forces suffered a bitter failure with Operation "Eagle Claw", the attempt to rescue the Americans being held hostage in Tehran during the Iran Hostage Crisis, being aborted following a collision between aircraft at the initial staging area of the operation that resulted in 8 casualties. What if the failed rescue attempt...

Send a Message to the Team Not too late to provide your valued feedback for our upcoming "Fiction Focus" episode on Harry Turtledove.  CLICK HERE Website: www.aforkintimepodcast.com E-Mail: aforkintimepodcast@gmail.com Direct Link to Listener Survey: https://www.aforkintimepodcast.com/listenersurvey If you enjoy the podcast, you can help by supporting us via Patreon. https://www.patreon....

Send a Message to the Team The siege and fall of the Alamo in March 1836 has been immortalized in historical legend and portrayed in theatrical grandeur as "13 Days to Glory."  But, what if Santa Anna had chosen to quickly assault the makeshift fortress or bypass it all together to gain the prize of the fleeing Texian leadership and army? Website: www.aforkintimepodcast.com E-Mail: afork...

Send a Message to the Team When most people list the monarchs of England, they would not likely include any mention of Queen Jane--the woman known to history as Lady Jane Grey. How might the path of English history have been different if she "reigned" for more than nine fateful days in 1553? Link to Wikipedia Article https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lady_Jane_Grey Listeners can get a FREE a...

Send a Message to the Team How might a more enduring exploration and colonization of the New World by the Vikings (Norse) have changed the course of the Americas and even Europe as we know it? Link to Wikipedia Article https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Norse_colonization_of_North_America Listeners can get a FREE audiobook with their FREE 30-Day Trial Membership from Audible CLICK HERE Website: www.afo...

Send a Message to the Team Episode 0040—One Killer Nosebleed In March 453, Attila the Hun takes yet another young bride.  The morning following his wedding night, he is found dead from asphyxiation from a massive nosebleed. How would the course of the soon-to-fall Western Roman Empire and the future of Europe be different with a living Attila after that fateful night? Listeners can get a FREE audi...

Send a Message to the Team This episode introduces a new feature to the podcast that will be a recurring element to the show, focusing on notable authors in the alternate history genre. We are calling it Fiction Focus.  Listen to learn how you as a listener are a vital part of this addition to the podcast Our first featured author will be Harry Turtledove.  To participate, visit our website and cl...

Send a Message to the Team On January 28, 1986, the Space Shuttle Challenger exploded a mere 73 seconds into its historical flights carrying the first civilian school teacher into space and suffered the loss of its entire crew of seven. Would things have been different for NASA's shuttle program if the accident had not occurred that cold Florida morning? Helpful Web Links: Wikipedia Articles:...

Send a Message to the Team On August 1, 1981, MTV premiered and began its influence on the music and television business that would permeate for decades. Join Don and returning guest host Ros Radley as they discuss the influence of MTV and how might music and television have been different in a world with no MTV. Link to "I Want My MTV" Ad that opens the show. Links to Background Items M...

Send a Message to the Team Part 2 of 2 The US Presidential election of 1800 was one of the most unique with Thomas Jefferson being elected after the confusion of a tied vote in the electoral college and Aaron Burr becoming Vice President after a contested and controversial process in the House of Representatives. What if a "rogue" elector had cast his ballot in a different way and Aaron...

Send a Message to the Team Part 1 of 2 The US Presidential election of 1800 was one of the most unique with Thomas Jefferson being elected after the confusion of a tied vote in the electoral college and Aaron Burr becoming Vice President after a contested and controversial process in the House of Representatives. What if a "rogue" elector had cast his ballot in a different way and Aaron...

Send a Message to the Team The calendar that we presently use harkens back to the reforms instituted by Julius Caesar in 46 BC with only slight future modification in 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII. How might things be different if a calendar other than the Julian had become the predominant one or if we had adopted any of the proposed "modern" reformed calendars of the 20th Century? Links to...

Send a Message to the Team Smartphones, including iPhones and Android devices, have revolutionized communications and being "connected" in slightly more than a decade.  How would our world be different in a world without them? Listeners can get a FREE audiobook with their FREE 30-Day Trial Membership from Audible CLICK HERE Direct Link to Listener Survey: https://www.aforkintimepodcast.c...

Send a Message to the Team There can be little debate that the Beatles were one of the most influential musical groups of the 20th century.  How might history (musical and otherwise) have been different without the impact of the little band from Liverpool? Guest Host: Ros Radley Link to Ros' KISS Book Project (as mentioned in the episode): https://www.magickisskronicles1973to1983.com/ Some We...

Send a Message to the Team In 1519, a small Spanish expedition force led by Hernan Cortes conquers the Aztec Empire bringing control of Mexico and riches to Spain.  How might the flow of the future have been different if Montezuma, the King of the Aztecs, had not needed revenge because he was victorious over the invading Spanish? Hernan Cortez: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hern%C3%A1n_Cort%C3%A9s...

Send a Message to the Team The 1940 US presidential election was historic for many reasons, most notably marking the first and only time that a US president has been elected for a third term, in the person of Franklin D. Roosevelt.  Soon after, the 22nd Amendment to the US Constitution would impose a limit of two elected terms. However, in 1789, the potential existed that a measure like the 22nd A...

Send a Message to the Team In September 1513, English and Scottish forces faced off against each other in a bloody conflict that ultimately saw the death of Scottish king James IV. How might things have been different if James had survived the battle?  What is Katherine of Aragon, Henry VIII’s wife and regent at the time, had perished instead? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Flodden Direct...

Send a Message to the Team On March 30, 1981, American President Ronald Reagan survived an assassination attempt just months into his presidency.  As one of the figures from recent history who casts an enormous shadow even down to the present day, how might things have been different if he had died that day? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attempted_assassination_of_Ronald_Reagan Direct Link to List...

Send a Message to the Team In November 1989, the Berlin Wall came down and with it the Cold War quickly came to a close and Germany once again became a single nation after 35 years apart. How might things have been different if the forces that allowed the Wall to fall had not predominated and the division not only between East and West Berlin but also Eastern and Western Europe had persisted? Fall...

Send a Message to the Team 25 episodes into the journey of the podcast, Don and Alexis provide thoughts on where the podcast is and what the future has in store.  We hope you enjoy this insight into the A Fork In Time experience so far. Direct Link to Listener Survey: https://www.aforkintimepodcast.com/listenersurvey Theme Music: Conquer by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com Website: www...

Send a Message to the Team One hundred years ago, America’s confidence in baseball was shaken by the Black Sox Scandal. What would have happened if the “fixing” of games has not been known until later and baseball had taken a different course as a result? Link to Wikipedia Article on Black Sox Scandal Theme Music: Conquer by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com Website: www.aforkintimepodc...

Send a Message to the Team In late 1939, a German plot to bomb and sabotage Hoover Dam was discovered and prevented.  What might have been different if the plot had succeeded and America had entered World War II two years earlier in response to this different “Day of Infamy”? Theme Music: Conquer by Shane Ivers - https://www.silvermansound.com Website: www.aforkintimepodcast.com E-Mail: aforkintim...

Send a Message to the Team In 1701, The Act of Settlement is passed by Parliament to cement the succession of the English and Irish crowns to Protestants only while also establishing a key foundation of the constitutional monarchy in what would become Great Britain. What differences might have existed in the evolution of the British monarchy without its passage? Theme Music: Conquer by Shane Ivers...

Send a Message to the Team In the early 1970s, Xerox ruled the office copier world and had the vision to establish the Palo Alto Research Center (PARC) as an innovation catalyst for new technologies that would enable it to expand its place as a technology leader.  PARC was the place where the first personal computer, computer network, graphical user interfaces, and computer mice all had their star...