Consistently Eccentric History

For once we are releasing a timely episode as England are still (at time of release) in the 2026 world cup. Which is the perfect time to talk about how, 60 years ago, a team full of missing teeth, combovers and prominent knees, somehow managed to win the whole thing on home turf. The story of the 1966 world cup has everything. Death, controversy and even a potential international incident (not to...

This week (slightly delayed due to illness) we are discussing a man who found a way to profit from the upheaval of the English Civil War via the most partisan of journalism. Marchamont Nedham was a gifted writer who became the most influential journalist of his day. Though not the most reliable. Never one for consistency, Marchamont was willing to switch sides if he felt it would benefit him perso...

This week we are welcoming the youngest member of the Heathcote clan, Milo to his first episode! And as a result we are covering a subject that is currently rather close to his heart. The pseudoscience of Cryptids. Covering 10 questionable critters that span the entirety of the 20th Century we will answer the question, is there a Cryptid in the UK that is better than Nessie? As this episode is rec...

This week we are talking about how an imagined love triangle (which contained absolutely no love) resulted in the death of a sitting MP and nearly sparked both an international incident and mob-rule on the streets of London. Because in Restoration England any noble woman who had a fortune but no husband was in constant peril. Due to the way the law worked, any man she married would instantly take...

This week we are heading to the Mills of Bradford to meet a Yorkshireman whose unshakable self-belief led to one of the most longwinded self-destructions in history. Having survived the horrors of WWII (and the retail industry), a chance encounter with some Yogis set in motion a series of events that would see Maurice Wilson defy the British Government, and find himself 23,000 feet up the side of...

To celebrate international Midwifery day, Pam is back in the hosting chair to tell us the story of a pioneering Doctor who didn't let their lack of balls stop them from becoming one of the top medics in the entirety of the British Armed Forces. Originally only pretending to be a man in order to get through medical training, James Barry was planning to practice as a woman in service of Francisco de...

After a series of unfortunate events we are back with a spooky tale from the early 19th Century that resulted in multiple deaths. The Hammersmith Ghost was initially a local oddity, but as the winter of 1803 progressed it became a source of increasing fear for the local population. But as any good Georgian knew, the best way to protect yourself from the supernatural is with a bloody big gun! Guest...

This week we are heading across the channel to talk about how one of the many Anglo-French spats during the middle ages resulted in the creation of one of the most effective pirates who has ever sailed the high seas (of the English Channel). After her husband was executed (murdered) by the French king, Jeanne de Clisson swore revenge. However being an eminently practical woman, she ensured that he...

Finally we have reached the end of the cautionary tale of Oswald Mosley, as we talk about his period as Britain's best known Fascist. However unlike in Italy and Germany the population of Britain were not interested in lurching to the right, leaving Oswald waiting for a revolution that stubbornly refused to come. Featuring secret Italian funding, wives dying of apathy and a framed picture of Hitle...

This week we are jumping back into the world of quack medicine, following a nearly-doctor called James Graham as he blazed a path through multiple medical fields (none of which he was remotely qualified for.) While James Graham was searching for the pseudo-treatment that would make his fortune, he stumbled upon the idea of providing a medicalised model for improving marriage, specifically the proc...

This week we are heading back to 1938 to talk about a very odd crimewave that plagued the people of Halifax during the cold, dark days of November. When Mary Sutcliffe reported being attacked by a man wielding a blade, it was assumed that it was an isolated incident, however as the attacks rapidly began to pile up a sense of panic seemed to engulf the people of Halifax. Was it a maniac? Was it mor...

As we head toward February 14th, Pam is bringing us a tale of Georgian romance. In fact one of the first and most popular tales of romance in early American history. Starting in the UK it is a story of the upper classes, scandals and doomed romances. But how is this linked to a gravestone in New York and is any of it actually true? Guest Host: Pamela Loetterle Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privac...

It is back to the story of the most famous British Fascist this week as we discuss the Parliamentary career of Oswald Mosley, which started at the tender age of 22. Going in with a naive belief that he would quickly rise through the ranks it is the story of how people born of privilege can struggle when they face even the mildest of barriers, and how the political system can be manipulated to your...

This week we are talking about a humble chimney sweep who ended up becoming a millionaire, via the medium of highway robbery! Though he originally appeared to want to do the right thing, John Cottington found that even the most successful Master Sweep would not be welcomed into the upper classes. Growing resentment at this glass ceiling (combined with an awkward marriage and extreme shaving advent...

To celebrate the new year we are looking back exactly 300 years to see how the criminal fraternity of London were dealt with in the courtroom of The Old Bailey. With tales of theft, murder, persecution and duels it there are parts that seem absurd, and others that are all too familiar. So join us to see how far the British justice system has come. Now with more sexual innuendo. Guest Hosts: Emma H...

Merry Christmas from Consistently Eccentric! To celebrate the big day we are discussing the life of John Elwes, a Georgian man with unimaginable wealth, who chose to spend as little of it as possible. While his eccentricities led him to become Dickens' inspiration for Scrooge, we make the argument that this is an unfair characterisation, as while he would not spend a penny on himself (or his long-...

This week we are starting the tale of the most famous of all British Fascists, Oswald Mosley. Born into privilege and the certainty that he would never have to work for a living should he not wish to, Oswald should have enjoyed an idilic childhood. However the lack of a consistent father-figure mixed with rampant narcissism led him to pursue a career in the Military as a means of gaining the recog...

This week we have been in Scotland visiting Ollie, so we decided to take the chance to record a three person episode. To celebrate we are discussing every death that has occurred at the many Theme Parks of the UK and Ireland. Starting with a quick primer on the origin of the Theme Park we discuss both the worst disaster in UK history and the worst decade for deaths (maybe the Emo's were onto somet...

This week we are discussing the brief but influential career of Mary Henrietta Kingsley, a woman who only began travelling in her 30s, but who nevertheless managed to write two of the most influential travelogues of the late Victorian era. Brought up in almost complete isolation, but hearing the stories from her father's many foreign adventures, Mary dreamed of going somewhere that no other Britis...

This week we are heading of the southern coast of South Africa for a cautionary tale of what can happen as a result of multiple little mistakes. With questions regarding the design, the decision making of the crew, the impact of various 'improvements' and the general maintenance of the lifesaving equipment on board the HMS Birkenhead, there should have been concerns about sailing it through a regi...

It is time to draw to a close our series on Port Royal, beginning with the return of Henry Morgan to Jamaica with a mission to end piracy. Though of course he instead decided to find a way to turn a (slightly corrupt) profit. But while the merchants of the were making ever greater profits and building ever more houses on the tiny spit of land that constituted Port Royal, deep below the surface of...

This week we continue our exploration of the history of Port Royal, learning not only how it got it's name, but also how it developed into being the economic powerhouse of the Caribbean... it was extortion. But even a Pirate port needed leaders, and we discuss some of the most influential of the early days, as well as discussing the rise of one Henry (formerly Harri) Morgan. Morgan was a Welshman...

This week we are embarking on a three part series covering the most notorious pirate port in the Caribbean, so naturally we are starting by talking about Oliver Cromwell. While the Spanish were busy conquering South America, they saw Jamaica as little more than a convenient staging post. So much so that when the English were considering which Spanish territories to invade, it didn't even make the...

As a special bonus episode, Pamela is taking us through the history of both of the Obelisks that have been given the monicker 'Cleopatra's Needle.' This is a story that covers nearly 4,000 years and a hell of a lot of wrangling over shipping costs, but which ends with New York City getting crabs! Guest Host: Pamela Loetterle Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week we have beaten a plague of technical troubles to recount an Elizabethan tale of a born-again Christian who took things a little too far. William Hacket was an illiterate servant who managed to talk his way into a good marriage and a malting business. However this didn't seem to fulfil him, so when he was introduced to the concept that protestants can have a direct conversation with God h...