Half-Arsed History

In this week's episode, get across the darkest and bloodiest chapter in French revolutionary history: the Reign of Terror, which saw tens of thousands of people killed by political violence. History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy from Booktopia or A&U: AU/NZ: https://...

The friction match and its subsequent developments helped to democratise fire - matches have made it possible for anyone, at any time, to make use of one of humanity's most important tools, fire.  History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy from Booktopia or A&U: AU/N...

Join me in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, and Maroochydore as I go through some of the stories from History's Strangest Deaths , and share juicy behind-the-scenes details about how the book was made. Don't delay - these tickets are limited and will likely run out pretty swiftly. Sydney - 6:00pm 7th August at the Chauvel Cinema , tickets $20: https://www.dymocks.com.au/events/details/index/id/NTAyMA~...

Quarter-Arsed History presents: the Man in the Iron Mask, a mysterious prisoner of the French king Louis XIV, who was imprisoned for 34 years without anyone ever learning his true identity.  History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy from Booktopia or A&U: AU/NZ: htt...

In this week's episode, understand some of the most important legacies of the French Revolution as it worked to establish a constitutional monarchy, before the ultimate abolition of the monarchy and establishment of a republic in 1792. History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your co...

The camera is everywhere, today - we carry them around with us in our pockets - but it has a two-hundred year history that has brought us to this point, filled with groundbreaking, revolutionary technological advancements. History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy from Bookt...

Quarter-Arsed History presents: the story of Charles Boycott, whose immense unpopularity as a landlord let to the term "boycott" being coined.  History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy from Booktopia or A&U: AU/NZ: https://www.booktopia.com.au/history-s-strangest-d...

In this week's episode, get across the story of the opening days of the French Revolution - the public protests and disorder which culminated in the legendarily famous Storming of the Bastille.  History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy from Booktopia or A&U: AU/NZ:...

The bicycle is a truly marvellous invention, not only unlocking an all-new form of personal transportation and mobility, but also offering humanity the greatest gift of all: speed.  History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy from Booktopia or A&U: AU/NZ: https://www....

Quarter-Arsed History presents: of all things, this week, a guide to how you could try your hand at long-distance running by giving a Couch to 5K a crack. Hi-res version of the Couch to 5K template: https://drive.google.com/file/d/16B3Gd4lUfIcYKrdUmWGknB9izho20SbJ/view History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New...

In this week's episode, learn about the leadup to and origins of the French Revolution, culminating in the breakdown of the Estates-General and the Tennis Court Oath in 1789.  History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy from Booktopia or A&U: AU/NZ: https://www.bookto...

The stethoscope has provided doctors with an efficient and non-invasive way to assess and diagnose patients, while also helping to advance our understanding of cardiovascular and respiratory illnesses. History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy from Booktopia or A&U: AU/N...

Quarter-Arsed History presents: the Canadian Caper, when the Canadian government smuggled six US diplomats out of Tehran during the Iran Hostage Crisis using a CIA-backed fake film. History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy from Booktopia or A&U: AU/NZ: https://www.bookt...

In this week's episode, unravel the long and complicated geopolitical history that turned Iran from one of the West's staunchest regional allies in the Middle East into one of its bitterest foes. History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy from Booktopia or A&U: AU/NZ: htt...

Canned food has revolutionised the way we eat - by making food last for longer than ever before, it has helped to increase food safety and security for billions of people across hundreds of years. History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy at Booktopia: https://www.booktopia....

Quarter-Arsed History presents: Chevaliere d’Eon, a spy, soldier, and swashbuckler who blackmailed King Louis XV and lived life as both as man and a woman across the years. History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy at Booktopia: https://www.booktopia.com.au/history-s-strange...

In this week's episode, finish off the story of the famed Sir Francis Drake, and hear about his later campaigns agains the Spanish - both successful and unsuccessful.  History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy at Booktopia: https://www.booktopia.com.au/history-s-strange...

Railways revolutionised the world of transport, enabling people and goods to be transported great distances at great speed, more cheaply and efficiently than ever before.  History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy at Booktopia: https://www.booktopia.com.au/history-s-str...

Quarter-Arsed History presents: the St Scholastica Day Riot, when the English university town of Oxford was thrown into the midst of a three-day riot over a disagreement about the quality of some wine.  History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy at Booktopia: https://www...

In this week's episode, meet Sir Francis Drake, whose lifelong vendetta against the Spanish led to a life of high adventure - including the circumnavigation of the globe. Pre-order History's Strangest Deaths and get 17% off: https://www.booktopia.com.au/history-s-strangest-deaths-riley-knight/book/9781761472589.html The Most Interesting People You've Never Heard Of, the second Half-Arsed History b...

The steam engine is a foundational modern technology that underpins today's industrialised world; it also tended to explode and helped to precipitate a climate crisis. So there's that. Pre-order History's Strangest Deaths and get 17% off: https://www.booktopia.com.au/history-s-strangest-deaths-riley-knight/book/9781761472589.html The Most Interesting People You've Never Heard Of, the second Half-A...

Quarter-Arsed History presents: the legend of Lasseter's Reef, a supposed immense fortune in gold that is lost somewhere out in the Australian desert.  Pre-order History's Strangest Deaths and get 17% off: https://www.booktopia.com.au/history-s-strangest-deaths-riley-knight/book/9781761472589.html The Most Interesting People You've Never Heard Of, the second Half-Arsed History book, releases...

In this week's episode, uncover the details of the Dyatlov Pass Incident, when something caused nine Soviet hikers to abandon their mountainside tent and perish in the middle of a freezing night - for reasons that have never been conclusively determined.  The Most Interesting People You've Never Heard Of, the second Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 29th of September across the Austral...

The thermometer has had a huge impact on many aspects of modern life, none more important than in the field of medicine - where it has helped in revolutionising diagnosis and patient monitoring.  The Most Interesting People You've Never Heard Of, the second Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 29th of September across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy from...

History's Strangest Deaths, the first Half-Arsed History book, releases on the 5th of August across the Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand region. Pre-order your copy from Booktopia or A&U: AU/NZ: https://www.booktopia.com.au/history-s-strangest-deaths-riley-knight/book/9781761472589.html International: https://www.allenandunwin.com/browse/book/Riley-Knight-History's-Strangest-Deaths-978176147...