Histories of the Unexpected

In this episode of Histories of the Unexpected, James and Sam explore the unexpected history of BREATH, which is all about halitosis, free diving, humanity and the soul, Harry Houdini, advertising and consumerism in 1950s America, mouth to mouth resuscitation and the Royal Humane Society and much, much more! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Who knew that SUCKING UP had a history? Well it does, and it's all about the APPEASEMENT of Germany in an attempt to keep the peace before the outbreak of World War II. James and Sam brainstorm examples of sucking up from across history, focussing especially on Neville Chamberlain's appeasement of the Nazi leader Adolf Hitler with discussion of the Anschluss that unified Austria and Germany, the S...

The history of things that go HORRIBLY WRONG. And there are TONS of them...from shipwrecks to international relationships and military campaigns. Sam and James explore this theme throughout history and with particular focus on the League of Nations inspired by Woodrow Wilson and set up in the aftermath of the First World War....to prevent anything like that ever happening again. Did it work? HELL...

Who knew that Broken Promises have a history?! Well they do and it's FASCINATING, and James and Sam explore the wonderful of history of saying you're going to do ONE THING and then doing SOMETHING ELSE instead. SO ANNOYING. And they focus in particular on the promises that James VI and I made to Catholics, how he broke them...and how those broken promises led to Guy Fawkes stashing 36 barrels of g...

Episode 16 in our Homeschooling series! This one's all about the history of Blame and wanting to say IT'S SO YOUR FAULT!! James and Sam explore the idea of blame in history and then focus on who was held responsible for the First World War, and the writing of the War Guilt clause in the Versailles Treaty. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode of Histories of the Unexpected, James and Sam explore the unexpected history of THE KISS, which is all about Admiral Lord Nelson, WWI AND WWII, witchcraft, the devil and goats, the Reformation, voting in the 18th century England, poster girls, and the #metoo movement, and much, much more!  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This fifteenth (yes, FIFTEENTH!) episode in the special series of Histories of the Unexpected Homeschooling explores SLOBBERING and JAMES VI AND I! The Unexpected History of SLOBBERING is all about disease and insanity and the history of teething (rubbing rabbit brains into the gums of infants). James and Sam explore the fascinating history of the James VI and I through the subject of slobbering,...

In this episode of Histories of the Unexpected, James and Sam explore the unexpected history of BALCONIES, which is all about propaganda and politics, the assassination of Martin Luther King, eavesdropping on the royal family, it’s about Churchill, Hitler and Mussolini, the Globe Theatre (and the Lord's Room), popular misconceptions about Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet, and of course it’...

This fourteenth episode in the special series of Histories of the Unexpected Homeschooling explores NAMES and THE DOMESDAY BOOK! The Unexpected History of NAMES is all about Viking Nicknames, titles for royalty and the aristocracy, it's about women being hidden from history (think the name-changing Bess of Hardwick), and Scandinavian linguistic dominance across Europe. James and Sam explore the fa...

This thirteenth episode in the special series of Histories of the Unexpected Homeschooling explores SHOWOFFS and NORMAN CASTLES! The Unexpected History of showing off is all about world-famous historical showoffs, like Henry VIII, Hitler and Louis XIV, it's about the history of fashion (think outlandish gloves and tall hats), architecture and prodigy houses, lavish gifts and bling!, US consumerism...

This twelfth episode in the special series of Histories of the Unexpected Homeschooling explores SCABS and MEDIEVAL MEDICINE! The Unexpected History of scabs is all about a personal history of childhood, the Industrial Revolution, health and safety, the history of science and discovery, Elizabeth I and much much more. James and Sam explore the history of medieval medicine through the subject of sc...

This eleventh episode in the special series of Histories of the Unexpected Homeschooling explores SCARS and THE HISTORY OF SLAVERY! The Unexpected History of scars is all about personal history, West African tribes, Count Otto von Bismarck (the man who unified Germany!), Glasgow in the 1930s and much much more. James and Sam explore the history of slavery through the subject of scars, including th...

In this episode of Histories of the Unexpected, James and Sam explore the unexpected history of APPLAUSE, which is all about popularity in Ancient Rome, Stalinist Russia, babies, opera-going sophisticates, crowds and paying people to clap (or boo!), Henry James's failure as a playwright, and of course gratitude to the NHS and front line medical staff across the globe during the COVID19 crisis...

This tenth episode in the special series of Histories of the Unexpected Homeschooling explores ACCIDENTS and EVERYDAY LIFE IN TUDOR BRITAIN! The Unexpected History of accidents is all about personal history, world-famous accidents like the sinking of the Titanic, the Chernobyl nuclear disaster or Aberfan in 1966, heroism, health and safety, the Industrial Revolution and much much more. James and S...

This ninth episode in the special series of Histories of the Unexpected Homeschooling explores INVISIBILITY and Tudor Spies! The Unexpected History of invisibility is all about stealth technology and travelling under the radar, priest holes and hiding during WWII, Stalin's erasure of the past, being hidden from history, and of course spies, cryptography and the secret world of the Tudors. James an...

This eighth episode in the special series of Histories of the Unexpected Homeschooling explores STENCH and Public Health in Victorian England. The Unexpected History of STENCH is all about personal hygiene and the marketing of smelling nice in 1950s USA; the holocaust and use of napalm during the Vietnam war, stinkiness in the medieval world, and of course nineteenth-century disease and public hea...

In this episode the Histories of the Unexpected team of James Daybell and Sam Willis take on the topic of RABBITS - as an Easter Special! Now, of course, the UNEXPECTED history of loneliness is all about poaching and disputes over land; eighteenth-century England and Mary Toft who allegedly gave birth to rabbits (it was a hoax!); Aborigines and the Stolen Generation in Australia; mapping rabbit wa...

This seventh episode in the special series of Histories of the Unexpected Homeschooling explores FIRE and the SPANISH ARMADA. The Unexpected History of FIRE takes us from the pre-historic invention of fire and its impact upon the world all the way to the global climate crisis and the wildfires that raged in Australia in early 2020. Fire is also all burning things: it's about Nazi burning of books,...

This sixth episode in the special series of Histories of the Unexpected Homeschooling explores DARKNESS and WWII and THE BLITZ. The Unexpected History of darkness is all about the not so 'dark' Dark Ages, the Winter of Discontent and blackouts, child labour during the Victorian period, coal mining and hidden histories. James and Sam explore discuss WWII, the Blitz, and air raids, including Morriso...

In this episode of Histories of the Unexpected, James and Sam explore the unexpected history of BOREDOM, which is all about British imperialism, travel, the armed forces, governors, sea voyages, Elizabethan gentlewomen, controlling the working classes in post WWII Canada! Boredom is the root of all evil – the despairing refusal to be oneself. – Soren Kierkegaard Unless a man has been taught w...

In this episode of Histories of the Unexpected, James and Sam explore the unexpected history of SOLITUDE, which is all about monasticism, pillars, ornamental hermits (and shoes), desert islands, and the Beatles! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This fifth episode in the special series of Histories of the Unexpected Homeschooling explores SLIME and the Industrial Revolution. The Unexpected History of slime is all about the medical properties of snail slime, ectoplasm and Victorian spiritualists, the use of black slugs to lubricate hay carts in pre-Industrial society, and of course the Industrial Revolution. James and Sam explore discuss t...

In this episode the Histories of the Unexpected team of James Daybell and Sam Willis take on the topic of LONELINESS! Inspired by the events of a global lockdown, an UNEXPECTED history of loneliness is all about widowhood, eighteenth-century shopkeepers, Queen Victoria, prisons, the Beatles, chairs, teenagers, old photographs and nostalgia! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more informati...

In this episode James and Sam explore the Unexpected History of SOAP, which is of course all about hazing, the British Royal Navy, profanities, marketing, the Spanish Flu, popular politics, freedom of speech, Speakers' Corner, and John Major's 'Soap Box' electioneering...and a little bit about coronavirus! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is the FOURTH in this special series of Histories of the Unexpected Episodes geared towards homeschooling, as the United Kingdom and much of the globe enters into lockdown, schools close, and the world begins a period of isolation and educated online and at home. Over the next few weeks, we will endeavour to record a series of history podcast episodes catering for kids, parents and teachers,...