Sistory History

Welcome to our fourth Kidstory episode! With special guest Felix. These episodes are dedicated to budding historians, those studying history or wanting help with their history homework, or anyone who likes listening to fun and interesting stuff. Today we explore life at sea for kids during the Age of Sail, whether you were an officer's son training for a future career, a child helping to support f...

Welcome to part 2 of Military Matters - our Roman army Q&A with special guest Neil from the Ancient History Hound podcast. This time we´re launching into the realities of battle. The importance of weaponry, logistics and psychological warfare, plus an interesting consideration of how the Romans might have approached mental health and the impact of combat. Thanks to everyone who submitted quest...

Welcome to part 1 of Military Matters - a Q&A with special guest Neil from the Ancient History Hound podcast, focused on the Ancient Roman military and army life. In this episode we cover army ranks, the role of women, kit, rations, camp nightlife and much more besides. Thanks to everyone who submitted questions - if you don´t hear yours in this episode then be sure to tune in for the next. Fo...

Welcome to our first fun facts bonus episode. We've gathered together the weird & wonderful titbits from season 4 and packaged them into a neat 10-minute episode for you. Perfect for a coffee break or quick stroll to the shops. (Well, as long as exploding toilets float your boat...) Music credit goes to our resident composer Alice Morgan. You can find Alice on Instagram - missalicekeys. Finall...

Welcome to the season 4 finale! And we end with a heady mix of flutes, treasure and animal excrement. Plus a puzzling fixation on elephants, courtesy of Pompey & Caesar, and a truly impressive amount of dining furniture... Join us for a sensory dive into that very Roman celebration - the military triumph. In this episode we´re joined by these fabulous fellows: Plutarch, "Parallel Lives" , Life of...

Welcome to season 4, episode 5! How clean was your regular Roman? How often did they bathe? Did they have proper toilets, and is that rumour about the sponge on the stick really true? Join us as we explore the story of water in Ancient Rome. As well as the inevitable toilet-based anecdotes, we can promise you fabulous fountains, healthful hydrotherapy and remarkable rivers (albeit with some questi...

Welcome to season 4, episode 4! Ever wonder what used to happen at Ancient Roman weddings? Well, wonder no longer...we´re here to enlighten you! Some of the things we´ll talk about will be very familiar - flowers, veils, priests, wine, even the odd rude joke. Some will be not so familiar... And here we´re in the realms of sacrificial sheep, omens-a-plenty and excessive walnut throwing. We reveal a...

Drinking games with a twist, speeches and ribbons. All the elements required for a fabulous party! To celebrate the festive season, we bring you a special episode from the archives, all about the Ancient Greek symposium. Full of revelry, plus a few cautionary tales to help you keep it classy this Christmas... Our sources are: Plato, Symposium , 212d-213b Xenophon, Symposium , 1.3-1.4 Plato, Sympos...

Welcome to season 4, episode 3! And today we´re all about the comms. Letters, fire, flags, even a pigeon. Our good friend Pliny the Younger was lucky enough to have a book read to him most evenings at dinner. And Cicero was fastidious in ensuring that messengers were well fed to keep their energy, (and no doubt their enthusiasm...) topped up. So, there´s all sorts to talk about. In this episode we...

Welcome to episode 2 of season 4! We get up close and personal with Ancient Roman beauty products and it really is a tale of 2 halves. We´re very much on board with the gold dust, and have nothing against the burnt crushed nuts. We are however less keen on the unwashed sheep fleece, and I fear we must draw the line at the ashes of ass genitals... Which you´ll probably agree is a reasonable reactio...

Welcome back to Sistory History! And we're kicking off season 4 in the proper Roman way with an episode about the salutatio, the early morning client-patron ritual that you should definitely not try out for yourself if you're in any way a fan of a lie-in... Our sources (and guests) are: "Commentariolum Petitionis" , section IX, by Quintus Tullius Cicero "To Gallus" , epigram 10.82, by Martial "De...

Welcome to our third Kidstory episode! These episodes are dedicated to all budding historians and anyone studying history or desperate for some help with their history homework... Today we explore Canterbury Roman Museum with our resident kidstorian Felix, and try out some typical tools that Romans would have used in their daily lives. If you´d like to visit the museum then you can find everything...

Welcome to the final episode of our Londinium miniseries, where we consider Minerva, make-up and mixing bowls... In June 2025 we visited Roman London´s Amphitheatre at Guildhall Yard. It´s a great place to lose yourself in for an hour or so - you can wander around the remains of the amphitheatre itself (unearthed in 1988), and view the artefacts found there during the excavations of the 1980s and...

Welcome to episode 2 of our Londinium miniseries, in which we bring you lovely lamps and sensuous scents! In May 2025 we visited the Crypt Museum at All Hallows Church by the Tower, to find out what it can tell us about Roman London. It´s a small but beautifully formed museum that houses some excellent artefacts from the period, as well as Saxon and 16th century finds. Here, we talk you through ou...

Welcome to episode 1 of our Londinium miniseries! Where we consider the practicalities of naked initiation ceremonies, and Caroline delights us with her extensive collection of key facts... (Did you know that some Roman keys could fold up? And some were designed to break after one use!?!). In April 2025 we visited the London Mithraeum to explore the excellent exhibition space and peruse the artefa...

Welcome to our second Kidstory episode! Dedicated to all budding historians and anyone studying history or desperate for some help with their history homework... In this episode, ably assisted by 10yr old Felix, we talk about what the Ancient Romans ate and drank, what their restaurants were like, and what they got up to at dinner parties... Music credit goes to our resident composer Alice Morgan...

Welcome to our very first kids episode! Dedicated to all budding historians and anyone studying history or desperate for some help with their history homework... In this episode, ably assisted by 10yr old Felix (who's been learning about Egypt at school), we investigate how the Ancient Egyptians used magic and medicine to cure themselves. Think tree bark, magic spells, crocodile poo and lots of ho...

In this seasonal episode from our archive, we take a sensory deep dive into the ancient Roman, mid-December festival of Saturnalia. You can expect a delightful combination of naked singing, elf hats and Christmas jumpers. Plus we find out just how much wine some employers expected their staff to get through during the festival... P.S it's a LOT. Sources for this episode are: Seneca, Letters from a...

Join us for a seasonal episode all about the Roman festival of Saturnalia. We talk elf hats, Christmas jumpers & naked singing. If that doesn't tempt you then we don't know what will!!

Welcome to the season 3 finale! In this episode we take a sensory stroll down the lanes of Georgian London, to find out how and why gin became so popular. And why it caused so much public disruption that the government introduced no less than 8 Gin Acts in a sustained and determined effort to control its consumption. Our sources are: * Article from The Evening Chronicle (19th February 1835), by Ch...

Welcome to season 3, episode 5! In this episode we brave the high seas as we discuss some perhaps overlooked aspects of life in the Georgian Royal Navy. Our sources are as follows - you can find the visuals on our social media and website: https://www.sistoryhistory.co.uk/blog * Gold and steel combined fork/knife belonging to Lord Admiral Nelson (visual source) * A Treatise on the Scurvy (p.191-19...

Welcome to season 3, episode 4! In this episode we meander through the walkways (some brightly lit, some dimly lit), of Georgian London's pleasure gardens. Think entertainments, music, fireworks, wandering hands and overpriced snacks... Our sources are: * Edinburgh Encyclopedia , 1830 edition * Evelina (Letter 46) , by Frances Burney * The Microcosm of London , 1808-1810 * Bill of Fare for Vau...

Welcome to season 3, episode 3! In this episode we explore the sensory delights of Georgian coffee houses. And it wasn't all just coffee and cake... In fact it wasn't at all coffee and cake! There were a huge variety of activities on offer, from lectures to business deals to medical consultations. All washed down with a nice dish of bitter, brown liquid. Maybe with a bit of sludge at the b...

Welcome to season 3, episode 2! In this episode we delve into the depths of the Georgian ballroom. We consider the people, the clothes, what the ballroom looked and felt like, and the rules...there were a lot of rules! Luckily there were also a lot of etiquette manuals available to help you along the way. As usual we consider all this from a sensory perspective, using a selection of primary source...

In this episode we're joined by historian, author and broadcaster, Professor Michael Scott, to talk about his book "X Marks the Spot: An Adventurous History of Archaeology". The book explores 8 amazing archaeological discoveries, which we discuss from our usual sensory perspective. From Machu Picchu to the Silk Roads, to the Uluburun Shipwreck, there's something for everyone and...