That's Old News

The Winter War 1939-1940 was a military embarrassment for the Soviet Union, suffering hundreds of thousands of casualties for little territorial gain. And standing in their way was the legendary Finnish sniper Simo Häyhä, who alone clocked in well over 200 kills with his rifle alone and 500 kills altogether with little more than a rifle, iron sights, and a fondness for chomping down on a bit of sn...

Have you ever sat back and thought to yourself "I wonder what some of the worst ways to die in history were"? Well Hayley does... Hayley thinks about it... a lot. She's okay (we think) but some of the methods of torture and execution that she stumbled upon were so varied in their style and method that it made for a fascinating episode! And it's worth sticking around until the end...

James Bond, Ethan Hunt, Austin Powers. These are just some of the greatest spies to grace our lives, but all pale in comparison to the spymaster himself - GARBO! This Spanish chicken farmer almost singlehandedly secured the defeat of the Germans during the Second World War and his story is absolutely phenomenal. Join Arron this week as he takes the group through the incredible story of this chicke...

When we think about gods and goddesses our minds usually jump to the Roman Pantheon or the Greek Parthenon, but what if I told you the Irish have our own little cluster of gods and goddesses? All with their own wacky adventures, weird origin stories, and hilarious moments, they mark the first histories of Ireland and how the Irish came to be. From the Tuatha Dé Danann and the goddess Ériu who gave...

Irish military history is a topic hundreds of years in the making, ranging from service under the old Gaelic lords to "Wild Geese" regiments raised throughout Europe and, of course, an entwined history with the British Army. Much of this came to an end with the emergence of the Irish Free State, and later Republic of Ireland. Ever eager to prove ourselves on the world stage, it was only...

What do you get when you take the phrase "Keep it in the family" WAY too seriously? A family tree that forms a perfect circle! And there is no better example in history of the dangers of a bit of how's your father with someone a bit too closely related to your father than the Habsburg dynasty. Join Hayley this week as she takes us on a journey to Spain at the end of the 17th century,...

Controversial? Never heard of it! Would have been nice to know before we decided this may be a good episode though... can't wait to see our ratings plummet after this one. In all seriousness, welcome to our first dive into the far more controversial and topical conversations of the day - this time being the Russo-Ukraine and Israel-Hamas War. Being graduates of military history and strategic s...

Sometimes people ask us if there's a bad way of doing history, and usually the answer depends on what they want to research - but if you're looking for a perfect example of doing it completely wrong then look no further than the abysmal and stressful Leaving Cert Higher Level History exam! The Leaving Cert is almost over now, and with the release of the exam to the public the gang have dec...

Let's face it guys, we've all imagined ourselves as brave soldiers charging against enemy forces in defiance of them at some point in our lives, but unfortunately for us it's always just a dream. For Jack Churchill however, he lived it - and he excelled at being an absolute madman at every opportunity. Join Arron this week as he takes the gang through the exciting and unbelievable life...

If some of these discussion topics don't come across as controversial to some of you then we missed the ball with this one, but nevertheless as historians we must be willing to confront difficult topics and see where the facts point us. This episode is most certainly best enjoyed with your finest whiskey to hand, and it's a long one this time folks. Join Arron, Hayley, and Conor as they ge...

What do you get when you cross one of the best marksmen in the world with a Vietnamese jungle? A fascinating tale about a guy who converted a M2 Browning into his own personal sniper rifle, that's what! Introducing Carlos Hathcock II, better known to the world, and to the Vietnamese in particular, as the "White Feather". Join Conor this week as he takes Arron and Hayley on the wild and almost unbe...

Scotland! The land of manly skirts, rampant hatred of the English, and... grave robbing? Not the stereotype I was expecting to see but apparently the art of cadaver caving produced some interesting results, as well as two of history's greatest resurrection men. Join Hayley this week as as she recounts the tale of Burke and Hare - two graveyard enthusiasts who got fed up waiting for people to p...

Sun Tzu once said "All warfare is based on deception", but let's be real - Vladimir Makarov from Modern Warfare III delivered the line better. And he's right! A lot of warfare is reliant on subterfuge, espionage, and outright trickery to make your enemy think you were sneaking out of the house at night only to take a detour through the biscuit cupboard. Join Arron this week as he...

Who doesn't like a fun quiz with friends! Me. I don't. Unless I win, then they're great. But who from That's Old News knows the most about obscure parts of history? Well find out in this week's episode, and play along at home! Join the gang this week as we face off in what will go down in history as one of the quizzes of all time, and see who will crown themselves as Historian...

Inventions are great! They make our everyday lives much easier and give us access to things previously thought impossible, like transatlantic communication, faster ways of travelling across continents, and the ability to scream at Fortnite players for being... well, Fortnite players. But when it comes to giving credit to the inventors of these brilliant inventions, sometimes history gives credit t...

History is awash with conspiracy theories that get our little heads working overtime trying to smash brain cells together to come up with such wonders as; Aliens built the Pyramids, the earth is flat, and the Moon landing was a hoax! NASA seem to be very naughty indeed. Join Conor as he takes the gang through the beginnings of the crazy theories about how we actually never went to the moon, and ho...

Carl Douglas was really on to something when he postulated the notion that, throughout the history of our world, it would seem as if "Everybody was Kung Fu Fighting". A true scholar of his time, but there's truth to it! Enter stage left: Yasuke, the African Samurai. Yasuke's story is a brilliant and albeit short tale of an African slave acquired in Mozambique who came to prominen...

The last in our series on Masters of the Air! All 9 episodes are out and we've had a chance to look back on the show and see what we thought of it! How accurate is it? How well does it portray war? Does it hold up to Band of Brothers or The Pacific? Join the gang this week as we answer all of these questions and give the final word on Spielberg's latest WWII mini series! This episode was p...

Ah the celebrity - talented individuals who make MASSIVE amounts of money thanks to their expertise in a certain field, whether that be dancing, singing, acting, the list goes on! But with that fame comes a lot of attention, and in a lot of cases it can go quite wrong. Join Hayley as she takes Arron through the world of horrible celebrity history comments and opinions, from the less harmful antics...

And with that the last episode of Masters of the Air is out, and what a ride it has been! In this penultimate installment of our discussion on the show, join Arron and Hayley as they look into the merits of this episode alone before being joined by Conor when he returns and we delve into a full season retrospective! From some brilliant character send offs to confusion still as to the inclusion of...

When it comes to re-enacting the Napoleonic Wars, not many think of Roblox to find a vibrant and lively community of players who get together every week to do battle with each other and yet it exists! From what drew them into the era in the first place to the place for everyone in the regiment, get to know just what these guys get up to! Join Arron as he interviews users Conor, Bez, and battleship...

Well this one was disappointing, and definitely qualifies as the worst episode of the show so far. A lot of new faces, not a lot of time to get to know them, and skipping over some major events in World War II, there is a lot wrong with this episode after the phenomenal past few episodes. Join Arron, Conor, and Hayley, as we tackle the latest episode of Masters of the Air and tell you our thoughts...

In scouring the worst places on the internet, namely Reddit and Quora, we stumbled across some of the strangest and controversial historical hot takes that we just had to talk about! We were originally just going to give our own hot takes, but some of these position we found online were just crazy. From a desire to bring the U.S. into World War I on the side of the Central Powers, to functionalism...

With POW camps, mounting losses, and the introduction of the P51 Mustang, there was certainly a lot to discuss in this week's episode of Masters of the Air! And with only two more episodes to go, how does it hold up to the episodes that came before? Join the gang as we dive into Spielberg's brilliant Masters of the Air, and let us know what you thought of this latest episode! This episode...

Elizabeth I was many things: Queen of England and Ireland, last monarch of the House of Tudor, and enthusiast of lead-based makeup and mercury shots... smart wasn't listed for a reason! This week Hayley takes the lads through the dangers of living during the reign of Elizabeth I, from the aforementioned lead-based makeup morning routines to the weird and wacky executions for being a crazy cat...