The English Heritage Podcast

King John, who reigned from 1199 to 1216, has gone down in history as one of England's worst monarchs, thanks to his military failures and excommunication by the pope. Yet he is associated with significant historical events, including the signing of the Magna Carta. Senior properties historian Dr Steven Brindle and senior properties curator Roy Porter join us to determine why this medieval ruler's...

This week, we're in Oxfordshire to unravel the story of a landmark that has been here for around 3,000 years: the Uffington White Horse. As excavations of the site take place, we join senior properties curator Win Scutt and archaeologist David Miles to discover more about their research, and to find out about the work taking place to restore the oldest chalk-cut hill figure in Britain. For more in...

Today, we’re looking at the history of one of the last complete surviving Georgian villas along the River Thames in south-east London. Marble Hill belonged to Henrietta Howard and was created to provide an escape away from her life in Georgian court society. But how was it designed? And how did Henrietta start building this remarkable property? We’re joined by senior properties historian Dr Megan...

Today we're marking South Asian Heritage Month with a look at the Ayahs' Home – the Hackney property for nannies and nursemaids from Asia that is now honoured by a blue plaque. Joining us to reveal the stories of the pioneering Indian and Chinese women who lived here in the early 1900s are blue plaques historian Dr Rebecca Preston and the manager of Hackney Museum, Niti Acharya.   To learn more ab...

Today, we meet English Heritage landscape advisor Emily Parker and head gardener Andrew Luke to explore the eye-catching parterre gardens at Wrest Park in Bedfordshire. Discover the history of these ornamental flower beds, what goes into planting and maintaining them today and where else you can admire similar schemes. To learn more about our perfect parterres, go to: www.english-heritage.org.uk/l...

On the 60th anniversary of the discovery of the Corbridge Hoard, we’re joined by English Heritage collections curator Dr Frances McIntosh and archaeologist and writer Mike Bishop to reveal the story of one of the most significant finds from Roman Britain. To learn more about the Corbridge Hoard, go to: www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/corbridge-roman-town-hadrians-wall/things-to-do/the-cor...

As Team GB athletes prepare to compete at the Paris Olympics, we’re going back a hundred years to discover the stories of the Olympic heroes of Paris in 1924 who are commemorated with blue plaques in London today. Joining us to discuss their lives and achievements are blue plaques senior historian Howard Spencer and director of the International Centre for Sports History and Culture at De Montfort...

This week, we’re looking back at the origins and effects of a global pandemic that shook the medieval world. Joining us on our journey back to the 1340s, when the Black Death started to claim its first victims in England, is Professor of Later Medieval History at the University of East Anglia, Mark Bailey. We discover its causes, how it swept across Europe and its legacy in England today. To learn...

This week we’re joined by English Heritage historians’ team leader Dr Andrew Hann and senior properties historian Dr Steven Brindle to discuss the story of Sutton Scarsdale Hall in Derbyshire. We'll cover the decline of this Georgian mansion, the issues that affected many of England’s grand country houses and the work of charities such as English Heritage to save them for the nation. To learn more...

As we approach midsummer, we’re joined by English Heritage senior properties historian Jennifer Wexler to answer your questions about the summer solstice at Stonehenge. Discover why the solstice is important, how Neolithic people understood and celebrated it and how living traditions can help us to understand the function of the site. We’ll also reveal where the idea of creating stone circles came...

To mark Pride month this June, we’re taking a look at LGBTQ+ history and the private lives of four rulers who had same-sex relationships with their ‘favourites’. Joining us to discuss Roman Emperor Hadrian, Edward II, James I and Queen Anne are interpretation manager Nick Collison, head properties curator Dr Jeremy Ashbee, queer historian Kris Reid and curator of collections & interiors (Osborne H...

Today, we’re discovering just how far Roman influence spread through Britain, as we explore the stories of three fascinating forts in spectacular locations in northwest England’s Lake District. Joining us to discuss the stories and functions of Ravenglass Roman Bath House, Hardknott Roman Fort and Ambleside Roman Fort in Cumbria are English Heritage properties historian Dr Andrew Roberts and free...

Today, we’re joined by English Heritage historian Dr Rebecca Preston and Professor of real estate practice law, Carrie de Silva to reveal the stories of two 20th-century women who have recently been honoured with London blue plaques. During their lifetimes, both Irene Barclay and Lady Marjory Allen contributed to improving people’s lives through their surroundings – Barclay as a convention-breakin...

We’re joined by senior properties historian Paul Pattison and independent historian and author of Mission France, Dr Kate Vigurs, ahead of the 80th anniversary of D-Day. We’ll reveal the story of the biggest landing by land, sea and air the world has ever seen, including how long it took to plan, the roles of Operation Neptune and Overlord and how the initial assault on northern France on 6 June 1...

This week, we’re discussing the lives, loves, work and legacies of two unconventional artists from the early 20th century. Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant were part of the Bloomsbury group of writers, intellectuals, philosophers and artists in London – a group it was once said ‘lived in squares, painted in circles and loved in triangles’. They rejected the past, embraced their present and expressed...

A Major Lunar Standstill (MLS) – an astrological phenomenon which takes place once every 18.6 years, when moonrise and moonset are furthest apart along the horizon – is due to occur in 2024 and 25. It is believed that at least one MLS was marked during the early phase of Stonehenge and some academics believe there may be a connection between this and the placement of the Station Stones at Stonehen...

We’re joined by English Heritage curator of collections and interiors Dickon Whitewood and jouster, author and scholar of arms and armour Tobias Capwell to answer all the questions we received about medieval knights and jousts from English Heritage members and followers on our social media accounts.  Join us to discover the rules of a joust, what a frog-mouth helmet is, the weight of a suit of arm...

This week, we’re joined by two English Heritage curators of collections, Eleanor Matthews and Louise Cooling, to mark the acquisition of a painting by Dutch artist Jan Wijnants, which has a close link with Brodsworth Hall in South Yorkshire. Join us to discover the story of this and some of the other Dutch masterpieces that can be seen at both Brodsworth Hall and Kenwood in London. To learn more a...

This week we’re in Kent to take a peek into the hidden history of Walmer Castle, one of Henry VIII’s Device Forts on England’s southeast coast, where visitors are being invited to explore the private apartments of the Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports for the first time. We’re joined by curator of collections and interiors Kathryn Bedford to discover the history of the castle, why the Lord Warden wa...

Nine hundred years after a community of monks settled in the ‘vale of nightshade’ on the Furness peninsular, we’re joined by Senior Properties Historian Dr Michael Carter and site manager Juliet Fellows to look back at the history of Furness Abbey – once the largest and wealthiest monastery in north-west England. Discover how the abbey became so successful, why it was a prime target during Henry V...

We’re heading to the Isles of Scilly – a small cluster of islands off the tip of Cornwall in the south-west of England. Today, this peaceful archipelago is treasured for its natural beauty and holiday charm, but, in centuries past, the islands were on the frontline of Britain’s military defence. We’re joined by senior properties curator Win Scutt and author of Defending Scilly Dr Allan Brodie to e...

This week we’re discussing the story of Bridget Atkinson, a Cumbrian woman who amassed a huge collection of shells from across the globe during the 18th century. We’re joined by English Heritage Collections Curator Dr Frances McIntosh, Principal Curator at the Natural History Museum Dr Tom White, Bath Spa University lecturer Matthew Law and family researcher Richard Atkinson. They reveal who she w...

We're joined by Turner Prize-nominated artist and photographer, Ingrid Pollard, to discuss her new art installation, titled 'There is Light in the Fissures', at Belsay Hall, Castle and Gardens in Northumberland. Discover what inspired her artwork and what you can expect to find during a visit as a result. Plus, we chat to English Heritage's Chris Osborne who reveals the plans for other thought-pro...

This week, as we approach Mother's Day here in the UK, we're joined by senior properties historian Dr Megan Leyland and senior lecturer in history at the University of Derby Dr Ruth Larsen to examine how mothers raised their children in the past. Join us as we look back at life for mothers and those who helped them between the 16th and 19th centuries, drawing on the stories of people who lived and...

Britain was part of the Roman Empire for over three-and-a-half centuries. Following the invasion under the emperor Claudius in AD 43, the province was part of a political union that covered most of Europe. But what happened in Britannia when rule from Rome ended in the early 5th century? Cameron Moffett, English Heritage's curator of collections for the West Midlands, and Dr Roger White, honorary...