The Tudor Chest Podcast

Hello and welcome back to the first episode of the tudor chest podcast for 2025! This week I am thrilled to welcome tudor food historian Brigitte Webster onto the show for a discussion all about how the tudors ate and drank. We look at table manners, Henry VIII’s favourite foods, what influence foreign cuisine had and even discuss the fact that the tudors had takeaways, yes, you heard that right!...

Jackson van Uden is a historian and one of the key personnel involved in the Katherine of Aragon festival which takes place each year at Peterborough Cathedral, the location of Katherine’s grave, and Peterborough Museum. From talks to tours, light displays and even a commemoration to Katherine with representatives from Rome involved, its a spectacular event and one that has been going on, surprisi...

Dr Estelle Paranque is an associate professor in history at Northeastern University London and is also a historian, broadcaster and author, who joins me today for a discussion about Catherine de Medici and Queen Elizabeth I. Estelle’s book, Blood, Fire and Gold is the basis for todays conversation, so sit back and enjoy as we discuss how these two formidable women, one a queen regnant and the othe...

Today I am talking to historian and author Emily Murdoch Perkins about her latest book, Regina - the queens who could have been. In this book, Emily charts the lives of royal women from over 1,200 years of English history and asks the question, would any of them made good queens regnant? From very well known figures such as Empress Matilda and Elizabeth of York, to characters seldom explored or di...

This week I am talking to historian and author Wendy Dunn all about Catherine Carey, the daughter of Mary Boleyn. Wendy has written a full length biography of Catherine Carey, and believes firmly that she was not the daughter of Mary Boleyn’s first husband William Stafford, but was, in fact, an illegitimate child of King Henry VIII’s. Wendy and I discuss Catherine’s upbringing, her role at the roy...

Dr Eleanor Jackson is a curator at the British Library, responsible for creating the incredible new exhibition they have on display, Medieval Women, Voices and Visions. This remarkable exhibition brings together artefacts including letters, statues, trial records, table wear and so much more, beautifully telling the stories of medieval women. Many of the items have ties to some of the most iconic...

Natalie Grueninger is a historian and author, known for her incredible podcast series, talking tudors. A couple of years ago Natalie released her book, the final year of Anne Boleyn, which as the title suggests, charts the final year of Anne Boleyn’s life and how many of the seeds that eventually brought her down were sown long before May 1536. In writing this book, Natalie uncovered aspects of An...

Dr Helen Castor is a historian, author and broadcaster who is best known for her work on some of histories most fascinating women, from Eleanor of Aquitaine to Joan of Arc, Isabella of France to Lady Jane Grey, however, her most recent book, published only a few weeks ago breaks the mould, for in it she explores the life of two of medieval England’s kings. The eagle and the hart, the tragedy of Ri...

It's Halloween, and so it's only right that this week I explore the stories of Tudor ghosts! From Anne Boleyn to the Princes in the Tower, Margaret Pole to Walter Raleigh, I'm thrilled to welcome this weeks guest, Lizzie Goff onto the podcast to walk me through some of the most famous Tudor spooks said to be out there. Lizzie runs the popular Historical Gal Instagram and TikTok, and has spent a lo...

A letter, said to have been written or dictated by Anne Boleyn, as she languished in the tower of London, awaiting execution, is one of the most famous artifacts associated with Henry VIII’s doomed second wife. My guest today, author, historian and researcher, Sandra Vasoli, has been working on and researching this letter for the past 12 years, discovering remarkable clues to assert its authentici...

Jane, Katherine and Mary Grey were the three sisters who, via their mother, were royal princesses of the house of Tudor. Jane, the eldest, is of course famous as the nine days queen, with her life ending on the executioners scaffold, the stories of her younger sisters are far less well known, despite their prominence at the royal court and the dramas that both women would go through. Today, I am p...

She goes by many names, Elizabeth Cavendish, Elizabeth Talbot, the Countess of Shrewsbury, but is perhaps best known as Bess of Hardwick. Although not born to great wealth or even a great name, she would become one of the most significant women of Elizabeth I’s reign, and would also count two prominent claimants to the throne as members of her family, but who actually was Bess of Hardwick? How did...

In 1502 the Tudor throne was rocked by a series of catastrophes which greatly troubled the security of King Henry VII’s grip on power. To help quash further unrest, he and his queen, Elizabeth of York embarked on a long progress through the south west of England and the south east of Wales. Today I am pleased to welcome my friend and business partner, Dr Sarah Morris onto the show for a discussion...

Tudor portrait discoveries are always exciting, and even more exciting when it’s a tudor we don’t have many portraits of to start with! I was therefore thrilled when earlier this year a portrait by Nicholas Hilliard of Lady Arbella Stuart, a one time major contender to the English throne was unearthed and identified by historians Elizabeth Goldring and Emma Rutherford. Today, I have the pleasure o...

Elizabeth Fremantle is an author whose hugely popular book, Queens Gambit about Katherine Parr has now been adapted into a major film starring Alicia Vikander and Jude Law as Katherine and King Henry VIII respectively. In todays episode I chat to Elizabeth all about the book, how she came up with the idea, why she took certain character decisions and we dive into the film itself, from casting, cos...

Inside the tower of London two young boys, initially held in great splendour, are being seen less and less. History knows them as the princes in the tower, and their disappearance is one of, if not the greatest royal mystery in Great Britain's long and dramatic history. Although few doubt that they met their end in the Tower of London, more recently there has been a re-examination, with some belie...

Henry VIII had three royal nieces, and yet where Margaret Douglas and Frances Brandon are well known figures of the time, his third niece, Eleanor Clifford, Countess of Cumberland is all but unknown, despite her royal blood and the importance of her place in the line of succession. Despite her proximity to the crown, and the difficulty this often placed on people, Eleanor led a mostly happy and su...

People having their heads cut off is totally and utterly intrinsically tied to Tudor history, this was, after all, the period of history which gave us a king who beheaded two of his wives! Helene Harrison, a historian and researcher has released a fascinating new book, Tudor Executions, from the Nobility to the Block, in which she explores fourteen of the most significant executions from across th...

Cynthia Hand is the co-author behind the fabulous My Lady Jane book series which has now been adapted into a major television series by Prime Studios. I welcome Cynthia onto the podcast today for a discussion all about the story of My Lady Jane, from how she came up with the idea, character choices, how and what the ethian storyline came to be, so buckle in for a fun and fascinating chat, all abou...

Dr Adam Busiakiewicz is an art historian who has taken the Tudor world by storm in the past few weeks, thanks to his discovery of a portrait of King Henry VIII that was thought to be long lost! Like most big discoveries, it was hiding in plain sight all along! The piece was part of a 22 portrait set by Ralph Sheldon, and painted during the reign of Henry VIII’s daughter, Queen Elizabeth I. Adam jo...

Dr Linda Porter is a historian and author who has just released her sixth book, the thistle and the rose - the extraordinary life of Margaret Tudor. She joins me today for a discussion all about King Henry VIII’s older sister, who reigned as Queen of Scotland beside her husband King James IV. Margaret weathered many storms, including the difficulty of her first husband going to war against her nat...

Dr. Charlotte Bolland is Senior Curator of Research and 16th Century Collections at the National Portrait Gallery. Today, she joins me for a discussion all about the remarkable new exhibition at the national portrait gallery which Charlotte organised and curated. Featuring an incredible array of portraits and artefacts, Charlotte has brought together a cohesive and fascinating tale which tells the...

Dr James Taffe is a Tudor historian, who specialises in exploring the activities of those above and below stairs at this time in history, and so in this episode I chat to James all about the different aspects of service in the 16th century, from helping the monarch dress, to gatekeeping unwanted guests, and of course, exploring what was actually involved in that oh so glamorous sounding job of gro...

Anne Boleyn and Elizabeth I, mother and daughter, both viewed as traitors for a time, Anne Boleyn lost her life, but Elizabeth got her liberty and went on to become perhaps England’s most iconic queen. Their relationship is one seldom explored, and yet both Anne and Elizabeth showed quiet signs of support for each other, even though mother and daughter were ripped apart following Anne’s execution....

For many the greatest depiction of Anne Boleyn on screen came at the end of 1969, when Anne of the Thousand Days was released in cinemas across the world. An epic historical drama based on the life of Queen Anne Boleyn starring Genevieve Bujold in the titular role alongside Richard Burton, as King Henry VIII. In this weeks bonus episode I will be taking a look back on Anne of the Thousand Days, lo...