Willy Willy Harry Stee...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five...Dick The Bad, Harry's Twain and Ned The Lad, Mary, Bessie, James The Vain, Charlie Charlie, James again. William & Mary, Anna Gloria, Four Georges..... Skip around 50 more eligible heirs and what do you get? You get the House of Hanover and the first...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five...Dick The Bad, Harry's Twain and Ned The Lad, Mary, Bessie, James The Vain, Charlie Charlie, James again. William & Mary, Anna Gloria..... This is the tale of our one and only Queen Anne, who despite giving birth 17 times, was unable to produce an heir...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five...Dick The Bad, Harry's Twain and Ned The Lad, Mary, Bessie, James The Vain, Charlie Charlie, James again. William & Mary....... Having looked at Mary's life in the last episode, it's time to focus on William III , otherwise known as William Of Orange....

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five...Dick The Bad, Harry's Twain and Ned The Lad, Mary, Bessie, James The Vain, Charlie Charlie, James again. William & Mary....... Having booted her Dad out of power, along comes Mary II , complete with husband William Of Orange . In the episode, the firs...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five...Dick The Bad, Harry's Twain and Ned The Lad, Mary, Bessie, James The Vain, Charlie Charlie, James again....... In this episode, Charlie Higson examines a reign that could be filed under 'Not Very Successful', lasting only 3 years and being ended by his da...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five...Dick The Bad, Harry's Twain and Ned The Lad, Mary, Bessie, James The Vain, Charlie Charlie..... And so, after an 11 year gap, Britain goes from puritan republic to the land of randy rakes, headed up by Charles II. Charlie Higson regales us with the story...

Willy Willy, Harry......er.....no. This one doesn't fit into the rhyme, BUT, after lopping Charles I's head off, Oliver Cromwell abolished the Monarchy and led the country himself, so he's a worthy inclusion. In this episode Charlie Higson unpicks Cromwell's life and the reasons why we had 11 years without a King or Queen. His 'proper historian' is Dr Jonathan Healey , author of 'Blazing World - A...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five...Dick The Bad, Harry's Twain and Ned The Lad, Mary, Bessie, James The Vain, Charlie...... Charles The 1st, a king so bad he got himself executed and almost finished the Monarchy off for good. But, of course, the story isn't that simple. Luckily for us, Cha...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five...Dick The Bad, Harry's Twain and Ned The Lad, Mary, Bessie, James The Vain....... As we wave goodbye to the Tudors, we usher in the Stuarts for an episode of plotting, gunpowder or otherwise. In the 'proper historians' chair this week, we welcome Clare Jac...

Once again, the 'Willy Willy' rhyme takes a back seat as Charlie Higson digs into the extraordinary life of Mary, Queen Of Scots. Crowned Queen at 18 months old, made Queen Consort of France before being widowed at 18, her 2nd husband was murdered, her 3rd was one of the murderers! Oh and then she was imprisoned for 20 years before being executed. No wonder so much has been written about her, incl...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five...Dick The Bad, Harry's Twain and Ned The Lad, Mary, Bessie...... It's part 2 of the story of Good Queen Bess, Elizabeth I and there's a lot to fit in. Plots, suitors, even an Armada and she survives them all. Joining Charlie Higson as he navigates her life...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five...Dick The Bad, Harry's Twain and Ned The Lad, Mary, Bessie...... Yes, in this episode, Charlie Higson uncovers the life of one of the best known of all the Monarchs, Queen Elizabeth I . And it's a long life, so long in fact that it requires 2 episodes to f...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five...Dick The Bad, Harry's Twain and Ned The Lad, Mary....... Welcome to our first official Queen as Charlie Higson uncovers the life of Mary I , who, as we saw last episode, quickly saw off Lady Jane Grey before equally quickly seeing off the protestant refor...

Willy Willy Harry Stee..........actually, we'll stop there for this episode. The lady in question was Queen, but only for 9 days and apart from a small apologetic addendum at the end of some versions of the rhyme, Lady Jane Grey doesn't get a mention. They say a week is a long time in politics. Well, it's nothing compared to 9 days in the Monarchy and as Charlie Higson discovers, her tale is a tra...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five...Dick The Bad, Harry's Twain and Ned The Lad Henry VIII's only legitimate son is crowned King at 9 years old and as Charlie Higson discovers, his should have been the perfect reign, but it will come as no surprise to find out that things didn't go accordin...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five...Dick The Bad, Harry's Twain....... Henry VIII gets a second episode in which Charlie Higson tells the story of Katherine, Anne, Jane, Anne, Catherine and Katherine. The Six Wives of Henry VIII. Assisting him on this tumultuous voyage is the husband and wi...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five...Dick The Bad, Harry's Twain....... Yes, we usher in Henry VIII . He ate a lot. He spent a lot. He married a lot. If that's all you know about the most famous of all our Kings, then listen on as Charlie Higson uncovers Henry's life in the first part of a s...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five...Dick The Bad, Harry's Twain....... Yes, Charlie Higson's personal history of the Monarchy lands on Henry VII , the victor at the Battle Of Bosworth and our first Tudor King, and it turns out he was a pretty good one! Joining Charlie is this episodes 'Prop...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five... Dick The Bad! Yes, Charlie Higson lands on Richard III. Was he Dick The Bad or should we celebrate him as one of the good ones? Here to argue his case is the Chairman of the Richard the Third society, Matt Lewis. Also don't forget that Charlie's book of...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? Edward Four Five.... As he wades through the Wars Of The Roses, Charlie Higson reaches a king whose reign can be measured in days, Edward V. As one of the two Princes In The Tower along with his brother Richard Of Shrewsbury , Edward's life was short and tragic. In a depart...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........then who? King Edward IV that's who! The tale of bloody battles continues as Edward returns for a second stab at the crown as Charlie Higson makes sense of civil wars and the struggle for ultimate power. This episode's proper historian is James Hawes, author of The Shortest History O...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six.........   What happens when a King goes wrong? The story of  Henry VI  and his battles with  Edward IV  continues as  Charlie Higson  tells the story of one of history's biggest power struggles. And you thought the Roy family were bad!!   Plus we hear...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five Six......... The story of Henry VI is a tangled one, intertwined with Edward IV and, not something to be rushed. So over the next two episodes, Charlie Higson unpicks the story of a man who became king, then was deposed only to become king again, only to be deposed.....again! It's a fascinating...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three, One Two Three Neds, Richard Two, Henry's Four Five....... In this episode, Charlie Higson looks at the second-most famous Henry..... Henry V. As you'll hear, Henry was one tough bugger! Battle Of Agincourt? Easy! Arrow embedded in your face? 'Tis but a scratch! His reign was short but he got things done as you'll hear along with Charlie's proper...

Willy Willy Harry Stee, Harry Dick John Harry Three. One Two Three Neds, Richard II, Henry's Four........ yes, welcome to the next batch of Henry's, starting with Henry IV. Forget what Shakespeare said. In this episode, you'll hear Charlie Higson continue his voyage through history with a story of a King who lived fast and died young without really achieving much, while this episodes proper histor...