The Dead Ladies Show

In this episode, we meet Zenobia, Queen of Palmyra (c. 240–c. 274). She built her own empire, loved the arts, welcomed many faiths, and then went head-to-head with Rome, wreaking havoc on the already havoc-filled Roman Empire. Even in her own time, she became a bit of a symbol and a cipher, and she’s remained … Continue reading "Podcast #93: Zenobia" The Dead Ladies Show is made with Jetpack...

In this episode, DLS co-founder Katy Derbyshire introduces us to a woman from the past who probably would have been overlooked if she hadn’t documented her life in such a painstaking fashion — on request. As a domestic servant in Victorian England, Hannah Cullwick should have led a rather ordinary existence for her time. But her … Continue reading "Podcast #92: Hannah Cullwick" The...

In this episode, DLSP host Susan Stone brings us the story of Austrian architect Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, famous for inventing the Frankfurt Kitchen, which modernized one of the most important rooms in the home. Driven by her aesthetic mission and her politics, Schütte-Lihotzky designed humanitarian housing, kindergartens, schools, and more during her over 100 years of life, which &#8...

In this episode, DLS co-founder Florian Duijsens introduces us to a woman of many lives, many careers, and many misadventures. Victoria Woodhull worked a clairvoyant and faith healer, she opened a financial firm on Wall Street, she started a newspaper, campaigned for women’s and worker’s rights, and ran for President — all in late 1800s … Continue reading "Podcast #90: Victoria Woodhull...

In this episode, we meet Alice Guy, a woman of filmmaking firsts. She was truly inspired by the moving image in its earliest form, and her innovations changed film and entertainment forever.  She became the first filmmaker to incorporate narrative, certainly the first woman director, and probably the only one until 1906. After moving to … Continue reading "Podcast #89: Alice Guy"

In this episode, we meet Una Marson, a Jamaican writer, journalist, and radio producer, who shared her talents and voice in poetry, plays, and on the BBC, after her ambition took her to London in the 1930s. She described as the first Black feminist to speak out against racism and sexism in Britain.  We know … Continue reading "Podcast #88: Una Marson"

We kick off Season Nine of the podcast by meeting a woman who could be called the godmother of true crime. Producer/host Susan Stone tells the story of F. Tennyson Jesse, an English journalist, criminologist, and writer. The daughter of a vicar who dragged the family around the British empire, she trained as a painter … Continue reading "Podcast #87: F. Tennyson Jesse"

It’s our last episode of 2025, and the final episode of Season 8! Susan, Katy and Florian meet up to toast the end of another season, and of course to clink glasses in honor of our featured Dead Lady, Eileen Agar.  Eileen Agar was the sort of artist who looked at a hat and thought, … Continue reading "Podcast #86: Eileen Agar"

This time around we head back to New York to hear about Italian antifascist Carla Capponi. Professor Suzanne Cope, author of WOMEN OF WAR: The Italian Assassins, Spies and Couriers Who Fought the Nazis brings us Carla’s lively tale, which is full of bombs, intrigue, and bravery. DLS co-founder Florian Duijsens joins host/producer Susan Stone to introduce the … Continue reading...

We’re back with a delightful episode about Betty Mae Tiger Jumper, the first female chief of the Seminole Tribe of Florida. Host Susan Stone dives deep into the history of the Seminole Indians and Betty Mae’s unusual life and times, via a talk recorded in front of a live audience in Berlin. As a mixed-race … Continue reading "Podcast #84: Betty Mae Tiger Jumper"

In this episode, we hear a bit of our lovely 10th anniversary show in Berlin, and DLS co-founder Katy Derbyshire gives us the rundown on  Caroline of Brunswick, who was officially queen of the United Kingdom and Hanover for three whole weeks before she died in 1821, long-estranged from her horrible husband, her cousin King … Continue reading "Podcast #82: Caroline of Brunswick"

In this episode, we hop over to New York to encounter our Dead Lady of the hour, May Ziadeh, a Lebanese-Palestinian poet, writer, translator, and feminist, whose work explored themes of love, identity, and the liberation of women. Books were her beloved companions throughout her life, and proved more steadfast than people. May began writing at … Continue reading "Podcast #81: May Z...

In this episode of our podcast, DLS co-host Florian Duijsens tells us about journalist, writer, and witness to history Dorothy Thompson.  As a foreign correspondent in Germany, she was among the first to caution against the growing tides of fascism, warning urgently against the Nazis and Hitler. Unfortunately, the world didn’t listen. Dorothy continued to speak … Continue reading "...