Murder in the Roman World

This is the wild story of a 12th century French philosopher, Abelard, who fell in love with his student, Heloise.There are a lot of problematic issues going on. Not least their age gap, the resulting power dynamic, and, oh yes—Abelard was castrated.So why does this love story end ...  Show more

You know her from the perfume, the little black dress, the double C bag clasp, but who was the woman, Coco Chanel? What even was her real name?From her origin story, through her inspirations and affairs, to her connections to the Nazi party - today we find out more about Chanel.K ...  Show more

We’ve covered bloody battles, we’ve covered stunning cities, we’ve covered civilisations far away from the ancient Mediterranean. But in some 120 episodes of The Ancients we hadn’t covered one of the most popular topics in the world: sex. That is, until now. In today’s episode, s ...  Show more

This episode contains a reference to animal cruelty

Would you be able to survive in ancient Rome?

Today, Tristan Hughes is joined by Ben Kane to discusses the realities of daily life in the Roman Empire. Together, they discuss everything from stree ...

This episode contains graphic descriptions of violence and cruelty against animals.

The Romans were - and still are - infamous for the brutal gladiatorial contests they held in their ancient amphitheatres. But often what made their games so spectacular were ...

They built roads, aqueducts, and bathhouses but what about toilets?Tristan Hughes is joined by Dr Hannah Platts, to uncover the surprisingly fascinating world of Roman toilets, faeces and sewers. From communal latrines and ancient plumbing to what really happened with the “sponge ...  Show more