Who moulded Winston Churchill?

Thousands of years ago, a woman emerged on to the world stage whose name would echo down through the centuries: Cleopatra. But what we do we know about her youth? How did the geography, politics and society of her early life shape her personality? And why would you not want to ge ...  Show more

What's the role that sacrifice has played in the history of Christianity? It's a history that might be more complex, and more surprising, than we think. Jonathan Sheehan's latest book is On the Altar: A History of Sacrifice from the Sacred to the Secular, and in this episode he t ...  Show more

Winston Churchill's ascension to Prime Minister in 1940 was a key turning point in world history, ultimately being one of the first steps to help the Allies secure victory in the Second World War. The legacies of Churchill’s decisions still shape our world today, but a lesser kno ...  Show more

Sir Winston Churchill is almost unanimously regarded as a hero in Western society. In this country we voted him the Greatest Ever Briton; ahead of Shakespeare, Charles Darwin and Sir Isaac Newton. Churchill had significant flaws, including some caustic opinions and brutal decisio ...  Show more

Dr Thomas Mills, Senior Lecturer at Lancaster University and Director of the Centre for War and Diplomacy is joined by Patrick Salmon, Chief Historian at the Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development office. In his seventeen years in office, Patrick has published a number of volumes ...  Show more

Best known for his books Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four, George Orwell earned a reputation as chronicler and prophet of modern society. Plagued by illness, he exposed poverty and injustice, satirised the powerful, and took up arms against fascism. Today, his name has become ...  Show more