BBC History UK
Rita Levi-Montalcini
When I had to help my daughter find an inspirational woman in history for a school research project.
2 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
Frontier tales
Having long made a big chunk of his living from playing frontiersmen and cowboys, notably Lieutenant John J Dunbar in the Oscar-laden Dances with Wolves, Kevin Costner turns TV presenter to front an eight-part series charting the story of the American frontier.
1 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
Soul cakes
ELEANOR BARNETT bakes a forgotten sweet treat that formerly lay at the heart of our Halloween traditions
2 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
What was the first ever beer recipe, and how did it taste?
When you think of beer, you're probably not envisioning a thick, sour, porridge-like concoction.
1 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
What was the Temple of Artemis?
When ancient travellers of the Mediterranean Rim compiled their lists of must-see architectural marvels, which became the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, one landmark that always made the cut was the Temple of Artemis.
1 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
THE STALINGRAD OF AFRICA
In 1943, Allied and Axis troops contested one of the most decisive campaigns of the Second World War. Saul David tells the story of the battle for Tunis – as hard-fought as the struggle for the Soviet city
10 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
Plumbing ocean depths
This is a history of margins and fringes – not only of the Atlantic Ocean itself, but also of the imaginations of those who worked on its surface and lived at its edges.
1 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
Golden years
PAT THANE commends a richly detailed study of attitudes to older people through history
2 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
Adapting ancient beliefs
EMMA WILBY is fascinated by a look at how long-held religions and traditions of pre-Christian Europe endured right into the modern era
2 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
Raising our voice
As the abolitionist Frederick Douglass argued in 1857, if there is no struggle there is no progress.
1 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
WHO WAS THE RIGHTFUL KING?
Which of four main contenders for the English throne had the strongest claim? Was it the Anglo-Saxon strongman, the Norman duke, the 'Thunderbolt of the North' or a callow teenager? Caitlin Ellis sizes up the rivals
10+ min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
"What it means to be young has shifted over time"
As the government moves forward with plans to lower the voting age to 16, JULIE V GOTTLIEB examines previous changes to the age of suffrage - from Victorian democratic reforms to the dawn of the teenager
6 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
Who was Prester John?
In 1165, the Byzantine emperor received a letter purporting to have been sent by the mysterious ruler of an unknown distant land in the east.
1 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
Continental rift
GILBERT M JOSEPH is enthused by a novel exploration of the intertwined stories of North and Latin America
2 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
Did Victorians really eat ancient Egyptian mummies?
In short, yes: the Victorians did indeed think eating mummified remains pilfered from ancient Egyptian tombs was a good idea, although they did not come up with the idea themselves.
1 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
Nothing beats feeling the earth in your hands and uncovering the past
IT WAS LATE MORNING, BUT ALREADY HOT enough to warrant wearing a sun hat and sticking to the shade.
2 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
What was Chairman Mao's 'mango cult'?
In summer 1968, Beijing factory workers received a strange gift: a box of fragrant mangoes, a fruit virtually unknown in China at that time, sent by Chairman Mao himself.
1 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
Siege warfare
JAMES OSBORNE plays a crusades-themed reboot of an old favourite among real-time strategy fans
1 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
Indira Gandhi is assassinated by her own bodyguards
The Indian prime minister's violent end follows a deadly assault on a Sikh shrine
1 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
The making of Rome's monster
In the second century BC, Roman troops razed the city of Carthage and obliterated its civilisation. So why, asks Eve MacDonald, did the victors remain obsessed by their conquered foes for the next 200 years?
10 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
Reign of terror
In the 12th century, a sect of killers spread fear across the Middle East, executing a series of high-profile political murders. Steve Tibble introduces the original Assassins
9 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
"A tidal wave of digital material will overwhelm recordkeeping institutions"
If you've ever posted a comment on social media, you've created a potential source for future historians. But what problems does this mass of new material pose? Matt Elton asked historians JANE WINTERS and JOHN WILLS about how recent archives differ from those of the past - and how experts might make sense of them
10 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
"Economists studying history tend to focus on men, overlooking the contributions of half the population"
VICTORIA BATEMAN speaks to Danny Bird about the crucial roles women played in historical economies - and how recognising those contributions transforms our understanding of the past
10 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
The lie of succession
Did James I 'steal' Elizabeth I's crown? Tracy Borman considers evidence that the transition from Tudor to Stuart dynasties may not have been quite as seamless as we've been led to believe
10 min |
October 2025
BBC History UK
// We don't talk about the war in Asia which was a messy, complicated conflict//
On the 80th anniversary of VJ Day, broadcaster Kavita Puri – presenter of a new BBC Radio 4 series on the Second World War in Asia – considers why this was the conflict's forgotten theatre
10+ min |
September 2025
BBC History UK
"This is the biggest history news story of my career"
The Bayeux Tapestry is set to go on display in the UK next year, almost a millennium after its creation. Following the announcement of the news, 10 historians reveal their hopes and fears about the loan
6 min |
September 2025
BBC History UK
Ötzi the iceman is discovered in the Alps
The prehistoric mummy offers a remarkable glimpse of life - and death - 5,000 years ago
1 min |
September 2025
BBC History UK
England's colossus
The rise of Athelstan was as important a moment in English history as 1066 and Magna Carta. On the 1,100th anniversary of his coronation, David Woodman salutes a king who forged a nation
9 min |
September 2025
BBC History UK
"Christianity didn't invent itself as an empire from nothing: it adapted existing Roman structures"
ALICE ROBERTS speaks to Danny Bird about the evolution of the new religion that swept across the Roman empire and beyond
10 min |
September 2025
BBC History UK
What have the Romans Etruscans ever done for us?
The wealthy civilisation that dominated the Italian peninsula before the Romans left a legacy that's full of surprises. Lucy Shipley explains why we have the Etruscans to thank for the way we write, the shape of our towns, Renaissance art – and even horror movies
8 min |