Histories of the Unexpected explores the past in ways that you never dreamt possible. Surely there’s nothing unexpected about the past? About History? Aha, well Histories of the Unexpected adopts a new approach to exploring our past. Gone is the traditional linear plotting of battles, monarchs and political movements. Histories of the Unexpected argues that everything has a history, even the most unexpected of subjects. Like SLIME. Or COURAGE. or APPLAUSE.... Presented by Dr Sam Willis and Professor James Daybell. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
https://www.historiesoftheunexpected.com
Gesamtlänge aller Episoden: 8 days 23 hours 54 minutes
VOLCANOES!
In this latest episode, the Unexpected duo, Professor James Daybell and Dr Sam Willis erupt forth with the unexpected history of VOLCANOES! Which is all about world-changing volcanic eruptions that have shaped human history (like.... the eruption of the Okmok volcano in 43 B.C. which possibly led not only to the fall of the Roman Republic but also to the rise of the Roman Empire); Munch's The Scream; literary depictions (via mary Shelley's Frankenstein) and Victorian disaster narratives...
DOGS!
In this latest episode, the Unexpected duo, Professor James Daybell and Dr Sam Willis take you all for a long country walk to exercise the unexpected history of DOGS! Which is all about Tudor gifts and Anne Boleyn, Henry VIII and sporting pastimes, and Mary Queen of Scots' lapdog; it's about the 1796 Dog Tax, and the attempt to contain dogs in 1738 in Edinburgh in the face of a rabies outbreak; and also about the history of guide dogs via Herculaneum and Charles Dickens...
PYJAMAS!
In this latest episode, the Unexpected duo, Professor James Daybell and Dr Sam Willis unpack the unexpected history of PYJAMAS! Which is all about festive Christmas family traditions (yes, you've guessed it - matching family Christmas pyjamas), it's about the pre-history of the pyjamas in the sixteenth and seventeenth century, the diary of Samuel Pepys and the Great Fire on London. It's also all about Robert Louis Stevenson and pilots in pyjamas! Who knew!