The English Heritage Podcast

From a military base to a thriving port town and back again, Richborough Roman Fort in Kent is a hugely significant Roman site in Britain, often referred to as the ‘gateway to Britannia’.As work concludes on a major project to share its stories with visitors in new and innovative ways, we’re joined by senior properties historian Paul Pattison and curator of collections and interiors Kathryn Bedford to discuss the fort’s history, and the exciting new additions that today’s visitors can expect to find.To find out more or plan a visit, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/richborough. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week we’re taking a look at how people literally left their mark on history through graffiti. Although we tend to think of graffiti as relatively modern phenomenon, the impulse to scratch, scrawl and draw on walls and buildings is nothing new — and there are plenty of examples at English Heritage sites.Joining us to reveal more are English Heritage’s senior curator Kevin Booth and Emma Bryning, who is studying our historic graffiti as part of her PHD at the University of York.To discover the story of the remarkable graffiti left by conscientious objectors at Richmond Castle, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/richmond-castle/richmond-graffiti. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As the nation celebrates King Charles III’s coronation, we’re joined by English Heritage’s head historic properties curator Jeremy Ashbee and senior properties historian Steven Brindle to look back at the long and colourful history of royal coronations.Discover who was the first English monarch to be formally crowned, how the ceremony, regalia and anthems have changed over time, and the previous coronations where things didn’t quite go according to plan.To learn more about our kings and queens through history, please go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/inspire-me/monarchy. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week we're focusing our attention on Warkworth Castle — once the favoured residence of the powerful Earls of Northumberland — to discover the fascinating history of this ruined medieval fortress and a project to share its stories in new and exciting ways with today's visitors.Joining us in the studio to explain more are English Heritage properties historian Dr Will Wyeth and senior interpretation manager Joe Savage.To discover more or plan a visit, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/warkworth. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re joined in the studio by Senior Properties Historian Dr Amy Boyington to answer your questions about the Georgians. Famed for its fashions, grand houses and Industrial Revolution, this is a chapter of English history that many of us will be familiar with through Jane Austen novels, their TV and film adaptations, and, more recently, the Netflix series Bridgerton.Join us to discover the difference between the Georgian and Regency period, what was on the menu, where the era-defining fashion for powdered wigs came from and much more.To learn more about life in Georgian England, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/story-of-england/georgians Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, we’re at a temporal and cultural crossroads in the early story of the British Isles. It’s the Iron Age – a time when the political landscape of the British Isles was complex and fragmented, with competing and collaborating groups ruling different regions. But their way of life was under threat from a powerful empire from the south: The Romans. We’re joined by English Heritage Properties Historian Dr Andrew Roberts and the Curator of the European Iron Age collections at the British Museum Dr Julia Farley to discuss how two native queens responded in very different ways to full-scale Roman invasion, their fates, and, of course, their historic legacies. To learn more about Cartimandua, Queen of the Brigantes, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/histories/women-in-history/cartimandua Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week we’re joined by Collections Curator Susan Harrison, Senior Properties Historian Dr Steven Brindle and Interpretation Manager Ruth Haycock to discuss a new project to bring the story of Lindisfarne Priory on Holy Island in Northumberland to life.Learn about the monks who lived here, the cult of St Cuthbert, the famous Lindisfarne Gospels, the vicious Viking raid of AD 793 and the new displays, artefacts and experiences that you can discover during a visit.To discover more or plan a visit, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/lindisfarne Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, we’re shining a light on the clandestine machinations of high-ranking spy Jane Whorwood, who worked for King Charles I during the English Civil War. Her story is one of mystery, intrigue, coded letters, codenames, ambiguous and strained relations, high stakes, high drama and personal disappointment.Joining us to steer us through her life and legacy is our special guest contributor Nadine Akkerman, who is Professor of Early Modern Literature and Culture at Leiden University in the Netherlands.To read more about Jane Whorwood’s life, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/carisbrooke-castle/history/jane-whorwood Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, we reveal the colourful history of Launceston Castle. This site has served as the administrative headquarters for the Duchy of Cornwall, a courthouse, a prison, a pleasure garden and a Second World War hospital. The castle is also home to an intriguing collection of artefacts discovered during site excavations, including a near-complete whale vertebra measuring more than half-a-metre across.Joining us to pick up the story are Curator of Collections Ian Leins and Head of Historic Properties for Cornwall and Devon Georgia Butters.To discover more about Launceston Castle or plan a visit, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/launceston Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Women's history is often lost to the ages, obscured or even unexplored. But there are numerous examples of women from the past who have played a pivotal role in shaping England and who are linked to sites that are now in the care of English Heritage.Joining us to discuss some of these stories, and to explore why it's important to celebrate the achievements of women in the past, are Senior Properties Historian for English Heritage Dr Amy Boyington and British art historian Dr Janina Ramirez.To discover more stories of inspiring women throughout English history, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/histories/women-in-history Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices