The English Heritage Podcast

We’re working behind the scenes to make the podcast better than ever. In the meantime, we’re diving into our archive to bring you some of our favourite episodes.  This week, we join properties historians’ team leader Dr Andrew Hann, and director of the Dickens Museum in London Dr Cindy Sughrue, to take a very festive look back at the Christmas traditions that started in the Victorian period. We also examine the role that Charles Dickens played in shaping Christmas as we know it – and how the man himself celebrated the festive season with his family.  To learn more about the Victorian origins of some of today’s Christmas traditions, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/christmas/victorian-christmas-traditions  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Join us for a bonus episode created in partnership with The Gilded Gentleman podcast. English Heritage senior properties historian Dr Michael Carter and host Carl discuss Christmases past at Wrest Park in Bedfordshire. Starting with some special stories from the First World War, they then delve back into history to discover the origins of some of our most celebrated traditions, from plum pudding to Twelfth Night.  Wrest Park boasts some of the finest gardens in England, with dazzling parterres, fragrant borders, idyllic woodland walks, and hidden gems to discover. Book your visit here: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/wrest For more information on the American Friends of English Heritage, visit https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/american-friends/  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re working behind the scenes to make the podcast better than ever. In the meantime, we’re bringing you some of our favourite episodes from the archive.  This week, as Christmas festivities get into full swing, we’re delving into the history of the Roman midwinter festival of Saturnalia. Guiding us through the details of what it was, how it was observed, and its role in influencing today’s traditions is curator for Hadrian’s Wall and the North East, Dr Frances McIntosh.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

We’re working behind the scenes to make the podcast better than ever. In the meantime, we’re diving into our archive to bring you some of our favourite episodes. This week, we unwrap the history of Christmas party season at four of our English Heritage sites, with properties historians team leader, Dr Andrew Hann. Discover how their rich and powerful former residents celebrated, what was on the menu at festive feasts, and how the guests were entertained.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Over the next few weeks, we’re working behind the scenes to make the podcast better than ever. In the meantime, we’re diving into our archive to bring you some of our favourite episodes. This week, revisit the Romans of ‘Britannia’ with English Heritage properties historian, Andrew Roberts and curator, Cameron Moffett. Discover who the Romans living and working in Britain at that time were, where they had come from and how their way of life fitted in with existing British culture. To learn more about life in Roman Britain, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/learn/story-of-england/romans Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In the summer of 2024, eight catapult shot were discovered at Kenilworth Castle during a project to improve paths in and around the castle. Ranging in weight between 1kg and 105kg, the stone balls are believed to have been fired during the momentous 172-day-long siege of the castle in 1266. We’re joined by properties historian Dr William Wyeth to discover the story of the siege, the people who took part and its legacy today.    To discover more about the history of Kenilworth Castle and Elizabethan Garden, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/kenilworth-castle/history-and-stories   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, we’ve got a mouthwatering treat for you as we’re joined by food historian Sam Bilton to dig into the story and evolution of this much-loved winter warmer. Discover what constitutes a pie, the earliest record of one, the ingredients pie makers through the ages experimented with and whether the humble pie still has a place in our 21st century, health-conscious world.  To discover more about the history of the English pie, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/inspire-me/a-history-of-the-english-pie  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

This week, we’re looking back at the history of Hailes Abbey, a ruined monastery in the Cotswold countryside, which was once one of the most significant pilgrimage sites in medieval England. For centuries, visitors flocked here to see the Holy Blood of Hailes – a prized relic said to be a portion of the blood of Jesus Christ. We’re joined by English Heritage senior properties historian Dr Michael Carter and Hailes Abbey’s property manager Jess Eyres to discover how the Holy Blood came here, the miracles attributed to it, what happened to it and everything today’s visitors can expect to find. To discover more about the story of Hailes Abbey and the Holy Blood, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/hailes-abbey/history-and-stories  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, we’re joined by English Heritage’s senior properties historian, Dr Steven Brindle, and head properties curator, Dr Jeremy Ashbee, to answer all your questions about England’s medieval kings and queens. Join us as we reveal which medieval monarch had the greatest impact on English history, the perils of being a member of the Royal Family at the time, what happened to Henry VIII’s tomb and more.   To discover more about England’s kings and queens through history, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/inspire-me/monarchy  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

As we head into the darker part of the year, we’re preparing for a trio of historical events designed to commemorate the dead. Everyone knows Halloween, of course, but what about All Saints' Day and All Souls’ Day, which follow straight after? We’re joined by English Heritage’s senior properties historian, Dr Michael Carter, to find out more.  To discover more, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/halloween-saints-souls/For more spooky stories, gruesome tales and unmissable Halloween events, go to www.english-heritage.org.uk/Halloween   Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices