Primary Sources: Conversations with History Makers

This week, Dr Joanne Paul chats with historian and author, Dr Fern Riddell.Fern Riddell is a cultural historian, and an expert in sex, suffrage and entertainment in the Victorian and Edwardian eras. Host of The History Channel's Podcast series #NotWhatYouThought and Presenter of BBC 4's 'A Victorian Scandal: The Rudest Book in Britain', her first book, The Victorian Guide To Sex, tackled the myths of Victorian prudishness. Joanne asks Fern how she came to be fascinated with the lives of women in the Victorian and Edwardian periods,  and in particular with the suffragette and activist Kitty Marion. Fern also talks about how her work in TV drama and documentaries has been such a source of satisfaction.A Viral History Podcast. Hosted by Dr Joanne Paul, Produced and edited by Paul Bradshaw, and Researched by Isabel Wilson.

This week, Dr Joanne Paul chats with historian and author, Dr Hannah Dawson.Hannah is Senior Lecturer in the History of Political at King's College, London, having Hannah took a double first in History from the University of Cambridge. She went on to do her MPhil and PhD there, working on early-modern theories of language, and their relationship to natural, moral and political philosophy, especially in the work of John Locke. Her work explores history of political thought and intellectual history and also history of gender and feminism.Joanne asks Hannah how she approached her recent edited volume  'The Penguin Book of Feminist Writing',  Hannah also talks about how her attitudes to primary sources have changed over time, particularly her thoughts on Hobbes.A Viral History Podcast. Hosted by Dr Joanne Paul, Produced by Paul Bradshaw, and Researched by Isabel Wilson.

This week, Dr Joanne Paul chats with literary historian and activist, Dr Mary Rambaran-Olm.Mary is the Provost's Post-doctoral Fellow at the University of Toronto, in the Faculty of English and Drama, having completed a Phd in English at the University of Glasgow.Her work explores race in early medieval England, drawing on the theoretical theories of Stuart Hall. Her translation of the old english poem The Descent Into Hell  was praised as "accurate and readable", as well as bringing new insight into the idea of time in the poem.Joanne asks Mary how she approaches the past through the lens of a literary historian and what in particular she feels the examination of literary sources helps her in the understanding of the old english period. Mary also talks about how her parents helped fire her love for history  about the importance of activism within her work.A Viral History Podcast. Hosted by Dr Joanne Paul, Produced by Paul Bradshaw, and Researched by Isabel Wilson.

This week, Dr Joanne Paul chats with academic, author and broadcaster Dr Emma Wells.Emma is an ecclesiastical and architectural historian/buildings archaeologist, as well as public historian, specialising in the late medieval/early modern English parish church/cathedral, pilgrimage, the cult of saints, and the ‘senses', as well as built heritage more generally. Joanne asks Emma what first got her excited about the world of public and academic history, and shares the impact her Grandmother had on her appreciation of the built environment, english parish churches in particular. Emma also talks about how she regards building as primary sources themselves, and speaks in detail about her upcoming book 'Heaven on Earth: the lives & legacies of the world's greatest cathedrals'.A Viral History Podcast. Hosted by Dr Joanne Paul, Produced by Paul Bradshaw, and Researched by Isabel Wilson.

This week, Dr Joanne Paul chats with historian, film-maker and author Professor Michael Wood. Michael is one of the bulwarks of Public History, a fixture on our screens for decades, with a truly global curiosity and reach. In this episode, Joanne asks Michael what first got him excited about the world of public and academic history. Michael also talks about how sources are not only at the heart of his research but also his story-telling, and how landscape and cultural elements like song and performance can tell so much about the past.A Viral History Podcast. Hosted by Dr Joanne Paul, Produced by Paul Bradshaw, and Researched by Isabel Wilson.

This week, Dr Joanne Paul chats with historian, broadcaster, and author Professor Suzannah Lipscomb. Not only is Suzannah the author of numerous books on the Early Modern period, she is also one of the most recognisable names and faces in the world of history television. In this episode, Joanne asks Suzannah what drives her historical research and they discuss the divide between public and academic history. Suzannah also talks about  the overlooked French primary source that allows us to delve into the lives of Reformation women in her 2018 book, The Voices of Nîmes: Women, Sex, and Marriage in Reformation Languedoc.A Viral History Podcast. Hosted by Dr Joanne Paul, Produced by Paul Bradshaw, and Researched by Isabel Wilson.

This week, Dr Joanne Paul sits down with archaeologist, presenter and podcaster, Natasha Billson. Natasha might be better known to listeners as “Behind the Trowel”, her social media presence, from which she hosts regular live shows, videos, and interviews. You might also recognise her from More 4's archeology programme, The Great British Dig. Natasha talks about how she uses her platform to connect with colleagues and to engage with the public, particularly in the time of Covid, and the relationship between history and archaeology. She explores her outreach work and her desire to make her work more accessible and the study of the past more inspiring to people.     A Viral History Podcast. Hosted by Dr Joanne Paul, Produced by Paul Bradshaw, and Researched by Isabel Wilson.

This week, Dr Joanne Paul sits down with scientist, writer and broadcaster, Dr Adam Rutherford.Adam has written several books on the history of science including How To Argue with a Racist and A Brief History of Everyone Who Ever Lived as well as presenting several science documentaries for BBC and contributing regularly to the Guardian newspaper.Joanne asks what science can bring to history and how genetics can be used as a primary source? Adam talks through why science needs the study of the past and what he would love to talk with Charle Darwin about. He also discusses how scientific pioneers often held the most repugnant views.A Viral History Podcast. Hosted by Dr Joanne Paul, Produced by Paul Bradshaw, and Researched by Isabel Wilson.

Introducing Primary Sources: Conversations with History MakersConversations with the world's leading historians, is a different history podcast from Viral History, exploring not just about what they do but how and (for goodness sake) why they do it. What drives them into dusty archives, motivates them through endless edits of books and keeps them always searching for history's secrets? How did they come to find themselves neck-deep in the past in the first place?  Led by historian Dr Joanne Paul (who isn't exactly sure how she got there either), these are personal conversations with the real makers of history. Uploading weekly from May 14th 2021. 

Dr Joanne Paul sits down to talk with historian and author Nathen Amin. Nathen wrote ‘Tudor Wales,' ‘York Pubs,' and a biography of the Beaufort family, ‘The House of Beaufort.'  In this episode, Nathen tells Joanne how he approached researching his most recent book, ‘Henry VII and the Tudor Pretenders,'  including what sources were most valuable when writing about a family and how to decipher Tudor myths. Other conversations include the importance of the landscape when studying the past, Welsh history's place British history, and why Pembrokeshire is Britain's biggest historical hidden gem.A Viral History Podcast. Hosted by Dr Joanne Paul, Produced by Paul Bradshaw, and Researched by Isabel Wilson.

Dr Joanne Paul talks with Helen Carr, who is a historian, author, and TV documentary producer. They talk about what Helen has recently been writing, the biography of John of Gaunt in ‘The Red Prince,' and  ‘What is History, Now?' Helen is also well known for her podcast Hidden Histories and her work on various historical programmes, such as HistoryHit. Joanne and Helen discuss the winding journey through the past and why it's so important to visit places to feel connected to history.A Viral History Podcast. Hosted by Dr Joanne Paul, Produced by Paul Bradshaw, and Researched by Isabel Wilson.

In this episode, Dr Joanne Paul sits down to talk with historian and author, Hallie Rubenhold. Joanne describes Hallie as ‘a jack of all trades in the history world,' she's published historical fiction and non-fiction, as well as worked on television adaptations of her works and consulted on other period dramas. Her most recent book, The Five is an award winning exploration into the lives of the female victims of Jack the Ripper. Joanne and Hallie talk about why we should study everyday lives in history, what makes a good historical drama, and why history is just like chocolate.A Viral History Podcast. Hosted by Dr Joanne Paul, Produced by Paul Bradshaw, and Researched by Isabel Wilson.

In our first episode of Primary Sources, host Dr Joanne Paul sits down with historian, author, podcaster and screenwriter Greg Jenner. Greg, is a power-house public historian, famous for his work on Horrible Histories, he has written two books, 'A Million Years in a Day: a Curious History of Every Life' and 'Dead Famous: an Unexpected History of Celebrity'.    Greg also hosts two BBC podcasts 'You're Dead To me' and 'Homeschool History'. In this episode, he talks about the power of combining comedy with history, his voracious appetite for history books, and wearing a toga for Emperor Nero!A Viral History Podcast. Hosted by Dr Joanne Paul, Produced by Paul Bradshaw, and Researched by Isabel Wilson.