Not What You Thought You Knew

HISTORY

Think you know your history? Think again.

From the stories of the former slave that taught Charles Darwin to the first female playwright who was a spy for the English King... Historian, author and broadcaster Dr Fern Riddell is exploring some little-known characters from history to reveal not just their incredible stories, but also why they're so important for our view of what the past looked like.

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14 episodes
Updated Nov 10, 2020

Episodes14

Newest first

Nov 10, 2020 · 56 min
The Sacred Band of Thebes
The elite warrior corps made up of 150 pairs of male lovers.
Nov 3, 2020 · 46 min
Olaudah Equiano and the British Abolitionist Movement
While relatively famous in the 18th century, his legacy was largely forgotten in the UK.
Oct 27, 2020 · 7 min
A Tribute to Olaudah Equiano
Listen to Alexander D Great's moving calypso song.
Oct 20, 2020 · 47 min
Allan Noel Minns the WW1 Officer and Son of Britain's First Black Mayor
One of Britain's first mixed race military officers.
Oct 13, 2020 · 38 min
The Ivory Bangle Lady and Roman Britain
What does the archaeological evidence tell us about her life?
Oct 6, 2020 · 47 min
The First Black British Football Heroes
Uncovering the story of our pioneering Black British footballers, finding out what we can learn from their experiences.
Sep 29, 2020 · 48 min
The Night Witches and the Fighting Women of the Soviet Union
The feared, all-female military aviators of the 588th Night Bomber Regiment.
Sep 22, 2020 · 45 min
The Chevalier d'Éon and Gender Nonconformity
Soldier, diplomat, spy and fencing champion: the Chevalier d'Éon lived an extraordinary life.
Sep 15, 2020 · 46 min
Inghen Ruaidh, the Birka Grave and Viking Warrior Women
The mythology behind Viking shield-maidens.
Nov 27, 2019 · 38 min
John Edmonstone the Former Slave who Taught Darwin
Born into slavery in the former Dutch colony of Demerara in the late 1700s but died a free man in Scotland having taught one of the greatest men in the history of science the skill of taxidermy.
Nov 20, 2019 · 42 min
Mary Anning the Pioneering Fossil Hunter
A well-known celebrity in her day, we have somewhat struggled to appreciate the incredible weight of what Mary Anning's discoveries of ancient marine reptiles meant at the time for a burgeoning science.
Nov 6, 2019 · 36 min
Aphra Behn and Female Espionage
One of the first women in England to make her living as a writer just so happened to be one of the country's first female spies.
Jul 19, 2019 · 33 min
The Mary Rose and the People of Tudor England
Analysis on the remains of eight sailors who drowned on the Mary Rose yielded some astonishing results for our perception of the people of Tudor England.
Jul 10, 2019 · 38 sec
Dr Fern Riddell's #NotWhatYouThought
Exploring some under-celebrated characters from history.

Not What You Thought You Knew

The Sacred Band of Thebes

Olaudah Equiano and the British Abolitionist Movement

A Tribute to Olaudah Equiano

Allan Noel Minns the WW1 Officer and Son of Britain's First Black Mayor

The Ivory Bangle Lady and Roman Britain

The First Black British Football Heroes

The Night Witches and the Fighting Women of the Soviet Union

The Chevalier d'Éon and Gender Nonconformity

Inghen Ruaidh, the Birka Grave and Viking Warrior Women

John Edmonstone the Former Slave who Taught Darwin

Mary Anning the Pioneering Fossil Hunter

Aphra Behn and Female Espionage

The Mary Rose and the People of Tudor England

Dr Fern Riddell's #NotWhatYouThought