In 1885, a Pittsburgh journalist wrote an article about women and their role in society - it argued that their only purpose was to get pregnant and keep up with the laundry. One reader was so angry with this that she wrote a retort to the editor arguing that women should be given more employment opportunities. The editor agreed and offered a young Nellie Bly her first job as a journalist. From there, Bly never stopped – from ridiculing a Mexican dictator, to exposing American CEOs and challengin...
Jul 08, 2025
Hey guys, welcome to another special episode! The Film in our sights this time? Exodus: Gods & Kings. The 2014 biblical epic directed by Ridley Scott, with Christian Bale and Joel Edgerton in the leading roles. Join Will, Jamie, and both Patricks, as they discuss their likes, dislikes, and general shit talking...With plenty of rage quits from Patrick (ALH).
Jun 14, 2025•1 hr 55 min•Season 5Ep. 15
Someone once said, that if it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is. Sage words such as these should always be followed, and woe betide those who fail to heed this lesson. For there a those in this world, who will promise you the world, while taking everything you hold dear... In this episode of the Cloak & Dagger podcast we tell the tale of a queen, a cardinal and a confidence trickster, set agains the backdrop of the days leading up to the French Revolution. If you want to see th...
May 28, 2025•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 55
As the New Zealand government militia treks through the jungle pass, they have no idea what might await them in the shadows. Tales of the man they are hunting are blended with myths of his supernatural powers; like an ability to melt into thin air. Despite hundreds of attempts, no amount of force has been able to vanquish the Maori guerrilla prophet called Te Kooti. Fear gripped the white settlers and their Maori allies across New Zealand - Te Kooti was known for his ruthlessness as much as for ...
Apr 30, 2025•Ep. 54
Humanity has spent an alarmingly large amount of it's existence at war with itself. Wars full of pain and loss and terror. But for most of our existence, we could take solace in the knowledge that while one army may be attacking another, or one city had been set alfame, the rest of the world could go about their day unperturbed. That was, until 1945. Until the first atomic bomb. From that day on, humanity knew it now possessed the keys to its total destruction. And this is the story of the day w...
Apr 02, 2025•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 53
As the US Civil War entered its second bloody year, a young man recently arrived from Ireland enlists in the 95th Illinois Volunteer Regiment and marches to war. He joined thousands of other young men but unlike them, he has a secret which if revealed, could lead to great hardship and potential physical harm if discovered. This does not deter him from his choice to fight and makes him one of the bravest soldiers of the Civil War. Welcome to our episode on the incredible life of Albert Cashier. M...
Feb 26, 2025•Ep. 52
Pope Stephen was furious. So angry, in fact, that he was going to make his predecessor feel his wrath - no matter the consequences. His cardinals were too scared or too shocked to intervene and soon the pope had his wish - he dragged his predecessor into a trial that would echo through the centuries and mark one of the lowest points in the history of the papacy. Welcome to the Cadaver Synod. If you want to see this episode’s accompanying images and a sneak peek of upcoming episodes, follow us on...
Jan 30, 2025•1 hr 9 min•Ep. 51
Everyone thinks they know about Katharine of Aragon but beyond a few nursery rhymes and inaccurate tv shows, the true story of Katharine is far more compelling and rich than you can imagine. Jackson Van Uden is hosting the Katharine of Aragon Festival in Peterborough from 22nd to the 29th January and he came on the show to tell us about this extraordinary queen.
Jan 18, 2025•1 hr 5 min•Season 5Ep. 13
Happy festive season listeners! Whether you're celebrating Christmas or just enjoying the day off work, we've got a tale for you. A spectacular story of a man's journey across a world turned upside down by revolutions, culminating in an engineering feat to rival the pyramids and panama canal! If you want to see this episode’s accompanying images and a sneak peek of upcoming episodes, follow us on Instagram - @cloakanddaggerpodcast Music: Positive Fat Bass Intro Loop by WinnieTheMoogLink: https:/...
Dec 25, 2024•1 hr 12 min•Ep. 51
Vengeance is a fire that burns white hot. A life once filled with joy, can become shadowed with the dark specter if revenge. But sometimes in a time of horror, brutality and misery, the only thing one can hold onto, is he hope of vengeance. And when all things crumble into to dust, that fire will keep you going. To the bitter end. If you want to see this episode’s accompanying images and a sneak peek of upcoming episodes, follow us on Instagram - @cloakanddaggerpodcast Music: Positive Fat Bass I...
Nov 29, 2024•55 min•Ep. 50
As an old Irish proverb says “What whisky will not cure, there is no cure for”. And while I’m no doctor, I am Irish so I do believe there is something in that. Even in a land so divided it’s close to breaking, where a man may be countered as only three fifths of a person, this elixir could form the most unbreakable bonds that would last through generations until this very day. Don’t believe us? Well then join us for a tale of whiskey, wickedness, and the two men who shaped this illustrious conco...
Oct 31, 2024•Ep. 49
Well this has gotten out of hand. The new and improved England seemed to be going so well, but a sunken ship, a flurry of royal bastard, and few too many sexist principles and now the whole kingdom’s falling apart. I’m sure it’ll all work itself out… Welcome back to Part 2 of out tale of the Anarchy! For this episode of the podcast we are very excited to have our friend Jess (an actual real historian) join us and tell us the epic tale of The Anarchy. If you want to see this episode’s accompanyin...
Sep 26, 2024•58 min•Ep. 48
Ever have a family spat go a bit too far? Well 12th Century two cousins did just that, and their little argument over who got to sit in their grandfathers chair, tore the entire English Kingdom in half. And only 72 years after Aegon William the Conqueror had taken the throne. For this episode of the podcast we are very excited to have our friend Jess (an actual real historian) join us and tell us the epic tale of The Anarchy. If you want to see this episode’s accompanying images and a sneak peek...
Sep 25, 2024•Ep. 48
Can a great mind cut deeper than a sword? If the history of humanity’s endless wars with itself is anything to go on, the answer is undoubtably yes. Again and again, great scientists, engineers, and mathematicians have been pulled from their pursuit of unravelling the mysteries of our world and put to work creating terrible machines of war. And at a time where a big bridge stuck to the front of a ship was the cutting edge of siege warfare, a mind that has already developed methods for measuring ...
Aug 28, 2024•1 hr 23 min•Ep. 47
1930s New York was a city of opportunity. Where any man with enough grit and determination could make his fortune... inside or outside the law. But this was a world built by and for men. So who knows how much grit and determination it would take for a woman to make something of herself. Well, Anna Genovese knew exactly what it would take... In this months episode of the Cloak & Dagger Podcast, we hear the truly extraordinary and inspiring tale of the mob wife who became a kingpin (or maybe q...
Jul 31, 2024•1 hr 14 min•Ep. 46
War is terrible. But some stories of war are even more terrible than others. Fighting on a strange island, in a strange land, for a lost cause, the Japanese imperial soldiers stationed on Ramree Island would learn the truth of this. In this episode of the Cloak and Dagger Podcast, we delve into what is truly one of the most terrifying moments of the second world war (which is saying something). If you want to see this episode’s accompanying images and a sneak peek of upcoming episodes, follow us...
Jun 27, 2024•47 min•Ep. 45
Do you believe in ghosts? This may seem an inappropriate question for this incredibly serious history podcast, but sometimes to broaden ones mind, one must leave the safe, factual world of history and journey into the world of the paranormal… Or at least into the bizarre tales of the paranormal from the past. In this episode of the Cloak and Dagger Podcast, we are joined by our good friend and expert in suspicious stories Rich, who tells us the tale of the mysterious (and unsolved) Hammersmith G...
May 23, 2024•1 hr 18 min•Ep. 44
On a misty morning off the Yemeni coast, the jewel of the Mughal Emperor's treasure fleet sails slowly eastwards. She is carrying a full cargo of solid gold bullion and jewels from Mecca to Surat. . With its complement of 500 elite marines and crew of 250 seasoned sailors, the captain feels entirely secure. On the horizon he has noticed the puny western pirate ships with their ragged crews and rusty cannon - they pose no threat to his ship. . Or do they? This is the story of Henry Avery - the mo...
Apr 26, 2024•1 hr 19 min•Season 5Ep. 5
In a factory in Homestead Pennsylvania, thousands of steel workers have downed tools and striking - their boss Andrew Carnegie is about to lower their wages and they have had enough. Then down the river the workers see three barges coming towards them - bristling with agents of the Pinkerton Detective Agency. Hired by Carnegie, they are here to break up the union and end the strike, by any means necessary… If you want to see this episode’s accompanying images and a sneak peek of upcoming episode...
Mar 28, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 40
In the misty dawn of a March morning in 1829 a duel is about to take place in Battersea. Whilst duels were still fairly common at the time, they were frowned upon by most and especially by army generals like the Duke of Wellington. Wellington had outlawed duelling during the Napoleonic wars because he kept losing good officers to duels. And yet, it is the Duke himself who now stands in that field in Battersea. Not only that, he was now the Prime Minister and is taking a massive risk. If this goe...
Feb 28, 2024•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 39
A pirate, a president and a Dutchman are the last things a humble fisherman on the shores of Iceland might expect to see sailing in on the evening tide. But on one fateful night in 1627, all three rolled in in a single pair of boots. And the tale of the man that filled those boots, is a tale worth telling… The Cloak & Dagger Podcast is back with a new regular release schedule and an extraordinary tale of history. If you want to see this episode’s accompanying images and a sneak peek of upcom...
Jan 31, 2024•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 38
This one is a special case, that's for sure. Jacques Bizard - a Swiss Calvinist mercenary - met a French Catholic general called Louis de Frontenac. Their bond might well have gone from friendship to something more. Make your own mind up after listening!
Sep 27, 2023•1 hr 2 min•Season 4Ep. 10
After reading the histories of civilisation (or just by listening to this podcast) you may get the idea that war is humanity’s natural state. But the truth is that we fight just as hard to forge peace as we do to start a war. And while we have racked up a shockingly small number of years where no one has been at war (268, or just 8 percent of recorded history), we still have the tales of those who strove to put an end to generations of bloodshed. In this week’s episode of the Cloak & Dagger ...
Sep 13, 2023•1 hr 9 min•Season 4Ep. 36
Will and Patrick delve deep into the purge of the Cathar faith in Southern France. Sanctioned by the Pope and supported by the King of France, crusading knights and templars threw themselves against the walls of Cathar Carcassonne - attempting to crush the so-called heretics. But killing an idea is much harder than the destruction of a city. Tune in to find out more!
Aug 30, 2023•1 hr 16 min•Season 4Ep. 8
How far would you go to live up to a family name? If your ancestry included not one but two founders of empires, do you really have much choice in what life you are destined for? Afghanistan has seen the rise of dozens of empires over the course of the thousands of years people have called it home. And at the dawn of the 16th century, one of these empires rose to unite a fractured land torn apart by quarrelling princes. This is the tale of the man who forged this empire, an empire which one day ...
Aug 16, 2023•1 hr 46 min•Season 4Ep. 34
War is hell. Unfortunately however, when an empire grows large enough it starts to forget that fact. Which makes it all the more horrifying when that harsh reality comes crashing down upon the poor foot soldiers of said empire. By the mid 19th century, Britain was rapidly growing into the largest empire in history, so conquering one small city in Central Asia must have seemed easy. That however would be a mistake that the people of Kabul made sure the British Empire would never forget... If you ...
Aug 02, 2023•1 hr 11 min•Season 4Ep. 33
Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Or that's at least how the saying goes. And a cursory glance at the last 12,000 years of human history would seem to confirm this rather bleak outlook. But is it always true? Can one hold absolute power and still maintain a modicum of civic virtue? Ask a Roman this question, and they might just tell you the tale of one of Rome's favourite sons. A man who rose to become a Dictator but, in remarkable divergence from your standard Roman dictat...
Jul 19, 2023•53 min•Season 4Ep. 32
Are Science and Religion perhaps the oldest of rivals? Reason vs faith. Scripture vs hypothesise. Maybe, or maybe it’s just the power-hungry people who live their life by one or the other who perpetuate this eternal rivalry. This week’s episode follows a man who epitomises this rivalry. A man of science whose flagrant disregard for ecclesiastical teachings brought down upon him the wrath of the Catholic Church. So was he a hero or a heretic? We’ll let you decide… If you want to see this episode’...
Jul 05, 2023•1 hr 16 min•Season 4Ep. 31
Icelanders are a people forged in the fires of volcanoes and tempered in the frosts of glaciers. They are the descendants of Vikings who found the freezing winters of Norway too gentle. And they are masters of a land and sea which the gods themselves think twice about before entering. So when a foreign power dares to lay claim to the treasures of Iceland, you can be damn sure these hardy folk will fight tooth and nail to defend their island. This is the tale of one of the most important wars on ...
Jun 28, 2023•1 hr 9 min•Season 5Ep. 30
Long before the rise of his brother Adolf Hitler to Fuhrer of the Third Reich, Alois Hitler left his home in Austria and landed on the Emerald Isle to start a new life. Tune in to find out what happened in this odd twist of history.
Jun 07, 2023•1 hr 12 min•Season 4Ep. 2
