As he continues his romp through English history, in this episode Charlie Higson looks at the life and work of Geoffrey Chaucer. A key figure in English social history and the history of English writing, Chaucer's greatest work is The Canterbury Tales , considered to be one of the pillars of English literature. Charlie and his guest help us understand.......in some cases literally....Chaucer's work and life, and that guest is Marion Turner - J.R.R. Tolkien Professor of English Literature and Lan...
Mar 28, 2025•1 hr 17 min•Season 3Ep. 17
In this episode, Charlie Higson looks at the development of English music - what we know about its early history and the way the sound and styles developed from the kind of monastic chanting in unison you get in Monty Python through the introduction of polyphony and harmony, to the wonders of Thomas Tallis, the first great English composer Assisting Charlie on his musical odyssey is Robert Hollingworth, conductor, composer, broadcaster and leader of musical group I Fagiolini who uses music...
Mar 21, 2025•1 hr 9 min•Season 3Ep. 16
In this episode, Charlie Higson delves into the life of a 12 year old girl bride, who went on to rule England. Isabella of France led an invasion that ultimately resulted in the deposition of her King and husband, Edward II , in January 1327. Isabella is a fascinating character and assisting Charlie to understand her motivation and drive, we welcome the bestselling historian Alison Weir, author of Isabella: She-Wolf of France, Queen of England. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for mo...
Mar 14, 2025•51 min•Season 3Ep. 15
In this episode, Charlie Higson uncovers a bromance. In fact he uncovers TWO bromances, both involving King Edward II. If the names Piers Gaveston and Hugh Despencer don't mean anything to you now, listen on, for it is a tale of male bonding that ultimately ends in the death of two of the Kings best friends, people to whom he'd given way too much power. And what a death for one of them! Helping Charlie pick through the hanging, drawing and quartering is Helen Carr author of The Red Prince; The l...
Mar 07, 2025•46 min•Season 3Ep. 14
In this episode, Charlie Higson heads north of the border. Joined by eminent Scottish historian Alistair Moffat , Charlie discovers the truth behind Macbeth and tracks a path from him, (don't believe anything Shakespeare told you!), through to the decisive victory for Robert The Bruce at The Battle Of Bannockburn. As well as the excellent stories he tells on this podcast, Alistair Moffat's book Bannockburn: The Battle for a Nation is re...
Feb 28, 2025•57 min•Season 3Ep. 13
In this episode, Charlie Higson gets properly acquainted with the great knight and statesman, Simon De Montfort, who started out originally as one of Henry III's chief supporters but became increasingly enraged by how badly he thought Henry was running the country. Inevitably this led to wars and power struggles as de Montfort ended up leading the opposition to Henry as head of the baronial forces, trying to depose him, or at least curb his powers. It's a fascinating story and to help Char...
Feb 21, 2025•1 hr 17 min•Season 3Ep. 12
So when did The British Empire begin? Well, the idea of it was probably much earlier than you think and in this episode Charlie Higson is going to be asking questions about a time in English history when English monarchs seriously started looking at colonising other nations. And to assist Charlie in his quest, he's invited James Hawes back on the show. James is the author of The Shortest History of England and as well as looking at Empire, he also explains how England has been - and in many ways...
Feb 14, 2025•53 min•Season 3Ep. 11
In this third series of Willy Willy Harry Stee, Charlie Higson is looking at the interesting characters who pop up alongside the monarchs and there are few more interesting than Eustace The Black Monk . Don't be fooled by the 'Monk' part of his moniker. Eustace was a Pirate, a Mercenary and other very un-Monk-like things. To help Charlie tell his fascinating tale, he's joined by Dr Sean McGlynn, author of Blood Cries Afar: The Forgotten Invasion of England and Kill Them All : Cathars and Carnage...
Feb 07, 2025•42 min•Season 3Ep. 10
In this episode, Charlie Higson uncovers the rather amazing story of King Louis Of England . "Who's that", you say? Well, just over 800 years ago Louis, son and heir of the king of France, rode through the streets of London and was acclaimed king of England by cheering crowds. And yet you've probably not heard of him. Well, lucky for us, Cath Hanley is something of an expert on Louis having written the excellent book Louis: The French Prince who invaded England and she returns from her guest app...
Jan 31, 2025•56 min•Season 3Ep. 9
Imagine the scene. You're the king but through tragic circumstances you have no legitimate male heirs. To maintain the lineage, you agree with those in power that your daughter would become Queen on your death. They all agree. Jobs a good 'un. That is until you die and your daughter's pesky cousin, a bloke, nips in and steals the crown. Farfetched? Not at all and in this episode, Charlie Higson uncovers the life of the woman who had the throne pinched from under her, Empress Matilda. To assist C...
Jan 24, 2025•1 hr 7 min•Season 3Ep. 8
In this episode, Charlie Higson turns his attention to an incredible figure, William Marshall , dubbed T he Greatest Knight In Christendom and it's easy to see why. Not only did he live into his 70's, amazing considering he was born in 1146, but he served 5 kings at a time when life expectancy in a royal court was, well, limited. Joining Charlie is Sophie Therese Ambler , author of a biography of Simon De Montfort, the man who led a rebellion against King Henry III, ...
Jan 17, 2025•1 hr 19 min•Season 3Ep. 7
In this special Medieval guest-fest, Charlie Higson welcomes not one but THREE fabulous historians to the show, recorded live in front of an audience at the British Library, as part of Medieval Fest! which took place in December 2024. The discussion was ' How To Depose A Medieval Ruler', and Charlie was joined by a star-studded team of experts – Nathen Amin ( Son of Prophecy: The Rise of Henry Tudor ), Helen Castor ( The Eagle and the Hart: The Tragedy of Richard II and H...
Jan 10, 2025•1 hr 8 min•Season 3Ep. 6
In this special episode, Charlie Higson gets the inside story of an extraordinary exhibition that runs at The British Library until March 2nd 2025, Medieval Women: In Their Own Words The exhibition includes some rare and wonderful documents, manuscripts and even music, so to explain its creation, Charlie chats with Ellie Jackson , one of the curators of this remarkable collection. To book your tickets to see the exhibition, click here..... https://medievalwomen.seetickets.com/timeslots/filter/me...
Jan 03, 2025•36 min•Season 3Ep. 5
What was life really like for women in the medieval period? How did they think about sex, death and God? Could they live independent lives? And how can we hear their stories? Lucky for us, Hetta Howes has asked all these questions and come up with some pretty compelling answers, all neatly told in her new book Poet, Mystic, Widow, Wife. In this special episode, Charlie Higson chats with Hetta about the lives of four incredible women from this period, Marie de France, a poet; Julian of Norwich, a...
Dec 27, 2024•51 min•Season 3Ep. 4
Thomas Becket. Lord High Chancellor, Archbishop Of Canterbury and close friend of Henry II. What could possibly go wrong?? Well, enough to get him chopped up by four of Henry's knights, that's what! The question Charlie Higson wants to know the answer to though is 'how'? What precipitated his spectacular fall from grace? Why was he killed? And who stuck the 'A' in the middle of his name? Luckily, Nicholas Vincent from the University Of East Anglia is on hand to provide answers. Hosted on Acast. ...
Dec 20, 2024•49 min•Season 3Ep. 3
In this second episode of Willy Willy Harry Stee - Series 3 , Charlie Higson takes a deep dive into the religious wars of the 11th, 12th and 13th centuries. Helping Charlie to navigate this complex period is Professor Jonathan Phillips , Professor Of Crusading History at the Royal Holloway University Of London and author of many books on this subject including The Crusades: 1095 - 1204. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Dec 13, 2024•55 min•Season 3Ep. 2
In this Brand New Series of Willy Willy Harry Stee, Charlie Higson examines in more detail some of the characters surrounding our monarchs. In this first episode, Charlie welcomes regular guest Marc Morris back to get under the skin of the leader of the Norman resistance, Hereward The Wake and to find out how strong this resistance to William I really was. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Dec 06, 2024•41 min•Season 3Ep. 1
In this special, final episode in Series 2, Charlie Higson chats to a legendary TV Historian, Michael Wood OBE. From epic TV series like Michael Wood's Story of China, to books including In Search Of The Dark Ages , Michael has made history more accessible and made over 120 TV documentaries. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Nov 29, 2024•48 min•Season 2Ep. 12
In this special episode, Charlie Higson indulges his fascination with British art. His guest is Bendor Grosvenor , the art historian, writer and former art dealer. As well as his sleuthing work discovering lost art treasures, he's also published a book called The Invention Of British Art. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Nov 22, 2024•48 min•Season 2Ep. 11
To round off Series 2 and our delve into our Anglo-Saxon past, Charlie Higson looks at the extraordinary life of Harald Hardrada . King of Norway and if things had gone differently, he may have been King of England, but, as you will hear, he didn't quite make it. Helping Charlie to look into this fascinating character is Don Hollway , author of The Last Viking and Battle For The Island Kingdom Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Nov 15, 2024•55 min•Season 2Ep. 10
In this episode of Charlie Higson's canter through Anglo-Saxon England, he reaches the end of the Wessex dynasty. Edward The Confessor. He died without an heir, which triggered a real life Game of Thrones, although it was more like Musical Chairs. Ably assisting Charlie in understanding Edward's motives is David Woodman, author of the Penguin Monarch's edition on Edward The Confessor. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Nov 08, 2024•56 min•Season 2Ep. 9
Yes, this episode in Charlie Higson's romp through the pre-Norman monarchs lands on another one we've kind of heard of. King Cnut, sometimes called 'The Great' due to his North Sea empire, also the one who sat on the beach and commanded the tide to stop coming in......or did he??? Assisting Charlie in untangling the facts from the nonsense is Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Nov 01, 2024•55 min•Season 2Ep. 8
Egbert's name our list will head then Ethel's Wolf, Bold, Burt and Red. Alf the great and elder Ned, Athelstone. Edmund and Red, Edwig, Edgar, Martyred Ned, never ready Æthelred. Edmund Ironside and Swain and after them Canute the Dane. In this episode, Charlie Higson examines the mess that happened between the death of Æthelred and the reign of Canute. it was a short period of turmoil and carnage, but luckily Charlie has Justin Pollard on hand to help decipher it. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com...
Oct 24, 2024•49 min•Season 2Ep. 7
In this very special 100th edition of Willy Willy Harry Stee, Charlie Higson looks at a huge and hugely important topic in all our histories, The British Empire, and who better to join Charlie, on this special occasion, than historian and host of the Empire podcast, William Dalrymple. If you've ever wondered what the British Empire was all about, start here. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Oct 17, 2024•51 min•Ep. 100
Battling his way through the Anglo-Saxon monarchs, Charlie Higson arrives at one we're all familiar with, Æthelred the Unready. As with many monarchs of this period, we know his name and his amusing nickname, but not much else besides. Luckily for us Charlie and his guest Levi Roach author of Æthelred: the Unready are on hand to explain what turns out to be a hilarious medieval pun! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Oct 10, 2024•1 hr 7 min•Season 2Ep. 6
In this episode we reach the point in Charlie Higson's history of the Anglo-Saxon monarchy where we come up against 5 Kings who weren't King very long. Yes, if Aldi sold Kings, it would be the best offer ever. Buy one, get 5 free! So settle back and enjoy the (short) stories of Eds – Mund & Red, Edwig, Edgar and Martyred Ned. And if that offer wasn't good enough, Charlie will throw in expert help from Marc Morris, author of The Anglo-Saxons: A History of The Beginnings Of Britain. Hosted on ...
Oct 03, 2024•1 hr 5 min•Season 2Ep. 5
In this episode of Willy Willy Harry Stee, Charlie Higson continues to unpick the sometimes confusing world of the Anglo-Saxon Monarchs, helping you to understand your Ethel's from your Athel's. Here, he gets to grips with Æthelstan, the man often considered The First King Of England. Find out why with Charlie and his guest James Hawes , author of the brilliant Shortest History Of England. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Sep 26, 2024•1 hr 8 min•Season 2Ep. 4
In the third episode of the new series of Willy Willy Harry Stee , Charlie Higson looks at the life of Alfred The Great's successor Edward The Elder. But if you look at Edward, you also have to explore the incredible parallel life and leadership of his sister Æthelflæd , the Lady of the Mercians. Joining Charlie to uncover this fascinating story of sibling collaboration and rivalry, is Joanna Arman , author of The Warrior Queen: The Life and Legend Of Æthelflæd, Daughter Of Alfred The Great Host...
Sep 19, 2024•49 min•Season 2Ep. 3
History shows that when you've got a name like ' Alfred The Great', you're possibly not quite as 'great' as some might think, however when it comes to Alfred, it seems he earned his nickname for many reasons, as Charlie Higson discovers in episode 2 of this new series. Helping Charlie fact-check Alfred's greatness is Justin Pollard , Historian, TV producer and author of Alfred The Great: The Man Who Made England Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Sep 12, 2024•1 hr 6 min•Season 2Ep. 2
So here it is. Series Two of Willy Willy Harry Stee and Charlie Higson is going to start by going back and looking at the pre-Norman Kings of England, the Saxons and the Vikings. In this introductory episode, Charlie lays the groundwork for the appearance of Alfred The Great, to come in the next podcast. It has all the thrills and excitement of a Hollywood blockbuster! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information....
Sep 05, 2024•24 min•Season 2Ep. 1
