Rex Factor

Following our mini-series on the Six Wives of Henry VIII, we chat to Professor Suzannah Lipscomb about all things Henry VIII - what was he about? How did he change and why? Plus we get Suzannah's thoughts on the Six Wives, about whom she is currently researching a new book. You can follow Suzannah on Twitter @sixteenthCgirl and listen to her podcast Not Just the Tudors. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In a feature-length special episode, we chart the history of the coronation of the English monarchy from Alfred the Great to Elizabeth II. We learn about how and why the coronation ceremony started, why it is the way that it is, how it's changed over the last thousand years, and all the funny things that have gone wrong. From a random big stone to oily headlice and reversing horses, there's plenty of fun to be had at the coronation! Plus we learn how Dunstan has ruined Ali's bank holiday. This podcast has been recorded before the coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We chat to Dr Dean Irwin, long-time listener to the podcast and co-curator of the episode 'History According to Ali', about the history of the Jews in medieval England. We discuss the origins of a Jewish community in England along with their legal status and close relationship to the crown. We look in particular detail at the thirteenth century, considering the attitudes of Henry III and Simon de Montfort as well as some exception individuals like Licoricia of Winchester. Finally, we look at the end of the Jewish population under Edward I with the Edict of Expulsion and why this happened. If you'd like to hear more about Licoricia of Winchester, you can sign up to the Special Episode or Star Chamber tier of our Privy Council where she was featured in an episode of our special Local Legends podcast series. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Having finished our mini-series on the Six Wives of Henry VIII, we go through some of your messages and answer questions about the podcasts, the queens, Henry, and whatever else comes up. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We come to the end of the Six Wives of Henry VIII odyssey with Katherine Parr. Often neglected but a fascinating character: previous marriages, the Pilgrimage of Grace, and the navigating the treacherous, divided court of Henry VIII's final years. Katherine was closely involved with Henry's children and a key player in the religious divide that was raging in the final years of Henry's reign, but would she be able to emerge unscathed? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Katherine Howard was the fifth of the Six Wives of Henry VIII. Young and pretty, she quickly caught Henry's eye while he was extricating himself from his marriage to Anne of Cleves, but Henry's infatuation turned to devastation when revelations about Katherine's past and present dalliances were revealed. Often dismissed as a foolish irrelevance, we consider alternative views of Katherine and whether she has that certain something. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The fourth of the six wives of Henry VIII, Anne of Cleves is often recalled as the 'Flanders Mare' but we dig deeper into the true story of where things went wrong between Anne and Henry, why this nickname is unfair and what Anne does after Henry. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We move on to the third of Henry VIII's six wives - one of the least famous and yet Henry's favourite, so where does Jane really deserve to rank in the annals of history? She experience life under Katherine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn, whom she ultimately supplanted as queen, and depending on how you view her either brought some much-needed stability or was just a bit dull! So, an overlooked classic or deservedly in the shadow of her more celebrated predecessors? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Although we've reviewed Anne Boleyn, we felt that we needed one final episode to look in more detail about the fall of Anne Boleyn, and to answer the question of why it happens (and why she dies). Was she actually guilty of the crimes she was accused of? Was she brought down by Cromwell? Did Henry tire of her? Was it all just a big misunderstanding? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After an in-depth biography episode last time, this week we review Anne Boleyn. There's a lot to discuss: her impressive rise to power and the personal battles she had to fight to get there; the wealth of scandal laid at her door (some deserved, some not) and a major role in English history with the Reformation. And will one of Englands most famous and notorious queens be worthy of her prominent place in history and deserving of Rex Factor? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Our Odyssey through the Six Wives of Henry VIII now turns to Anne Boleyn, the most controversial of Henry's consorts. Anne has been cast as the definitive 'other woman', turning Henry's head away from Katherine of Aragon and helping to bring about the Reformation, in which Henry broke a near millennia association with Rome to declare himself Supreme Governor of the Church of England. In the first of three episodes, today we cover Anne's biography, seeing how her international schooling made her stand out at Henry's court. How does Anne capture Henry's heart? How does she secure her place as England's queen? And why does it all go so terribly wrong? Tune in to find out! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

After a separate biography episode, this time we review Katherine of Aragon by the factors: a regency defeating the Scots; resisting Henry in the divorce; was she being truthful about her first marriage? Lots to talk about, but the key question, as always, is will she get the Rex Factor? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We kick-off the Six Wives of Henry VIII with Katherine of Aragon, whose story is so dramatic that we had to split it into two. In this episode, we look at her biography, charting her life from her upbringing in Spain, to her time in England, with years of uncertainty, a near-golden age with Henry VIII before the lack of a male heir saw Katherine resisting Henry's attempts to annul their marriage, resulting in increasingly extreme behaviour from Henry but continued courage from Katherine. Next time, we'll review her and decide whether she has the Rex Factor. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In June 2022, we were a keynote speaker at the online Intelligent Speech Conference, and also took part in a Rexy Panel, discussing podcasting with the Rex Factor format alongside Rob and Jamie from Totalus Rankium and Bry from Pontifacts. For today's episode, we're bringing you the Rexy Panel discussion, where the three podcasts have an informal chat about podcasting. You can find out more about the Intelligent Speech conference at their website (https://www.intelligentspeechconference.com) and if you'd be interested in attending next year and want to help make that possible, the Intelligent Speech Conference team are running a Kickstarter until 27 November 2022 in order to fund their work to make it the best possible user-experience: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/intelligentspeech/intelligent-speech-endowment We'll be back from a research break next week to start our review of the Six Wives of Henry VIII, beginning with a biography episode for Katherine of Aragon. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/priv

As Graham gets started on the research for the Six Wives of Henry VIII, we have a one-off episode going through lots of listener correspondence and sharing some previews of our bonus content. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We speak to the historian Dr Nicola Tallis about Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry VII who lived a dramatic life, enduring the trials and tribulations of the Wars of the Roses to ultimately see her son, against all odds, become king, founding the Tudor dynasty. You can follow Nicola on Twitter where she is @NicolaTallis or find out more information about her on her website https://nicolatallis.com/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Following the sad death of Queen Elizabeth II, we wanted to record our thoughts on her life and reign and some of the feelings that her death has evoked. We do a recap of her life and reign as originally covered in our 2013 episodes, plus an update for the near-decade of her reign since then, as well as some impressive statistics and looking ahead to the week leading up to the Queen's funeral. This episode was recorded on Monday 12 September. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We speak to historian Nathen Amin about the House of Beaufort, the initially illegitimate line of John of Gaunt who enjoyed great power and influence under the Lancastrian kings and were major players in the Wars of the Roses. We learn about some of the key figures, why the Wars of the Roses may have started earlier than you think, and how they ultimately found one of their own on the throne with Henry VII. To hear more from Nathen, you can follow him on Twitter where he is @NathenAmin Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We start a new round of interview podcasts, kicking off with Matt Lewis, Chair of the Richard III Society. Matt spoke to us, appropriately enough, about Richard III, suggesting alternative ways of interpreting Richard's character and motivation, what he was up to in 1483 and the fate of the Princes in the Tower. You can follow Matt on Twitter where he is @MattLewisAuthor or check out his website for more information http://mattlewisauthor.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In our second Right to Reply episode, we look back at the Yorkist consorts Elizabeth Woodville, Anne Neville and Elizabeth of York, comparing their scores and lives before then going through listener correspondence on the queens. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices