I don't even own a podcast, but I'm enjoying "Thundersticks", a book teo recommended here a couple of weeks ago.
I've enjoyed Patrick Wyman's "Tides of History." I think it's in the Mike Duncan ballpark.
I can recommend the BBC / Melvyn Bragg "In Our Time" podcasts. There is a huge back catalogue and you can pick out whatever interests you.
I've listened to a lot of "In Our Time". Although over the years the machine-gun approach has worn a bit thin to me, it does accomplish its goals.
In Our Time isn't always about history, but there's enough there to fill the gap - I always think of them as one step down - not in quality, but in length and depth - from the OUP Very Short Introduction books (which, I have just learned, have a podcast attached https://soundcloud.com/oupacademic/sets/the-very-short-introductions-podcast - maybe give that a go?).
Fall of Civilizations seems solid--I recently enjoyed the episode about Vijayanagra, which is admittedly long but it kept my attention throughout. I'll probably listen to some more of those.
I suggest the Empire podcast.
In Our Time is of course the classic one. Bragg is a national treasure.
BBC's The Forum is also very good.
Not Just the Tudors is generally very good.
Arms Control Wonk, if you're into that sort of thing is great, informative and entertaining.
War on the Rocks and also Dmitri Alperovich's Geopolitics Decanted, especially whenever either of them have Michael Kofman on.
I am ambivalent about the Lawfare crowd, in some cases downright hostile, but I've found their podcast very informative when they're speaking about stuff like the recent Trump secret documents scandal.
5-4 podcast on Supreme Court bullshit is good.
The Ancients is hit or miss, sometimes very good though depending on the guest.
Film pods:
Film Comment
LexG Movie Podcast, this guy is unbelievable, listen to his one on Tom Cruise, I don't think he takes a breath in over an hour.
You Must Remember This
Kermode & Mayo is very entertaining.
3 I found that the back catalog for In Our Time only goes back so far on the Apple iPhone podcast app but you can see everything using BBC sounds.
Eleanor Janega usually does lively, medieval to early modern podcasts, she's well-informed and engaging.
The French History podcast also pretty good.
Litte Red Podcast for recent China is good, can be really detailed, I listen to the episodes I like twice, once to get broad arc and the second time for detail.
Maddow's Bag Man about Spiro Agnew.
Thin End of the Wedge for the ancient near east
Thin End of the Wedge for the ancient near east
I'm not seeing that on the Apple iPhone podcast app.
LexG Movie Podcast, this guy is unbelievable, listen to his one on Tom Cruise, I don't think he takes a breath in over an hour.
The one titled "TOM CRUISE LIGHTNING ROUND"? I ask because that one is just 31 minutes. There are others over an hour.
12 Yes that one, I misremembered how long it is. The guy is like an encyclopedia of 1960s onward Hollywood.
I don't even own a podcast, but I'm enjoying "Thundersticks", a book teo recommended here a couple of weeks ago.
Wasn't me! Someone else recommended that, I forget who. I haven't read it, though it sounds interesting.
I'm a big fan of Eric Marcus's Making Gay History, which has a US focus: https://makinggayhistory.com/
Karina Longworth's "You must remember this" for 20th century Hollywood.
11: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/thin-end-of-the-wedge/id1534428319
17: Yep, you have pegged my taste. That's also on my subscription list, but I think it's slowly petering out.
17.1 Thanks! I don't know why it doesn't show up in search.
17.2 See 7 under "Film pods"
8: Arms Control Wonk is great for thr complete mismatch between tone and content. They get positively giddy about new IRBMs. But maybe a bit warry for heebie?
20 It's also instilled some perverse incentives, I find myself hoping that Iran or DPRK will test a new missile soon so we can get another pod.
I wonder how many of the remaining contingent of 00's blogs are now as much podcast-based as post-based.
Doug Henwood's Behind the News is also excellent.
Also Age of Napoleon.
I don't think I listen to many podcasts that specifically do history all the time as a narrative structure but I listen to some podcasts that often incorporate history into their episodes:
You're Wrong About (maybe this actually is a history podcast?)
99% Invisible
Code Switch
Know Your Enemy
RIP Corp
East Bay Yesterday (very local niche though)
Kind of niche, but if you're interested in the history of country music I enjoy Cocaine and Rhinestones.
I'll never listen to that, but I appreciate the name.
I loved Uncivil, and am mad that it apparently got canceled for semi-nefarious but unclear reasons.
I like the content from Found in Philadelphia, but it's pretty dry in presentation/style.
Now to read the thread!
In a completely different and much more niche genre, I recently discovered 9 Chickweed Rage, where two random people spend an inordinate period of timing (45 minutes growing to an hour) boggling at the nonsensicalities and bad/horny drawing in a selection of 9 Chickweed Lane comics.
The local paper won't let them show penetration any more.
Only Mary Worth is allowed that, I guess because of tradition.
How do people listen to podcasts? I don't mean where do you find them, but more like what are you physically doing. Because in my imagination you're gathered around your phones like Dust Bowl farmers around the radio.
32: For me, mostly while jogging or in the car. Recently sometimes in the shower as there's a high ledge I can put my phone on.
History of Rome is excellent, but has a steep learning curve and not quite as good as Revolutions. History of Byzantium is excellent, and if anything gets even more I to the historiography. History of England is also quite excellent with a focus on historiography. History of Persia is ok, though a bit harder to get through. History of Greece is also ok if you can deal with systematic mispronunciations. When diplomacy fails is excellent, though he returns to topics and redoes them so you might want to go backwards. He also has a very soothing Irish accent. From Wittenberg to Westphalia is excellent when he posts and if you just forget the premise of the podcast, as he's 5 years(?) In and still nowhere near early modern Europe. I also want to second Fall of civilizations podcast.
The Constant; a history of getting things wrong is also worth listening to. A Chicago comedian does history of science.
History of Italy is charming and the episodes are short, but I find the narration isn't as gripping. With history of Rome the first 5-10 episodes are fairly off-putting but also mercifully short, and the pay off is great once Mike Duncan figured out the genre.
I mostly listen to podcasts when driving long drives but if I start falling behind on episodes I might listen while doing dishes or cleaning. Most of my intentionally running background noise at home is tv.
I have a teenager with a 2nd floor bedroom and a tendency to drop heavy things for that.
Its killing me that I've finished both History of Rome and Revolutions.
The French History Podcast is decent. Going with the theme I also enjoyed Coffee Break French, which is a language-learning thing. Coffee Break Spanish also too.
I Don't Speak German is hit or miss. If you want to get the backstory on various right wing extremest groups of our time, its good for that.
Early Stuart England (concluded), Nations of Canada (ongoing). In the Duncan mode, but much higher quality.
A History of Rock Music in 500 Songs is really good.
The host covers stuff like labor conditions, race relations, legal factors, etc. So it's not a "hey isn't rock music groovy!" celebratory nostalgia-fest type of thing, although he clearly loves the music too.
Unrelated, but if anyone is a fan of The Damned (original line-up!) and can be in Manchester England next Thursday, November 3rd, a friend of mine has a free ticket available. Enquire within.
Reiterating History of Byzantium and You Must Remember This.
Canadaland has some linked series that folks might enjoy that tackle recent history in Canada including Cool Mules, White Saviours, and ones on real estate, mining and 'great' families in Canada (they're all under the War podcast, just have to go back to earlier episodes).
Still recommending A History of the World in 100 Objects from the BBC and the economics equivalent (50 objects).
Also Terrible Lizards is a great dinosaur podcast.
Still recommending A History of the World in 100 Objects from the BBC and the economics equivalent (50 objects)
I enjoyed the BBC's Germany: Memories of a Nation, which has the same presenter and a somewhat similar format.
Wait wait wait. Hold everything.
Ha-ha, you fool! You fell victim to one of the classic blunders, the most famous of which is "Never get involved in a land war in Asia," but only slightly less well known is this: "Never go in against a Sicilian, when death is on the line!"
Vizzini is saying that the most famous classic blunder is not getting involved in land wars in Asia!
Which would make sense. Vizzini thinks that, compared to him, Plato, Aristotle and Socrates were idiots. Because none of them ever got involved in a land war in Asia. (Socrates fought in the Peloponnesian War but that was in the Peloponnese, obvs.) Aristotle taught Alexander, who of course famously did get involved in multiple land wars in Asia and did very well out of it. Aristotle missed a trick by not doing so himself, in Vizzini's opinion.
Yes. He later got a job working for the Johnson administration.
And one absolutely should take every opportunity to go in against Sicilians when death is on the line, as Vizzini's defeat and death, ironically, demonstrates very well!
I don't look Sicilian enough to threaten very well, but my grandmother's parents were born there and her first language was the Sicilian dialect.
I'll second the recommendation for Tides of History. Wyman also did one on the Fall of Rome before starting Tides of History. You could also check out the AskHistorians podcast which covers whatever period the historian on that week's episode wants to discuss.
I'm kinda assuming these are all Minivet recs more than Heebie recs?
Feels like, but from the descriptions you might like History of the World in 100 Objects.
54: Maybe you would like the Slate - One Year podcasts?
I do! It's kind of lite history.
Another podcast I like is Heavyweight. It's not history. It's an odd combination of terrible humor and sentimentality that somehow often makes me laugh through my tears.
I just listened to We Were Three, a podcast by Nancy Updike from Serial. You get to know some hardcore Covid deniers (that died of Covid!) up-close and personal.
I sometimes like Heavyweight! He's trying to find closure for people. I think he's better when he's not trying to be deep.
I'll try the Slate pitch, though!
Mine are Heebie recs!
And someone here needs to listen to Who Weekly. It might be Heebie. It might be peep. It might be a lurker.
Has anyone listened to Travis Dow's history of Germany or the Bohemican podcasts? Are they any good?