Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society

Is this the story of a sex crazed empress? Or just some good (really) old-fashioned gossip?

Was Messalina, wife of Emperor Claudius, really a sex worker by night? And did she really marry another man whilst her very powerful husband was still alive?

This episode of Betwixt contains possibly the biggest scandal to take place in Ancient Rome, brought to us by the wonderful Alexander Meddings.

This episode was edited by Hannah Feodorov. The producer was Sophie Gee. The senior producer was Freddy Chick.

Subscribe to the new Betwixt The Sheets YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@BetwixtTheSheetsPodcast

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All music from Epidemic Sounds.

Betwixt the Sheets: History of Sex, Scandal & Society is a History Hit podcast.

History Hit is part of Little Dot Studios, a Certified B Corp™
Voting is now open for the Listener's Choice Award at this year's Podcast Awards! UK & Ireland listeners please place your vote on the Spotify mobile app here: https://open.spotify.com/s/xhg6PJa

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Forget what you think about fairies... they are not cute and definitely not harmless.

In today's episode we're going back centuries to a time when they could take human form and were mentioned as part of the witch trials.

What are the rules of talking to a fairy? What are the differences between Irish and Scottish fairies? And what influence did Shakespeare have on how we see fairies?!

Joining Kate today is Diane Purkiss, historian and author of books including Fairies and Fairy Stories and The Museum of Witchcraft.

This podcast was edited by Tim Arstall. The producer was Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Freddy Chick.

Subscribe to the new Betwixt The Sheets YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@BetwixtTheSheetsPodcast

Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.

You can take part in our listener survey here.

All music from Epidemic Sounds.

Betwixt the Sheets: History of Sex, Scandal & Society is a History Hit podcast.

History Hit is part of Little Dot Studios, a Certified B Corp™
Voting is now open for the Listener's Choice Award at this year's Podcast Awards! UK & Ireland listeners please place your vote on the Spotify mobile app here: https://open.spotify.com/s/xhg6PJa

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

*TRIGGER WARNING: CONTAINS OLD NORSE SWEAR WORDS*

How would you insult a Viking? What strange nicknames did they give each other? And what did a Viking rap battle sound like?!

Brush up on your Old Norse and impress your friends with the most obscene Viking swear words. To help you out and talk Kate through the reasons behind their offensive language is historian and author Dr Eleanor Barraclough.

This episode was edited by Hannah Feodorov. The producer was Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Freddy Chick.

Check out the new Betwixt The Sheets YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@BetwixtTheSheetsPodcast

Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.

You can take part in our listener survey here.

All music from Epidemic Sounds.

Betwixt the Sheets: History of Sex, Scandal & Society is a History Hit podcast.

History Hit is part of Little Dot Studios, a Certified B Corp™
Voting is now open for the Listener's Choice Award at this year's Podcast Awards! UK & Ireland listeners please place your vote on the Spotify mobile app here: https://open.spotify.com/s/xhg6PJa

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

What happened to King Tut's 'Little Tut' during mummification? The rumour is that he took an erection to the afterlife, but what can we know after several millennia and a very rough excavation?

Dr Campbell Price came into the studio to bust a few myths about the boy Pharaoh. But not to worry, for every myth busted, Campbell has another golden nugget!

Campbell is Curator of Egypt & Sudan at Manchester Museum.

This episode was edited by Hannah Feodorov. The producer was Sophie Gee. The senior producer was Freddy Chick.

Subscribe to the new Betwixt The Sheets YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@BetwixtTheSheetsPodcast

Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.

You can take part in our listener survey here.

All music from Epidemic Sounds.

Betwixt the Sheets: History of Sex, Scandal & Society is a History Hit podcast.

History Hit is part of Little Dot Studios, a Certified B Corp™
Voting is now open for the Listener's Choice Award at this year's Podcast Awards! UK & Ireland listeners please place your vote on the Spotify mobile app here: https://open.spotify.com/s/xhg6PJa

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

STOLEN! Jesus' foreskin!

Well, maybe not. But 2000 years after his birth, where might Jesus' foreskin be? And why does it matter to people?

Kate is joined by Dr James White for this episode to find out how the Holy Prepuce has supposedly survived the last two centuries, and what it has meant to the people devoted to it.

James is a historian of late medieval Europe, with a special interest in the body, gender, and religion. He teaches at the University of Alberta, where his research has focused on
late medieval devotion to the Holy Foreskin and anti-Jewish condemnation of circumcision by Christians.

This episode was edited by Hannah Feodorov. The producer was Sophie Gee. The senior producer was Freddy Chick.

Subscribe to the new Betwixt The Sheets YouTube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/@BetwixtTheSheetsPodcast

Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.

You can take part in our listener survey here.

All music from Epidemic Sounds.

Betwixt the Sheets: History of Sex, Scandal & Society is a History Hit podcast.

History Hit is part of Little Dot Studios, a Certified B Corp™
Voting is now open for the Listener's Choice Award at this year's Podcast Awards! UK & Ireland listeners please place your vote on the Spotify mobile app here: https://open.spotify.com/s/xhg6PJa

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.