What We Did Before | A History of Everyday Life

OG Podcasts - Exploring Human History
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Before modern inventions and conveniences, humans had ingenious ways of solving problems. So how exactly did humans survive before fridges, without clothes or before surnames were invented? Find out the answers to these questions and more, right here. Hosted by Ollie Guillou.

  1. 6 days ago ·  Video

    Before We Had Answers: When Witches Met At This Ancient Grave

    💬 At this ancient monolithic burial chamber, witches were said to convene with the devil to conduct The Black Mass. This imposing Dolmen came up time and time again in the brutal witch trials of the 16th and 17th centuries. ⚡ This was a time when witchcraft was truely a force to be feared. But why did we believe so strongly that our neighbours were placing curses on us? And why were people burned for a crime that didn’t exist? In this episode we visit Le Trépied in Guernsey at the dead of night, to walk in the footsteps of the witches that were said to meet there. Citing the work of Marie de Garis, Sir Edgar MacCulloch and John Linwood Pitts, we discuss the witch hysteria that once plagued this island’s shores. Thanks to Freelance artist Etienne Marquis, for letting us use a video of his painting, depicting the devil atop Le Trépied. It’s on display at Candie Museums in Guernsey. See his work here: https://www.etiennemarquis.com/ Visit Candie Museum: https://museums.gov.gg/gmag  Don't miss an episode - subscribe now: https://podfollow.com/what-we-did-before About the podcast: What We Did Before is a podcast exploring the history of everyday life, from how we kept food fresh before fridges, to how we survived without shoes and what came before AI. About your host: Ollie Guillou is an award-winning podcast producer and broadcaster. He's co-founder of OG Podcasts, working with the likes of New Scientist, Dr Karan and Lessons From Our Mothers. Connect with Ollie: Website: www.ogpodcasts.co.uk  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ollie-guillou  Email: hello@ogpodcasts.co.uk Support the show

  2. 17 Aug ·  Video

    Before Radar: How The Hearing of "Aircraft Listeners" Saved Lives

    💬 Long before radar, armies relied on people with enormous metal trumpets strapped to their heads to listen for approaching aircraft. Aircraft listeners had the bizarre but vital job of detecting the sound of enemy planes, working in exposed positions and often in difficult conditions to give early warning of an incoming attack. ⚡Before radar transformed air defence, these acoustic listening devices were used to track aircraft by sound. Operators would work together to determine the apparent direction and elevation of an aircraft, while another operator could plot their observations and use pre-calculated flight curves, speed and altitude corrections to work out where the aircraft was and where it was heading. But as radar developed, these strange listening stations became obsolete almost overnight - a fascinating example of how a vital job can disappear when technology changes, and a lesson that rings true for many of us in the modern world. In this episode, we discuss how aircraft listeners operated, and how this early aerial-warfare defence mechanism saved countless lives - at the sacrifice of the aircraft listeners own safety and health - only to be made redundant and almost forgotten to history within a few short years. Don't miss an episode - subscribe now:https://podfollow.com/what-we-did-before About the podcast: What We Did Before is a podcast where we chart the history of modern inventions, from how we kept food fresh before fridges, to how we survived without shoes and what came before AI. About your hosts: Ollie Guillou is an award-winning podcast producer and broadcaster. He's co-founder of OG Podcasts, working with the likes of New Scientist, Dr Karan and Lessons From Our Mothers. Matt Pyle is a lead software developer and tech enthusiast with a keen interest in media, and a love for interesting conversation and learning. Connect with Ollie: Website: www.ogpodcasts.co.uk  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ollie-guillou  Email: hello@ogpodcasts.co.uk Sources: Тревожные ночи Москвы. Автор – Н. Грановский. Москва. 1941 г. By Mos.ru, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=186335796 Soldiers operating an acoustic airplane locator during World War 2, Trelleborg, Sweden, 1940. By Carl Gunnar Rosborn - My father, I´m now the only owner., Attribution, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7568060 Three acoustic early warning devices 2360m east of Jack's Court By Teseum - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=94396566 Support the show

    Before Radar: How The Hearing of "Aircraft Listeners" Saved Lives

  3. 10 Aug ·  Video

    Before Prisons: Local Justice & the World's Smallest Prison

    💬 Herm island might just be home to the world’s smallest prison. And yet it’s not the world record holder - that title belongs to a very close neighbour. So why doesn’t Herm prison hold the record - and what was such a tiny jail used for?  ⚡Herm is an island in the English Channel with a population of just 65, but it has lived many different lives over the years. Take a trip to the beautiful shores of Herm to see its tiny prison up close and learn about its history with Guernsey tour guide Korinne Le Page. Don't miss an episode - subscribe now: https://podfollow.com/what-we-did-before  Book a Tour with Korinne Le Page: https://guernseytourguide.co.uk/  About the podcast: What We Did Before is a podcast exploring the history of everyday life, from how we kept food fresh before fridges, to how we survived without shoes and what came before AI. About your host: Ollie Guillou is an award-winning podcast producer and broadcaster. He's co-founder of OG Podcasts, working with the likes of New Scientist, Dr Karan and Lessons From Our Mothers. Connect with Ollie: Website: www.ogpodcasts.co.uk  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ollie-guillou  Email: hello@ogpodcasts.co.uk Image Credit: St Tugual's Chapel op Herm: Gebruiker:Henkgron https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/deed.en  Support the show

    Before Prisons: Local Justice & the World's Smallest Prison

  4. 27 July ·  Video

    Before Sewers: How Toshers Had One of Victorian Britain's Most Disgusting Jobs

    💬 Toshers had one of the most disgusting jobs of Victorian Britain. Searching the sewers of 19th century London, people would sieve through human sewage looking for discarded treasures. It’s a job that made them a lot of money - but came with many hazards. ⚡Before the sewage system we know today, Victorian London was a very smelly city. With the population expanding fast thanks to the industrial revolution, London became the biggest city in the world, home to more than 2 million people. But the sewer system couldn’t keep up. The Toshers took advantage of this growth of people - and all the valuables they lost underneath the city - and ended up quite well off among the working class. Don't miss an episode - subscribe now: https://podfollow.com/what-we-did-before  About the podcast: What We Did Before is a podcast exploring the history of everyday life, from how we kept food fresh before fridges, to how we survived without shoes and what came before AI. About your hosts: Ollie Guillou is an award-winning podcast producer and broadcaster. He's co-founder of OG Podcasts, working with the likes of New Scientist, Dr Karan and Lessons From Our Mothers. Matt Pyle is a lead software developer and tech enthusiast with a keen interest in media, and a love for interesting conversation and learning. Connect with Ollie: Website: www.ogpodcasts.co.uk  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ollie-guillou  Email: hello@ogpodcasts.co.uk  Support the show

    Before Sewers: How Toshers Had One of Victorian Britain's Most Disgusting Jobs

  5. 20 July ·  Video

    Before Cotton Left Britain: Inside Bancroft Mill Where The Weaving Looms Still Run

    💬 This is the deafening noise that powered Britain's Industrial Revolution. At its peak, thousands of men and women spent their days surrounded by the relentless clatter of weaving looms - a workplace so loud that many workers gradually lost their hearing. ⚡ Yet despite the dangers, becoming a weaver was a skilled and sought-after job. Britain's cotton industry transformed Lancashire into the workshop of the world, with entire communities built around the mills. But what was daily life really like inside them? In this episode I visit Bancroft Mill, one of the last surviving steam-powered weaving sheds, where the looms still run today. Secretary of the museum Ian McKay explains what it was like to be a cotton weaver, why so many people chose the profession, and what happened when Britain's once-mighty cotton industry began to disappear. Don't miss an episode - subscribe now:https://podfollow.com/what-we-did-before 🎧 Stay tuned to learn about: ➡ What a weaving shed really sounded like ➡ Why many weavers gradually lost their hearing ➡ How James Nutter opened this mill having come from nothing ➡ How Lancashire became the heart of the world's cotton industry ➡ Why Britain's cotton mills eventually fell silent ➡ What life was really like for the people who powered the Industrial Revolution About the podcast: What We Did Before is a podcast exploring the history of everyday life, from how we kept food fresh before fridges, to how we survived without shoes and what came before AI. About your host: Ollie Guillou is an award-winning podcast producer and broadcaster. He's co-founder of OG Podcasts, working with the likes of New Scientist, Dr Karan and Lessons From Our Mothers. Connect with Ollie: Website: www.ogpodcasts.co.uk  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ollie-guillou  Email: hello@ogpodcasts.co.uk   Support the show

    Before Cotton Left Britain: Inside Bancroft Mill Where The Weaving Looms Still Run

  6. 13 July ·  Video

    Before Cushioned Shoes: The 1970s Style That Changed Footwear Forever

    💬 Shoes got a massive makeover 50 years ago, thanks to a boom in interest for running. A style that first emerged in the 1970s quickly became the dominant one - cushioned soles, elevated heels, narrow toes. And it’s the style we still see today. But why?  ⚡ Humans spent hundreds of thousands of years barefoot - and when we did make shoes, they were made of plant fibres or thin animal hides. We’ve cycled through many variations over the years, but today’s shoes are very different - maximising comfort and protection. Steven Sashen is the founder of barefoot shoe brand Xero. He explains how today’s shoe style was first adopted, how marketing made it spread - and why one the original designers described it as the biggest mistake he made in his career. Don't miss an episode - subscribe now: https://podfollow.com/what-we-did-before  🎧 Stay tuned to learn about: ➡ How Nike’s first waffle shoe started the shift ➡ Why the science driving the change was problematic ➡ The strange Medieval trend of wearing mega pointy “poulaines” ➡ Why barefoot runners today don’t experience life like our ancestors ➡ How barefoot shoes emerged and what they’re doing differently About the podcast: What We Did Before is a podcast exploring the history of everyday life, from how we kept food fresh before fridges, to how we survived without shoes and what came before AI. About your host: Ollie Guillou is an award-winning podcast producer and broadcaster. He's co-founder of OG Podcasts, working with the likes of New Scientist, Dr Karan and Lessons From Our Mothers. Connect with Ollie: Website: www.ogpodcasts.co.uk  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ollie-guillou  Email: hello@ogpodcasts.co.uk Image Credits: (Fort Rock sandals) Ian Poellet, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons   Support the show

    Before Cushioned Shoes: The 1970s Style That Changed Footwear Forever

  7. 30 June ·  Video

    Before Weapons: Unearthing Ancient Wooden Tools and Spears | Dr Annemieke Milks

    💬 Archaeologists have found evidence of the oldest wooden handheld tools used by humans. Discovered in Greece, these ancient tools are around 430,000 years old. ⚡Dr Annemieke Milks is a palaeolithic archaeologist and part of the team which identified the objects. They were recovered from Marathousa, a Middle Pleistocene site which may have been inhabited by Homo heidelbergensis - one of our distant ancestors. In this episode we find out about this incredible discovery - and discuss Annemieke’s wider research looking into the ancient wooden hunting weapons used by humans in the deep past. Don't miss an episode - subscribe now: https://podfollow.com/what-we-did-before  🎧 Stay tuned to learn about: ➡ What these wooden hand-tools would’ve been used for ➡ How this wood has been preserved for so long ➡ The prehistoric wooden spears discovered at Schöningen in Germany ➡ What shifts in weapon design tell us about the cognitive abilities of ancient humans ➡ The emerging field of children’s archaeology Read the paper: https://www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/pnas.2515479123  About the podcast: What We Did Before is a podcast exploring the history of everyday life, from how we kept food fresh before fridges, to how we survived without shoes and what came before AI. About your host: Ollie Guillou is an award-winning podcast producer and broadcaster. He's co-founder of OG Podcasts, working with the likes of New Scientist, Dr Karan and Lessons From Our Mothers. Connect with Ollie: Website: www.ogpodcasts.co.uk  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ollie-guillou  Email: hello@ogpodcasts.co.uk   Image Credits: https://www.researchgate.net/figure/Annual-ring-analysis-a-Taphonomic-transverse-break-surface-from-where-micro-cuts-were_fig5_372470761 Support the show

    Before Weapons: Unearthing Ancient Wooden Tools and Spears | Dr Annemieke Milks

  8. 22 June ·  Video

    Before Instagram: Why Rich People Built Fake Ruins

    💬 There’s a ruined archway sitting among the trees of my local park - but what grand building did it once belong to? A castle? A church? A grand manor house? In this episode I take a trip to Worden Park in Leyland. Rich in history, this park was once the estate of James Nowell Farington, who set about a major programme of improvements when he inherited it in 1837. ⚡ Join me on a trip to visit an archway with a very strange backstory, a Victorian-era ice house decorated with ancient ornaments, and a stone that landed in the park during the last Ice Age. Don't miss an episode - subscribe now: https://podfollow.com/what-we-did-before  About the podcast: What We Did Before is a podcast exploring the history of everyday life, from how we kept food fresh before fridges, to how we survived without shoes and what came before AI. About your host: Ollie Guillou is an award-winning podcast producer and broadcaster. He's co-founder of OG Podcasts, working with the likes of New Scientist, Dr Karan and Lessons From Our Mothers. Connect with Ollie: Website: www.ogpodcasts.co.uk  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ollie-guillou  Email: hello@ogpodcasts.co.uk Image Credits:  Paul Brooker / Ralph Allens Castle Sham Castle, Bathampton by Humphrey Bolton, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0 via Wikimedia Commons Sham Castle, Bathampton Down by Elliott Simpson, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0 via Wikimedia Commons buzzard525, CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0 via Wikimedia Commons Artur Kozioł, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0 via Wikimedia Commons St. Andrew's Church by philandju, CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0 via Wikimedia Commons Colin Smith / Inside Broome Park Ice House   Support the show

    Before Instagram: Why Rich People Built Fake Ruins
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Before modern inventions and conveniences, humans had ingenious ways of solving problems. So how exactly did humans survive before fridges, without clothes or before surnames were invented? Find out the answers to these questions and more, right here. Hosted by Ollie Guillou.

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