Real Dictators

Noiser
  • 4.8 (1.3K)
  • HISTORY
  • UPDATED SEMIWEEKLY
Real Dictators
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Real Dictators is the award-winning podcast that explores the hidden lives of history's tyrants. Hosted by Paul McGann, with contributions from eyewitnesses and expert historians. New episodes available one week early for Noiser+ subscribers. You'll also get ad-free listening and exclusive content. To find out more about Noiser+, head to noiser.com/subscriptions. For advertising enquiries, email info@adelicious.fm Production: Joel Duddell, Ed Baranski, Miriam Baines, Tom Pink, George Tapp, Dorry Macaulay, Cian Ryan-Morgan, Anisha Devadasan, Joseph McGann. Compositions by Oliver Baines, Dorry Macaulay, Tom Pink. We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to Indeed.com/real for £100 sponsored credit.

  1. MAR 28 · BONUS • NOISER+ ONLY

    Stalin’s Statues (Subscriber only episode)

    This is a bonus episode for Noiser+ subscribers. Real Dictators continues to be available for free wherever you get your shows. We’ll be back with the Fidel Castro story on April 30th. Dictators throughout history have put up statues… often of themselves. This was particularly the case in the Soviet Union. Why was it that effigies of Lenin and Stalin became quite so commonplace? What do these statues tell us about how these dictators projected power, and continued to wield it - even in death? To find out more, Duncan Barrett spoke to Alex von Tunzelmann - author of Fallen Idols: Twelve Statues That Made History.

    25 min

  2. JAN 29

    Benito Mussolini Part 7: Break for the Border…

    As Italy switches sides, Hitler hatches a plan to rescue his pal. But with the Axis collapsing on all fronts, Mussolini makes for Switzerland - stowed away and in disguise. For Il Duce’s enemies, the race is on to get to him first. His downfall will come at the hands of his own people… A Noiser production, written by Jeff Dawson. Many thanks to Giulia Albanese, Joshua Arthurs, John Foot, Nicholas O’Shaughnessy, Lisa Pine, Helen Roche. This is Part 7 of 7. Real Dictators will be back soon with, among others, the stories of Fidel Castro and Jean-Bédel Bokassa as well as some bonus content. Stay tuned... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    1h 9m

  3. JAN 22

    Benito Mussolini Part 6: The Road to Perdition

    It all starts to go horribly wrong… After the disastrous invasion of Greece, Mussolini sends troops to Russia. Benito’s Blitz prompts bemusement in Britain. An Italian assassin somehow survives the firing squad. A famous American mobster helps the Allies in Sicily. And Il Duce’s son telephones his father with devastating news… A Noiser production, written by Jeff Dawson. Many thanks to Giulia Albanese, Joshua Arthurs, John Foot, Nicholas O’Shaughnessy, Lisa Pine, Helen Roche. This is Part 6 of 7. Get every episode of Real Dictators a week early with Noiser+. You’ll also get ad-free listening, bonus material and early access to shows across the Noiser network. Click the Noiser+ banner to get started. Or, if you’re on Spotify or Android, go to noiser.com/subscriptions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    1h 5m

  4. JAN 15

    Benito Mussolini Part 5: The Pact of Steel

    At the Munich Conference, Mussolini postures as a peacemaker. With Hitler in the ascendancy, the Rome-Berlin Axis is upgraded to a military alliance. High on fascist adrenaline, Il Duce invades Albania. Soon, in the backdraft of the German Blitzkrieg, he will declare war on Britain and France… A Noiser production, written by Jeff Dawson. Many thanks to Giulia Albanese, Joshua Arthurs, John Foot, Nicholas O’Shaughnessy, Lisa Pine, Helen Roche, Thomas Weber. This is Part 5 of 7. Get every episode of Real Dictators a week early with Noiser+. You’ll also get ad-free listening, bonus material and early access to shows across the Noiser network. Click the Noiser+ banner to get started. Or, if you’re on Spotify or Android, go to noiser.com/subscriptions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    1h 1m

  5. JAN 8

    Benito Mussolini Part 4: A Fine Bromance

    Il Duce uses propaganda to become a folk hero - part saint, part Father Christmas. He bans journalists from mentioning his birthday or the fact he’s a grandfather - to promote an image of eternal youth. Ernest Hemingway arrives in Switzerland to interview the Italian strongman, and sees right through him. Italy launches a genocidal campaign in Libya and gets away with it. And as the World Cup comes to the Fatherland, Benito Mussolini prepares to finally meet one Adolf Hitler… A Noiser production, written by Jeff Dawson. Many thanks to Giulia Albanese, Joshua Arthurs, John Foot, Nicholas O’Shaughnessy, Lisa Pine, Helen Roche. This is Part 4 of 7. Get every episode of Real Dictators a week early with Noiser+. You’ll also get ad-free listening, bonus material and early access to shows across the Noiser network. Click the Noiser+ banner to get started. Or, if you’re on Spotify or Android, go to noiser.com/subscriptions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    1h 5m

  6. JAN 1

    Benito Mussolini Part 3: Murder in Broad Daylight

    World leaders line up to hail the new Italian strongman. But the fascists are already silencing dissenting voices. An epochal discovery in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings unleashes a curse, or so Mussolini believes. Il Duce gets his top off in the wheat fields - making sure to be caught on camera. He comes to an arrangement with the Pope and meets the woman who will ultimately die by his side. Meanwhile, an Anglo-Irish aristocrat prepares to make an astonishing attempt on Mussolini’s life… A Noiser production, written by Jeff Dawson. Many thanks to Giulia Albanese, Joshua Arthurs, John Foot, Nicholas O’Shaughnessy, Lisa Pine, Helen Roche. This is Part 3 of 7. Get every episode of Real Dictators a week early with Noiser+. You’ll also get ad-free listening, bonus material and early access to shows across the Noiser network. Click the Noiser+ banner to get started. Or, if you’re on Spotify or Android, go to noiser.com/subscriptions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    1h 6m

  7. 2024-12-18

    Benito Mussolini Part 2: The March on Rome

    Wounded at the Front, Mussolini’s war ends early. A playboy aristocrat forms his own private army, offering inspiration to Il Duce. As Italian workers go on strike, Mussolini’s goons crack skulls on the streets. And in a smoke-filled hall in Milan, he declares the birth of a new movement. His fascists will soon begin an audacious march on the capital… A Noiser production, written by Jeff Dawson. Many thanks to Giulia Albanese, Joshua Arthurs, John Foot, Nicholas O’Shaughnessy, Lisa Pine, Helen Roche. This is Part 2 of 7. Get every episode of Real Dictators a week early with Noiser+. You’ll also get ad-free listening, bonus material and early access to shows across the Noiser network. Click the Noiser+ banner to get started. Or, if you’re on Spotify or Android, go to noiser.com/subscriptions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    1h 8m
  8. Introducing: Sherlock Holmes Short Stories

    2024-12-16 · BONUS

    Introducing: Sherlock Holmes Short Stories

    A brand-new release from the Noiser Network. Join Hugh Bonneville on a thrilling journey through Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s most celebrated Holmes mysteries - read in their original, masterful form. If you enjoy this taster episode, search ’Sherlock Holmes Short Stories’ in your podcast app and hit follow for more episodes. Or follow this link: https://podfollow.com/sherlock-holmes-short-stories-1 Part 2 of The Adventure of the Speckled Band is live now and waiting for you. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    31 min
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Trailers

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    • 4.8 (794)
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    • 4.8 (121)
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    • 4.7 (7)
    • HISTORY

  • On History Daily, we do history, daily. Every weekday, host Lindsay Graham (American Scandal, American History Tellers) takes you back in time to explore a momentous event that happened ‘on this day’ in history. Whether it’s to remember the tragedy of December 7th, 1941, the day “that will live in infamy,” or to celebrate that 20th day in July, 1969, when mankind reached the moon, History Daily is there to tell you the true stories of the people and events that shaped our world—one day at a time. So if you’re stuck in traffic, bored at work—wherever you are, listen to History Daily to remind yourself that something incredible happened to make that day historic.

    • 4.5 (257)
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  • Titanic: Ship of Dreams is the new podcast from the award winning Noiser Network. Launching April 8th 2025. Join host Paul McGann as he explores life and death on the most infamous ship in history. You'll be right there on board - mingling with the first-class passengers in their opulent surrounds and rubbing shoulders with the passengers down in steerage. Setting sail from Southampton, chugging across the Atlantic, striking the iceberg and sinking into the icy depths... We'll hear the harrowing tales of the victims and the testimonies of the lucky survivors. And Paul explores his own family story, following his great uncle Jimmy McGann - a trimmer down in Titanic's engine room. _______________________________________________________________________ Available for free wherever you get your podcasts or at noiser.com Early access to new episodes and ad-free listening for Noiser+ subscribers. Click the Noiser+ banner or head to noiser.com/subscriptions to find out more. Narrated by Paul McGann. Produced by Duncan Barrett and Miriam Baines. Written by Duncan Barrett. Exec produced by Joel Duddell. Audio by Miri Latham, Thomas Pink, Dorry Macaulay, Cian Ryan-Morgan, Anisha Deva, George Tapp. Recording engineer: Joseph McGann. Music by Dorry Macaulay and Oliver Baines. Nautical consultant: Aaron Todd.

    • 5.0 (2)
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Hosts & Guests

4.8
out of 5
1,252 Ratings

About

Real Dictators is the award-winning podcast that explores the hidden lives of history's tyrants. Hosted by Paul McGann, with contributions from eyewitnesses and expert historians. New episodes available one week early for Noiser+ subscribers. You'll also get ad-free listening and exclusive content. To find out more about Noiser+, head to noiser.com/subscriptions. For advertising enquiries, email info@adelicious.fm Production: Joel Duddell, Ed Baranski, Miriam Baines, Tom Pink, George Tapp, Dorry Macaulay, Cian Ryan-Morgan, Anisha Devadasan, Joseph McGann. Compositions by Oliver Baines, Dorry Macaulay, Tom Pink. We are sponsored by Indeed. Go to Indeed.com/real for £100 sponsored credit.

Information

  • Channel
    Noiser
  • Creator
    NOISER
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2025
  • Episodes
    141
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Show Website
    Real Dictators
  • Provider
    Noiser Ltd

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