Today In History with The Retrospectors The Retrospectors

Rerun: Spectacle, camp and glamour were NOT on the agenda in Lugano, Switzerland on 24th May, 1956: the inaugural Eurovision Song Contest was broadcast mostly on the radio, and featured a whistling duo as its interval act. Who had to perform twice.
Voting controversy, however, was enshrined in the institution right from the outset - as Judges were permitted to award points to their own nations, and vote in absentia.
In this episode, Rebecca, Olly and Arion reveal which countries have most consistently scored the famous ‘nul points’; consider why the future of the contest seems to lie Eastwards, and revisit Israel’s entry from 1999, ‘Happy Birthday’...
Further Reading:
• Lys Assia wins the first Eurovision for Switzerland: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IyqIPvOkiRk
• Facts and Figures from the 1956 contest at the official Eurovision website:
https://eurovision.tv/event/lugano-1956
• Full list of 1956 voting and points from Eurovisionworld:
https://eurovisionworld.com/eurovision/1956
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Each Thursday and Friday we repeat stories from our archive of 800+ episodes, so we can maintain the quality of our independent podcast and bring you fresh, free content every Monday-Wednesday… 
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Rerun: Throwing people out of windows might seem a peculiar way to protest, but it’s happened so often in history, it’s got a special name: defenestration. And perhaps the most significant of all - because it brought about the Thirty Years War - was the assault on three Habsburg officials by Bohemian malcontents in Prague on 23rd May, 1618.
The dispute had kicked off when Ferdinand II refused permission for some Protestants to build a new place of worship on a piece of land - and then granted it to Catholics instead. Dick move.
In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly consider whether ‘a bloodthirsty mob of Christians’ is a contradiction in terms; explain why 1618 was a bad year to take a secretarial job; and how, despite triggering the bloodiest war yet seen in Europe, Ferdinand II still managed to insert humour into proceedings… 
Further Reading:
• ‘Defenestration: The Bloody History Of Throwing People Out Of A Window’ (All That’s Interesting, 2022): https://allthatsinteresting.com/defenestration
• ‘What Happened At The 1618 Defenestration of Prague?’ (History Extra, 2020): https://www.historyextra.com/period/stuart/1618-defenestration-prague-facts-history-explained-what-happened-why-castle-protestant-catholic/
• ‘The 30 Years' War (1618-48) and the Second Defenestration of Prague - Professor Peter Wilson’ (Gresham College, 2018):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7vxXfy09EA&t=134s
‘Why am I hearing a rerun?’
Each Thursday and Friday we repeat stories from our archive of 800+ episodes, so we can maintain the quality of our independent podcast and bring you fresh, free content every Monday-Wednesday… 
… But 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴members get an additional full-length episode each Sunday! Join now with a free trial on Apple Podcasts or Patreon and support our show ❤️

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When Jerry Lee Lewis landed at Heathrow Airport for his first UK tour on 22nd May, 1958, he was met with a flurry of journalists eager for a scoop. Yet just one question brought everything to a halt: "Who are you?". 
A wide-eyed girl in Lewis's entourage answered: Myra Gale Brown, his wife. But she was only 13 years old. As if this wasn’t scandal enough… she was also his cousin, and their marriage was bigamous. The press exploded with these revelations, turning what was meant to be a triumphant tour into a public relations disaster.
In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly pore over the disturbing details of Lewis’s tumultuous private life; consider whether he was on the path to equalling Elvis’s stardom in the UK, had this matter not come to light; and fruitlessly search the singer’s interviews for a later sense of contrition… 
Further Reading:
• ‘Myra Williams talks about marriage at age 13 to Jerry Lee Lewis’ (Los Angeles Times, 2022): https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2022-10-29/jerry-lee-lewis-myra-brown-williams-marriage-13-cousin
• ‘Inside The Disturbing Marriage Of Jerry Lee Lewis To His 13-Year-Old Cousin’ (All That’s Interesting, 2022): https://allthatsinteresting.com/myra-gale-brown-jerry-lee-lewis
• ’Jerry Lee Lewis Interview with 13 year old wife’ (1958): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwbty1kRCG0
CONTENT WARNING: domestic abuse, violence, child sexual abuse.
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The funeral for Jamaican reggae star Bob Marley was half religious ceremony, half rock concert on 21st May, 1981.

An estimated 100,000 people are believed to have seen Marley’s body lying in state, and the announcement of Jamaica’s national budget was postponed by several days to accommodate his funeral. The casket contained his red Gibson Les Paul guitar, a Bible opened at Psalm 23, and a stalk of ganja placed there by his widow, Rita.

In this episode, The Retrospectors uncover the Rastafarian tensions underlying Prime Minister Edward Seaga’s eulogy; explain why this moment of national commemoration also meant coming to terms with some national guilt; and consider how the Marley family subsequently used Bob’s image on everything from earphones to cannabis…

Further Reading:
‘Bob Marley's funeral, 21 May 1981: a day of Jamaican history’ (The Guardian, 2011): https://www.theguardian.com/music/2011/apr/24/bob-marley-funeral-richard-williams
‘In Short - 'I was there': Bob Marley's death, 1981’ (BBC Radio 5 Live, 2017): https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/2xyVnT65ltGwggk3zrc8yyG/i-was-there-bob-marleys-death-1981
‘Excerpt from “Marley” (Universal Pictures, 2012): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XTx868LW--8
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‘Protect and Survive’, the UK Government’s pamphlet offering Britons advice on how to navigate the aftermath of a nuclear explosion, was published on 20th May, 1980, following a campaign in The Times.
Intended for distribution in times of imminent crisis - and only alongside the broadcast of a series of related public information films - the booklet’s earnest yet chilling tone, coupled with its practical advice on makeshift shelters and fallout room essentials, variously triggered alarm, disbelief, and mockery. 
In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly ask whether the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament were correct to suggest the campaign promoted a false sense of confidence in survivability of nuclear war; compare notes on the most chilling passages of the simply-written text; and marvel at the official advice for people living in mobile homes… 
Further Reading:
• ‘'Sinister yet pathetic': how the UK was primed for nuclear war’ (The Guardian, 2019): 
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2019/oct/30/uk-was-primed-for-nuclear-war-in-the-uk-taras-young-interview
• ‘Protect and Survive’ (UK Home Office, 1980): https://archive.org/details/ProtectAndSurvive_136
• ‘Protect and Survive’ (BBC, 1980): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yrv505R-0U
Love the show? Support us! 
Join  🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴to DITCH THE ADS and get an additional full-length episode each SUNDAY… 
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The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.
Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Ollie Peart.
Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2024.


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In the midst of Cold War anxieties, even the production staff of the BBC’s ‘Protect and Survive’ series had to pass their work around in clandestine alleyway exchanges - as Arion, Rebecca and Olly reveal, in this BONUS FIVE MINUTES of content, cut-for-time from today’s episode, and exclusively available for our 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴supporters on Apple Podcasts and Patreon. Thanks for supporting the show!