Today In History with The Retrospectors

The Retrospectors

Curious, funny, surprising daily history - with Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina and Arion McNicoll. From the invention of the Game Boy to the Mancunian beer-poisoning of 1900, from Julius Caesar's invasion of Britain to America's Nazi summer schools... each day we uncover an unexpected story for the ages. In just ten minutes! Best Daily Podcast (British Podcast Awards 2023 nominee). Get early access and ad-free listening at Patreon.com/Retrospectors or subscribe on Apple Podcasts.

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  1. vor 22 Std. ·  Bonus • Nur Abonnent:innen

    EXTRA: Smashing Up Carthage

    Did Hannibal and the Romans have anything in common? We’ll never know, because the Romans smashed up the evidence… as Olly and Arion discuss, in this bonus bit exclusively for our 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴supporters on Apple Podcasts and Patreon. Thanks for supporting the show!

  2. vor 22 Std. • Nur Abonnent:innen

    Hannibal's Tactical Victory

    The Battle of Cannae on 2nd August 216 BC, is considered one of history's greatest tactical victories. During the Second Punic War, Hannibal's Carthaginian army faced a Roman force almost twice its size in southern Italy, yet achieved a devastating victory that came closer than any other battle to destroying the Roman Republic. By the time the two armies met, Hannibal had already pulled off the seemingly impossible by marching his army - including war elephants - across the Alps and defeating the Romans at Trebia and Lake Trasimene. Rome briefly adopted a cautious strategy of avoiding pitched battles, but for this clash assembled an enormous army, confident that sheer numbers would overwhelm Hannibal once and for all. Instead, Hannibal lured them into one of the most famous traps in military history. His deliberately weakened centre slowly fell back, tempting the Romans to push ever deeper into what looked like a retreat. At the same time, his veteran troops and superior cavalry swept around both flanks, surrounding the Roman army from every direction. Trapped so tightly that many soldiers could scarcely lift their weapons, tens of thousands were killed over the course of the day. In this Sunday Special, exclusively for our 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴supporters on Apple Podcasts and Patreon, Arion, Rebecca and Olly discover why Rome's largest army became its greatest military disaster; consider whether Rome should have stuck with its ‘Cunctator’; and reveal how one of history's worst defeats ultimately helped transform the Roman army into the force that built an empire… Further Reading: • ‘A Summer Slaughter – Cannae, August 2, 216 B.C.’ (WarHistory, 2016): https://warhistory.org/article/a-summer-slaughter-cannae-august-2-216-b-c • ‘2,200 years ago Rome got caught in the Thucydides Trap. The result transformed the ancient world’ (HistoryExtra, 2026): https://www.historyextra.com/period/ancient-history/long-before-the-ancient-roman-empire-a-different-rival-superpower-looked-destined-for-supremacy/ • ‘Battle of Cannae - Hannibal’ (BBC, 2007): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewWIuow-SLs Thanks so much for supporting the show! We massively appreciate it. The Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill. Edit producer: Ollie Peart Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2026.

  3. vor 2 Tagen

    Little Hugh and the Blood Libel

    Nine year-old ‘Little Hugh’ went missing in Lincoln on 31st July, 1255. A popular narrative emerged that local Jews (in fact gathering for a wedding) had kidnapped, tortured, and crucified him, perhaps even eating his blood; an antisemitic myth that persisted for centuries, only called out by the Church of England in 1955. A local Jewish man called Copin confessed to the crime (after being tortured), claiming to  annually sacrifice Christian children. He was executed and over ninety other Jews were arrested. However, behind-the-scenes negotiations, possibly involving friars and the king’s brother Richard of Cornwall, saw most Jews quietly released by May 1256, suggesting an awareness of the falsehoods fuelling the hysteria. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain why it was often in the population’s financial interest to perpetuate the ‘blood libel’; consider how the legacy of ‘Little Hugh’ has morphed into modern conspiracy theories like QAnon; and reveal how one enterprising Lincoln resident tried to cash in on Little Hugh tourism in the 1920s… Further Reading: • ‘Religion: The Legend of Little Hugh’ (TIME, 1959) https://time.com/archive/6827883/religion-the-legend-of-little-hugh/ • ‘Little Saint Hugh of Lincoln revisited | Bat-Zion Susskind-Sacks’ (Times Of Israel, 2016): https://blogs.timesofisrael.com/little-saint-hugh-of-lincoln-revisited/ • ‘780. Little Sir Hugh (Child 155) - (Traditional)’ (Raymond Crooke, 2009): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EXUL3h5Q5lY We'll be back on Monday - unless you join🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴, where we give you ad-free listening AND a full-length Sunday episode every week!Plus, weekly bonus content, unlock over 70 bonus bits, and support our independent podcast.Join now via Apple Podcasts or Patreon. Thanks!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 2026. This episode originally aired in 2024. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    Little Hugh and the Blood Libel

  4. vor 3 Tagen

    When Noel Gallagher Met Tony Blair

    The ‘Cool Britannia’ party - held at 10 Downing Street on 30th July, 1997 - quickly became one of the most iconic events of the New Labour era. Celebrities including Helen Mirren, Eddie Izzard and Lenny Henry were invited to Britain’s seat of power to sup champagne with Tony Blair, the youngest Prime Minister since 1812. The defining image of the night was a photo of Blair chuckling away with rockstar Noel Gallagher. The Oasis singer defended his attendance (“because I’m from Burnage, and me mam would kill me if I turned down the chance to go to Downing Street. Wouldn’t yours?”), but later claimed to have snorted coke off the Queen’s lavatory whilst there. In this episode, Rebecca, Olly and Arion reveal the surprising origins of the phrase ‘Cool Britannia’ (spoiler: the Tories did it first); ask whether popstar-politician collabs are ALWAYS ultimately disastrous; and consider whether the lukewarm reaction to David Cameron’s subsequent showbiz party might yet be considered a success for the Conservatives... Further Reading: • Footage from the party (Associated Press, 1997): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GDa__W1_gcg • ‘Cool Britannia: where did it all go wrong?’ (New Statesman, 2017): https://www.newstatesman.com/1997/2017/05/cool-britannia-where-did-it-all-go-wrong • ‘David Cameron revisits Cool Britannia (with Michael McIntyre and Cilla Black)’, (The Guardian, 2014): https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/jun/30/david-cameron-a-listers-cool-britannia-party Love the show? Support us!  Join  🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴to DITCH THE ADS and get an additional full-length episode each SUNDAY…  … Plus, get weekly bonus bits, and unlock over 100 bits of extra content.  Join now with a free trial on Apple Podcasts or Patreon and support our show ❤️ 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 2026. This episode originally aired in 2021. #90s #Music #Politics #Funny #UK Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    When Noel Gallagher Met Tony Blair

  5. vor 4 Tagen

    Welcome To Mordor

    When J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Fellowship of the Ring reached British bookshops on 29th July 1954, there was little sign it would become one of the most influential novels of the century.  Britain was only just emerging from post-war austerity, food rationing had ended only weeks before, and Tolkien's hefty, 21-shilling fantasy - complete with a fold-out map of Middle-earth - looked unlike anything else on the shelves. Much of what made the novel distinctive came from Tolkien's day job. As an Oxford professor of Old and Middle English, he drew on medieval literature, mythology and philology to create not just a story, but entire languages, histories and cultures.  The book might never have appeared at all without the enthusiasm of Rayner Unwin, who had championed The Hobbit as a ten-year-old reader and, nearly two decades later, persuaded his father's publishing house to back its far more ambitious successor. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain why the manuscript lingers as much over songs, meals and conversation as much as it does battles and quests; uncover the contemporary critical reaction to the Lord of the Rings trilogy; and reveal just how much an early edition of the masterpiece is now worth… Further Reading: • ‘Behind the Best Sellers: J. R. R. Tolkien’ (The New York Times, 1977): https://www.nytimes.com/1977/10/02/archives/behind-the-best-sellers-jrr-tolkien.html • ‘The Fellowship of the Ring reviewed: ‘epic romance’’ (The Guardian, 1954): https://www.theguardian.com/books/article/2024/aug/20/the-fellowship-of-the-ring-review-tolkien-1954 • ‘J. R. R. Tolkien. The Complete Lord Of The Rings, First Editions’ (Peter Harrington Books, 2015): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_Z3og0AefY #Books #1950s #Publishing #UK Love the show? Support us!  Join  🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴to DITCH THE ADS and get an additional full-length episode each SUNDAY…  … Plus, get weekly bonus bits, and unlock over 200 bits of extra content.  Join now with a free trial on Apple Podcasts or Patreon and support our show ❤️ 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 2026. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

  6. vor 4 Tagen ·  Bonus • Nur Abonnent:innen

    EXTRA: J.R.R. Tolkien: Details Man

    In this appropriately EPIC bonus bit, exclusively for our 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴supporters on Apple Podcasts and Patreon, Arion, Rebecca and Olly consider how Tolkien literally rewrote the dictionary; discover just how much money Sean Connery turned down to play Gandalf; and uncover an Italian neo-fascist youth camp called Camp Hobbit…

  7. vor 5 Tagen

    When Zombies Came To Hollywood

    Independent horror film ‘White Zombie’, starring Bela Lugosi, premiered in New York City’s Rivoli Theatre on July 28th, 1932. It marked the first time that zombies had featured in a Hollywood picture - albeit as the result of an evil voodoo master in Haiti rather than a condition passed on through bites, as in later zombie screenplays. Large portions of the film were shot on the Universal Studios lot, borrowing props and scenery from other horror films of the era, with an ultra-low budget of just $50,000. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how Lugosi went from Hungarian Shakespeare star to Tinseltown villain; unpick the racism at the heart of the story; and consider why zombies have proven to be such a resilient horror movie staple….  Further Reading: • ‘Hollywood Flashback: Bela Lugosi Introduced the World to Zombies in 1932’ (The Hollywood Reporter, 2021): https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/bela-lugosi-white-zombies-1234954832/ • ‘White Zombie - Anatomy of a Horror Film, By Gary D. Rhodes’ (McFarland, 2001): https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/White_Zombie/oHApAwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=white+zombie+lugosi&printsec=frontcover • ‘White Zombie’ (dir. Victor Halperin, 1932): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NV3B2z0HkKA Love the show? Support us!  Join  🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴to DITCH THE ADS and get an additional full-length episode each SUNDAY…  … Plus, get weekly bonus bits, and unlock over 100 bits of extra content.  Join now with a free trial on Apple Podcasts or Patreon and support our show ❤️ 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 2026. This episode originally aired in 2023. #Film #30s #Hollywood #Macabre #Racism Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    When Zombies Came To Hollywood

  8. vor 6 Tagen

    Meet Bugs Bunny 🥕

    Warner Brothers’ biggest animated star, Bugs Bunny, made his cartoon debut on July 27th, 1940, in A Wild Hare - though, at the time, he didn’t officially have a name… Though previous versions of the ‘wabbit had appeared in earlier Looney Tunes shorts, this incarnation - directed by Tex Avery - solidified his iconic look, voice, and attitude, including his now-legendary catchphrase, “What’s up, Doc?”; the phrase itself a casual Texas idiom Avery had grown up with, but which immediately resonated with audiences, turning Bugs into a breakout star. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly reveal how Mel Blanc’s iconic voice performance was achieved, thanks to a handy spittoon; explain how America’s involvement in World War Two increased the popularity of the character; and take a tour into the scrappy, underdog animation studio overseen by Leon Schlesinger… Further Reading: • ‘Happy 75th, Bugs Bunny: How animation’s first great brain-trust created a legend’ (The Washington Post, 2015): https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/comic-riffs/wp/2015/07/27/happy-75th-bugs-bunny-how-animations-1st-great-brain-trust-created-a-legend/ • ‘7 Secrets About Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck From the Man Who’s Voiced Them for 35 Years’ (Cracked, 2024): https://www.cracked.com/article_43177_7-secrets-about-bugs-bunny-and-daffy-duck-from-the-man-whos-voiced-them-for-35-years.html • ‘A Wild Hare : Bugs Bunny’s Death Trick Scene’ (Warner Bros, 1940): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_mvsx3bDw04 Love the show? Support us!  Join  🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴to DITCH THE ADS and get an additional full-length episode each SUNDAY…  … Plus, get weekly bonus bits, and unlock over 100 bits of extra content.  Join now with a free trial on Apple Podcasts or Patreon and support our show ❤️ 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 2026. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    Meet Bugs Bunny 🥕
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Curious, funny, surprising daily history - with Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina and Arion McNicoll. From the invention of the Game Boy to the Mancunian beer-poisoning of 1900, from Julius Caesar's invasion of Britain to America's Nazi summer schools... each day we uncover an unexpected story for the ages. In just ten minutes! Best Daily Podcast (British Podcast Awards 2023 nominee). Get early access and ad-free listening at Patreon.com/Retrospectors or subscribe on Apple Podcasts.

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