686 episodes
Ridiculous History iHeartPodcasts
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- History
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4.2 • 4.1K Ratings
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History is beautiful, brutal and, often, ridiculous. Join Ben Bowlin and Noel Brown as they dive into some of the weirdest stories from across the span of human civilization in Ridiculous History, a podcast by iHeartRadio.
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The Page-turning Evolution of the Encyclopædia Britannica
In a burst of meta-humor, the Encyclopædia Britannica defines encyclopædia as "reference work that contains information on all branches of knowledge or that treats a particular branch of knowledge in a comprehensive manner." It's high praise -- but if there's any single book that's earned the right to describe itself this way, it's this one. Tune in as Ben, Noel and Max delve into the history of one of the world's most famous reference works (and check out our earlier episode on the Oxford English Dictionary, as well).
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A Ridiculous History of Worcestershire Sauce
It's tangy. It's salty. It's sweet. It's unctuous... but what exactly is Worcestershire sauce? Join Ben, Noel and Max on their continuing condiment journey as they explore the bizarre origin story of one of the world's most famous (and, arguably, strangest) sauces in today's episode.
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CLASSIC: Roald Dahl: Children's Author and Secret Agent
Today author Roald Dahl is best-known for his prolific writing career -- but, as it turns out, he lived an entirely different life before he ever put pen to paper to create children's stories. Learn more about Roald Dahl's earlier life as a fighter ace, a legendary ladies man, and a World War II-era spy (seriously, like a real-life James Bond!) in this classic episode.
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Micronations: How Liechtenstein Became A Country
The Principality of Liechtenstein is a small, landlocked country out in the alpines -- and while it's a tiny nation, it has an enormous depth of history. In today's episode, Ben, Noel and Max continue their exploration of micronations with the last remnant of the Holy Roman Empire.
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Why Are There So Many Captain Marvels?
Look! Up in the sky! It's a bird. It's a plane. It's... "definitely not Superman." At least, that's what Fawcett Comics told the courts, beginning a multigenerational, multiversal saga of strangeness that continues in the modern day. In today's episode, the guys ask: Why are there so many Captain Marvels?
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CLASSIC: When did ALL-CAPS type become YELLING?
You've seen them before, whether in forwarded spam email, a strangely passionate TikTok comment: THE DREADED ALL-CAPS TYPER.Where does this practice come from? How did everyone agree that typing in ALL CAPS means you're yelling at someone via text? Join the gang in this classic episode as they... FIND OUT.
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Customer Reviews
Too many ads and off-topic rants
Just as it says. 11 minutes of ads for less than 30 minutes of content is the worst. I’m still in the 2019 episodes so this might get better, but for not I spend way too much time skipping ads. Also, Ben needs to learn to breath quieter and less often. He one word between his very loud intakes just makes me cringe.
Way to much random banter and giggles
Tried listening but it’s more like buddies just rambling what they know. I like the idea a lot but after 1 episode I just can’t do it.
Fun and informative
New listener here. I’ve only listened to a handful of episodes so far (jumping around out of sequence) but I find the topics fascinating and well researched. I knew when I heard a Dennis Reynolds’s reference in the Saltan Sea episode, it was a winner.