Today In History with The Retrospectors The Retrospectors

The Italian poet Petrarch hiked up Mont Ventoux in Provence on 26th April, 1332 - an event claimed for centuries to be the first time mountaineering for pleasure had been attempted. 
His celebrated letter to Dionigi di Borgo San Sepolcro was the source, revealing Petrarch's contemplations on spirituality and the human condition amidst the breathtaking views. However, debate persists over the letter's authenticity and whether Petrarch's climb was literal or allegorical.
In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how, centuries later, Romantic poets revived Petrarch's tale, interpreting his ascent as a metaphor for spiritual enlightenment and intellectual curiosity; consider how mountaineering in its present form evolved into a mainstream leisure activity; and reveal that climbing Mont Ventoux has become a competitive sport...
Further Reading:
• ‘The Fig and the Laurel: Petrarch’s Search for Self-Knowledge’ (The London Magazine): https://thelondonmagazine.org/article/the-fig-and-the-laurel-petrarchs-search-for-self-knowledge/
• ‘In Provence, Honoring a Poet at 6,263 Feet’ (The New York Times, 2006): https://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/30/travel/30explorer.html
• ‘GW1 - Petrarch: "Ascent of Mount Ventoux"’ (Douglas Parker, 2021): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XRhdr55jsRw
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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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Rerun: Freda Payne’s banger ‘Band Of Gold’ sounds like a Motown record, but actually isn’t. Although written by Berry Gordy’s hit-making trio Holland-Dozier-Holland, it was released on their breakaway label, Invictus, on 25th April, 1970.
Ever since, fans have speculated as to the meaning of its lyrics and the nature of the crumbled relationship within. “That night on our honeymoon / We stayed in separate rooms,” Payne sings. Was her betrothed a closeted homosexual? Impotent? Frigid?
In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explore how this ‘proto-disco’ classic has been embraced as a gay anthem; explain why Payne originally felt ill-equipped to sing the song that made her name; and credit the extraordinary track record of Detroit’s Hutchins Middle School… 
Further Reading:
• ‘Band of Gold by Freda Payne’ (Songfacts): https://www.songfacts.com/facts/freda-payne/band-of-gold
• ‘Holland-Dozier-Holland (1962-1970)’ (Black Past, 2021): https://www.blackpast.org/african-american-history/groups-organizations-african-american-history/holland-dozier-holland-1962-1970/
• ‘Freda Payne - Band Of Gold’ (Soul Train, 1970): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uF9Q3hnAr88
‘Why am I hearing a rerun?’ Every Thursday is 'Throwback Thursday' on Today in History with the Retrospectors: running one repeat per week means we can keep up the quality of our independent podcast. Daily shows like this require a lot of work! But as ever we'll have something new for you tomorrow, so follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/Retrospectors
Love the show? Join  🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴 to DITCH THE ADS and get an additional full-length episode every SUNDAY!
Plus, get weekly bonus bits, unlock over 70 bits of extra content and support our independent podcast.
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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: Emma Corsham.
Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2024.


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Two-time Oscar winner Jane Fonda expanded her repertoire beyond acting and activism into exercise videos on 24th April, 1982, with the release of her bestselling aerobics VHS, "Workout." 
What seemed like a small venture at the time swiftly captivated the nation, revolutionising fitness trends and catapulting household VCR ownership. Extraordinarily, all profits from the enterprise went to her and her husband’s leftist pressure group, the Campaign for Economic Democracy.
In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly consider how Fonda’s brand of fun, DIY fitness appealed to a generation of women who felt unwelcome in the male environment of 80’s gyms; reveal why filming the classic video was an arduous and exhausting process; and explain why Fonda’s foray into fitness was actually inspired by a broken ankle…
Further Reading:
• ‘30TH ANNIVERSARY OF MY FIRST WORKOUT VIDEO’ (Jane Fonda, 2012): https://www.janefonda.com/2012/04/30th-anniversary-of-my-first-workout-video/
• ‘How 'Jane Fonda's Workout' Conquered the World’ (Mental Floss, 2015): https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/65314/how-jane-fondas-workout-conquered-world
• ‘Jane Fonda's Original Workout: Follow Along With Classic Step Aerobics’ (Tonic, 2022): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwQ1PrED9IE
Love the show? Join 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS 🌴 to DITCH THE ADS and get an additional full-length episode every SUNDAY!
Plus, get weekly bonus bits, unlock over 70 bits of extra content and support our independent podcast.
Join now via Apple Podcasts or Patreon. Thanks!
We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/Retrospectors
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.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The fusion of dance culture and exercise routines spearheaded by Jane Fonda led the way for figures like Richard Simmons, whose ‘Sweatin' to the Oldies’ series emphasised inclusivity and enjoyment over fitness, as The Retrospectors reveal in this bonus THREE MINUTES of content, exclusively for 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴members on Apple Podcasts and Patreon. Thanks for supporting the show!

On 23 April 2005, software engineer Jawed Karim posted an 18-second clip of himself standing in front of some elephants at the San Diego Zoo – a video which is largely unremarkable, except for the fact it was the first ever clip uploaded to the site Karim cofounded: YouTube.
The video has since received 260 million views, 13 million likes, and 11 million comments. Not bad for a clip whose only interesting feature is the innuendo about elephants having “really, really long, um… trunks.”
Further Reading:
• ‘The First YouTube Video Was Uploaded 9 Years Ago Today’ (Time Magazine, 2014): https://time.com/72892/the-first-youtube-video-was-uploaded-9-years-ago-today/ 
• ‘YouTube's History and Its Impact on the Internet’ (Interesting Engineering, 2020): https://interestingengineering.com/culture/youtubes-history-and-its-impact-on-the-internet
• ‘Me At The Zoo’ (Jawed Karim, 2005): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNQXAC9IVRw 
This episode first premiered in 2023, for members of 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴 - where you can also DITCH THE ADS and get weekly bonus bits, unlock over 70 bits of extra content and support our independent podcast. Join now via Apple Podcasts or Patreon. Thanks!
 
We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/retrospectors
 
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.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Extracts from Adolf Hitler's long-lost diaries were brought to the world’s attention on 22nd April, 1983, provoking an international sensation - until they were quickly exposed for being a hoax. 
Respected World War Two historian Hugh Trevor Roper had authenticated the diaries, leading Rupert Murdoch to personally negotiate a $1.2 million serialisation in The Sunday Times, which went to press as Roper changed his mind.
In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly reveal the true author of the ‘diaries’; explain why Murdoch was unrepentant, despite having splashed on perhaps the biggest fake news of the century; and appraise the chaotic atmosphere at the Stern magazine press conference, where punches were thrown, and David Irving started shouting about ink…
Further Reading:
• ‘Hitler Diaries hoax exposed in full for first time’ (The Times, 2023): https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/hitler-diaries-released-full-text-public-hoax-forged-journals-w9jfcmrld
• ‘Murdoch's bravado forced through the publication of the Hitler diaries’ (The Guardian, 2012): https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2012/apr/25/rupert-murdoch-bravado-publication-hitler-diaries
• ‘Robert Harris on Selling Hitler’ (The Guardian, 2012): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wV_TpAkL6Q4
Love the show? Join 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS 🌴 to DITCH THE ADS and get an additional full-length episode every SUNDAY!
Plus, get weekly bonus bits, unlock over 70 bits of extra content and support our independent podcast.
Join now via Apple Podcasts or Patreon. Thanks!
We'll be back tomorrow! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts: podfollow.com/Retrospectors
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.


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.