Today In History with The Retrospectors

The Retrospectors

Curious, funny, surprising daily history - with Olly Mann (Answer Me This!), Rebecca Messina (The Week Unwrapped) and Arion McNicoll (The Chaser's The Final Edition). BEST DAILY SHOW (British Podcast Awards Nominee, 2026). 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! Get early access and ad-free listening at Patreon.com/Retrospectors or subscribe on Apple Podcasts.

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  1. 9h ago

    Welcome To The Guggenheim

    Frank Lloyd Wright’s extraordinary Guggenheim building finally flung open its doors on 21st October, 1959, after a gestation period of two decades - during which time both Wright, and Solomon Guggenheim himself, had died. The reaction was mixed. Art critics panned the design, likening it to “a washing machine”, an “inverted oatmeal bowl”, and an “oversized and indigestible hot cross bun”. Even those who praised the architecture mostly felt it nonetheless overwhelmed the modern art displayed within it. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how the notoriously nature-loving Wright had been persuaded to work on such an quintessentially urban project; reveal what colour Wright had intended the famously off-white exterior to be; and discover the attempt by artists and intellectuals to stop the beloved museum ever being built…  Further Reading: • ‘Guggenheim Museum Opens in New York City’ (HISTORY, 2009): https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/guggenheim-museum-opens-in-new-york-city • ‘What Wright Hath Wrought’ (The New Yorker, 1959): https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1959/12/05/what-wright-hath-wrought • 'American Built: An architect who broke all the rules' (Fox Business, 2022): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9YZ-6ZYLTI 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 2022. #50s #Architecture #NewYork #Arts Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    Welcome To The Guggenheim

  2. 1d ago

    Australia's Most Iconic Building

    The Sydney Opera House was opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 20th October, 1973, marking the start of a two-week festival of events in celebration of the audacious new building.  “I understand that its construction has not been totally without problems,” Her Majesty commented with some understatement, adding “but the human spirit must sometimes take wings or sails, and create something that is not just utilitarian or commonplace”. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly discuss why the construction of the Opera House ran ten years late and 1,357% over budget; examine what prompted visionary architect Jørn Utzon to walk away from his magnum opus mid-project; and reveal why finding a home for the pie shop has long bedevilled the landmark's designers… Further Reading: • ‘Sydney Opera House - 50 years of extraordinary moments’ (Sydney Opera House, 2023): https://www.sydneyoperahouse.com/our-story/50-years-extraordinary-moments  • ‘The Surprising Story of the Sydney Opera House's Construction’ (Google Arts & Culture, 2020): https://artsandculture.google.com/story/the-surprising-story-of-the-sydney-opera-house-39-s-construction/CAVhiDXG4On-xA?hl=en  • ‘The Sydney Opera House (construction story) 1958 - 1973’ (BBC, 2018): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81-EDxHdmlI  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. #70s #Architecture #Australia Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    Australia's Most Iconic Building

  3. 2d ago

    The Mother Teresa Phenomenon

    The world’s most famous nun, Mother Teresa of Calcutta, was beatified by Pope John Paul II on 19th October, 2003, putting her on a fast-track to sainthood. (Normally, a would-be saint has to wait five years after death). A quarter-of-a-million pilgrims flocked to St. Peter’s Square to see her giant portrait unveiled, while the frail Pope, celebrating his 25th year in office, declared her “an icon of the Good Samaritan.” The city was overflowing with blue-and-white habits, souvenir figurines, and ‘Mother Teresa: The Musical’ was playing nearby. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly review the ‘miracle’ Teresa performed from heaven; reveal the private letters that suggested she may have had doubts about her faith; and explain (one of the reasons) why her trademark white sari with blue trim has not crossed over to the catwalk… Further Reading: • ‘Pope Beatifies Mother Teresa’ (The New York Times, 2002): https://www.nytimes.com/2003/10/19/international/europe/pope-beatifies-mother-teresa.html • ‘The Miracles That Made Mother Teresa a Saint’ (Biography, 2025): https://www.biography.com/religious-figures/a64717173/mother-teresa-miracles-sainthood • ‘Ceremonies to mark beatification of Mother Teresa’ (AP, 2002): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uuuma-Ft7K0 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. #Catholic #Person #2000s #Religion Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    The Mother Teresa Phenomenon

  4. 3d ago ·  Bonus • Subscribers Only

    EXTRA: Who Are You Wearing

    Hollywood and fashion collide on the Oscars’ red carpet, but ‘who’ would Arion, Rebecca and Olly wear to the Academy Awards? They reveal all, in this bonus bit for our 🌴CLUB RETROSPECTORS🌴 supporters on Apple Podcasts and Patreon. Thanks for supporting the show!

  5. 3d ago • Subscribers Only

    Early Access: Hollywood's First Red Carpet

    Tinseltown rolled out its first ever red carpet for the world premiere of 'Douglas Fairbanks in Robin Hood' at Sid Grauman's brand-new Egyptian Theatre on 18th October, 1922. Searchlights, a medieval pageant and a speech from Charlie Chaplin added to what the LA Times termed "the night of nights!" Yet the Oscars didn't get a red carpet until 1961 - and viewers at home only saw that it was actually red once the ceremony was broadcast in colour, from 1966. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly discover the luxury train that rolled out the red carpet two decades before Hollywood; consider whether a doomed Greek king walked the very first one; and learn which US president may, or may not, have stepped off a riverboat onto one… Further Reading: • ‘The Hollywood Red Carpet Movie Premiere Turns 100’ (The Hollywood Reporter, 2022): https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/robin-hood-1922-movie-premiere-1235242865/ • ‘Where does the red carpet come from?’ (BBC Culture, 2016): https://www.bbc.co.uk/culture/article/20160222-where-does-the-red-carpet-come-from • ‘25 Best Oscar Dresses Of All Time’ (Elle UK, 2020): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxQE3QgYw3M 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: Amanda Whittington. Theme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2026. #Celebrity #20s #Film #Hollywood

    Early Access: Hollywood's First Red Carpet

  6. 5d ago

    Crown The Concubine

    Wu Zetian became China's first and only female Emperor on 16th October, 655 - cementing an extraordinary rise from Concubine to Secretary to Consort to Queen. On the day of her coronation in 690, a massive earthquake rocked China, a supposed sign of divine disapproval. But Wu flipped the narrative, declaring that the upheaval was a blessing, a symbol of Buddhist paradise manifesting on earth.  Her path to power was unconventional, defying deeply entrenched Confucian ideals that regarded female rulers as unnatural, even catastrophic. It was a rise marked by brutal rivalries, during which she allegedly orchestrated the downfall of enemies, including her rival Empress Wang, and even faced accusations of murdering her own daughter to frame a competitor to the throne. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly weigh up the sexist commentary of the time with the genuine ruthlessness Wu seemed to display; explain how her all-male hareem helped bring about her downfall; and consider how, even as recently as 2014, she remains a controversial, sexualised and divisive figure in China… Further Reading: • ‘The First and Only Woman Emperor of China’ (Google Arts & Culture): https://artsandculture.google.com/story/the-first-and-only-woman-emperor-of-china/PQWR-NRltC6QFA?hl=en • ’Empress Wu Zetian: The Only Woman To Rule China’ (HistoryExtra, 2023): https://www.historyextra.com/period/medieval/empress-wu-zetian-china-rule-life-reputation/ • ‘Wu Zetian: China's First & Only Female Emperor | Empress Who Ruled The World’ (Timeline, 2019): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aeZ7esmQcm4 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. #China #Sexism #Politics Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    Crown The Concubine

  7. 6d ago

    Journey To Monkey Island

    The Secret of Monkey Island, one of the best loved video games of the point-and-click era, was released on the 15th October, 1990, without, it must be said, a great deal of fanfare. Inspired by the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disneyland and the novel On Stranger Tides by Tim Powers, the game was a swashbuckling piratical adventure which – unusually for gaming of the time – put laughs above thrills. Despite its initially mixed reaction, it went on to become a sleeper hit that a generation of gamers took to their hearts. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly investigate why George Lucas wasn't putting his new video games division to work publishing loads of Star Wars games; explain why it was important to Monkey Island's creators that their main character couldn't die; and find out whether the jokes Olly found hilarious as a ten-year-old are still as side-splittingly funny today… Further Reading: • ‘The Complete History Of Monkey Island’ (Time Extension, 2022): https://www.timeextension.com/features/the-complete-history-of-monkey-island • ‘What Is The Secret Of Monkey Island?’ (The Gamer, 2022): https://www.thegamer.com/monkey-island-secret-origins-mystery-answer/ • ‘The Secret of Monkey Island Longplay’ (AL82 Retrogaming Longplays, 2017): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QgRIXntFhww&t=633s 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. #Gaming #90s #Funny Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    Journey To Monkey Island

  8. Oct 14

    The First African-American Patents

    Henry Blair, the only inventor ever denoted as a ‘colored man’ in the records of US Patent Office, received a patent for his invention of a mechanical corn planter on 14th October, 1834. For decades, it was believed this was the first example of an African-American inventor receiving a US patent. The truth turns out to be more complex, and is touched by the legacy of slavery, legal reform, and black activism… but Thomas Jennings, the inventor of ‘dry scouring’ (an early instance of dry cleaning) registered his patent thirteen years earlier and is, probably, the true holder of the title. In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly look back over some of the most useful inventions contributed by American people of colour; explain why the rules over enslaved people’s intellectual property were so vague and unreliable; and reveal what it looked like when Thomas Jefferson fobs you off… Content Warning: racism, negative depictions and/or mistreatment of people or cultures Further Reading: • ‘Inventor Henry Blair and His Patents’ (ThoughtCo, 2019): https://www.thoughtco.com/inventor-henry-blair-1991284 • ‘Whose Patent is It?: American Patent Law Denies Slave Creativity’ (HistoryNet, 2017): https://www.historynet.com/whose-patent-is-it-american-patent-law-denies-slave-creativity/ • ‘Awesome Inventions by African Americans’ (SciShow, 2012): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56AwEjXzh-U 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 2022. #1800s #Inventions #Africa #US Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

    The First African-American Patents
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Curious, funny, surprising daily history - with Olly Mann (Answer Me This!), Rebecca Messina (The Week Unwrapped) and Arion McNicoll (The Chaser's The Final Edition). BEST DAILY SHOW (British Podcast Awards Nominee, 2026). 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! Get early access and ad-free listening at Patreon.com/Retrospectors or subscribe on Apple Podcasts.

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