The English Heritage Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Disability and care in medieval England Nov 06, 2025

Show notes

In medieval England, community and religion played an important role in how people cared for each other. Ideas about charity and care helped lay the foundations for some of our most important public services today.

This time on The English Heritage Podcast, Amy Matthews chats with Simon Jarrett, author of A History of Disability in England and Collections Curator Susan Harrison to uncover lesser-known histories of care and support that connect us to people from the past.

From monastic hospitals to healing pilgrimages and even early mobility aids, find out how people with physical or learning disabilities lived as part of their communities long before the rise of modern healthcare institutions.

Don’t forget to follow this podcast and leave a review if you love the show.

Join: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/join/

Podcast listeners can get 20% off the first year of an annual membership. Use code POD20 at checkout.*

Support our work: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/support-us/

The English Heritage Trust is a charity, no. 1140351, and a limited company, no. 07447221, registered in England and Wales.

*Offer is available through the use of this code and valid for new memberships by annual Direct Debit only. It cannot be used in conjunction with any other promotion, on life memberships or renewals.

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‘Pleasing terrors’: the origins and continuing popularity of ghost stories Oct 30, 2025

Show notes

If you’re planning to enjoy a scary book or film from the comfort of your home this Halloween, you’ll be continuing a long tradition.

Since the earliest civilisations, humans have been fascinated by the idea of ghosts, death and the afterlife. This time on The English Heritage Podcast, Amy chats with Dr Michael Carter and Dr Beverley Clack about religion, philosophy and the spiritual questions we tackle through the telling of ghost stories.

From medieval monks and revenants to a few modern-day stories from English Heritage sites, don’t listen to this one with the lights off…

Don’t forget to follow this podcast and leave a review if you love the show.

Join: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/join/

Podcast listeners can get 20% off the first year of an annual membership. Use code POD20 at checkout. *

Support our work: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/support-us/

The English Heritage Trust is a charity, no. 1140351, and a limited company, no. 07447221, registered in England and Wales.

*Offer is available through the use of this code and valid for new memberships by annual Direct Debit only. It cannot be used in conjunction with any other promotion, on life memberships or renewals.

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Privilege and play: a history of childhood adventure Oct 23, 2025

Show notes

English Heritage sites aren’t just great places to learn about our past – they’re also spaces for creativity and play.

In this episode of The English Heritage Podcast, Andrew Hann and historian Abby Van Slyck join Amy to discuss how children’s recreation and ideas of play have evolved, starting with the Swiss Cottage at Osborne – a miniature house designed by Prince Albert to educate his nine children through role-play.

From the dollhouses and playhouses of royal children and a wealthy elite to modern-day treehouses and adventure playgrounds, we’ll explore how changing views on childhood, health, and society have contributed to the adventures children and adults enjoy today.

Don’t forget to follow this podcast and leave a review if you love the show.

Join: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/join/

Podcast listeners can get 20% off the first year of an annual membership. Use code POD20 at checkout. *

Support our work: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/support-us/

The English Heritage Trust is a charity, no. 1140351, and a limited company, no. 07447221, registered in England and Wales.

*Offer is available through the use of this code and valid for new memberships by annual Direct Debit only. It cannot be used in conjunction with any other promotion, on life memberships or renewals.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Enslaver, politician, survivor: the complex life of Elizabeth Vassall Fox Oct 16, 2025

Show notes

In the late 1790s, Sir Godfrey Webster, heir to Battle Abbey, challenged politician Henry Holland to a duel over a portrait of his wife Elizabeth. Unhappy in her marriage, Elizabeth would divorce Godfrey and marry Henry just two days later. This would mark the beginning of a high-profile life for her in English politics.

But who was this wealthy and privileged Jamaican heiress and how did she exercise her power at a time when women were not allowed to take public roles?

This time on the English Heritage podcast, Amy uncovers the extraordinary life of a woman born to a Jamaican plantation owner, her early married life in Sussex, her European travels, scandalous divorce and the foundation of one of the Whig party’s most prominent salons in London.

Joining Amy is Dr Miranda Kauffman, who’s been researching the connections between heiresses like Elizabeth Vassall, historic places and the wealth generated by chattel slavery. Battle Abbey’s Dr Kathryn Bedford helps uncover Elizabeth’s nuanced character through the depictions and interpretations of her throughout her life.

Don’t forget to follow this podcast and leave a review if you love the show.

Join: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/join/

Podcast listeners can get 20% off the first year of an annual membership. Use code POD20 at checkout. *

Support our work: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/support-us/

The English Heritage Trust is a charity, no. 1140351, and a limited company, no. 07447221, registered in England and Wales.

*Offer is available through the use of this code and valid for new memberships by annual Direct Debit only. It cannot be used in conjunction with any other promotion, on life memberships or renewals.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A history of curry in Britain Oct 09, 2025

Show notes

Try to order a balti in Kashmir and you might get a funny look.

That’s because this ‘classic curry’ was invented in 1970s Birmingham, when a restaurant owner wanted to make a curry-like dish that suited local palates and could be cooked quickly for his customers.

Curry may be one of our nation’s favourite foods, but how did our modern-day cuisine evolve from centuries of trade, exploitation, colonialism and migration? In today’s episode, Christopher Warleigh-Lack, Mallika Basu and Samantha Bilton take Amy through the chequered history of curry.

Christopher begins our journey at Osborne on the Isle of Wight, where we explore Queen Victoria’s passion for India and the influences we can discover in the collection. We also look at British inventions, from balti to tikka masala, coronation chicken and the incendiary sultana, and discuss their place in food culture and tradition today.

Don’t forget to follow this podcast and leave a review if you love the show.

Find out more: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/a-brief-history-of-curry-in-england/

Join: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/join/

Podcast listeners can get 20% off the first year of an annual membership. Use code POD20 at checkout. *

Support our work: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/support-us/

The English Heritage Trust is a charity, no. 1140351, and a limited company, no. 07447221, registered in England and Wales.

*Offer is available through the use of this code and valid for new memberships by annual Direct Debit only. It cannot be used in conjunction with any other promotion, on life memberships or renewals.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

A coin, a castle and a conquest: the Normans in the north of England Oct 02, 2025

Show notes

In 2021, 950 years after English Heritage’s Richmond Castle was founded in Yorkshire, an amateur archaeologist joined her first dig and turned up a stunning find.

A silver coin dating to the decades following the Norman Conquest, bearing the face of William the Conqueror, fired up historians’ imaginations. Who lost it, what were they doing at the castle, and what did this penny mean to the people living in the north of England in the 1080s?

Will Wyeth and Susan Harrison join Amy on this episode of The English Heritage Podcast to discuss why this area was so important for the strategic building of a castle in post-conquest Yorkshire. They’ll also explore King William’s relationship with northern leaders, his reaction to revolt and the Norman legacy in the north of England.

Don’t forget to follow this podcast and leave a review if you love the show.

Join: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/join/

Podcast listeners can get 20% off the first year of an annual membership. Use code POD20 at checkout. *

Support our work: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/support-us/

The English Heritage Trust is a charity, no. 1140351, and a limited company, no. 07447221, registered in England and Wales.

*Offer is available through the use of this code and valid for new memberships by annual Direct Debit only. It cannot be used in conjunction with any other promotion, on life memberships or renewals.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Circle of Days and the building of Stonehenge Sep 25, 2025

Show notes

Stonehenge has captured the imaginations of people for millennia, leading to conspiracy theories and fantastical ideas about its construction. But cutting-edge historical analysis has allowed us to reveal more of its secrets in recent times.

Now, author Ken Follett has turned his hand to an imagined epic about the early days of the site’s construction and the social lives and beliefs of people on Salisbury Plain. To celebrate the launch of Circle of Days, Amy is joined by Ken Follett and English Heritage curator of history, Dr Jen Wexler, to explore some of the latest research and findings about the construction of Stonehenge and the real-life inspirations for Ken’s story.

Plus, we have an exclusive excerpt of Circle of Days for you to listen to.

Don’t forget to follow this podcast and leave a review if you love the show.

Join: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/join/

Podcast listeners can get 20% off the first year of an annual membership. Use code POD20 at checkout. *

Support our work: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/support-us/

The English Heritage Trust is a charity, no. 1140351, and a limited company, no. 07447221, registered in England and Wales.

*Offer is available through the use of this code and valid for new memberships by annual Direct Debit only. It cannot be used in conjunction with any other promotion, on life memberships or renewals.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Monastic to modern: a history of universities Sep 18, 2025

Show notes

What does a stone slab at Yorkshire’s Fountains Abbey have in common with the modern-day university?

This time on the English Heritage podcast, Michael Carter takes Amy on his journey of discovery, from an abbot’s strangely positioned headdress to the monastic origins of doctorates. Dr Tessa Whitehouse joins the conversation as we explore how the modern university evolved from elite religious institutions, through nonconformism, to allowing women to study.

These institutions have always had huge political importance. But have they always been a place where students can enjoy both learning and freedom? Find out in this episode.

Don’t forget to follow this podcast and leave a review if you love the show.

Join English Heritage: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/join/

Podcast listeners can get 20% off the first year of an annual membership. Use code POD20 at checkout. *

Support our work: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/support-us/

The English Heritage Trust is a charity, no. 1140351, and a limited company, no. 07447221, registered in England and Wales.

*Offer is available through the use of this code and valid for new memberships by annual Direct Debit only. It cannot be used in conjunction with any other promotion, on life memberships or renewals.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Feeding the masses: fuelling an agricultural revolution Sep 11, 2025

Show notes

It’s easy to take the food on our plates for granted, but the 20th century has been a time of enormous change for the production and supply of what we eat. Not to mention the sort of dish you’d be looking forward to on a Friday evening. Herring and pickled beetroot, anyone?

But did you know about a highly specialised, world-renowned government institute that was developing the latest technology across the 20th century? From tractor testing to drilling and harvesting techniques, the National Institute of Agricultural Engineering was based at Wrest Park until 2006. When King George VI visited for its opening in 1948, producing food in postwar Britain was a critical priority.

This time, Amy Matthews chats with food historian Emma Kay, English Heritage curator of history Andrew Hann and former institute employee Edwina Holden MBE to find out about this hugely influential period in the history of Wrest Park, just before it came into English Heritage’s care.

Don’t forget to follow this podcast and leave a review if you love the show.

Join: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/join/

Podcast listeners can get 20% off the first year of an annual membership. Use code POD20 at checkout. *

Support our work: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/support-us/

The English Heritage Trust is a charity, no. 1140351, and a limited company, no. 07447221, registered in England and Wales.

*Offer is available through the use of this code and valid for new memberships by annual Direct Debit only. It cannot be used in conjunction with any other promotion, on life memberships or renewals.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Pumps and people power: firefighting at country houses Sep 04, 2025

Show notes

Caring for country houses is a delicate task, involving protecting them from fire risk, weather, pests, and much more. Some things have remained the same over the years: fire has long been a looming threat for the residents of country houses.

This time on the English Heritage Podcast, Amy Matthews chats with Andrew Hann, Peter Moore and Richard Luscombe about the dramatic events, near misses and brilliant innovations that have helped staff and residents of country houses tackle the ever-present risk of fire.

We’ll discuss the evolution of firefighting equipment, brilliantly organised operations, candles on Christmas trees and why Prince Albert put seashells in the floor of Osborne House on the Isle of Wight.

Don’t forget to follow this podcast and leave a review if you love the show.

Join: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/join/

Podcast listeners can get 20% off the first year of an annual membership. Use code POD20 at checkout. *

Support our work: https://www.english-heritage.org.uk/support-us/

The English Heritage Trust is a charity, no. 1140351, and a limited company, no. 07447221, registered in England and Wales.

*Offer is available through the use of this code and valid for new memberships by annual Direct Debit only. It cannot be used in conjunction with any other promotion, on life memberships or renewals.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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