The National Archives Podcast Series

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Latest Episodes:

Britain and the challenge of Fascism: saving Europe at a cost (Part 2) Apr 08, 2008

Show notes

In the second part of this two part podcast for A-Level students a chief examiner from one of the major examination boards discuss the British policy of appeasement towards the fascist regimes of Hitler and Mussolini. Chief Examiner of GCE History at Edexcel looks at how students traditionally tackle this question and how historians have grappled with it over 60 years.

Britain and the challenge of Fascism: saving Europe at a cost Apr 08, 2008

Show notes

How did Britons weigh up the decision to go to war in the 1930s and did things turn out as they expected? Professor David Stephenson from the London School of Economics and Political Science explains how the British Government and the British public responded differently to the rise of Fascism in Europe.

Losing Orton in the archives Mar 13, 2008

Show notes

The tangled history of the papers of the playwright Joe Orton is unwoven by Dr Matt Cook. Here he reveals the extraordinary sources that survive on the writer's life, and the perhaps even more extraordinary ones that remain stubbornly missing. Warning: the following material may not be suitable for all listeners.

Security Service document releases Feb 29, 2008

Show notes

From astrologers to oil barons: Professor Christopher Andrew, official historian for the Security Service, talks about espionage and tracking enemy agents.

The Navy Board project Feb 21, 2008

Show notes

Archivist Sue Lumas describes the painstaking cataloguing and conservation of naval records held at The National Archives.

Watch the birdie and say 'cheese' Feb 14, 2008

Show notes

Conservator Stephen Harwood looks at the invention and development of photography, describing all the major photographic processes and explaining how anyone can identify different photographic types from the earliest photogenic experiments to today's sophisticated gelatine-silver prints.

Research and collections at The National Archives Jan 31, 2008

Show notes

Caroline Williams describes how the new Research and Collections Development department is contributing to The National Archives' research, collections and academic agenda, and its benefit internally and beyond The National Archives.

Closing the last day: death, memory and landholding in the Inquisitions Post-Mortem, 1216 - 1660 Jan 17, 2008

Show notes

Sean Cunningham tells us how the Inquisitions Post-Mortem (IPMs) or inquests taken after the death of people who were tenants of The Crown reveal a great deal about land use, local customs, and how communal memory had an important social function for our English and Welsh ancestors. This talk looks at how these manuscripts help to paint a picture of local life and land use during the Medieval and Early Modern periods.

20th century Cabinet records: digitising a core collection of modern political records Jan 04, 2008

Show notes

Ed Hampshire discusses the Cabinet records digitisation project, explaining how the innermost records of government will soon be made fully available online and what visitors to the site can expect when the project is completed.

Sources for army officers' commissions Dec 20, 2007

Show notes

Mark Dunton looks at the system for purchasing and selling commissions as it worked from 1800 - 1871. He covers first appointments, promotions, exchanges, retirement, the payment process and the activities of the 'army agents'. He uses document examples to illustrate the talk.