Today In History with The Retrospectors

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Goodbye, Alexandra Palace Jun 09, 2022

Show notes

A huge fire ravaged Alexandra Palace in Muswell Hill, London on 9th June, 1873 - just 16 days after it had opened, on Queen Victoria’s birthday, as ‘the People’s Palace’. A single burning ember is thought to have caused the blaze.

125 firefighters, in horse-drawn and steam-powered fire engines, had to climb 7 miles uphill, and by the time they got there, the building was engulfed in flames. But, almost immediately, a decision was taken to rebuild it. That’s Victorian stoicism for you.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly peruse the surprisingly gaudy programme of planned events for the exhibition space’s opening season; explain how a ‘people’s’ palace came to be named after Royalty anyway; and reveal the remarkable resilience of Henry Willis’ giant organ…

Further Reading:

• ‘9 June 1873: Alexandra Palace burns down’ (MoneyWeek, 2015): https://moneyweek.com/395048/9-june-1873-alexandra-palace-burns-down

• ‘A Look Back in Time’ (Alexandra Palace official website): https://www.alexandrapalace.com/our-history/timeline/

• ‘Alexandra Palace London [4K] - DJI MAVIC PRO’ (FlyBy, 2018): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3cool4TxpaQ

#Victorian #UK #London

For bonus material and to support the show, visitPatreon.com/Retrospectors

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: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.

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

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Meet The Vikings Jun 08, 2022

Show notes

Northumbria’s ‘holy island’, Lindisfarne, was invaded by Vikings on 8th June, 793 in a smash-and-grab, ‘shock and awe’ attack that left locals reeling for decades.

The completely unexpected incursion was not, in fact, the first time Viking forces invaded the English coastline, but was, undoubtedly, the moment their reputation as merciless warriors and pirates was sealed.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain why the Vikings targeted so many of their raids on monasteries; consider why Lindisfarne was, in the first place, regarded as such a spiritual site; and explain why many Englishmen viewed the raid as vengeance from God…

Further Reading:

• ‘The Holy Island of Lindisfarne’ (Visit Northumberland): https://www.visitnorthumberland.com/explore/destinations/islands/holy-island

• ‘The Viking Raid Of Lindisfarne In AD 793: Your Guide’ (HistoryExtra, 2019): https://www.historyextra.com/period/viking/guide-viking-raid-lindisfarne-what-happened-when/

• ‘Viking Raid on Lindisfarne (AD793)’ (Simple History, 2019): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rS3YfhAiXHU

But our discussion about Lindisfarne doesn't end with today's episode... there's also a chat about WIlliam of Normandy’s Viking connections, the perfect weather for a Viking invasion, and the identity crisis of Northumbrian Christians - but, to hear that, and a bonus bit like it each and every week, you need to subscribe to ‘The Bonus Pack’ on Apple Podcasts, or at https://patreon.com/Retrospectors. Thanks!

#War #Vikings #Christian

For bonus material and to support the show, visitPatreon.com/Retrospectors

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: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.

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

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Sony’s Betamax Blunder Jun 07, 2022

Show notes

VHS won the so-called ‘format wars’ of the 1980s - but before JVC unveiled their VCR system, Sony created the market, with their innovative Japanese launch of Betamax on 7th June, 1975.

For the first time, consumers could tape shows at home, rewind and fast-forward the best bits, and share cassettes with friends. But Betamax tapes were only one hour long, so they couldn’t contain an entire movie or football game. And Hollywood was unhappy about the technology, triggering a massive lawsuit from Universal Pictures and Walt Disney.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly consider what role pornography played in VHS’ ultimate defeat of Betamax; explain why video rental shops were such a popular concept; and reveal how, despite Sony’s early advantage, JVC got other manufacturers on-board before poor Betamax could catch up…

Further Reading:

• ‘June 7, 1975: Before Digital, Before VHS ... There Was Betamax’ (WIRED, 2007): https://www.wired.com/2007/06/dayintech-0607/?msclkid=b50fb350d13a11eca7a9948d91685605

• ‘Why VHS was better than Betamax - Jack Schofield’ (The Guardian, 2003): https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2003/jan/25/comment.comment?msclkid=fb5c2af5d13a11ec962eda595e20814a

• ‘The Sony Betamax: It’s Only Purpose Is To Serve You’ (Sony Promotional Video, 1975): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lt2KlIEr5xA

#80s #70s #Technology #Mistakes

For bonus material and to support the show, visitPatreon.com/Retrospectors

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: Alexa Weissman.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.

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

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It's Fun To Found The YMCA Jun 06, 2022

Show notes

George Williams, 22, created the Young Men’s Christian Association to provide somewhere for London’s young men to escape the vices and stress of rapid urbanization (translation: get yourself clean, hang out with all the boys). The group’s first meeting was above a draper’s shop in St Paul’s on 6th June, 1844.

The mission aligned perfectly with the burgeoning movement for ‘muscular Christianity’, and before long, multiple groups were sprouting all over Europe, and then the United States - where YMCA affiliates invented body-building, volleyball and basketball.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how the YMCA then became associated with cruising; reveal how the Village People got together; and consider what George Williams had in common with Milton S. Hershey…

Further Reading:

• ‘15 Things You Might Not Know About the YMCA’ (Mental Floss, 2018): https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/57095/facts-about-the-ymca

• ‘#DidYaKnow? For 50+ Years the YMCA & Most Schools REQUIRED Males to Swim Naked!?’ (World of Wonder, 2021): https://worldofwonder.net/didyaknow-for-50-years-the-ymca-most-schools-required-males-to-swim-naked/

• ‘Village People - YMCA’ (1978): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CS9OO0S5w2k

#Victorian #London #LGB #Christian

For bonus material and to support the show, visitPatreon.com/Retrospectors

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: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.

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

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The Quintessential Whisky Drinker Jun 01, 2022

Show notes

An entry in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland on 1st June, 1495, records that Friar John Cor was given charge of eight bolls of malt, ‘wherewith to make aqua vitae’. This has led many people to believe that his patron, King James IV, was the first big consumer of what we now know as whisky.

But the drink may not have been ordered for recreational purposes. It *might* have been intended for use in the production of gunpowder. Or… it may have been to help develop ‘the quintessence’, the life elixir being developed by the King’s alchemist, John Damian, promising to confer immortality to the King.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and OIly revisit Damian’s other mission - to be the first man to achieve winged flight; trace back the history of whisky for medicinal purposes; and reveal the ingredients of ‘a Renaissance-era Long Island Iced Tea’...

Further Reading:

• ‘Famous whisky drinkers: King James IV’ (Scotch Whisky): https://scotchwhisky.com/magazine/famous-whisky-drinkers/13189/king-james-iv/

• ‘The aqua vitae era’ (Whisky Magazine): https://whiskymag.com/story/the-aqua-vitae-era

• ‘The Real Reason Whiskey Is Healthier Than Any Other Drink’ (Mashed, 2019): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wKjXoSckzbQ

We're off for a couple of days after this (it's a public holiday in Britain), so no new episodes tomorrow/Friday.

We'll be back on Monday! Follow us wherever you get your podcasts:podfollow.com/Retrospectors

For bonus material and to support the show, visitPatreon.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: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.

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

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Ramesses The Great Propagandist May 31, 2022

Show notes

Becoming Pharaoh at the age of 24, Ramesses ‘The Great’ II had his coronation on 31st May, 1279 BC - a fact we know because he had it chiselled into stone. Repeatedly.

He lived until the age of 90 and reigned for 66 years - which gave him plenty of time to commission statues of himself, name towns after himself, and generally make sure that even in 2022 we have a reasonable idea of what he actually looked like.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain why he was so keen on commemorating his achievements; consider what he had in common with Donald Trump; and ask just how young is too young to inherit an Empire…

But the story of Ramesses doesn't end with today's episode...

... there's also the mysterious tale of what happened when he was DUG UP over 3,000 years later - as Arion, Rebecca and Olly reveal in today's bonus bit, cut-for-time from the main show and exclusively available to supporters of the show. To hear it - and a bonus bit like it each and every week - subscribe to ‘The Bonus Pack’ on Apple Podcasts, or at https://patreon.com/Retrospectors. Thanks!

Further Reading:

• ‘Was Ancient Egyptian Pharaoh Ramesses II Really That Great?’ (History Extra, 2019):

https://www.historyextra.com/period/ancient-egypt/was-ramesses-ii-pharaoh-great-brilliant-why/

• ‘Museum of the World: Statue of Ramesses II, The ‘Younger Memnon’’ (British Museum With Google): https://britishmuseum.withgoogle.com/object/statue-of-ramesses-ii-the-younger-memnon

• ‘Ramses, Master of Diplomacy: Lost Treasures of Egypt ‘ (National Geographic, 2021): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mDi51dEloLM

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: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.

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

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Hershey and the Chocolate Theme Park May 30, 2022

Show notes

Hersheypark was created as a recreation ground for the workers and families who staffed the Hershey chocolate factory in Pennsylvania when it opened on 30th May, 1906. But visitors from across the State soon came to marvel at its playgrounds, boating lake and band-stand… and, before long, the environs began to morph into the chocolate-themed amusement park it remains to this day.

Its success exemplifies the ‘Company Town’ phenomenon: at one point, 3% of the USA’s entire population lived in a town that was owned and run by the company that they worked for.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how caramel, not chocolate, first paved the way to Hershey’s success; debate whether Hersheypark was a philanthropic gift to his employees, or a cynical bid to keep them from leaving; and explain to Americans why Brits would prefer an attraction with less butyric acid…

Further Reading:

• ‘More Than 110 Years of Hersheypark Happy’ (Hershey, 2022): https://www.hersheypa.com/about-hershey/history/hersheypark-history.php

• Milton Hershey, The Man Who Built A Chocolate Empire (All That’s Interesting, 2022): https://allthatsinteresting.com/milton-hershey

• ‘From Sweet To Sweeter: The Legacy of Hersheypark’ (Hersheypark Enthusiast, 2021):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIJlIYlPo38

For bonus material and to support the show, visitPatreon.com/Retrospectors

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: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2022.

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

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The Queen's Punk Jubilee May 27, 2022

Show notes

The Sex Pistols’ anti-establishment single ‘God Save The Queen’ was banned by the BBC when it was re-released on 27th May, 1977 by Virgin Records - mischievously, to tie-in with the Silver Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II.

To rub salt in the wound, the band’s ‘art-school punk’ manager, Malcolm McLaren, arranged a boat procession outside the Houses of Parliament so the group could perform the song outside the heart of British government itself. They were then arrested.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how Johnny Rotten and co were just as commercially savvy as they were sincerely punk activists; consider whether there are parts of the controversial lyrics which which conservative royalists might actually agree; and investigate whether the single (and not Rod Stewart’s ‘I Don’t Want To Talk About It’) *actually* got to Number 1 in the charts…

Further Reading:

• ‘The Story Behind The Song: 'God Save The Queen'’ (Far Out Magazine, 2020): https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/sex-pistols-god-save-the-queen-story-behind-the-song/

• ‘Still a fascist regime? Sex Pistols’ God Save the Queen reissued to mark platinum jubilee’ (The Guardian, 2022): https://www.theguardian.com/music/2022/may/03/still-a-fascist-regime-sex-pistols-god-save-the-queen-reissued-to-mark-platinum-jubilee

• ‘The Sex Pistols - God Save The Queen - on the river Thames’ (Virgin Records, 1977): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tHrUleT8HTs

Enjoy this episode? There’s FOUR MINUTES MORE of Sex Pistols chat over on our supporters’ ad-free podcast feed. To get it - and a bonus bit like it every single week, just sign up to support the show via Apple Subscriptions or our top two tiers at https://patreon.com/Retrospectors.

We'll be back on Monday! 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: Alexa Weissman

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

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

I Am Kaspar Hauser May 26, 2022

Show notes

When a ragged, peculiar-looking teenage boy was found wandering the streets of Nuremberg on 26th May, 1828, it triggered a centuries-long quest to discover who he was, why he had (apparently) been raised in captivity, and (if so) whom had done such a thing to him. His name was Kasper Hauser.

The newspapers went into overdrive, reporting every salacious detail: the boy refused to eat or drink anything apart from bread and water; he seemed astonished by mirrors and candles; he was overwhelmed by loud noises; he couldn’t hold metal; the odour of the graveyard sent him into fits… soon enough, he became one of the most famous people in all of Germany.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly attempt, in our usual ten minutes, to unpick whether this is a story of child abuse, a fantastical imagination, a deceptive manipulator, or all of the above; explain why some of Hauser’s astonishing achievements are arguably *too* astonishing to be entirely genuine; and recall how his death was just as mysterious as his life…

Further Reading:

• ‘The Enduring 200-Year-Old Mystery Of Kaspar Hauser’ (All That’s Interesting, 2018): https://allthatsinteresting.com/kaspar-hauser

• ‘The enigma of Kaspar Hauser: Secret prince, hoaxer, or victim?’ (Sky HISTORY): https://www.history.co.uk/articles/he-s-a-real-wild-child-the-enigma-of-kaspar-hauser-secret-prince-hoaxer-or-victim

• ‘The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser - trailer’ (1974): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzxreLUzuUI&t=18s

For bonus material and to support the show, visitPatreon.com/Retrospectors

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: Sophie King.

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

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The First Aboriginal Cricket Stars May 25, 2022

Show notes

The first group of Australian sportspeople to ever represent the country overseas were an Aboriginal team of cricketers, who began an acclaimed tour of England on 25th May, 1868.

The team had to face racism, illness and ignorance - but won the hearts of thousands of spectators, and the British establishment. They also did some awesome spear-throwing.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly trace back the story to Tom Wills, one of the inventors of Aussie-rules football; reveal why Charles Darwin played a role in inspiring the crowds of spectators; and explain how this pioneering team created the first indigenous cricketing stars in Australia...

Further Reading:

• ‘Aboriginal cricket: The first Australian tour of England, 1868’ (BBC, 2013):

https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-23225434

• ‘Batting for the British Empire: The Role Cricket Played In Colonialism’ (HistoryExtra, 2021): https://www.historyextra.com/period/cricket-colonialism-role-british-empire/

• ‘Tom Wills, founder of Australian Football’ (Hallow Edition, 2014): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fv6dAoUcSrM

CONTENT WARNING: Members of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities are advised that this podcast contains names of deceased people.

For bonus material and to support the show, visitPatreon.com/Retrospectors

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: Sophie King.

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

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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