Today In History with The Retrospectors

Latest Episodes:

Queen Vic's New Gaff Jul 13, 2023

Show notes

Rerun. Queen Victoria moved from her birthplace, Kensington Palace, and decreed Buckingham Palace her official residence on 13th July, 1837. She was 18, newly-crowned – and until then had shared a bedroom with her mother.

Built in 1703 for the Duke of Buckingham, the Palace had never previously permanently housed anyone, and was reportedly drafty, dirty, and staffed by ‘slovenly’ servants. But, you know, she made do.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly examine the escapades of ‘the boy Jones’ – a teenage stalker of the young Victoria; pore through the pages of the young monarch’s diaries; and reveal which celebrities claim to have got down and dirty in the Queen’s official residence…

Further Reading:

• Profile of Queen Victoria from Historic Royal Palaces: https://www.hrp.org.uk/kensington-palace/history-and-stories/queen-victoria/#gs.59mhsd

• Buckingham Palace page at the Royal Collection Trust: https://www.rct.uk/visit/buckingham-palace/who-built-buckingham-palace#/

• ‘Victoria’s Palace’ documentary (ITV, 2019): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FUn63ZIELxU&embeds_referring_euri=https%3A%2F%2Ftheretrospectors.com%2F&source_ve_path=MjM4NTE&feature=emb_title

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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: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2023.

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The Miners Dumped In New Mexico Jul 12, 2023

Show notes

A deputized posse illegally kidnapped and deported over a thousand striking mine workers from Bisbee, Arizona on July 12, 1917, and dumped them in New Mexico: an event that became known as The Bisbee Deportation.

The action was orchestrated by Phelps Dodge, the major mining company in the area, which provided lists of workers and others who were to be arrested to the Cochise County sheriff, Harry C. Wheeler. Those arrested were taken to a local baseball park before being loaded onto cattle cars and deported 200 miles to Tres Hermanas; a 16-hour journey through desert without food and with little water.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how the IWW Union became both popular and feared in Bisbee; consider how the American involvement in World War One changed the context for the workers on the Mexican border; and examine the intentions of the ‘Citizens Protective League’...

Further Reading:

‘Warren Ballpark - by Mike Andersen’ (Arcadia Publishing, 2013): https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Warren_Ballpark/JfLzAgAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=bisbee+deportation&printsec=frontcover
‘Remembering the Bisbee Deportation, 100 years later’ (KJZZ, 2017): https://kjzz.org/content/503494/remembering-bisbee-deportation-100-years-later
‘Bisbee Arizona: a historic town that many say has a dark side’ (LiveNOW from Fox, 2015): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gUB7NQEpUYs

#US #1910s #Protest

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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: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2023.

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Blasphemy! Jul 11, 2023

Show notes

Mary Whitehouse successfully sued Gay News and publisher Denis Lemon at the Old Bailey in a trial that began on 11th July, 1977 - Britain’s last conviction for blasphemy.

What had ired the notorious Christian campaigner was the magazine’s publication of “The Love That Dares to Speak Its Name”, a poem by James Kirkup written from the perspective of a Roman centurion who graphically describes having sex with Jesus after his crucifixion.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain why the poem literally could not be defended on its artistic merit; reveal how it came to Whitehouse’s attention in the first place; and consider the literary potency of ‘Foxy Judas’...

Content Warning: explicit poetry, necrophilia, material likely to offend Christians.

Further Reading:

• ‘The gay poem that broke blasphemy laws’ (Pink News, 2008): https://www.thepinknews.com/2008/01/10/the-gay-poem-that-broke-blasphemy-laws/

• ‘Blasphemy in the Christian World - A History, By David Nash’ (OUP, 2010): https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Blasphemy_in_the_Christian_World/BPYkhnY-3_cC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=robertson+whitehouse+lemon&pg=PA98&printsec=frontcover

• ‘The Love That Dares To Speak Its Name, by James Kirkup’ (Stand Up Jesus, 2010): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-iiIORJTOqY

#Religion #LGBT #1970s #UK

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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We'll be back tomorrow! 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 2023.

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Adventures of the Boy Horsemen Jul 10, 2023

Show notes

The ‘Abernathy Boys’, Temple and Louis, were aged just 5 and 8 respectively when they departed Guthrie, Oklahoma for a 1,300-mile horseback trip to Roswell, New Mexico on July 10th, 1909. Alone.

Sons of widower John Abernathy, himself the youngest-ever U.S. Marshal, the boys encountered wolves, outlaws and vast stretches of untamed plains on their journey - but survived the trip and became national celebrities and friends with Teddy Roosevelt.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how, in another adventure, the brothers ended up commandeering a motor car back from New York City; consider the extent to which the boys were being exploited to provide their Dad with publicity; and reveal John’s arresting technique for capturing wild wolves…

Further Reading:

• ‘Free-range kids: Louis and Temple Abernathy rode horses from Oklahoma to New York to meet Teddy Roosevelt’ (The Washington Post, 2019): https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2019/10/19/ultimate-free-range-kids-two-boys-rode-horses-new-york-oklahoma/

• ‘How The Abernathy Boys Became The Most Adventurous Kids In History’ (Fatherly, 2016): https://www.fatherly.com/love-money/abernathy-boys-solo-cross-country-1909

• ‘America On Their Own: The True Adventures and Explorations of the Abernathy Boys’ (Holly Culver, 2016): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=01szRIfFjiQ

#US #Strange #Child #1900s

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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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 2023.

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

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Meet Pinocchio Jul 07, 2023

Show notes

Pinocchio, ‘The Story of a Puppet’, debuted in Giornale per i bambini, an Italian weekly magazine for children, on 7th July, 1881. Its author, Carlo Lorenzini - going by the pseudonym C. Collodi - intended the tale to end with the hanging of Pinocchio, but popular demand led to the character having further, more optimistic adventures.

As a young man, Collodi joined the seminary but left to support the Italian national unification movement through journalism. His children’s writings are cut through with satire and moral lessons specific to Italy in the 1800s, yet resonated internationally almost immediately, having been translated into as many as 260 languages.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly consider Collodi in the context of other serialised literature of the time, such as Dickens; uncover the darkest moments in the story which Disney sensibly swerved; and explain what that whole weird donkey metaphor is all about…

Further Reading:

• ‘The Real Story of Pinocchio Tells No Lies’ (Smithsonian Magazine, 2022): https://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/the-real-pinocchio-180980027/

• ‘Pinocchio: The scariest children's story ever written’ (BBC Culture, 2022): https://www.bb The Real Story of Pinocchio Tells No Lies | Travel | Smithsonian Magazine c.com/culture/article/20221207-pinocchio-the-scariest-childrens-story-ever-written

• ‘The birthplace of Pinocchio’ (CBS, 2019): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAkdYYaTzcI&t=9s

#1800s #Italy #Books

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: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2023.

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

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Kalashnikov's Killing Machine Jul 06, 2023

Show notes

The AK-47 assault rifle, the 20th century’s deadliest weapon, went into production on 6th July, 1947.

Designed by Mikhail Kalashnikov, then a 22 year-old tank sergeant, the 600rpm gun was the winning entry in a national competition to find the next generation of Soviet weapons. It went on to be used in conflicts as diverse as Vietnam, Cuba and Iraq.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how Kalashnikov researched and developed his killing machine; consider the ironic popularity of his weapon in the United States; and recall the end-of-life torment his invention ultimately brought him…

Further Reading:

• ‘July 6, 1947: The AK-47, an All-Purpose Killer’ (WIRED, 2009): https://www.wired.com/2009/07/dayintech-0706/

• ‘Kalashnikov inventor haunted by unbearable pain of dead millions’ (The Guardian, 2014): https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jan/13/kalashnikov-weapon-inventor-spiritual-pain-dead-millions

• ‘Evolution of AK-47 Rifle’ (The Infographics Show, 2021):

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

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: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2023.

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

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Jeff Bezos and the Infinite Bookstore Jul 05, 2023

Show notes

Rerun. Amazon, created in the Seattle garage of Jeff Bezos, was incorporated on 5th July, 1994.

Before Bezos had settled on the site’s name as a way of conveying the size and scope of the e-commerce platform he intended to build, his working titles had included Cadabra, Relentless, Awake, Browse and Bookmall.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain why Washington was chosen as the launch location for the company; reveal how Bezos was able to resell individual books from wholesalers without breaching any Ts & Cs; and compare notes on their first-ever Amazon purchases…

Further Reading:

• ‘Amazon Was Founded 25 Years Ago This Friday. Here’s What the World Was Like When Jeff Bezos Incorporated the Company in 1994’ (Inc, 2019): https://www.inc.com/bill-murphy-jr/amazon-cadabra-jeff-bezos-25-year-anniversary-1994.html

• ‘Olly Mann on “My Mate Bought a Toaster”’ (Tom Price, 2020): https://podfollow.com/1462168683/episode/50c5e6d3a7471bb569f375a2d8d65d0bdd39e6e4/view

• ‘60 Minutes: Amazon’ (CBS, 1999): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yv8MrBBuRqI

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: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2023.

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

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Victory Day For Housewives Jul 04, 2023

Show notes

Fourteen years of food rationing came to an end in Britain on 4th July, 1954, when restrictions on the sale and purchase of meat and bacon were lifted. Members of the London Housewives’ Association held a special ceremony in London’s Trafalgar Square to mark Derationing Day. Meanwhile, The Minister of Fuel and Power, Geoffrey Lloyd, burned a large replica of a ration book.

Rationing had been introduced due to difficulties importing food to Britain by boat during the war, but also affected the supply of clothes, furniture and fuel. During the war, the Ministry of Food urged the British people to grow their own veg to play their part in defeating the Germans.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly consider the merits of a ‘mock’ fish and chips recipe; examine how the Conservatives used this ‘Victory Day for Housewives’ to score a political point of the previous Labour government; and reveal how to avoid ‘Humble Pie with Hitler’...

Further Reading:

• ‘Food Rationing In WW2: When Did It Begin & End, & How Did People Cook?’ (HistoryExtra, 2021): https://www.historyextra.com/period/second-world-war/when-food-rationing-begin-end-ww2/

• ‘The wartime recipes that kept Britain going in the Second World War’ (Country Life, 2017): https://www.countrylife.co.uk/food-drink/victory-in-the-kitchen-easy-wartime-recipes-to-try-149921

• ‘Rationing Recipes from the Second World War - Potato Wrapped Sardines’ (Imperial War Museums, 2021): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNWCrYqGVkE&t

#WW2 #Food #UK #50s

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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We'll be back tomorrow! 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.

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When Bowie Killed Ziggy Jul 03, 2023

Show notes

David Bowie retired his alter-ego Ziggy Stardust live on stage at London’s Hammersmith Odeon on 3rd July, 1973. To the surprise of most of his band, the Spiders From Mars, he announced to a devastated crowd that the gig was “the last show we’ll ever do.”

Bowie’s management company had plans to take Ziggy on an international tour, but being Ziggy Stardust had taken a mental and physical toll on the singer. “I really did want it all to come to an end,” he wrote in Moonage Daydream.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how a ‘fake’ Lou Reed influenced Bowie to create the character of Ziggy; discover how, for a while, his fans were called ‘the Uglies’ and his genre ‘freakrock’; and reveal how this iconic rockstar felt ‘hopelessly lost’ in his own fantasy…

Further Reading:

• ‘Looking back on David Bowie's most legendary gig: The death of Ziggy Stardust’ (London Evening Standard, 2019): https://www.standard.co.uk/culture/music/david-bowie-death-ziggy-stardust-hammersmith-odeon-a4034746.html

• ‘How David Bowie killed off Ziggy Stardust’ (Far Out Magazine, 2021): https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/how-david-bowie-killed-ziggy-stardust/

• ‘David Bowie – Ziggy Stardust’ (Live, 1973): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fq8gG3pzMrU&list=PLNJirx02I6P72KTv5oJPSF-kkagLgfJWr&index=3

#Music #70s #UK #LGBT

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: Sophie King.

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Debating Darwin's Theory Jun 30, 2023

Show notes

Thomas Huxley and Samuel Wilberforce, Bishop of Oxford, were among the prominent figures discussing Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution at the Oxford University Museum on 30th June 1860; an encounter sometimes referred to as ‘The Great Debate’.

The confrontation is best remembered for a heated exchange in which Wilberforce supposedly asked Huxley whether it was through his grandfather or his grandmother that he claimed his descent from a monkey. Huxley is said to have replied that he would not be ashamed to have a monkey for his ancestor, but he would be ashamed to be connected with a man who used his great gifts to obscure the truth.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain how both men came to believe they had ‘won’ the ‘debate’; trace back the origins of the men’s nicknames ‘Darwin’s Bulldog’ and ‘Soapy Sam’; and consider whether Darwin himself was keen on causing such controversy…

Further Reading:

• ‘The Great Debate’ (Oxford University Museum of Natural History): https://oumnh.ox.ac.uk/great-debate

• ‘Did Huxley really mop the floor with Wilberforce?’ (National Geographic, 2008): https://www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/repost-did-huxley-really-mop-the-floor-with-wilberforce

• ‘Darwin’s Dangerous Idea’ (PBS, 2012): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=povYofKYqJM

#Science #Victorian #UK

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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: Sophie King.

Copyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2023.

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

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