We Didn't Start the Fire: The History Podcast

Latest Episodes:

South Pacific Feb 22, 2021

Show notes

We're five lyrics in, and Katie and Tom are getting musical. Literally, if you make it to the end. Dr Cara Rodway (Chair of the British Association for American Studies by day, musical nerd by night) gives a pretty convincing case for why the soundtrack has spent more weeks at UK number 1 than any other song. Even one of Billy's.

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Johnnie Ray Feb 15, 2021

Show notes

Deaf in one ear, shy, bisexual, sensitive - are these the reasons Johnnie Ray isn't worshipped as the Father of Rock and Roll? Katie, Tom and author Cathi Unsworth delve into the world of the man who gave way to Elvis, the Beatles, Morrissey. It's a journey which will take them from a small farm in Oregon to African-American clubs in Detroit, and finally to hidden corners in smokey clubs where London's 1950s subcultures could be found. Cathi's latest book Bad Penny Blues is out now: http://www.cathiunsworth.co.uk/ or https://www.facebook.com/cathiunsworthwriter.

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Red China Feb 08, 2021

Show notes

It's episode 3 and Billy's transported us back to post-1949 Communist China. Katie and Tom talk to Prof. Yangwen Zheng about her childhood under the regime, and she's got a fascinating story to tell. It's one of stolen pencil cases, the class enemy, disappearing family members, widespread famine, murder - and the man at the heart of it all, Mao Zedong.

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Doris Day Feb 01, 2021

Show notes

Episode two brings us swanning into the Golden Age of Hollywood, with the charisma, charm and controversies of Doris Day, brought alive by Dr Tamar Jeffers-McDonald.

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Harry Truman Jan 25, 2021

Show notes

This brand new pop culture history podcast is nothing like anything you've heard before, and it's everything you need to understand the modern world. This is the start of an epic journey where Tom Fordyce and Katie Puckrik take each of the 120 people, places and things mentioned in 'We Didn't Start The Fire', the smash hit by Billy Joel, and record an episode on every single one - and in the process they're expanding their brains without even feeling like they're learning.

True to Billy Joel's words we're kicking off with Harry Truman, an ordinary man from humble stock who rose to become the 33rd President of the United States, founder of NATO, yes-sayer to the devastating nuclear bomb on Hiroshima, vanguard of the heroic Berlin airlift, and avid piano player. Katie and Tom are lucky to have with them the columnist and famed political pundit Eleanor Clift (whom you may have seen appear as herself in films like 'Independence Day' and 'Dave'), to help them understand the man who oversaw the rebuilding of the post-war world. Has any US president ever had to make so many monumental decisions?

The clips used in this episode are in the public domain and have been kindly provided by the Screen Gems Collection at the Harry S Truman Library.

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Trailer Jan 15, 2021

Show notes

A modern history podcast inspired by the lyrics of Billy Joel. Billy didn’t just write an unforgettable smash-hit with ‘We Didn’t Start The Fire’, he also created the most fascinating, random and original history of the post-war world. Each episode, a new lyric and a fresh subject, all presented by Katie Puckrik and Tom Fordyce. It's politics, rock 'n' roll, sport, space, television, the Cold War, explored and explained by historians, eyewitnesses, and mega-fans. Billy started it. We're going to finish it. Follow us on Twitter and Instagram @spreadthatfire, or share your thoughts and stories with us fire@crowdnetwork.co.uk.

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