The Rest Is History

643. Rome’s Greatest Enemy: Carthage Destroyed (Part 4)

Three decades after the defeat of Hannibal, how had the Roman Empire managed to conquer vast swathes of the known world? Why did the predatory eyes of this terrifying behemoth turn once more to Cartha...

2026-02-12

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Greatest Paintings: The Ghost of Spain – Velázquez’s Las Meninas

Why does Diego Velázquez’ Las Meninas represent the fading Spanish Golden Age? How did he challenge the boundaries between viewer and artwork? And, in what ways does his defining style foreshadow Impr...

2026-02-11

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642. Rome’s Greatest Enemy: Bloodbath in Africa (Part 3)

Would the Roman general Publius Cornelius Scipio successfully march on Africa? What happened when Hannibal and Scipio - the greatest commanders of their age - came head to head at the Battle of Zama, ...

2026-02-09

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641. Rome’s Greatest Enemy: Hannibal’s Nemesis (Part 2)

What happened at the Battle of Ibera, a totemic though overlooked battle of the Punic Wars? With the forces of Carthage closing in on a depleted Rome, would a young Roman, Publius Cornelius Scipio res...

2026-02-05

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Greatest Paintings: Dawn of the Dutch Golden Age - The Arnolfini Portrait

Why is Jan Van Eyck’s Arnolfini Portrait perceived as one of the greatest mysteries of the arts? What elements and symbolisms provoke debates about its identity and meaning? And, what do we know about...

2026-02-04

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640. Rome’s Greatest Enemy: Carthage at the Gates (Part 1)

Did Hannibal march on Rome after his legendary victory at the Battle of Cannae in 216 BC? How could Rome fight on after losing so many men? And, where would their next cataclysmic clash take place…? ...

2026-02-02

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639. Revolution in Iran: Death in the Desert (Part 4)

How did America respond after the American Embassy in Tehran was seized, and American citizens taken hostage? Would the hostages survive? And, what became of the Iranian Revolution, and Ayatollah Khom...

2026-01-29

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638. Revolution in Iran: The Hostage Crisis (Part 3)

Why and how was the American Embassy stormed in 1979, at the height of the Iranian Revolution? Did America respond when large numbers of American civil servants were taken hostage? And, would a scienc...

2026-01-26

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637. Revolution in Iran: Rise of the Ayatollah (Part 2)

What set off the final uprisings of the Iranian Revolution, against the last Shah of Iran, Mohammed Reza Pahlavi? Would President Jimmy Carter and America back the Shah’s forbidding opponent, the fire...

2026-01-22

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636. Revolution in Iran: Fall of the Shah (Part 1)

Why did the Iranian Revolution erupt in 1979? What was the nature of the relationship between President Carter and the ostentatious Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi? And, who was the Ayatollah Ruhollah Khom...

2026-01-19

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635. Joan of Arc: For Fear of the Flames (Part 4)

What were the harsh conditions of Joan of Arc’s imprisonment, at the hands of her English captors? How did Joan’s trial unfold, and with what was she charged? And, would Joan confess at the last momen...

2026-01-15

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634. Joan of Arc: Heroine in Chains (Part 3)

How was Charles VII, with the help of Joan of Arc, able to fight his way to Reims to be crowned in the ancient seat of French kings? Why was she able to continually defeat the formidable soldiers of E...

2026-01-12

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633. Joan of Arc: Saviour of France (Part 2)

How did a young, uneducated peasant girl dressed in men’s clothing, Joan of Arc, plan to crown the son of the mad and feeble Charles VI, the King of all France, and save them from the English? What ha...

2026-01-08

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632. Joan of Arc: Warrior Maid (Part 1)

What are the origins of the legendary Joan of Arc, the famous French maid who saved France from the English during the Hundred Years’ War, dressed all the while in men’s clothes? Why is hers one of th...

2026-01-05

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631. Wagner: LIVE at the Royal Albert Hall

Was Richard Wagner a revolutionary artist who reshaped music forever, or an egotists mired in scandal, whose dangerous ideas were inseparable from the operas he created? How did the legendary worlds e...

2026-01-01

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630. Tchaikovsky: LIVE at the Royal Albert Hall

What are the complex origins of Russia’s most renowned composer, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky? What inner conflicts and private contradictions lay behind his romantic music, and how did these struggles sh...

2025-12-29

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629. WWI: The Christmas Truce

Did the Christmas Truce - which saw a number of unofficial ceasefires between the combatants of the First World War, during the Christmas of 1914 - really occur, or was it a myth? What is the real sto...

2025-12-25

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628. Jack The Ripper: The Killer Unmasked (Part 5)

Who are the prime suspects for the identity of Jack the Ripper? Why did he suddenly halt his hellish killing spree, and never strike again? And, once and for all, who really was Jack the Ripper…? Jo...

2025-12-22

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627. Jack The Ripper: From Hell (Part 4)

Why was Jack the Ripper’s final murder the most appalling of all? Who was the mysterious Mary-Jane Kelly, his unfortunate victim? And, what enduring impact would his crimes have upon the cultural clim...

2025-12-18

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626. Jack The Ripper: The Killer Strikes Again (Part 3)

How did Jack the Ripper manage to strike twice in the same night without getting caught? Did he have an accomplice? And, what chilling clues did the police discover in the wake of the murder…? Join D...

2025-12-15

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The Rest Is History

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