Dan Snow's History Hit
Lost tombs buried beneath desert sands, enchanting hieroglyphs, mysterious mummies, great rulers and kingdoms- Egypt has it all. Since antiquity, tourists have ventured to Egypt to see for themselves the great remnants of its ancient civilisation. Archaeologists have since found graffiti from Ancient Greek scholars and 18th century French explorers in the tombs of the Valley of the Kings.
But what is it about Ancient Egypt that captures us in childhood and adulthood, more so than any other period in history? Well, Dan joins Dr Campbell Price, curator of Egypt and Sudan at the Manchester Museum, to get to the bottom of it. They tell the stories of their own obsession with Egypt, which pharaohs they think are overrated and the impact mass documentary-making is having on archaeological discoveries in places like Saqqara and Luxor.
Produced by Mariana Des Forges and edited by Dougal Patmore.
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- Update frequency
- every 2 days
- Average duration
- 33 minutes
- Episodes
- 1438
- Years Active
- 2020 - 2025
THE LEADERS: Stalin
Was WWII actually Stalin's War? He's a man whose name is synonymous with absolute power, the epitome of ruthless ambition, his story is one of both triumph and unspeakable cruelty. A man whose brutal…
Babylon: The Most Important City of Antiquity
The urban cultures of ancient Mesopotamia formed the foundation for so much of our modern world. Nowhere exemplifies this better than the city of Babylon, which was the cultural seedbed for the Greek…
THE LEADERS: Mussolini
Once a political heavyweight with dreams of a new Roman Empire, Mussolini's journey from a rebellious socialist youth to the fascist leader of Italy is a story of ego, brutality and ultimately incomp…
The Origins of Jim Crow
The Jim Crow era is one of the darkest periods in American history. The country was divided by laws, customs and etiquettes that demeaned African Americans and segregated them from white Americans. B…
The Sphinx
The Great Sphinx of Giza is probably the most recognisable statue in the world but it’s also one of the most mysterious...with conflicting stories about who built it and why have circulated since anc…
THE LEADERS: Churchill
Does Churchill deserve the legacy he has? He took the reigns from a foundering Chamberlain and proved himself to be the man the country needed. But of course, he is not a man without controversy or c…
D-day to Berlin: The Americans Cross the Rhine
80 years ago this week, American forces unexpectedly discovered an intact bridge across the river Rhine - the last natural defence of the crumbling Third Reich. They mounted a ferocious assault and a…
THE LEADERS: Hitler
Could Germany have won the war if not for Hitler's hubris? Dan is joined by Professor Phillips O'Brien to explore Hitler's biggest decisions during WWII and how he shaped the course of the war. They …
Why Do Humans Wage War?
Why, despite knowing the devastation it causes, do humans insist on starting wars? Countless battles have littered the pages of our shared human story. Powerful leaders, hungry for glory and conquest…
THE LEADERS - Mini Series Coming 3rd March
Why do we, as humans, allow such individuals to hold such power over us? And at what cost? Our world is shaped by choices—some calculated, some reckless, most irreversible. From Kennedy and Khrushche…
Mary, Queen of Scots
This is the story of the incredible rise and fall of Mary, Queen of Scots. She was queen of Scotland, she was queen of France, and she could have been queen of England. She led armies, lived as a fug…
Soho: London's Most Notorious Neighbourhood
Soho was once a thriving melting pot of speakeasies, sex work and organised crime. From razor gangs of the 1920s to money laundering, the area has always been a hotbed for thieves, conmen, drug deale…
Dogs
From the small corgis that drove cattle to Smithfield market to the Dalmatians that protected carriages from highwaymen, humans and dogs have relied on each other for millennia. Historian and dog-lov…
Josef Mengele
The Nazi doctor who committed heinous experiments on prisoners of Auschwitz was harboured by a network of Nazi supporters in Argentina after the war. As an SS officer and physician, he conducted horr…
Why Isn't Canada the 51st State?
Dan explains how Canada has resisted many American attempts at annexation since the Revolution in 1775. From the tariff tensions of 1911 to President Trump's recent remarks about making Canada the 51…
The Bombing of Dresden
As the Second World War neared its bloody climax, Allied bombers unleashed a devastating firestorm on Dresden. In just two days the historic city was reduced to rubble, and tens of thousands were kil…
The Siege of Malta: Knights Hospitaller vs The Ottomans
This is the story of Suleiman the Magnificent's attempt to conquer Malta, the headquarters of a Catholic military order that had become a thorn in his side. They were known as the Knights Hospitaller…
Iwo Jima: WWII in the Pacific
80 years ago, on the rocky volcanic island of Iwo Jima, the vicious battle for the Pacific reached ever bloodier crescendos. As Allied forces crossed the Rhine in Europe, American Marines won a costl…
Nostradamus
For centuries, Nostradamus has been hailed as the man who saw the future—his cryptic quatrains allegedly foretelling everything from the French Revolution and the rise of Hitler to the 9/11 attacks a…
2. The English Civil War: Roundheads vs Cavaliers
Episode 2/2. In 1642, England was torn apart by a fierce struggle. Royalist armies, loyal to the defiant King Charles I, clashed with the forces of Parliament, igniting a violent civil war that would…