Today In History with The Retrospectors
Curious, funny, surprising daily history - with Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina and Arion McNicoll.
From the invention of the Game Boy to the Mancunian beer-poisoning of 1900, from Julius Caesar's invasion of Britain to America's Nazi summer schools... each day we uncover an unexpected story for the ages. In just ten minutes!
Best Daily Podcast (British Podcast Awards 2023 nominee).
Get early access and ad-free listening at Patreon.com/Retrospectors or subscribe on Apple Podcasts.
- Update frequency
- every day
- Average duration
- 12 minutes
- Episodes
- 1105
- Years Active
- 2021 - 2025
Dubbing Gerry Adams
The ‘broadcasting ban’ on 11 Northern Irish organizations including Sinn Fein was finally lifted by Prime Minister John Major on 16th September, 1994, one fortnight after an IRA ceasefire had been ac…
00:12:02 |
Fri 16 Sep 2022
Rebirth of the MINI
Rerun. BMW unveiled its redesigned MINI for the first time, on 15th September, 1997; the eve of the Frankfurt Motor Show. Its predecessor had been in production for 41 years.
Reborn as a ‘city’ car, …
00:11:34 |
Thu 15 Sep 2022
Moscow Shoots For The Moon
The USSR pulled ahead in the Space Race on 14th September, 1959 - when they became the first nation to successfully crash a man-made object into the Moon.
Luna II was carrying a metal sphere bearing …
00:11:57 |
Wed 14 Sep 2022
The Man With The Hole In His Head
Phineas Gage, a foreman on the New England railroads, was pierced through the head with a 13-pound tamping iron on 13th September, 1848. The rod went straight through his skull and landed several yar…
00:12:04 |
Tue 13 Sep 2022
Meet The Monkees
NBC premiered ‘Royal Flush’ - the pilot episode of iconic Sixties pop-comedy show The Monkees - on 12th September, 1966. And the Daydream Believers quickly found their way into America’s heart…
The B…
00:12:06 |
Mon 12 Sep 2022
Let's Crash Some Trains
High-speed collisions between locomotives became mainstream entertainment on 9th September, 1896, when Joe Connolly - AKA “Head-On Joe” - staged the first of the 70 deliberate trainwrecks with which …
00:11:56 |
Fri 09 Sep 2022
The First Miss America
Margaret Gorman, a schoolgirl from Washington DC, was crowned ‘Miss Intercity Beauty’ at the “Fall Frolic” in Atlantic City on 8th September, 1921 - an event that would eventually become known as Mis…
00:11:58 |
Thu 08 Sep 2022
The Umbrella Assassin
Rerun. Bulgarian writer Georgi Markov was shot by a poisoned pellet whilst walking on Waterloo Bridge on 7th September, 1978. Four days later, he was dead.
He believed the bullet - believed to be fil…
00:10:44 |
Wed 07 Sep 2022
Up The Royal Oak
Charles II, the 21 year-old King of Scotland, sought refuge up an oak tree at Boscobel House on 6th September, 1651. Having been chased out of Worcester by Oliver Cromwell’s Roundheads, he feared for…
00:11:53 |
Tue 06 Sep 2022
Bring On The Beard Tax
Peter The Great levied a tax on facial hair on 5th September, 1698, requiring every man in Moscow to shave or stump up some cash - although there were exemptions for the Orthodox Church.
The hare-bra…
00:11:48 |
Mon 05 Sep 2022
EXTRA: Can nuclear power overcome its image problem?
Our friends at The Week (where, fun fact, The Retrospectors met) have a great podcast we'd like to share with you for your Saturday listening pleasure.
It's called The Overview, and it's the perfect …
00:24:33 |
Sat 03 Sep 2022
Solar Explosion!
The Carrington Event - the largest solar storm in recorded history - occurred on 2nd September, 1859. Although its effects would later be felt by millions around the world, it had initially only been…
00:11:55 |
Fri 02 Sep 2022
Nokia’s Beloved Brick
Rerun. The Nokia 3310 - featuring Snake II, pop-on/off covers, and a discreetly concealed antenna - was launched on 1st September, 2000 at a boardsports event in Dusseldorf, Germany.
Nicknamed ‘the b…
00:11:19 |
Thu 01 Sep 2022
Gorilla Marketing
Cadbury’s Dairy Milk re-energised its flagging brand in the UK on 31st August, 2007, when its iconic ‘Gorilla’ ad premiered in the Big Brother final on Channel 4.
The 90-second commercial, which feat…
00:12:03 |
Wed 31 Aug 2022
The Moscow-Washington Hotline
After the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Soviets and Americans agreed to install a ‘hot line’ between their Presidents. On 30th August, 1963, a 10,000 mile transatlantic Washington-Moscow cable went live …
00:12:03 |
Tue 30 Aug 2022
When Caesar Invaded Britain
When Julius Caesar showed up in the Channel with thousands of men on 26th August 55 BC, he doubtless intended to get a bit further than the coast of Kent. Unfortunately for him, he had moored his shi…
00:11:44 |
Fri 26 Aug 2022
The Beatles’ Giggling Guru
Rerun. John, Paul, George and Ringo travelled to a transcendental meditation workshop in Bangor, Wales on 25th August, 1967 - at the invitation of ‘giggling guru’, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi.
The event ch…
00:11:03 |
Thu 25 Aug 2022
The Last Hieroglyph
In the temple at Philae, an Egyptian Priest called Nesmeterakhem created the last ever known hieroglyphic inscription on 24th August, 394. Although ostensibly praising the God Mandulis, the scribe sp…
00:12:11 |
Wed 24 Aug 2022
The ‘Stockholm Syndrome’ Robbery
Stockholm Syndrome - the condition in which hostages develop a psychological bond with their captors during captivity - was named after a bank robbery that began on 23rd August, 1973. It lasted for f…
00:12:00 |
Tue 23 Aug 2022
Balloons With Bombs On
The world’s first notable air raid occurred on 22nd August, 1849, when the Austrian Army attacked Venice using a fleet of 200 miniature hot air balloons, each delivering a 33lb pound bomb.
Following…
00:10:49 |
Mon 22 Aug 2022
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