We are focusing on local history this week to talk about the history of a unique and dangerous highway that was used to speed up journeys to Cumbria.

In the middle ages crossing the sands of the Morecambe Bay could knock days off a journey, which convinced many people to risk it despite the ever present risk of drowning.

And when you had hungry monks at the other side, it apparently suddenly became vital that someone was hired to ensure that the loss of supplies (and I suppose... people) was minimised.

Via the unforeseen impacts of a series of national events, this ad hoc system eventually led to the establishment of a Royal Post that still exists to this day, even if the amount of traffic has reduced somewhat.

This is a tale that features a Roman General, a French noble who became King of England (no, not that one), a Scottish King (yes, that one) and a man from Morecambe who was able to reinvent a position that had existed for over 500 years.

Guest Host: Emma Heathcote

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

This week we return from our summer holidays (having avoided the wildfires in France) with Pam narrating the life of Captain John Smith. A man from Lancashire who became both a key part of the British settling of the East Coast of America, and a Disney Character.

From humble orphan origins, John embarked on the life of an adventurer which encompassed pretty much everything you could imagine. So strap in for a tale of Crusades, duels, slavery, disasters, double-dealing, slanders, pirates, exploration, life or death struggles and cartography!

With special guest appearances from Pocahontas and (potentially) a pug called Percy.

Guest Host: Pamela Loetterle

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

For once we are releasing a timely episode as England are still (at time of release) in the 2026 world cup. Which is the perfect time to talk about how, 60 years ago, a team full of missing teeth, combovers and prominent knees, somehow managed to win the whole thing on home turf.

The story of the 1966 world cup has everything. Death, controversy and even a potential international incident (not to mention ransom demands) whic formed the backdrop to a tournament where everything conspired to allow the English to achieve something which they may never manage again.

Guest Host: Tom Heathcote

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

This week (slightly delayed due to illness) we are discussing a man who found a way to profit from the upheaval of the English Civil War via the most partisan of journalism. Marchamont Nedham was a gifted writer who became the most influential journalist of his day. Though not the most reliable.

Never one for consistency, Marchamont was willing to switch sides if he felt it would benefit him personally, or at least keep him out of prison. A pragmatic approach that eventually resulted in him being welcomed into the innermost circles of the new Republican leadership...

... which was perfect as long as the Republic didn't suddenly implode.

Guest Host: Oliver Green

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

This week we are welcoming the youngest member of the Heathcote clan, Milo to his first episode!

And as a result we are covering a subject that is currently rather close to his heart. The pseudoscience of Cryptids.

Covering 10 questionable critters that span the entirety of the 20th Century we will answer the question, is there a Cryptid in the UK that is better than Nessie?

As this episode is recorded in 2 locations with 2 children the audio quality is at times a bit iffy, but that is a small price to pay for how much they enjoyed it, and we hope you will too!

Guest Hosts: Milo, Evie and Emma Heathcote.

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

This week we are talking about how an imagined love triangle (which contained absolutely no love) resulted in the death of a sitting MP and nearly sparked both an international incident and mob-rule on the streets of London.

Because in Restoration England any noble woman who had a fortune but no husband was in constant peril. Due to the way the law worked, any man she married would instantly take possession of whatever she owned and could do with it as he pleased. So marriage carried much more risk...

Especially if you were only 14 years old.

This is a tale of murder, scheming and gossip, all hidden behind the veneer of courtly propriety. Proving that, just because someone is posh it does not mean that they know how to behave.

Guest Host: Pamela Loetterle

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

This week we are heading to the Mills of Bradford to meet a Yorkshireman whose unshakable self-belief led to one of the most longwinded self-destructions in history.

Having survived the horrors of WWII (and the retail industry), a chance encounter with some Yogis set in motion a series of events that would see Maurice Wilson defy the British Government, and find himself 23,000 feet up the side of Mount Everest.

He may not have had any training, he may have had the wrong equipment, he may have been explicitly told by the locals that he was mad, but could Maurice survive to tell the tale?*

Guest host: Oliver Green

*No, he could not.

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

To celebrate international Midwifery day, Pam is back in the hosting chair to tell us the story of a pioneering Doctor who didn't let their lack of balls stop them from becoming one of the top medics in the entirety of the British Armed Forces.

Originally only pretending to be a man in order to get through medical training, James Barry was planning to practice as a woman in service of Francisco de Miranda in Venezuela. But when this job offer fell through he decided to leave his old life an Margaret Bulkley behind for good, embarking on a globetrotting career that included a notable first in the field of midwifery.

Guest Host: Joseph Heathcote

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

After a series of unfortunate events we are back with a spooky tale from the early 19th Century that resulted in multiple deaths.

The Hammersmith Ghost was initially a local oddity, but as the winter of 1803 progressed it became a source of increasing fear for the local population.

But as any good Georgian knew, the best way to protect yourself from the supernatural is with a bloody big gun!

Guest Host: Emma Heathcote

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

This week we are heading across the channel to talk about how one of the many Anglo-French spats during the middle ages resulted in the creation of one of the most effective pirates who has ever sailed the high seas (of the English Channel).

After her husband was executed (murdered) by the French king, Jeanne de Clisson swore revenge. However being an eminently practical woman, she ensured that her revenge. would have staying power. Two decades to be precise. This is a tale of dysfunctional marriages, power grabbing and justified anger. Which could only be untangled by a man from Yorkshire named Walter.

Guest Host: Emma Heathcote

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