Consistently Eccentric History

When we found out that some people believe the subject of our most recent episode was Jack the Ripper, we at Consistently Eccentric HQ knew that we needed to come together to decide for ourselves if we would be adopting this theory moving forwards.

So enjoy a bonus conversation between Joe, Ollie and Emma to determine if cotton merchant James Maybrick was indeed the most notorious criminal of the 1800s...

...if Joe can manage to keep them all on topic.

Guest Hosts: Ollie Green and Emma Heathcote

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What happens if you take a hypochondriac with masses of cash and give him unlimited access to whatever medicines / drugs / potions he fancies?

Well you might end up with a man like James Maybrick who became obsessed with patent medicines to an apparently deadly degree.

A successful Liverpool Cotton Merchant, James married a young American woman called Florence, however he neglected to mention that he already had a secret family (which seems like it might have been an important). When this secret finally got out it led to a series of events that resulted in death, accusations of murder and the acquisition of many many cats.

So join us this week with a tale of Late Victorian scandal and the perils of an unregulated medicine industry.

Guest Host: Ollie Green

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

Like all primary school children in Britain, Evie will be studying the Ancient Egyptians at some point. So we have decided to give her a head start by talking about one of the most famous events of the 20th Century, the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun.

With quick explainers of why Pharaoh's started being buried in the Vally of the Kings, and how Tutankhamun came to die at the age of only 19 (though without mentioning the fact he was a child of incest and was married to his own sister). We follow the story of Howard Carter, a self-taught illustrator with a single-minded ambition who would do anything to stay in Egypt and keep searching for the elusive boy-king and in doing so became one of the most famous archeologists ever...

...Shame he hated talking to people.

Guest Host: Evie Heathcote

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Emma has returned! And this week to ease her back into cohosting duties we are becoming paranormal investigators to discuss a potential haunting that took place in South London in 1938.

Alma Fielding had it all, a new three bed house, a husband on a good wage and (potentially) a lover that she kept in the shed at the bottom of the garden... though this last one might have been cobblers.

But following a bout of kidney trouble she suddenly found herself under poltergeist attack!

Luckily for her a paranormal investigator called Nandor Fodor was on hand to help. Prepare for a wild tale of ever escalating paranormal problems, with appearances from Harry Houdini, Bela Lugosi and Sigmund Freud.

Guest Host: Emma Heathcote

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

This week we conclude our search for the last battle on English soil with a trio of conflicts that all centre around the Stuart Dynasty, specifically James II. With Urban warfare, Irish Panic and artful men from Somerset all making an appearance it is also an unintentional summary of the downfall of the house of Stuart...

...Which we cover in reverse order to ensure that you are paying attention. And by the end we do promise that we will confirm which fight was in fact the last battle to ever be fought on English soil (to this point at least).

Guest Host: Ollie Green

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

Prior to recording the second part of our 'Last Battle on English Soil' episodes, Ollie announced that he would only take part on one condition...

....that Joe try Marmite again.

It turned out that Ollie was deadly serious, so in order to ensure that the episode would be released on time Joe gave in to the demand. This allowed an opportunity to discuss the historical significance of Marmite (amazingly it turns out to have been quite important during the 20th century) and to chat about various other foods, before the conversation deteriorated into the tangental randomness that dominates all the conversations within the team when a script is not involved.

So if you want a bit of an insight into how we warm up for recording, or if you just want another opportunity to hear our lovely voices please enjoy...

.... and sorry for the swearing.

Diva of a Co-host making demands: Ollie Green

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This week we are beginning a search for the last battle to be fought in England which, due to some disagreement about what actually constitutes a battle, could be one of at least six separate events which span the course of four separate centuries.

In this first episode we are covering an accidental WWII mini-invasion, a mental health crisis that went way too far, and the many ramblings of Bonnie Prince Charlie. But were any of these actually battles? Tune in to find out if we will even need a part two!

Guest Host: Ollie Green

*Disclaimer - the host's views on Marmite are their own and should not be considered representative of Consistently Eccentric History.

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

The Georgians sure knew how to sensationalise a story. So when a rich mother and daughter went on trial for the murder of their orphaned 13 year old servant girl many a pamphlet was written.

This week we are discussing the content of those pamphlets, how reliable they might be, and trying to understand why a person would admit to eating their own poop while giving evidence in a court of law.

Guest Host: Ollie Green

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

This week we are discussing the life of a lawyer, poet and inventor from the Tudor era called John Harington.

When banished from the court of his godmother Queen Elizabeth for saucy translations John had five years to contemplate life, and he came to the conclusion that his life could be made measurably better if he was able to poo in comfort.

So he set about trying to come up with an improved defecation system, one that he would eventually present to the Queen herself.

Would she like it? Would John be allowed to return to court? And what exactly is a 'Gong Farmer'?

Join us to find out. Now with 30% more conversations about poo!

Guest Host: Evie Heathcote

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It's holiday time!

This week we are off to New Zealand to discuss how a misunderstanding in a quickly translated treaty led to all out war between the British and the Maori (despite that fact that they had been united by a hatred of the French).

What started out as a mutually beneficial arrangement was quickly ruined by the British insisting on introducing tariffs and otherwise messing with the sovereignty of the Maori people of the North Island. But while in other countries the British were able to bully their way to absolute power over the locals, the Maori were not going to take it lying down.

They decided to make their frustrations known via the medium of flags, leading to one of the more unique wars the British Empire was ever involved in.

Guest Host: Ollie Green

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