This week we are talking about a man who dealt with his grief in a particularly extreme manner. Former petty London Criminal Edward Low was a man of extremes, which is why he responded to the untimely death of his wife by becoming a pirate and engaging on a three year campaign of death and destruction.

Capable of extreme cruelty which he would justify with a very idiosyncratic moral code Ned Low provided the exclamation mark to the end of the golden age of Piracy and has gone down in history as the most bloodthirsty pirate who has ever existed.

So join us for a tale of badly named ships, questionable cooking techniques and blood, blood, blood!

Guest Host: Emma Heathcote

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We are over in the North East of England today to meet a radical preacher and sometime asylum inhabitant, Jonathan Martin. A man who was never backwards in coming forwards about his views on the state of the Christian Church.

Born into a nomadic family, Jonathan consoled himself by convincing himself that his life would be in service of a greater purpose. While this allowed him to cope with extreme situations it also lead to him developing a very singular moral compass which at times brought him into direct conflict with the authorities.

So join us as we follow him over the high seas and into conflict with multiple long-suffering vicars toward his ultimate, god-directed purpose.

Just remember to hid the guns....

Guest Host: Ollie Green

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A day late but with double the content, this week we are discussing two sisters who married the King of England (luckily it was not the same king each time, or we might have needed a Jerry Springer style intervention) in order to shore up the position of their father Charles, the mad king of France.

However despite both Isabella and Catherine doing the dutiful thing it was a later decision by Catherine to marry a simple Welsh Knight that would actually have the most long reaching impact on British History.

Guest Host: Evie Heathcote

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This week we are delving into the murky world of espionage during the interwar years, with a tale about a man who took advantage of the fact that the emerging intelligence services were not actually sure how to run a spy network effectively.

Arthur Owens, a Welshman with a chip on his shoulder, was a man who wanted money and was not in the least bit concerned about the amount of treason he might need to commit to get it. Flip flopping wildly between the British and the Nazi's he somehow managed to convince both sides that he was just about useful enough to not shoot in the face...

But was he able to keep up his double dealing once WWII kicked off and the stakes were raised?

Guest Host: Emma Heathcote

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For our first episode of 2024 we are talking about a son of William the Conqueror who couldn't help but to sabotage his own chances of inheriting all the lands his father had fought for

Robert Curthose, the oldest son and heir to William, was a young man with a chip on his shoulder. This was partly due to his derogatory nickname, but also due to the fact that his father made it clear that he wasn't willing to give him any responsibilities. Unfortunately it turned out that his father was right to keep Robert as far away from the administration of his kingdoms as possible...

...but at least he was relatively good at hitting other people with his sword.

Guest Host: Ollie Green

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No official episode this week as we are busy celebrating the holidays. However for those of you who love to know what goes on behind the scenes, please enjoy this bonus conversation with Jack when we stumble upon the story of the first official transatlantic swim attempt.

See you for more official new episodes in 2024.

Guest Host: Jack Heathcote

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It is a very Merry Christmas from all at Consistently Eccentric, as this week we talk about how the festive season has been celebrated in Britain over the past 10,000 or so years.

Beginning in the Neolithic, join us for a whistle stop tour of how a pagan celebration of renewal developed into the unstoppable juggernaut of presents and overeating that we enjoy today. Just watch out for the hot cockles!

Guest Host: Evie Heathcote

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This episode we are venturing into outer space to discuss a very British UFO encounter in 1950s Scotland.

While our American cousins had been seeing aliens regularly for almost a decade, the British had been much less willing to disclose any extraterrestrial encounters. That was until pulp fiction writer and amateur astronomer Cedric Allingham spotted a saucer while walking on the Scottish coast.

Cedric wrote a book on his experience of meeting and trying (with little success) to chat to a Martian. But would he be believed, or derided as nothing but a hoaxer?

Guest Host: Jack Heathcote

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This week we are heading to the other side of the world for a story of how the British desire for tea accidentally led to the creation of a truly unique city. After forcing China to give up Hong Kong for the grave offence of having tried to stop traders from the East India Company smuggling opium into the country a plan to extend the newly British territory led to a small area in Kowloon being essentially outside of the control of either government.

Which is a situation that would never lead to any negative consequences...

Guest Host: Emma Heathcote

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This week we are discussing one of the lesser known Queen consorts of England, Catherine of Braganza. Promoted to princess status at the age of 2 thanks to her dad's efforts to kick the Spanish out of Portugal, little Catherine was destined to be Queen of France. But plans change and new alliances suddenly left Catherine with the prospect of having to sail across the channel to a wet little island to become the new wife of Charles II... which I am sure was just as good.

Guest Host: Evie Heathcote

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