There have long been whispers of a romance between Queen Victoria and her Scottish servant John Brown, but nothing concrete to support them. This Long Read – written by historian Dr Fern Riddell, author of an explosive new book on the subject – reveals how she turned sleuth to track down evidence of their secret passion.

HistoryExtra Long Reads brings you the best articles from BBC History Magazine, direct to your ears. Today’s feature originally appeared in the September 2025 issue, and has been voiced in partnership with the RNIB.

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The rise of Æthelstan was as important a moment in English history as 1066 and Magna Carta. On the 1,100th anniversary of his coronation, this Long Read, written by David Woodman, salutes a king who forged a nation.

HistoryExtra Long Reads brings you the best articles from BBC History Magazine, direct to your ears. Today’s feature originally appeared in the September 2025 issue, and has been voiced in partnership with the RNIB.

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In the wake of the nuclear attacks on Japan, the official Allied line was that radiation sickness was not a danger. Yet, as this Long Read written by Steve O'Hagan reveals, the first Western journalist to witness the effects on the people of Hiroshima told a very different story.

HistoryExtra Long Reads brings you the best articles from BBC History Magazine, direct to your ears. Today’s feature originally appeared in the September 2025 issue, and has been voiced in partnership with the RNIB.

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His diaries are revered for their kaleidoscopic evocation of Restoration England. Yet a fresh analysis of Pepys’ world-famous journals – carried out by Guy de la Bédoyère – reveals a man with a proclivity for coercion and sexual violence. This Long Read written by Guy explores this dark side to the famous diarist.

HistoryExtra Long Reads brings you the best articles from BBC History Magazine, direct to your ears. Today’s feature originally appeared in the September 2025 issue, and has been voiced in partnership with the RNIB.

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From William the Conqueror’s battle-winning cavalry to Richard III’s fatal final charge, this Long Read written by Oliver H Creighton and Robert Liddiard explores five moments when horsepower changed the course of medieval military history.

HistoryExtra Long Reads brings you the best articles from BBC History Magazine, direct to your ears. Today’s feature originally appeared in the August 2025 issue, and has been voiced in partnership with the RNIB.

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From unholy fights in the most sacred of spaces to downing glasses of sherry for breakfast, this Long Read written by Sarah Elizabeth Cox introduces the pugilists who punched their way into Britons’ affections during the dying days of bare-knuckle prize-fighting.

HistoryExtra Long Reads brings you the best articles from BBC History Magazine, direct to your ears. Today’s feature originally appeared in the August 2025 issue, and has been voiced in partnership with the RNIB.

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She was an Italian Catholic in a ferociously anti-papist English court. An aspiring nun in a hotbed of hedonism. In this Long Read written by historian Breeze Barrington, we follow the extraordinary trials and tribulations of James II & VII’s second wife, Maria of Modena.

HistoryExtra Long Reads brings you the best articles from BBC History Magazine, direct to your ears. Today’s feature originally appeared in the August 2025 issue, and has been voiced in partnership with the RNIB.

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In the interwar era, artists and designers embraced a sleek modern style that embodied the optimism and elegance of the age. On the centenary of the Paris expo that launched Art Deco on the international stage, this Long Read written by historian Emma Bastin explores its origins and impacts.

HistoryExtra Long Reads brings you the best articles from BBC History Magazine, direct to your ears. Today’s feature originally appeared in the August 2025 issue, and has been voiced in partnership with the RNIB.

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In 1579, Queen Elizabeth I embarked on a romance with a French duke she affectionately dubbed her “frog”. The pair seemed destined for marriage. Yet, writes historian Elizabeth Tunstall in this Long Read, the people of England had other ideas…

HistoryExtra Long Reads brings you the best articles from BBC History Magazine, direct to your ears. Today’s feature originally appeared in the July 2025 issue, and has been voiced in partnership with the RNIB.

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We all have childhood memories of playgrounds. But what can the evolution of outdoor play in Britain tell us about the experience of being young over the past 200 years? This Long Read, written by historian Jon Winder, serves up a history of sandpits, bombsites and battles with cars.

HistoryExtra Long Reads brings you the best articles from BBC History Magazine, direct to your ears. Today’s feature originally appeared in the July 2025 issue, and has been voiced in partnership with the RNIB.

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