Honourable Mentions: Hilarious History

By Steve and Neil Webb

Join two brothers for a hilarious dive into the untold stories of history's most obscure figures. Honourable Mentions: Hilarious History unearths the hidden tales your teachers forgot to mention—If

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How many episodes does Honourable Mentions: Hilarious History have?

The podcast currently has 24 episodes available.

Honourable Mentions: Hilarious History episodes:

April 08, 2026 Admiral Yi Sun-sin: His Early Career and the Making of a Legend
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Before he was the 'God of the Sea' who never lost a battle, Yi Sun-sin was a man of unwavering principle facing a corrupt bureaucracy.
In this first part of a two episode tale, we go beyond the famous ironclad Turtle Ships and the Battle of Myeongnyang to explore the formative years of Korea’s greatest hero.
We'll take you through his repeated failures in the military examinations and his late start in the army.
His early service defending the Northern border against Jurchen tribesmen.
How his refusal to engage in political corruption led to demotions and professional sabotage.
And the specific leadership traits and tactical brilliance he developed long before the Japanese invasion.

Join us for part one of the unbelievable life of a man whose character was forged in adversity, and who laid the groundwork for a legacy that would change the course of East Asian history forever.
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42min
April 01, 2026 First Blood: Jure Grando and the birth of the Vampire (an Honourable Mentions and Boo Foons Mystery Investigators special episode)
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In 1672, deep in the village of Kringa, Istria, a man died... and then things got weird. For 16 years, Jure Grando terrorized his widow and the townspeople, leading to the first official "vampire" record in European history.
In this special crossover event, the history buffs from Honourable Mentions: Hilarious History, team up with the supernatural sleuths from Boo Foons Mystery Investigators to exhume the legend of a real life vampire.
Grab your stakes and a clove of garlic—this is history at its most hilarious and hauntings at their most chaotic.
In this episode, we dive into:
The Legend: How Jure Grando rose from the grave to knock on doors and cause havoc.
The Exorcism: The botched attempts to stop a corpse and the final, gruesome showdown.
The History vs. The Hype: Was it a supernatural plague or just 17th-century hysteria?
The Boo Foons Breakdown: Our investigators weigh in on the "science" of the Istrian strigoi.
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53min
March 25, 2026 Eben Byers: The Millionaire Dissolved in Liquid Sunshine
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In 1932, a headline in the Wall Street Journal shocked the world: "The Radium Water Worked Fine Until His Jaw Came Off." This is the gruesome and tragic true story of Eben Byers, a wealthy industrialist, socialite, and golf champion who became the most famous victim of radium poisoning.

In this episode, we peel back the lead-lined curtain on the Radithor craze—the "certified" radioactive water marketed as a cure-all for everything from mental ill health to "lost vigor."
We explore the rise of William J.A. Bailey, the notorious medical quack behind the tonic, and the horrific medical mystery of Byers’ physical decline. From his addiction to radium water to his final days suffering from jawbone necrosis and osteonecrosis, we look at how one man’s death changed the face of the FDA forever.

If you’re a fan of dark history, medical quackery, and historical true crime, this deep dive into the 1920s radium craze is a must-listen.

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31min
March 18, 2026 Stagecoach Mary: The Black Pioneer Who Outfought the Wild West
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Step into the dusty streets of Cascade, Montana, to meet a true Wild West legend: Stagecoach Mary Fields, an icon of black history. Born into slavery, she found a life of independence that few women of her time could imagine. Standing six feet tall and never without her Smith & Wesson, she became the first African American woman star route mail carrier in the United States.

In this episode, we explore the incredible history of the Wild West through the eyes of a woman who was as tough as she was kind.
From fending off wolves and outlaws to her legendary 100% mail delivery success rate, Mary Fields defined what it meant to be a Western pioneer. We’ll dive into her unique relationship with the local community, her friendship with a young Gary Cooper, and why her legacy remains a vital part of Black Western history.

Whether you're a fan of untold history podcasts or stories of the American frontier, the life of Stagecoach Mary is a masterclass in grit and resilience.
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36min
March 11, 2026 The History of Hawaiian Pizza: How Sam Panopoulos Created the World's Most Polarizing Dish
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In 1962, a Greek immigrant named Sam Panopoulos decided to crack open a can of pineapple at the Satellite Restaurant in Chatham, Ontario. He wasn't trying to start a global food war; he was just bored.

In this episode, we dive into the sticky, sweet, and salty history of how a simple experiment in the kitchen of a small restaurant in a small Canadian town, created the most polarizing pizza in history.
And
We also have exciting news thanks to Potters Confectioners of Great Yarmouth
https://pottersconfectioners.co.uk/
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43min
March 04, 2026 The Deadly History of the Rugby Ball: How Richard Lindon Changed Sports
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Why was inflating a rugby ball once a death sentence? In this episode of Honourable Mentions, we dive into the gritty history of 19th Century sports and the true and tragic story of Richard Lindon, the man who revolutionised Rugby Union, American Football, and Soccer.
Discover how Lindon rose from personal tragedy to invent the first rubber ball bladder and the brass hand pump, ending the era of dangerous pig-bladder inflation.
Whether you're a fan of sports history, untold stories, or the origins of rugby, this deep dive explores the legacy of an inventor who helped Britain’s favourite sports go global.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
The fatal risks of early sports equipment.
How and why the oval rugby ball shape was created.
Richard Lindon’s impact on the NFL and global football.
His rivalry with William Gilbert, and the untold link between personal loss and sporting innovation.
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35min
February 25, 2026 The Man Who Outgrew Himself: The Improbable Life of Adam Rainer
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The true story of Adam Rainer, the only man in history recorded as both a dwarf and a giant, is as remarkable as it's improbable. We explore the rare medical condition (Acromegaly or Pituitary Adenoma) at the centre of his adult growth spurt from 4-foot (1.2 metres) to way over 7-foot (2.13 metres) tall. We'll also tell you the tragic price of his record-breaking growth, as we take a look at one of medical history’s most unique anomalies.
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35min
February 18, 2026 Jam Sahib Digvijaysinhji: The Indian Prince Who Saved 1,000 Orphans
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In the heat of World War II, when the world turned its back on Polish refugees fleeing the horrors of the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany, one Indian Prince opened his doors—and his heart.
In this episode, we explore the extraordinary life of Maharaja Jam Sahib Digvijaysinhji Ranjitsinhji of Nawanagar.
Discover how he bypassed British colonial red tape to establish a sanctuary in Balachadi, Gujarat, famously telling Polish children, "You are no longer orphans. You are now Nawanagaris."
Whether you're a history buff, a fan of untold WWII stories, or interested in Indian royalty, this is a tale of compassion that will restore your faith in the human race.
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44min
February 11, 2026 The Polish-American Who Wouldn't Let Hitler Get Him Down
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For fifteen-year-old Walter, the world was a small plot of land and the four walls of the family home in Poland. But in 1939, Nazi boots kicked in the front door and that world shattered in a heartbeat.
Walter, and his siblings, were forced to watch their father being dragged away towards the tree line, a walk from which no one ever returned.
This week we are joined by Rafal, Walter's stepson and our first ever guest on Honourable Mentions, as he tells his own life story and how, over time, Walter revealed more and more about the horrors and undiluted joys of his own time on earth. From arriving in the United States in 1951, to meeting Rafal's mom and arranging to adopt the nine-year-old boy who arrived at JFK airport in the late eighties without a word of English.
Rafal's tale is sad, funny, but above all life affirming and brimming over with optimism. It will leave you wishing we could all be a bit more Walter.

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43min
February 04, 2026 How An Australian Machine Gunner Ended The Red Baron’s Reign
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Manfred von Richthofen’s red triplane skimmed the Somme, and a living legend closed in for another kill. But, down below, Sergeant Cedric Bassett Popkin on a Vickers machine gun is waiting for his moment. Once friendly aircraft had cleared his line of fire, Cedric squeezed his trigger and what happened next reshaped world history.

We chart Richthofen’s path from young cavalry cadet to becoming the Red Baron, Germany’s most feared flying ace and a potent symbol of wartime propaganda. You’ll hear the pivotal encounters, the April surge that cemented his reputation, and the head wound that shadowed his final year. From there we move groundward to the Australians braced along Morlancourt Ridge, where trajectories, medical findings, and rate-of-fire analysis converge on one name: Sergeant Cedric Bassett Popkin. His official statement, training, and position relative to the flight path make a tight forensic case for the fatal burst coming from his Vickers machine gun.

If you enjoy sharp storytelling, primary sources, and a myth-busting look at World War I, hit follow, share this with a history-loving friend, and leave a review. What detail changed your view of the Red Baron’s last flight? We want to hear it.
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43min

FAQs about Honourable Mentions: Hilarious History:

How many episodes does Honourable Mentions: Hilarious History have?

The podcast currently has 24 episodes available.