For more than two centuries, between the late 1400s and early 1700s, a terror of witches gripped Europe. From Scotland to Spain, thousands of people were accused, tortured and executed. But as the hysteria faded in Europe, it crossed the Atlantic. In 1692, in New England, it took hold of a small Puritan settlement in Massachusetts - Salem. The events that followed resulted in the most infamous witch hunt in history.

But how did the actions of a group of young girls lead to 22 executions and over 200 accusations of witchcraft? Why did Salem believe the Devil had arrived on its doorstep? And how did a family grudge, a minister’s intransigence, and a rising tide of fear lead to the self-destruction of the small town?

This is a Short History Of The Salem Witch Trials.

A Noiser production, written by Sean Coleman. With thanks to Kathleen Howe, an award-winning historian and novelist, and author of The Penguin Book of Witches.

Get every episode of Short History Of a week early with Noiser+. You’ll also get ad-free listening, bonus material, and early access to shows across the Noiser network. Click the Noiser+ banner to get started. Or, if you’re on Spotify or Android, go to noisier.com/subscriptions.

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Measuring 240 feet long from paw to tail, and around the height of a six-story building, the Great Sphinx is one of Egypt’s most spectacular, and mysterious, monuments. Believed to have been built over four millennia ago, much of its story has been lost to history, and the rest is shrouded in myth.

So what do we know about who built it? What caused such an impressive structure to be forgotten for centuries? And how is it being protected today?

This is a Short History Of The Egyptian Sphinx.

A Noiser Production. Written by Nicole Edmunds. With thanks to Salima Ikram, a professor of Egyptology at the American University in Cairo.

Get every episode of Short History Of a week early with Noiser+. You’ll also get ad-free listening, bonus material, and early access to shows across the Noiser network. Click the Noiser+ banner to get started. Or, if you’re on Spotify or Android, go to noiser.com/subscriptions.

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PT Barnum may be better known as the loose subject of the movie The Greatest Showman, but his life was so much more than that work of fiction. A master of entertainment, an entrepreneur, and a genius of publicity, he built a career on feeding public curiosity with his grand illusions. 

But his legacy is complicated, as many of his attractions reflect a world where sensationalism outweighed morality. His methods, viewed through a modern lens, raise troubling questions about the exploitation of show business.

So how did PT Barnum beat the odds, time and again, to turn a spectacle into an empire? How did a fake mermaid, a tiny general, and giant elephant help make his name? And behind all the smoke and mirrors, was he really the Greatest Showman on Earth? 

This is a Short History Of The Real Greatest Showman.

A Noiser Production, written by Sean Coleman. With thanks to Kathleen Maher, Executive Director of the Barnum Museum in Bridgeport, Connecticut. 

Get every episode of Short History Of a week early with Noiser+. You’ll also get ad-free listening, bonus material, and early access to shows across the Noiser network. Click the Noiser+ banner to get started. Or, if you’re on Spotify or Android, go to noiser.com/subscriptions.

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This is a taster episode of a brand-new podcast from the Noiser podcast network. Join host Paul McGann as he explores life and death on the most famous ship in history.

You’ll be right there on board - setting sail from Southampton, chugging across the Atlantic, striking the iceberg and sinking into the icy depths. We’ll hear the harrowing tales of the victims and the testimonies of the lucky survivors. And Paul explores his own family story, following his great uncle Jimmy McGann - a trimmer down in Titanic’s engine room.

Search ‘Titanic: Ship of Dreams’ in your podcast app and hit follow to get new episodes each Tuesday. Or listen at noiser.com

Episode 2 is live now on Titanic: Ship of Dreams.

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The later Tudor years were a time of turmoil, political intrigue, and national transformation. Initially defined by crises of succession, and shifts in the religious landscape, the period went on to see the reign of some of the most famous royal women in history. And, under the 44-year reign of Queen Elizabeth I, Britain experienced a golden age of culture and exploration. 

But what made Elizabeth excel as a sovereign in a way that outshone her predecessors? Did ordinary Tudors care who was on the throne? And how did such a powerful dynasty come to an end after only three generations? 

This is a Short History Of The Tudors - part two of two.

A Noiser production. Written by Nicola Rayner. With thanks to Tracy Borman OBE, Chief Historian at Historic Royal Palaces and the author of several historical biographies, including The Private Lives of the Tudors.  

Get every episode of Short History Of a week early with Noiser+. You’ll also get ad-free listening, bonus material, and early access to shows across the Noiser network. Click the Noiser+ banner to get started. Or, if you’re on Spotify or Android, go to noiser.com/subscriptions.

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The Tudors are the most famous royal family in English history, ruling from 1485 to 1603. The dynasty began with the reign of King Henry VII, and ended with his granddaughter, Elizabeth I. Marked by political, religious, and cultural change, the Tudor era shaped the course of English history, and paved the way for modern Britain. 

But how did the first Tudor king fight his way to power? What drove his son, Henry VIII, to break away from Rome and establish his own church? And who were the astonishing women who defined the reign of the Tudors?

This is a Short History Of The Tudors, part one of two.

A Noiser production. Written by Nicola Rayner. With thanks to Tracy Borman OBE, Chief Historian at Historic Royal Palaces and the author of several historical biographies, including The Private Lives of the Tudors.  

Get every episode of Short History Of a week early with Noiser+. You’ll also get ad-free listening, bonus material, and early access to shows across the Noiser network. Click the Noiser+ banner to get started. Or, if you’re on Spotify or Android, go to noiser.com/subscriptions.

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The explorer, Christopher Columbus, is famous for reaching the Americas and opening up a new world to European pioneers. But though his determination and skills were second to none, he eventually fell out of favour at home and abroad, and was unwelcome even in the very colonies he’d founded. Contrary to popular misconception, Columbus never set foot in what is now the continental United States, and nor did he seek to prove that the Earth was round.

So, how did Columbus’ voyages change the world? What motivated a young man from Italy to endanger his life on behalf of the Spanish government? And how much responsibility can we put at the feet of one man for the suffering that colonialism brought to America’s indigenous people? 

This is a Short History Of Christopher Columbus.

A Noiser Production. Written by Jo Furniss. With thanks to Douglas Hunter, author of several books about the history of exploration, including The Race to the New World.  

Get every episode of Short History Of a week early with Noiser+. You’ll also get ad-free listening, bonus material, and early access to shows across the Noiser network. Click the Noiser+ banner to get started. Or, if you’re on Spotify or Android, go to noiser.com/subscriptions.

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Before Johannes Gutenberg’s revolutionary invention, knowledge was a privilege accessible only to the wealthy, the powerful, or the devout. In this world, ideas travelled slowly, and were constrained by the limits of human hand. 

So when, in the mid-15th century, Gutenberg invented the printing press, it became so much more than a machine. Ideas could be replicated by the thousands, making it the first great equaliser of information.

But how did this seemingly humble invention fuel the fires of the Renaissance? How did it change Europe’s relationship with the church, and give rise to the Reformation? And how did it help to shape the reputations of historical figures, from Vlad the Impaler, to Joan of Arc?

This is a Short History Of The Printing Press.

A Noiser Production. Written by Sean Coleman. With thanks to John Man, historian, travel writer, and author of The Gutenberg Revolution, The Story of a Genius and an Invention that Changed the World.  

Get every episode of Short History Of a week early with Noiser+. You’ll also get ad-free listening, bonus material, and early access to shows across the Noiser network. Click the Noiser+ banner to get started. Or, if you’re on Spotify or Android, go to noiser.com/subscriptions.

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One of the world’s most influential composers, Ludwig van Beethoven changed the course of Western music. Despite losing his hearing, he created some of history’s most celebrated works, and his compositions are renowned for their emotional depth, innovation, and freshness to this day.

But how did an unpolished youth from the German Rhineland rise to become one of the most famous names in classical music? Why was his private life beset by disappointment? And how did he continue to produce such extraordinary works, even as deafness overtook him?

This is a Short History Of Ludwig van Beethoven.

A Noiser production, written by Nicola Rayner. With thanks to John Suchet, broadcaster and author of eight books about Beethoven, including In Search of Beethoven: A Personal Journey.  

Get every episode of Short History Of a week early with Noiser+. You’ll also get ad-free listening, bonus material, and early access to shows across the Noiser network. Click the Noiser+ banner to get started. Or, if you’re on Spotify or Android, go to noisier.com/subscriptions.

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Nestled deep in the heart of Beijing, the Forbidden City stands as one of the world’s greatest architectural marvels. Built in the early 15th century as the secretive seat of imperial rule, it’s the largest palace complex anywhere in the world, and the biggest wooden structure on earth.

But how did an audacious coup lead to the construction of this mysterious compound? What was life like inside the gated city? And how did it survive revolution, civil war, invasion, and natural disasters, to remain relevant even today?

This is a Short History Of The Forbidden City.

A Noiser Production, written by Sean Coleman. With thanks to Dr Stephen Whiteman, a Reader in the Art and Architecture of China at The Courtauld Institute of Art. 

Get every episode of Short History Of a week early with Noiser+. You’ll also get ad-free listening, bonus material, and early access to shows across the Noiser network. Click the Noiser+ banner to get started. Or, if you’re on Spotify or Android, go to https://www.noiser.com/noiser-plus

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