The Obscure

Daniel Darkens is accompanied for another episode of The Obscure by Minna Hayman.

Join us as we take you through the life and achievements of Tycho Brahe. Tycho was the last of the great naked eye astronomers shuffling off this mortal coil just eight years before the introduction of the astronomical telescope.

He was a wildly eccentric man, with a gold prosthetic nose (gained after a duel resulting from an argument over who was the best mathematician), a pet moose and a dwarf prophet that sat under his dining table mumbling pronouncements. He is also the only person that we know of that died of politeness.

All of these should be overshadowed by his remarkable astronomical observations and records which paved the way for the modern understanding of the night sky and the motions of astronomical objects. Enjoy this story of the life of Tycho end leave any comments relating to your thoughts on this remarkable man.

Join us for future episodes as each new episode will pluck another interesting character out of the obscure and take them into the limelight. If you like our content, you know what to do – like, subscribe, hype, comment and whatever else shows your appreciation of the show.

Literary sources:

The Martyrs of Science, Sir David Brewster, 1841

Rebels And Reformers (Biographies for young People), Arthur and Dorothea Ponsonby, 1919

Great Astronomers, Sir Robert Ball, 1895

Pronunciation sound file:

Wikipedia user Malene Thyssen, 21 January 2006

Images attributions (in order shown in the video):

Knutstorp Castle By User Jorchr on sv.wikipedia - Bilden tagen av mig själv (Jorchr) 17 september 2005., CC BY-SA 3.0,

Celestial Globe: Bez Barier via Pexel

Augsburg Great Quadrant: Public Domain,

Aerial view of island of Hven: By Bjørn Christian Tørrissen - Own work by uploader, CC BY-SA 4.0,

View of Uraniborg: By Tycho Brahe - Blaeu's Atlas Major, Public Domain,

View of layout of Stiernberg: By Tycho Brahe - Tycho Brahe's observatory on Ven: Johan Blaeu, Atlas Major, Amsterdam, 1662-DET KONGELIGE BIBLIOTEK, Public Domain,

Brahe using a large quadrant: By Unknown author - Engraving from the book: Tycho Brahe (1598), Astronomiae instauratae mechanica, Wandsbeck. Downloaded from the online exhibition at the Royal Library; stitching by Axel Boldt, Public Domain,

Tycho Brahe instrument Armillary 14: Public Domain,

Armillary Sphere: By Ktf5vd - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0,

Tycho’s illustration of 1577 comet: Public Domain,

Tychonic model of the universe: By User:Fastfission - Own work, Public Domain,  

Welcome to another episode of The Obscure. Daniel and Minna bring you the story of Indian Peter Williamson, which is a remarkable tale.

Unfortunately, it may just be a tale, he has been accused of exaggerating some of his story and making some of it up completely, but it is such a good story it deserves telling anyway.

The sources for the story were Indian Peter's own works, which are referred to throughout the podcast, and are not currently in print.

Please leave a comment below - how much of Peter's tale in America was made up?

If you like the story, let us know we'll be bringing out a new story every two weeks.

Daniel Darkens is accompanied for another episode of The Obscure by Minna Hayman. Join us as we take you through the life and achievements of The Calculating Boy - George Parker Bidder.

George's story has two distinct aspects to it. Firstly as a child prodigy in the field of arithmetic, with an uncanny ability to perform mental calculation with no formal education and not even an ability to read or write. Secondly as a hugely important but largely forgotten engineer, with a crucial role in the development of British (and European and Asian) railways, docks, harbours and playing a significant part in the very early development of the use of the electric telegraph.

How he is so little known is a mystery, and we would not have discovered him had it not been for the erection of a statue commemorating him and his achievements in his home town of Moretonhampstead in Devon.

Thankfully, as well as the information plaque near his statue, there is also a comprehensive biography by his great-great-grandson, which was our principal source of information for this episode:

GEORGE PARKER BIDDER The Calculating Boy by E. F. Clark (published 1983)

Join us for future episodes as each new episode will pluck another interesting character out of the obscure and take them into the limelight.

If you like our content, you know what to do – like, subscribe, hype, comment and whatever else shows your appreciation of the show.

Join Daniel Darkens and, while Nina takes a short break, a very special guest Minna Hayman in the latest episode of The Obscure.

Today's interesting character is Mad Jack Mytton, a larger than life character from the early part of the nineteenth century.

Using the biography written by his friend Nimrod, fascinating details of this remarkable character come to light.

This ultimately tragic tale includes anecdotes from throughout his life - his chequered education, his sporting interests, his enjoyment of the occasional tipple (he was rumoured to drink up to six bottles of port a day) and his fondness for a practical joke are all covered.

Join Daniel Darkens and Nina Bickerton for another episode of The Obscure as they take you through the life and achievements of John Scott Haldane.

Each future episode will pluck another interesting character out of the obscure and take them into the limelight.

JS Haldane's is a story of remarkable achievement in the area of safety and welfare, from coal miners to mountaineers, from deep sea divers to soldiers in the first world war trenches.

We relied heavily on the excellent biography:

Suffer and Survive by Martin Goodman (published 2007)

Join Daniel Darkens and Nina Bickerton as they take you through the life and adventures of Maurice Wilson in this first ever episode of The Obscure podcast.

Every episode will pluck another interesting character out of the obscure and into the limelight.

Maurice's is a tragic tale, but includes incredible bravery and ambition. Most of the information for the episode is taken from his two biographies:

I'll Climb Mount Everest Alone by Dennis Roberts (published 1957)

The Moth and the Mountatin by Ed Caesar (published 2020)

both are highly recommended for an even deeper dive.