She is the woman who started it all, the Tudor dynasty's matriarch, Margaret Beaufort, mother of King Henry VII and a truly fascinating figure in her own right. In recent years thanks to historic fiction, she has become a figure of controversy, portrayed as an evil religious zealot, obsessed with getting her son on the throne, but is this interpretation of her in any way accurate? Well today I am thrilled to welcome historian and author Lauren Johnson onto the podcast for the first time. Lauren’s upcoming book, Margaret Beaufort, Survivor, Rebel, Kingmaker, is the backbone of this conversation, so join Lauren and I as we explore the life of Margaret Beaufort and smash apart some of the long held beliefs about her life, and life story.

Lady Jane Grey hit the headlines a couple of weeks ago when news broke that a portrait, quite possibly of Jane, painted from life had resurfaced. Today, I welcome Rachel Turnbull, Senior Collections Conservator in Fine Art for English Heritage onto the podcast. Rachel was the person at the very centre of this discovery and examination. She joins me to discuss the research, what new features from the portrait were discovered and how changes were made, likely long after the original painting was completed, to change the way the sitter is presented.

We all know that the Tudors took the throne from King Richard III at the battle of Bosworth, thus ending the decades long wars of the roses, but, who actually were the two sides of this ongoing battle, how did the families of Lancaster and York split off, who were they, what was their royal descent, and of course the big question, who had the better overall claim? Well to discuss this and a whole lot more about this fascinating period of history, I am thrilled to welcome back historian and author Gareth Streeter onto the podcast to tells me all you need to know about who exactly were the houses of Lancaster and York.

In todays episode I am delighted to be welcoming back Dr Elizabeth Norton for a discussion all about Jane Seymour, with our conversation based around Elizabeth’s book, Jane Seymour, Henry VIII’s True Love. We discuss Jane’s early life, what roles she played at court, how she behaved as queen and ask the questions, just what would have happened to Jane had she lived longer, or more crucially, if she had failed to deliver a son, so sit back and enjoy as I discuss, by Elizabeth Norton’s own admission, the wife of King Henry VIII who is perhaps the least popular, but had a monumental impact on his reign nonetheless.

When we hear the name Boleyn, we naturally jump to the world of the Tudors and one of the most famous women in British history, Anne Boleyn, but, Anne and her family didn’t just pop out of the ground, there were of course many generations of Boleyn’s before her, so who were they? Well today I am thrilled to welcome Dr Claire Martin onto the podcast for a discussion on this very subject. We discuss how the Boleyn family started out, what led to Boleyn involvement in the wars of the roses and how Anne’s great-grandfather, Geoffrey became one of the most important men in London.

Charles Brandon is the man who was Henry VIII’s best friend, a career courtier who owed basically all of his rise to the house of Tudor, preferment that eventually led to his being made Duke of Suffolk. He is famous for his scandalous marriages, from dumping one intended wife to marry her much older and much richer aunt, to marrying Henry VIII’s own sister in secret, but what about the man beyond the marriages? Who was he, how did he get his place at court and is there an argument that actually his soul mate, in a totally platonic way, was, in fact, Henry VIII? Today historian Michael Hoy joins me to chat all about this fascinating figure, a true survivor of Henry VIII's court.

Elizabeth Boleyn, Countess of Wiltshire is famous as the mother of Queen Anne Boleyn, and yet Elizabeth herself remains an extremely elusive figure. So much of her story is unknown, which is why I was so excited to learn that the very first book about Elizabeth Boleyn has been written and will be released later this year. I am thrilled to say that the books author, Sophie Bacchus Waterman is this weeks podcast guest. She joins me to discuss this fascinating but hugely overlooked figure, and although much still remains unknown, Sophie has discovered some new insights which do help us piece together something of who this woman was, so join Sophie and I as we explore the life of this remarkable woman, the mother of England’s most infamous queen consort.

When you think about Queen Mary I it’s probably Antonis Mor’s famous portrait of her that instantly pops into your head, or maybe its the stunning image of Mary in her 20s on display at the national portrait gallery. The truth however is that Mary is depicted in literally hundreds of different images, from portraits and sketches to legal documents and of course in coinage. To discuss Mary’s imagery I am thrilled to welcome Dr Peter Stiffell onto the podcast. Peter is an expert in the story of Mary I and has catalogued all known images of her, enabling him to gain incredible insight into the life of the very first queen regnant in English history.

If there is one thing about Anne Boleyn that fascinates almost everyone who loves Tudor history, its discussing what on earth she actually looked like. All we have to go on, at least for now, is a series of portraits painted after Anne Boleyn’s death and that damaged medal which was struck in 1534, but, is it just possible that a portrait of Anne Boleyn, painted from life has been hiding in plain sight all along? Today I speak to Elizabeth LaVasse, who has been researching Anne’s many images and has developed what I think could be an incredible theory, which if true, will take the world of Anne Boleyn portraiture by storm.

Brigitte Barnard is a Tudor fictional author and fully qualified midwife who joins me today for a fascinating discussion all about Tudor midwifery. We cover the stories of Tudor women from the very top of society right down to the poorest. From the rules around confinement to bizarre birthing rituals, to the things that remain as prominent in giving birth today as they did for those in the 16th century. We also explore some of the stories told about the ramifications of Henry VIII’s wives pregnancies, from what ultimately killed Jane Seymour to a theory around Henry’s blood type being the root cause for much of his wives pregnancy misfortunes!