Recorded live at the DS podcast festival in Ostend, Belgium, in early April, Katie and Tom were very lucky to be joined by policy adviser Reine Nkiambote and renowned Belgian historian David Van Reybrouck for a very special episode of We Didn't Start The Fire. Surrounded by statues of King Leopold III and staying in hotels built by blood money from that time, they're asking: what was life like for the Congolese under Belgium's brutal colonialist rule; and has Belgium reconciled itself with the more gruesome sides of its past?

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It’s the groundbreaking 1960 movie that’s essentially a cheapie slasher film… of COURSE it’s time for us to chat about Alfred Hitchcock’s iconic Psycho. It’s become both a meme and a cult staple, but how did they film *that* shower scene? Why is it black and white? What happened to Anthony Perkins? And why were all those remakes made? Cara Rodway is back to chat all things Psycho!

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Ernest Evans aka Chubby Checker is the King of the Twist! It’s the teenie bopper hit that ushered in an instructional dance music CRAZE. It’s infectious, but was it actually any good? Who even was Chubby? And how did he end up making a psychedelic rock flop called Stoned in the Bathroom? Philadelphia music historian, Jack McCarthy is here to chat!

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FINALLY! IT'S KENNEDY! It’s 1960 and JFK has been elected president, having beaten Nixon in one of the closest presidential elections of the 20th century. He becomes the youngest and first Catholic president in US history, and would come to face many critics and juicy rumours over the next fews. But how does he rise so quickly? Did the mob have anything to do with it? What kind of person is he? And how about all those relationships - Jackie, Marilyn, Khrushchev? For a huge figure, we have a huge guest - Pulitzer Prize winning author and JFK biographer, Fredrik Logevall, is here to chat us through it all.

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Music is often the most fondly remembered part of the 20th century, but what we don't always remember is the surreptitious dealings that were going on behind the scenes... The truth is, the mob were a huge part of some of the era's biggest stars, and the music we know and love might be known and loved thanks to corruption. To explain the eras biggest radio controversy and the mob figures behind it all, we're chatting to Richard Carlin.

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Billy's back to teaching us about Korea! This time, we've hit the '60s so it's all about the American-backed improvised authoritarian who became the first president of the Republic of Korea, after their forced split from their neighbours to the north - it's Syngman Rhee! But how did he end up as president of the ROK (rock!🤘)? How did he slip into authoritarianism? And how did student protests lead to revolution and Rhee's resignation? Korea expert, Owen Miller, is here to walk us through it all.

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After the American U-2 spyplane is shot down over the Soviet Union, its pilot Francis Gary Powers becomes a controversial international figure overnight. Had he been turned? Was he involved in planning the attack? Or… did the Soviets just have more advanced weapons than the Americans had expected? Francis Gary Powers Jr. has dedicated his career to reinstating his father’s name, and today he joins us to tell the story of his father and the U-2 spyplane.

If you'd like to contact Gary, you can find him at GaryPowers.com

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