On the Tudor Trail

Episode 286 – Unearthing the Untold Stories of Irish Women Religious with Dr Bronagh Ann McShane

Guest Bio Dr Bronagh Ann McShane is Research Fellow in History on the VOICES project at Trinity College Dublin. Her research combines historical methods and AI technology to uncover the experiences of women living in sixteenth and seventeenth century Ireland. She has published extensively on women, gender and religion. Her book, Irish Women in Religious Orders, 1530-1700: Suppression, Migration and Reintegration (Woodbridge, 2022), was joint winner of the National University of … [Read More...]

Episode 285 – Sexuality & Sodomy Laws in Early Modern England with Jack Beesley

Guest Bio Jack Beesley is an AHRC doctoral candidate at Manchester Metropolitan University, specializing in early modern sexuality. Specifically, his research investigates the representation of 'sodomy' as a national threat within satirical texts produced during the reign of King William III (1689-1702) and its impact on the growing awareness and persecution of sodomitical subcultures. Jack’s work was featured as the cover story for History Today in September 2024 and has been … [Read More...]

365 Days with Katherine of Aragon

Women’s History Month is the perfect time to give you a sneak peek at something I’ve been working on behind the scenes. ‘365 Days with Katherine of Aragon’ is coming your way in 2026! I cannot wait to share the details of this 12-month online course with you next month and unveil the stellar lineup of presenters. Early access and priority booking will be given to patrons of Talking Tudors and current participants of ‘365 Days with Medieval & Renaissance Wonder Women’. A huge thank … [Read More...]

Episode 284 – The Glass Revolution: How Transparent Windows Shaped Tudor England with Dr Allen Loomis

Guest Bio Allen Loomis is a recent PhD graduate from Binghamton University. His dissertation, Transparent Glass Windows and Domestic Theatricality in Early Modern England, takes as its starting point the observation that, though large transparent glass windows are ubiquitous today, they were once a novel and culturally disruptive technology. His project examines their emergence and popularization in England during the early modern period, which was driven by the arrival of refugee glassmakers … [Read More...]

Episode 283 – Exploring the Monstrous in Tudor Times with Dr Surekha Davies

Guest Bio Dr Davies is a British historian of science, art, and ideas. Her first book, Renaissance Ethnography and the Invention of the Human, won the Morris D. Forkosch Prize for the best first book in intellectual history from the Journal of the History of Ideas and the Roland H. Bainton Prize in History and Theology. She has written essays and reviews about the histories of biology, anthropology, and monsters in the Times Literary Supplement, Nature, Science, and Aeon. Visit Dr … [Read More...]

Episode 282 – William Camden’s History of Elizabeth I’s Reign: New Discoveries with Helena Rutkowska

Guest Bio Helena Rutkowska is in her final year of an AHRC OOC Collaborative Doctoral Award between the University of Oxford and the British Library. Her PhD, entitled "The First History of Elizabethan England: the Making of William Camden's Annals", focuses on establishing the authorship, sources and intentions behind the creation of the first complete history of Elizabeth I's reign. In 2023, enhanced imaging techniques of the original draft manuscripts at the British Library revealed … [Read More...]

Episode 281 – Elizabeth I & Robert Dudley: A Timeless Bond with Corina Apostu

Guest Bio Corina Apostu is a history blogger and independent researcher of Elizabethan history with a focus on Elizabeth I and Robert Dudley. She graduated with an MA in Medieval and Early Modern Studies from the University of Kent in 2021. She currently runs the blog Exploring Elizabethan History on Wordpress. https://exploringelizabethanhistory.com/ Corina's Tudor Takeaway https://folgerpedia.folger.edu/The_Elizabethan_Court_Day_by_Day Episode Summary Join us as we delve … [Read More...]

Episode 280 – Portrayals & Popular Perceptions of Mary, Queen of Scots with Leigh Wakefield

Episode Summary Welcome to an enlightening episode of Talking Tudors, hosted by Natalie Grueninger, featuring historian Leigh Wakefield. Dive into a captivating discussion on the portrayals of Mary, Queen of Scots, shedding light on historical narratives and modern feminist interpretations. Explore Mary’s intriguing life as Wakefield delves into her portrayals in film, novels, and television, comparing them with historical records and recent feminist perspectives. This episode highlights … [Read More...]

5 Myths About Thomas More

A Guest Post by CF Kirkham-Sandy Dramatic lives are magnets for myths. The more colourful and controversial your life, the more people love to invent stories about you. Anne Boleyn had six fingers, Jane Seymour had a C-section, Henry VIII had syphilis, Elizabeth I wore lead paint and it poisoned her, Katherine Howard said she’d rather die the wife of Culpeper than the Queen of England! And while they did all this, they were throwing poo out the window! All entertaining stories, all total … [Read More...]

Episode 279 – The Princes in the Tower with Philippa Langley

Guest Bio An historian, bestselling author and award-winning producer, Philippa Langley undertakes evidence-based, forensic deep-dive research projects which examine the life and times of King Richard III of England (1452-1485). In 2012 she discovered the remains of Richard III beneath a car park in Leicester through her original Looking For Richard Project. In 2015/16 she launched The Missing Princes Project, an international cold-case investigation into the apparent … [Read More...]

The Katharine of Aragon Legacy Lectures

The Katharine of Aragon Legacy Lectures is an online fundraising event (5-6 April 2025) that will raise funds to help Peterborough Cathedral keep its doors open seven days a week and ensure that it is preserved for future generations to enjoy. Our exciting lineup of historians will be announced in the weeks to come. All of the speakers who have donated their time and expertise to this fundraiser have a great affinity with Katharine of Aragon. Katherine of Aragon by Wenceslaus … [Read More...]

Episode 278 – The Extraordinary Lives of Medieval Women with Dr Hetta Howes

Guest Bio Dr Hetta Howes is a Lecturer in Medieval and Early Modern Literature at City, University of London, and a BBC/AHRC New Generation Thinker. She regularly contributes to broadcasts on BBC Radio 3 and 4, as well as writing for publications such as The Times Literary Supplement and BBC History Extra. She has a BA and MPhil from Cambridge University and a PhD from Queen Mary, University of London. Dr Howes' Takaway https://www.bl.uk/whats-on/medieval-women Episode Summary In … [Read More...]