Talking History with Patrick Geoghegan

Marking the release of Gladiator 2, in this episode we explore the brutal world of gladiators - and how they rose from captivity to become icons of the Roman Empire. Featuring: Dr Jerry Toner, Director of Studies in Classics at Churchill College, University of Cambridge, Kathleen M. Coleman, James Loeb Professor of the Classics, Harvard University, and Dr Andrew Fear, Lecturer in Classics, University of Manchester.

We're marking the 35th anniversary of one of the most seismic events of the 20th century: the fall of the Berlin Wall. We'll find out why it was built, how it fell, and how it brought an end to the Cold War.Joining Patrick Geoghegan is: Prof Patrick Major, Professor of Modern History at the University of Reading; Katja Hoyer, historian, author of ‘Beyond the Wall: East Germany, 1949-1990', and visiting Research Fellow at King’s College London; and Frederick Taylor, historian, author of ‘The Berlin Wall: A World Divided, 1961-1989' and a fellow of the Royal Historical Society of Great Britain.

In this episode:Captive Queen: the Decrypted Story of Mary, Queen of Scots, by Dr Jade ScottWhen Courage Calls: Josephine Butler and the Radical Pursuit of Justice for Women, by Dr Sarah C. Williamsand Embers of the Hands: Hidden Histories of the Viking Age, by Dr Eleanor Barraclough

This special Talking History episode, live from the Supreme Court in Dublin, in conjunction with Dublin City Council Bram Stoker Festival, centres on Bram Stoker and the ‘Petty Sessions: Weird and Wonderful Court Cases from Victorian Ireland’ . Hosted by Tommy Graham, editor of History Ireland.The Duties of Clerks of Petty Sessions in Ireland was Bram Stoker’s second book of nonfiction. For many years this book was considered to be the standard reference work for petty sessions (local courts dealing with minor criminal and civil cases) clerks in Ireland – the equivalent of today’s District Courts. In this episode, we’ll explore these fascinating tales from the Petty Sessions of the 19th century and how they help us understand the Ireland of Bram Stoker’s time as well as the author himself. With guests Paul Kelly, President of the District Court, Zoe Reid, Keeper at The National Archives of Ireland and Professor Jarlath Killeen, Head of the School of English, Trinity College Dublin.With thanks to David Slevin, Seafra O’Donovan, Jack Lawlor, Eric Rowntree and Marese O’Sullivan from Newstalk, Tara Brady of the Courts Service; and Joe Murphy, Tom Lawlor, and Maria Schweppe and volunteers from the Bram Stoker Festival.

In this episode of Talking History, our October books special: when Britain became a republic and why it ended in failure, with Prof Alice Hunt of the University of Southampton; magic and religious controversy in the 16th century, with Dr Violet Moller, author of Inside the Stargazer’s Palace: The Transformation of Science in 16th-Century Northern Europe; and how the CIA became an instrument of a new covert empire, with Prof Hugh Wilford of California State University.

In this episode, Patrick Geoghegan explores the history of modern Sinn Féin, alongside Prof. Agnès Maillot, Head of the School of Applied Language and Intercultural Studies at Dublin City University; Dr Brian Hanley, Teaching Fellow in Twentieth-Century Irish History, Trinity College Dublin; Dr Liam Weeks, Head of the Department of Government and Politics, University College Cork; Dr Matthew Whiting, Senior Lecturer (Associate Professor) in Politics, University of York; and Sinn Féin MEP Lynn Boylan.

We're looking at the history of American presidential debates as we explore some of the worst mistakes and iconic quips candidates have made and debate whether they can be the making or the breaking of a future president.Featuring Dr Daniel Rowe of the University of Oxford, Dr Sandra Scanlon of UCD, Dr Daniel Geary of Trinity College Dublin, and Dr Lewis Defrates of Maynooth University.

This episode of Talking History centres on the life and legacy of Oliver Cromwell and the massacres in Ireland. Featuring Prof John Morrill, emeritus professor of British and Irish history at the University of Cambridge, Prof Ronald Hutton, Professor of History at the University of Bristol, Prof Micheál Ó Siochrú, Head of the School of Histories and Humanities, Trinity College Dublin, and Alice Hunt, Professor of Early Modern Literature and History at the University of Southampton. Hosted by Patrick Geoghegan.

We're shining a spotlight on one of the most significant yet overlooked figures in art history, Berthe Morisot, and we'll find out how she became a founding member of the Impressionist movement. Featuring art historian Dr Sinéad Furlong-Clancy, specialist in nineteenth- and early twentieth-century French Painting and a specialist lecturer for the National Gallery of Ireland and the Hugh Lane Gallery; Dr Timothy Stott of Trinity College Dublin; Janet McLean, curator at the National Gallery of Ireland; and Dr Sabine Kriebel from University College Cork.

As the iconic musical comes to Dublin, we explore the life and legacy of one of America's most influential founders, Alexander Hamilton.

In this episode of Talking History, the kaleidoscopic history of London from the Swinging 60s to the 1980s, with John Davis, emeritus fellow in modern history and politics at The Queen’s College, University of Oxford; spycraft in the age of Elizabeth I, with Nadine Akkerman, professor of early modern literature and culture at Leiden University and OED bibliographer Pete Langman; and humanitarianism and the reconstruction of European intellectual life after the First World War, with Tomás Irish, Associate Professor in Modern History at Swansea University.

To mark the 85th anniversary of the start of the Second World War, we'll find out about the Irish men and women who fought in the Resistance, with authors Clodagh Finn and John Morgan; we'll talk about the North Strand bombing and the different ways the war was experienced north and south, with author Michael B. Barry, and we'll go in search of Nazi spies in Ireland with author Marc McMenamin.

In this episode, we'll continue our series on Ireland's major political parties, as we look at the history of Fine Gael, and debate its successes and failures.Joining host Patrick Geoghegan is former Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, as well as Dr Maurice Manning, former Chancellor of the National University of Ireland and former Fine Gael TD and Senator, Dr Elaine Callinan, lecturer in History at Carlow College, Dr Mel Farrell, historian and author of 'Party Politics in a New Democracy: The Irish Free State, 1922-37', and Prof Ciara Meehan, Dean of Students at University of Galway and author of 'The Cosgrave Party: a history of Cumann na nGaedheal, 1923-33'.

In this episode: a new look at the Irish Civil War and how many were killed, with Donal Ó Drisceoil of UCC; ritual and belief in Pagan Ireland, with John Waddell, formerly Professor of Archaeology in the University of Galway; and the forgotten Irish radicals whose dream of a Communist future brought them to Moscow in the 1920s, with historian Maurice J. Casey.

In this episode of Talking History, we're investigating the resignation of President Nixon 50 years ago, the only time an American president has been forced from office in disgrace.Joining Patrick to explore this is Nixon Library resource archivist, Greg Cumming; Sandra Scanlon who lectures in American history at UCD and is an expert on American political culture and its relationship with US foreign policy during the Cold War; Sarah Thelen who lectures in the Centre for the Integration of Research, Teaching and Learning at UCC, who is an expert on Nixon and the silent majority as well as patriotism and the Nixon White House; and Prof Luke A. Nichter who is Professor of History and James H. Cavanaugh Endowed Chair in Presidential Studies at Chapman University and the author of Collusion and Chaos in the Presidential Election of 1968.

In this episode of Talking History: the women who married Henry VIII have come to be encapsulated in a six-word rhyme - divorced, beheaded, died, divorced, beheaded, survived. But what were their real lives and legacies? A new exhibition at the National Portrait Gallery in London, called Six Lives: The Stories of Henry VIII's Queens, charts and reveals the extraordinary stories of Catherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves, Catherine Howard and Catherine Parr. Joining Patrick to discuss this is Dr Charlotte Bolland, curator of the exhibition, and the Gallery’s Senior Curator of Research and 16th Century Collections, managing the display of the collection in the Tudor galleries; Dr Nikki Clark, who wrote the essay in the catalogue about Ladies in Waiting, and is the author of The Waiting Game: The Untold Story of the Women Who Served the Tudor Queens and Gender, Family, and Politics: The Howard Women, 1485–1558; and Dr Nicola Tallis, who wrote the essay about the Queens’ Jewels in the catalogue, and has published All the Queen’s Jewels, 1445–1548: Power, Majesty and Display.

In this episode: Irish First Ladies & First Gentlemen, 1919-2011, by Dr Bernadette Whelan; Cartomania: Celebrity & Photography in the 19th Century, by Paul Frecker; and Brian Friel: Beginnings by Dr Kelly Matthews.

In the aftermath of the assassination attempt on former US president Donald Trump, we will be looking at shootings in American presidential history as we find out about US presidents, and presidential candidates, who faced the shadow of the gunman.President Biden has since announced his decision to drop out of the presidential race.Joining Patrick Geoghegan is Michael Cullinane, the Lowman Walton Chair of Theodore Roosevelt Studies at Dickinson State University, Public Historian for the Theodore Roosevelt Association, author of 'Remembering Theodore Roosevelt', and contributor to the design and curation of the Theodore Roosevelt Presidential Library due to open in 2026; Daniel Mulhall, former Ambassador of Ireland to the United States; Sean Defoe, Political Correspondent for Bauer Media; and Dr Sandra Scanlon, who lectures in American history in the UCD School of History and is an expert on American political culture and its relationship with US foreign policy during the Cold War.

Patrick and his panel reflect on the early history of the Olympic Games, from ancient Greece to the revival in more modern times, discussing their historical significance, cultural impact and enduring legacy. Featuring Nigel Crowther, Emeritus Professor in Department of Classical Studies at University of Western Ontario; Supervising Professor at International Olympic Academy, Olympia, Greece (2004-05); Former Director of the International Centre for Olympic Studies; Dr Siobhán Doyle, Curatorial Researcher at the National Museum of Ireland, Collins Barracks; Dr Jim Parry, Visiting Professor, Faculty of Physical Education and Sport, Charles University, Prague; and Dr Nigel Spivey, Senior Lecturer in Classical Art and Archaeology in the Faculty of Classics, University of Cambridge.

Joining Patrick Geoghegan to delve into the lives and works of the Yeats sisters are: Dr Róisín Kennedy, Assistant Professor, School of Art History and Cultural Policy, UCD; Dr Caoilfhionn Ní Bheacháin, Associate Professor in Communications, University of Limerick; Susan O’Keeffe, Director of Yeats Society Sligo; and Dr Billy Shortall of Trinity College Dublin, who worked on the Cuala Press Project.