She lived through the worst century in human history: the Black Death, famine, war, death and despair. So it was all the more surprising when Julian of Norwich rose from her deathbed saying she’d received a vision from God: All shall be well. How could that be true when the whole world seems to be falling apart? Travel with us to 14th century England, to visit famed mystic Julian of Norwich. I know it sounds …
Mary Ware Dennett was one of the most important and influential activist for women’s rights, contraception, free speech and sex education in early 20th century America. So why does her nemesis Margaret Sanger get all the attention? Returning guest Stephanie Gorton helps Olivia unravel the mystery of this fascinating, forward-thinking woman. Stephanie Gorton wrote The Icon and the Idealist: Margaret Sanger, Mary Ware Dennett, and the Rivalry that Brought Birth Control to America (2024), longlisted for the …
She prevented war and death on an immense scale, in acts that could earn the Nobel Peace Prize today. But History enshrined Sisi, Empress of Austria, as a vain beauty queen. The smear campaign was personal, not political: it started with her own tyrannical mother-in-law. Can Sisi conquer her own self-doubt, and drag draconian Austria into the modern world? Our guest is Nancy Goldstone, author of The Rebel Empresses: Elisabeth of Austria and Eugenie of …
When world-famous strongman Eugen Sandow finally met his match, nobody expected it to be at the hands of an 18-year-old girl. But whether it was bending metal bars, beating horses in a tug-of-war, or hefting her own husband over her head with one arm, German strongwoman Katie Sandwina would continue to shatter records (and Victorian gender norms) for another forty years. Guest Haley Shapley, author of Strong Like Her, introduces us to this astonishing, unexpected …
A pirate ship jammed with treasure. The worst storm to ever hit Cape Cod. The mythical shipwreck — 280 years later, found. Everything in this swashbuckling tale (full of impossible things that really did happen) occurred because of Maria Hallett. Did she turn witch, to curse her lover’s ship, or to save it? Join us on location at Real Pirates Museum in Salem, MA. Stephanie Clements is a Cape Cod native and guide at Real …
How did two ordinary 18th century Anglo-Irish sisters end up gallivanting around the European continent, fraternizing with all the most radical and revolutionary minds of the Enlightenment, and becoming BFFs with a Russian Princess? Guest Alexis Wolf introduces Olivia to the astonishing lives of Katherine and Martha Wilmot. Alexis Wolf is a writer and researcher with an expertise on women’s lives in the 18th and 19th centuries. She earned her PhD from Birkbeck, University of London …
Travel to snowy Victorian Maine in this year’s Christmas Special, as Katie reads from the memoirs of Sarah Orne Jewett. An immensely famous and beloved novelist in her day, Sarah wrote wholesome tales of the county folk of Maine, where as a child she had accompanied her physician father on his rounds. Find a massive collection of Sarah Orne Jewett’s works collected by the Sarah Orne Jewett Text Project HERE. Music featured in this episode …
Zeynab Pasha was one of the most influential voices during several crises of 19th century Iranian history. From the Bread Crisis to the Tobacco Protests and the lead up to Iran’s Constitutional Revolution, she led the way in taking back the power of the people. She was legendary, and then she disappeared – literally and figuratively. Afarin Bellisario, author of the new novel Silenced Whispers, introduces us to the life of this incredible woman. …
If you knew the recipe for an undetectable poison, would you use it? What about giving it to women with abusive husbands? Giulia Tofana’s legendary poison Aqua Tofana (brilliantly disguised as holy ointment) was famed and feared in 17th-century Rome. But just how many terrible husbands can drop dead, before the Pope gets suspicious? In this year’s Halloween Special, our guests are Gaia Aloisi and Ted Blackburn, the creators of Aqua Tofana, a new electronic …
When Sigrid Schultz was offered a job as a reporter in Berlin, Germany in 1919, she had no idea how her life was about to change – or how her work would change the world. Returning guest Pamela Toler introduces us to this indomitable woman, who was one of the first to raise the alarm about the Nazis, one of the last to leave as WWII made reporting impossible, and the first woman in history …
