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. …
She was one of the key figures of Irish Independence, known in her lifetime as The Irish Joan of Arc. But somehow, history only remembers Maud Gonne as the woman who wouldn’t marry WB Yeats. More recently, a BBC headline called her “Ireland’s heroine who had sex in her baby’s tomb.” Both those things are true, but… her real story is even more bonkers – and of course, so much more amazing. Join us with …
What’sHerName goes LIVE! To launch our new book, What’s Her Name, A History of the World in 80 Lost Women, former episode guests convene in London from all over the world for a Night of Celebration! In rapid-fire succession, brilliant 3-minute performances of poetry, song, story, and dance take us chronologically through the history of the world. The magic is punctuated throughout with short readings from the new book by Katie and Olivia. The packed …
The story goes that the American Civil Rights movement started when Rosa Parks refused to leave her bus seat in 1955. But 89 years before that, Ellen Garrison refused to leave the waiting room at a Baltimore train station. When she was thrown out, she sued, in one of the first court cases to test African American civil rights. Criss-crossing America to teach former slaves wherever needed, Ellen Garrison devoted her life to lifting those …
In 1867, a ship bound for California with 400 Chinese passengers signalled distress as it drifted in the Pacific Ocean. The ship’s captain was a woman, and her mutinous crew had refused to sail the ship even though they were running out of water. How did Captain Hannah Masury Howe come to be in such a predicament, and how could she possibly save herself and the ship? Our guest for this real-life high seas adventure …
“This was one woman with a very little life, who made the most enormous difference.” Celia Brayfield shares with Katie the story of Anna Sewell who, on her death bed, wrote a story and changed the world. Black Beauty was no mere “horse book.” It catapulted the cause of animal rights and became one of the bestselling books of all time. But Anna Sewell – a quiet, humble Quaker – didn’t change the world by …
Selma Lagerlöf poetically recorded old Norse fairytales and profoundly influenced Swedish identity. Her work was so brilliant, she was the first woman to win the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1909. In old age, she turned her poetic pen to her own life, recalling winters in the 1860s at her beloved Varmland farmhouse, Mårbaka. For our annual Christmas Special, we bring her poignant memoirs to life, accompanied by an audio feast of traditional Swedish music. …
Come with us to peak Gilded Age America! We’ll watch a charmingly unconventional love story unfold, cure yellow fever, stare at some incredible wallpaper, and explore fascinating reasons why women should NOT vote. Katie takes us on location to Ethel Gibson Allen’s Boston mansion, now the Gibson House Museum. Learn more about Ethel Gibson Allen and the Gibson House museum here. Find resources about the anti-suffrage movement in the US at the Library of Congress …
Say you join a revolution in the name of liberty and equality – then someone hands you a crown. Could you do more good with that power? Or will everything fall apart? Come with us to Haiti and across Europe in the twisty-turny tale of the Queen of Haiti, Marie-Louise Christophe. Katie’s guest is Vanessa Riley, author of Queen of Exiles. To learn more about the sound recordings by anthropologist Alan Lomax, check out …
When Clara Ford – a poor, Black, cross-dressing, pipe smoking, single mother – was arrested for the murder of dashing, young, white Frank Westwood, nobody expected her to avoid the noose. So how did this unexpected heroine talk her way out of the death sentence – even after she confessed? Olivia takes us to 19th century Toronto for a wild True Crime adventure with Carolyn Whitzman, author of the fascinating new book Clara at the …
