History Extra podcast

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart: life of the week

Mozart is celebrated for his musical genius – but how did he rise to such enduring fame? What inspired him, and who was the man beyond the concert halls and compositions? Ahead of new TV drama Amadeus launching on Sky Atlantic in the UK on 21 December, Hannah Templeton tells Lauren Good about the composer's life, his experiences as a child prodigy on European tours, and the mystery surrounding his death. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]

A short history of ghost hunting

A spooky story during the Christmas season has become traditional – and the modern ghost story was invented by the Victorians, who embraced the supernatural and tried to understand it. Ben Machell has investigated the history of ghost hunting and supernatural investigations since the mid-19th century for his new book, Chasing the Dark, and in this episode David Musgrove talks to Ben about the history of our passion for the paranormal. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]

Becoming Jane Austen

What inspired the daughter of a rural reverend to write about eligible bachelors and drunken misadventure? In this first episode of our four-part series on Jane Austen's life and work, Dr Lizzie Rogers and Lauren Good step back into the influential Regency novelist’s formative years, and explore her earliest writings that show how she began to find her voice. ––––– GO BEYOND THE PODCAST Want to go further into the world of Jane Austen and her literary creations? HistoryExtra's Lauren Good rounds up some essential reading, listening and viewing from the HistoryExtra and BBC History Magazine archive to deepen your understanding of Austen's life, her work and the Regency era in which she wrote: https://bit.ly/49F9oUk Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]

Ghosts, gods & sea monsters: a supernatural history of the Atlantic

For centuries, sailors crossing the Atlantic believed they were not alone – haunted by ghost ships, watched by mermaids, and stalked by sea monsters. Historian Karl Bell talks to Jon Bauckham about the stories that dominated the maritime imagination, and what role these fishy tales might play in our understanding of the ocean today.  (Ad) Karl Bell is the author of The Perilous Deep: A Supernatural History of the Atlantic (Reaktion, 2025). Buy it now from Reaktion: https://go.skimresources.com?id=71026X1535947&xcust=historyextra-social-histboty&xs=1&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.waterstones.com%2Fbook%2Fthe-perilous-deep%2Fkarl-bell%2F%2F9781836390909. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]

The summer that changed everything for the Kennedys

Historian Leigh Straw describes one pivotal summer in the life of the Kennedy family. With most of the family in their Cape Cod summer home, the summer of 1944 was marked by personal grief and political legacy. As eldest son Joe Jr flew dangerous missions in the Second World War's European theatre, and Kathleen 'Kick' Kennedy scandalised her parents with an aristocratic English match, the family gathered under the looming shadow of tragedy. Talking to Elinor Evans, Straw explores how this fateful summer reshaped the ambitions of younger brother Jack and steered the family’s destiny towards the White House. (Ad) Leigh Straw is the author of The Kennedys at Cape Cod, 1944: The Summer That Changed Everything (Bloomsbury, 2025). Buy it now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Kennedys-Cape-Cod-1944-Everything/dp/1350512583/?tag=bbchistory045-21&ascsubtag=historyextra-social-histboty. The HistoryExtra podcast is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices [https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices]