Entirely Unofficial Rest is History Catalogue and Interrogator
Great Library of Chatham High Street
An in-depth catalogue and library of every episode in the archives of the Rest is History podcast. Every historical event and figure mentioned can be found here. Every book, author and guest can be discovered with links to the episodes they have appeared in. AI powered Q&A lets you find that elusive moment you remember, but can't quite place the episode - letting you jump straight to the point where Dom cracks up about Chatham wrestlers, or to discover the truth about the ancient British sport of Dwyle Flonking. Based on complete transcripts of the entire archive.
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Myths, legends and origin stories.
Mythic & Legendary
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RIHC: Iconic Episodes, Unforgettable Heroes, and History’s Greatest Apples
This special episode, recorded in Sydney to mark the podcast being named Apple’s 2025 Show of the Year, features hosts Tom Holland and Domi…
EpisodeThe Trojan War, with Mary Beard - FULL EPISODE
Tom Holland interviews classicist Mary Beard at Leighton House about the Trojan War and its place between myth and history. They retell the…
EpisodeGreek Myths: Jason & The Quest for the Golden Fleece (Part 4)
Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook discuss the myth of Jason and the Argonauts and its literary afterlife, especially Apollonius of Rhodes' …
EpisodeGreek Myths: Sex, Drugs & Tragedy (Part 3)
Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook discuss Euripides' The Bacchae and the strange, violent cult of Dionysus. They open with a graphic passag…
Classical worlds from Mesopotamia to Rome.
Ancient Civilisations & Classical Antiquity
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RIHC: The Discovery of Fire, Ancient Cannibals, and British Neanderthals
This bonus episode features host Tom Holland interviewing Nick Ashton, Curator of Palaeolithic Collections at the British Museum, about a m…
EpisodeRIHC: Historical Love Affairs, Totemic History Books, and the Naming of Wars
This New Year’s Eve Rest Is History bonus episode is a members' Q&A in which Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook recap their Australia tour, …
EpisodeSpartacus and Gladiators, with Mary Beard - FULL EPISODE
Tom Holland interviews classicist Mary Beard about gladiators and the rebellion led by Spartacus. They discuss Spartacus’s probable Thracia…
EpisodeJulius Caesar, with Mary Beard - FULL EPISODE
This members-only interview (the third in a short series with Mary Beard) focuses on Julius Caesar. Mary and the hosts sketch the Rome of C…
Bridging Rome to medieval Europe.
Late Antiquity & Early Middle Ages
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RIHC: Corrupt US Presidents, Wartime Prime Ministers, and the Birth of Byzantium
This bonus episode reunites Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook for a Rest Is History club Q&A. They open by referencing recent episodes (Sir…
EpisodeRIHC: Irish Kings, Medieval Magic, and The Norman Invasion of Ireland
This bonus episode features historian Gillian Kenny discussing the social, legal and ecclesiastical world of Ireland before the Anglo-Norma…
EpisodeRIHC: The Fall of the Roman Empire, Edward the Confessor’s True Heir, and Vikings Abroad
This bonus Q&A episode of The Rest Is History features hosts Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook answering listener questions collated from T…
EpisodeThe Golden Age of Japan: Lady Murasaki and the Shining Prince (Part 1)
Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook discuss The Tale of Genji as both a literary masterpiece and a historical window into Japan's Heian perio…
Crusades, kingdoms and cathedrals.
High & Late Middle Ages
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Joan of Arc: Saviour of France (Part 2)
In the gripping continuation of Joan of Arc's story, Tom and Dominic delve into her audacious plans to crown Charles VII and reclaim France…
EpisodeJoan of Arc: Warrior Maid (Part 1)
Hosts Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook explore the turning point of the Hundred Years' War centred on Joan of Arc. They set the political …
EpisodeJoan of Arc: Heroine in Chains (Part 3)
Hosts Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook narrate the middle-to-late career of Joan of Arc, focusing on the months after the relief of Orléan…
EpisodeJoan of Arc: For Fear of the Flames (Part 4)
This episode is the final instalment of The Rest Is History’s multi-part exploration of Joan of Arc. Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook foll…
Renaissance, reformations and global voyages.
Early Modern & Renaissance
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RIHC: Historical Love Affairs, Totemic History Books, and the Naming of Wars
This New Year’s Eve Rest Is History bonus episode is a members' Q&A in which Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook recap their Australia tour, …
EpisodeRIHC: The Secret Life of James I, Mary Queen of Scots, and the Execution of a King
This bonus episode features Claire Jackson discussing her new biography The Mirror of Great Britain: A Life of James VI and I. Jackson chal…
EpisodeRIHC: Henry VIII, Katherine of Aragon, and The Secrets of the Tudor Heart Pendant
Tom Holland interviews Rachel King, curator of Renaissance Europe at the British Museum, about a spectacular Tudor gold heart pendant and c…
EpisodeElizabeth I: The Fall of the Axe (Part 1)
Hosts Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook discuss the early life and political context that produced Elizabeth I. They open with Edmund Spenc…
Ideas, empires and revolutions reshaping the world.
Enlightenment & Age of Revolutions
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RIHC - Nelson EXTRA: The Fate of Lady Hamilton
This Rest Is History Club bonus episode provides a coda to the hosts' Nelson series by tracing the fate of Emma Hamilton and Horatio(a) Nel…
EpisodeRIHC: Hitler’s Speeches, Monarchical U.S. Presidents, and Napoleon’s Rise to Power
This Rest Is History club bonus features hosts Dominic Sandbrook and Tom Holland in informal discussion with subscribers. They mark Trafalg…
EpisodeRIHC: WWI Counterfactuals, 1970s Britain, and Pivotal Historical Figures
This episode is a Rest Is History Club Q&A with Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook, framed around their new mini-series on Horatio Nelson. T…
EpisodeNelson: The Final Showdown (Part 5)
This episode chronicles Horatio Nelson's return to Britain in August–October 1805, his emotional farewell to Emma, Lady Hamilton, and the m…
Steam, empire and the long 19th century.
Industrial & Imperial Age (Long 19th Century)
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Wagner: LIVE at the Royal Albert Hall
This episode is the second half of a live Royal Albert Hall show (4 May 2025) in which hosts Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook examine the …
EpisodeTchaikovsky: LIVE at the Royal Albert Hall
Join Tom and Dominic at the Royal Albert Hall as they explore the complex life of Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Russia's most celebrated compos…
EpisodeRIHC: Iconic Episodes, Unforgettable Heroes, and History’s Greatest Apples
This special episode, recorded in Sydney to mark the podcast being named Apple’s 2025 Show of the Year, features hosts Tom Holland and Domi…
EpisodeRIHC: Jack the Ripper, the Victims Unveiled
This episode examines the lives of three of the canonical Jack the Ripper victims — Annie Chapman, Elizabeth Stride and Catherine Eddowes —…
Total war, upheaval and the uneasy peace between.
World Wars & Inter-war Era
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Wagner: LIVE at the Royal Albert Hall
This episode is the second half of a live Royal Albert Hall show (4 May 2025) in which hosts Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook examine the …
EpisodeWWI: The Christmas Truce
Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook discuss the 1914 Christmas Truce on the Western Front, examining what happened, who initiated it and why …
EpisodeThe Nazis at War: Churchill’s Finest Hour (Part 4)
Hosts Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook conclude a four-part series on Nazi Germany in 1939–1940 by examining the German perspective on Bri…
EpisodeThe Nazis at War: Blitzkrieg (Part 2)
This episode examines the pivotal year 1940, focusing on Nazi operations in Scandinavia and the opening of the Western offensive. The hosts…
Superpower stand-offs and post-war recovery.
Mid-20th Century & Cold War
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The Beatles: The British Invasion, with Conan O’Brien (Part 2)
This episode is a Beatles-themed special (part two) tracing the group's late-1960s trajectory from Revolver through Sgt. Pepper, the White …
EpisodeThe Beatles: The Band that Changed the World, with Conan O’Brien (Part 1)
Tom Holland records a Beatles special at Abbey Road with guest Conan O'Brien in place of the absent Dominic Sandbrook. They discuss the Bea…
EpisodeRIHC: Disney's Legacy, with Bob Iger
This special bonus episode of The Rest Is History features hosts Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook interviewing Robert A. Iger, CEO of The …
EpisodeDisneyland: The Modern American Utopia
This episode traces the origins, development and cultural meaning of Disneyland. Holland and Sandbrook begin with Nikita Khrushchev’s abort…
Globalisation, technology and the present day.
Contemporary Era (Post-1991)
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WWI: The Christmas Truce
Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook discuss the 1914 Christmas Truce on the Western Front, examining what happened, who initiated it and why …
EpisodeRIHC: Disney's Legacy, with Bob Iger
This special bonus episode of The Rest Is History features hosts Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook interviewing Robert A. Iger, CEO of The …
EpisodeThe Handmaid's Tale, by Margaret Atwood
This episode is a focused discussion of Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale. The hosts examine the book's dystopian world of Gilead, its …
EpisodeRIHC: The Silk Roads, Ancient Asia, and Decentralising Europe
This bonus episode of The Rest Is History features host Tom Holland interviewing Peter Frankenplan, professor of global history at Oxford a…
Cross-era specials, biographies and deep dives.
Thematic / Biographical series
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Joan of Arc: Heroine in Chains (Part 3)
Hosts Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook narrate the middle-to-late career of Joan of Arc, focusing on the months after the relief of Orléan…
EpisodeJoan of Arc: For Fear of the Flames (Part 4)
This episode is the final instalment of The Rest Is History’s multi-part exploration of Joan of Arc. Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook foll…
EpisodeJoan of Arc: Saviour of France (Part 2)
In the gripping continuation of Joan of Arc's story, Tom and Dominic delve into her audacious plans to crown Charles VII and reclaim France…
EpisodeJoan of Arc: Warrior Maid (Part 1)
Hosts Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook explore the turning point of the Hundred Years' War centred on Joan of Arc. They set the political …