Sex Life & Scandal of Charles Dickens
Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society
12/24/24
•48m
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Like it or not, there's no escaping Charles Dickens at this time of year.
But who was the man behind classics such as A Tale of Two Cities, Oliver Twist and of course, A Christmas Carol?
His life is as rich as many of the characters' stories in one of his books, including a brutal Victorian upbringing and rumours of sex and scandal.
Joining us in this re-run to explore the controversy of the man is Charles Dickens super-fan Miriam Margolyes - a national treasure in her own right.
Having written and starred in the play, Dickens Women, Miriam knows better than most the complicated relationships he had in his life: from his mother who took him out of school to work in a rat-infested blacking factory aged 12, to his wife whom he had a bookcase wall built to separate her from him.
This episode was edited and produced by Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.
All music from Epidemic Sounds/All3 Media.
Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.
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Betwixt the Sheets: History of Sex, Scandal & Society is a History Hit podcast.
Voting is now open for the Listener's Choice Award at this year's Podcast Awards! UK & Ireland listeners please place your vote on the Spotify mobile app here: https://open.spotify.com/s/xhg6PJa
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Previous Episode
Kateryn Parr | Secret Lives of the Six Wives
December 20, 2024
•37m
At the time, surely Kateryn Parr had her reservations about being Henry VIII's sixth wife?
Aside from being a tyrannical maniac who'd just beheaded his last wife, Catherine Howard, he was getting old, angry and his ulcerous leg was getting smelly.
However, Kateryn was smart - she was the first queen to be a published author - and she loved the glitz and glamour of her new position.
What was her life like before Henry entered the picture? How did she narrowly escape being sent to the tower for heresy? And why was her marriage after Henry so controversial?
In the sixth and final episode of our limited series, Secret Wives of the Six Wives, Kate is joined by Tudor export Nicola Tallis, to help us find out more about the woman who would thrive as a queen and go on to live to survive Henry VIII.
This episode was edited and produced by Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.
All music from Epidemic Sounds/All3 Media.
Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.
You can take part in our listener survey here.
Betwixt the Sheets: History of Sex, Scandal & Society is a History Hit podcast.
Voting is now open for the Listener's Choice Award at this year's Podcast Awards! UK & Ireland listeners please place your vote on the Spotify mobile app here: https://open.spotify.com/s/xhg6PJa
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Next Episode
Did Ancient People Have Sex Toys?
December 27, 2024
•42m
Dating back some 30,000 years, sex toys have a long (no pun intended) and fascinating history.
What were the earliest sex toys like? How did technology change them? And did Victorian doctors really prescribing them for back pain?
In today's episode, we're revisiting an episode where Kate was joined by writer, sex and gender historian Hallie Lieberman to discuss the first dildo, the myth of the vibrator, and more.
Find out more about Hallie's book, Buzz: The Stimulating History of the Sex Toy, here.
This episode was produced by Charlotte Long and Sophie Gee. Mixed by Seyi Adaobi.
All music from Epidemic Sounds/All3 Media.
Sign up to History Hit for hundreds of hours of original documentaries, with a new release every week and ad-free podcasts. Sign up at https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe.
You can take part in our listener survey here.
Betwixt the Sheets: History of Sex, Scandal & Society is a History Hit podcast.
Voting is now open for the Listener's Choice Award at this year's Podcast Awards! UK & Ireland listeners please place your vote on the Spotify mobile app here: https://open.spotify.com/s/xhg6PJa
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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