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PODCAST

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society

Join sex historian Dr Kate Lister on Betwixt the Sheets as she gets intimate with the stories that would make your history teacher blush.What were the Victorians really like behind closed (bedroom) doors? How did the Black Death favour women in medieval England? And what was Caesar like in the sack?Join Kate as she bed-hops around different time periods; from ancient civilisations, to the middle ages, to renaissance and early modern...right up to now.You’ll laugh, you’ll wince, and you’ll ask

history

All Episodes

38:06

Victorian Beauty Standards

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/05/23

Why did Victorians value pale skin so highly? And how were black bodies viewed by Victorian society?In this episode Kate is joined by author and historian Dr Rochelle Rowe of the University of Edinburgh.This episode was edited by Tom Delargy. The producer was Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.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

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43:57

The Pill: Sexual Liberation?

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/05/20

At least 160 million people worldwide take some form of the contraceptive pill. So where did it come from? Who invented it and why? And how has it changed the world?Kate is joined by Donna Drucker, author of 'Contraception: A Concise History' and historian from Columbia University. Together they discuss whether the contraceptive pill has been a force for liberation.This episode was edited by Tom Delargy. The producer was Sophie Gee. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.Sign up to History Hit for

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45:03

What Made You Ugly In Tudor Times?

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/05/16

Why did royalty have worse teeth than commoners? How would the Tudor court have smelt? And when even the Queen of England can be accused of being a witch for a random mole, what hope did the rest of us have?In this new mini-series, we'll be exploring the beauty standards - and ideas of ugliness - throughout time periods in history.In this third episode Kate is joined by historian and author Nicola Tallis, to find out how both royalty and commoners achieved the desired looks of Tudor times.This

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40:47

The Hangwoman of 18th Century Ireland

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/05/06

Imagine an executioner. Are they big, strong, cloaked and masked? Are they male? Probably - because most executioners in history have been. Today, though, we're meeting a woman who broke the mould.Journalist and writer Clodagh Finn joins Kate to explore the life of Lady Betty, the Irish executioner of the 18th and 19th centuries, as well as some other Irish women who have defied the boundaries of their gender for obscure reasons.Clodagh writes ‘An Irish Woman’s Diary’ for the Irish Examiner and has

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47:49

What Made You Ugly In Ancient Rome?

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/05/02

What was a Roman skincare routine like? Why did the beard make a comeback under Emperor Hadrian? And what did it mean to be ugly in this time?In this new mini-series, we'll be exploring the beauty standards - and ideas of ugliness - throughout time periods in history.Starting today with Ancient Rome, Kate is joined by historian and author Emma Southon to find out why Romans would have loved the recent bushy eyebrow trend.Find out more about Emma's work here: https://www.emmasouthon.com/This episode

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32:07

The Truth About Medusa

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/04/29

You could be forgiven for thinking the Greek myth of Medusa has zero relevance to us today. Snake for hair?!But as you'll hear in today's episode, she's a woman who was vilified for her femininity and sexuality. She was literally cast out of society for it - into a cave, of all places.Joining Kate to help us get to know this mythical woman and her story is author and historian Jasmine Elmer.This episode was edited by Tom Delargy. The producer was Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte

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49:58

History's Worst F*ckboys: Henry VIII

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/04/25

Charismatic, passionate, insatiable - Henry VIII is known across the world as the king who had 6 wives, and a few mistresses on the side. But was Henry a romantic or a scoundrel?Kate is joined by Natalie Grueninger, host of 'Talking Tudors', to find out just how badly behaved Henry was.This episode was edited by Tom Delargy and produced by Sophie Gee. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.If you'd like to get in touch with the show you can contact us at betwixt@historyhit.com.Sign up to History Hit

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43:13

What Happened On A Medieval Wedding Night?

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/04/22

We've been tying the knot for thousands of years in one way or another, but what did a medieval wedding look like?The church had very strict ideas around monogamy and sex in this period, which affected the rituals of a wedding day, AND night.What happened in the bed chambers of the newlyweds? Why was pleasure so important? And why were divorce courts so humiliating?Joining Kate today is author and historian Jacqueline Murray, to take us back to the Middle Ages.This episode was edited by Tom Delargy

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28:41

History's Worst F*ckboys: Casanova

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/04/17

Can you imagine being SO smooth-talking and seductive your surname becomes an actual noun in the dictionary to describe someone who has a reputation for being an expert at in the sack?Well today we’re going to be talking about a man who was just that…Giacamo Casanova.But is his legacy as a f*ckboy accurate? Was he really a prolific ladies man? And did he do anything else in his life other than seduce women…and if he did, why do we only remember him for that reason?Today we’re bringing you a very

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43:26

Nell Gwyn: Celebrity Mistress of King Charles II

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/04/15

How did a working class illiterate woman become King Charles II's favourite mistress?Nell Gwyn was an incredibly talented comedy actor who came from a working class background, and was part of a group of pioneering women who were the first allowed to take to the stage to play women's roles.Her personality was huge, audiences loved her ability to swear, and she was described as "the wildest creature to ever be seen at court." No wonder Charles loved her!What was the wild world of 17th century

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46:02

History's Worst F*ckboys: Emperor Caligula

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/04/10

Have you ever heard of the Emperor who made his horse a senator? Seems like a top bloke, right? Today on Betwixt the Sheets we’re going to meet (possibly) the most debauched Roman Emperor.From stealing brides from their wedding days to an unhealthy obsession with his sister, who was Caligula and was he a f*ckboy? Kate is joined by historian Alexander Meddings to find out.Alexander is a Rome-based historian and travel writer. He leads tours of the Appian Way - one of the most important roads of

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31:33

The Horrible History of Gonorrhoea

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/04/01

Possibly the first recorded sexually transmitted disease, gonorrhoea is still one of the most common.We're back on the itchier side of history today to find out more about the story of this difficult-to-spell affliction.Kate is back with Cat Irving, Human Remains Conservator for Surgeons’ Hall in Edinburgh. Together they discuss the odd and off-putting treatments offered for gonorrhoea over the centuries.This episode was edited by Tom Delargy and produced by Sophie Gee. The senior producer was

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49:31

The Murder That Shook Edwardian Britain

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/03/25

When the music hall dancer, Belle Ellmore, disappeared in January 1910, it was her performing colleagues who raised the alarm.Her murder by Dr. Crippen became a media sensation, and he became the star of the story.Why was Belle Ellmore murdered? Why did it cause such a sensation at its time? And what role did her friends and colleagues in the music hall industry play in bringing justice?Joining Kate today is historian and author, Hallie Rubenhold, whose feminist lens on this story, in Story of a

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40:30

The Truth About Alice in Wonderland

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/03/18

In this episode, we're well and truly going down a rabbit hole. To unpick the controversies surrounding the author of Alice in Wonderland, Kate is joined by author and Professor of Film and Cultural Studies, Will Brooker.Will introduces us to Charles Dodgson, pseudonym Lewis Carroll, and his life, relationships and photography. Will is a professor at Kingston University and author of 'Alice's Adventures: Lewis Carroll in Popular Culture'.This episode was edited by Tomos Delargy and produced by

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41:03

Real Wives of Dictators | Eva Braun, Adolf Hitler's Wife

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/03/14

What was life like as Adolf Hitler's other half?Although their marriage came (very) late in their lives, Eva Braun was with Hitler from the earlier days in his political career, and was a confidant to him through the rise (and fall) of the Nazi Party.How complicit was she in the evil ideologies Hitler set out? Was she in any way a victim? And what was it like to be part of the inner circle?Joining Kate in the second episode of our limited series, Real Wives of Dictators, is Clare Mulley, historian

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35:38

The Dark History of London’s Drug World

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/03/11

Travel back to post-WW1 London, when sex, drugs and music was exploding in Soho... causing a national moral panic.The drugs of choice? Cocaine and morphine. Still used by doctors for questionable medicinal reasons (cough syrup anyone?!) but now also taken in nightclubs and opium dens by socialites around Soho.This week, Kate is Betwixt the Sheets with Professor Toby Seddon to talk about the history of drugs, the people who were selling and taking them, and how the government attempted to crack

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43:06

Beauty & Ugliness in the Ancient World

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/03/04

When we think about Greek and Roman beauty, we think of marble statues of huge men with tiny...feet.But what did it mean to be a beautiful woman? What role did their ideas of ugliness play in these ideas? And how did Christianity throw a curveball in all of this?Taking us back to this world is Caroline Vout, author of Exposed: The Greek and Roman Body, to give us a learned glimpse beneath the togas.This episode was edited by Tom Delargy. The producer was Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was

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50:05

Sex Life of Michelangelo

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/02/28

Michelangelo made religion sexy.That may not have been his initial aim, of course, but the way he portrayed the human form, and particularly the male form, was extremely beautiful.How did his devout Catholic faith create conflict with his well-known attraction to men? How was it expressed in his incredible artwork? And how was sexuality viewed in Renaissance Italy?Joining Kate today is historian and Michelangelo scholar at Stanford University, Sarah Prodan, to help us get to know this man better

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31:09

Sex & Scandal in 1920s Soho

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/02/25

When and why did Soho become a hedonistic hotspot, the home of sex, drugs and music?Kate is Betwixt the Sheets with Dan Snow to talk about post-WW1 London - when a dark underworld of shady characters are soundtracked by an exploding jazz scene, fuelled by a roaring drugs trade.At the heart of it are the so-called 'dope girls'. Women who fascinated and appalled society in equal measure.How did a post war mindset influence the 1920s? How did the press react to all the scandal? And, who were some of

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51:47

Inside Europe's Biggest Red Light District

Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &... ·

2025/02/21

Between 1860 and 1925, tens of thousands of women worked in Dublin's Monto, the largest red light district in Europe.It was a world of narrow alleyways full of brothels busy with sex workers, at a time when the Catholic church was trying to establish ideas around what a woman should be. Hint: it was very different to the women of Monto.What was life like for the women who lived and worked in Monto? How did these 'poor unfortunates', as they were known, create a community and support each other

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