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

What did the Ancient Egyptians think about sex? Is there any truth to a rumoured royal sex scandal? What did they think of same-sex relationships?

In today's episode, Kate's joined by the fantastic historian and author Dr Campbell Price to go back thousands of years to the always-fascinating world of Ancient Egypt.

Find out why the Victorians sexualised the Ancient Egyptians, what an Ancient Egyptian mummy smells of, and what...

Myths are incredibly powerful, especially when it comes to creating nations.

Why are mythical women so central to how we think about our nations? When women had so little power in creating them in the first place.

Joining Kate to explore these fascinating and important ideas today is the fantastic author and historian Dr Janina Ramirez.

This episode was edited by Tim Arstall and produced by Stuart Beckwith. The senior prod...

Who was Aphrodite? She's often thought of as a goddess of sexuality, but there's so much more to this woman.

Which ancient civilisation was she created by? How did the early Christians react to her overt sexuality? Was she ever thought of a sex worker?

Joining Kate today is the fantastic author and historian Dr. Stephanie Budin, to introduce us to this fascinating goddess.

*TW: This episode includes references to sexual as...

The Mitfords could rank as the strangest family of the 20th century.

Unity and Diana were passionate fascists who became obsessed with Adolf Hitler, while Jessica became a communist. Unity even became mates with Hitler and was in Germany as the war broke out.

How did these aristocrats move in such controversial circles? What happened when the Second World War broke out? How did their stories end?

Joining Kate today is the ...

She was 'the Other Boleyn Girl' - Anne's sister, Mary, who supposedly had an affair with King Henry VIII. Such drama!

What evidence is there that the two got betwixt the sheets together? How likely was it?!

Joining Kate today is the historian and author, Estelle Paranque, to get to the heart of the these rumours.

This episode was edited by Tim Arstall and produced by Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Freddy Chick.

The Twits, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda. Roald Dahl wrote some of the world's most loved children's books.

But what do we know about the man himself? Was he really a spy? Was he a good husband? And why have some editions of his books been edited?

Kate is joined by Rosie Gailor, who is on instagram as @rosieandroald.

This episode was edited by Tim Arstall and produced by Sophie Gee. The senior producer was Fre...

What did Queen Isabella of France do to deserve the nickname She-Wolf? What sex scandals happened in the 14th century? And why did the Black Death improve peoples' sex lives?!

Joining Kate today is the fantastic author and historian, Helen Carr, to take us back to this time to find out.

This episode was edited by Tim Arstall and produced by Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Freddy Chick.

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However you pronounce his name, one thing is for certain: Van Gogh made made his mark on the world.

But how did he interact with the world around him? From his relationship with a sex worker in the Hague to his time at the asylum in the south of France.

Joining Kate today is Teio Meedendorp, Senior Researcher at the Van Gogh Museum, to help us get to know this complex man better.

*TW: This episode contains references to se...

Odourless, tasteless, colourless, lethal. In the mid-17th century, men were dropping like flies in Italy. And this wasn't just the plague - it was the work of the poison Aqua Tofana.

So what is Aqua Tofana? And who was its apocryphal purveyor, Giulia Tofana? In this episode we are diving back to Renaissance Italy to learn more about a circle of women poisoners, and the men they chose to murder. How did they eventually get caught...

Frankenstein and his monster are household names - even if one is often confused for the other. But what of their creator?

In this episode we are meeting Mary Shelley. Did she really lose her virginity on her mother's grave? Did she keep her husband's heart after his death? And where did the gothic novel 'Frankenstein' come from?

Kate is joined by poet Fiona Sampson to explore Mary and her life. Fiona's biography of Mary Shel...

Picture a witch. Chances are, you're thinking of a woman.

But in 17th century Iceland, over 90% of the people killed for being a witch, were men.

Why were more men being accused than women for being a witch? And what happened inside their trials?

Today we're revisiting an episode from 2024 to take you back inside the Icelandic Witch Trials. Kate is joined by Dr. Ólína Kjerulf Þorvarðardóttir, Dean of Faculty of Social Scie...

Before Mary I was Queen, no other woman had worn the crown of England.

This made her a Tudor trailblazer, and a target.

During her short reign she burned some 300+ people, earning her the nickname 'Bloody Mary'. Was this nickname justified or was it a case of bad press?

Joining Kate today is the fantastic Anna Whitelock, historian and author of books including Mary Tudor: England’s First Queen, to help us get to know this ...

Why, just why, would one put a leech up their .. you know where? It's all in the name of virginity, or the faking of it.

Kate is joined by Dr Julia Martins to find out why virginity was so necessary to Early Modern people, and how they went about faking it.

Julia can be found at juliamartins.co.uk

This episode was edited by Tom Delargy and produced by Sophie Gee. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.

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Even among Holocaust researchers, this subject is taboo. Starting in 1942, the Nazis set up brothels inside some of the camps, not for the guards, but for the prisoners.

What was the point of these brothels? Who were the women forced to work there? And who were the prisoners who visited them?

In this episode we find out from Robert Sommer, author of 'The Concentration Camp Brothel: Forced Sexual Labor under Nazi Rule'. Over 1...

The 16th century was a dangerous time to be talking about magic and hidden forces, so how did John Dee end up being invited into Elizabeth I's court?

He was an astronomer, occultist and alchemist who dedicated his life to understanding how celestial activity influenced life on earth.

What happened when he thought angels told him to swap wives with another mystic? How did his influence impact the Tudor court? And why was he ne...

Shoot outs, hard drinking and gambling. The Wild West is remembered for it's general lawlessness, but what might life have been like for the first women to join the American settlers as they moved west?

**TW: This episode contains mentions of suicide**

In this episode, we are investigating the lives of sex workers on the American frontier. Who were they? What were their living conditions like? And how were they treated by the...

She was executed on Henry VIII's orders alongside Catherine Howard, and was sister-in-law to Anne Boleyn and the King. She lived in the heart of the Tudor court, and almost made it out alive.

It was a time of huge danger, and such high stakes. But who was Jane Boleyn? Traitor, spy, a woman trying to surive?

In today's episode Kate's joined by the fantastic historian and author Philippa Gregory, author of Boleyn Traitor, to he...

After the first licensed brothel opened in the 17th century, how was sex work thought of in Japan throughout the following centuries?

From the brothels in the pleasure quarters, to the rise and popularity of male sex workers and where geishas fit into the picture, Kate is joined by Elizabeth Lublin to explore this world.

This episode was edited by Tim Arstall and produced by Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte ...

Is this strangest threesome in royal history?!

We're endlessly fascinated with the lives of royal mistresses, and this has to be one of the most notorious.

It takes place in 16th century France between Henry II, his wife Catherine de Medici and his much older mistress, Diane de Poitiers.

How does this three-way power dynamic play out, inside and outside the bedroom? And how does Diane claim more power than the Queen?

Jo...