Life Lessons from History

Life Lessons from History

How can the experience of the Babylonians and Assyrians ease our worries now? Can we look to a Tudor queen for advice on procrastination? How can we harness the ancient fear of faeries and witches to add a bit of enchantment to our lives today? What’s this all about? It’s a simple concept. I find a great historian or archaeologist and I ask them to propose a Life Lesson from History – some learning from their study of the past that will help us today to live better, happier, healthier, or more productive lives.

Episodes

Just get outside, the air is lovely

October 4, 2026 • 24 mins
Just get outside and enjoy some fresh air. That was a simple pleasure that our medieval forebears embraced, and it’ll do wonders for us today. That’s the view of medievalist Katherine Harvey, talking on this episode of Life Lessons from history, from HistoryExtra. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Wait for the wheel of fortune to turn your way

September 27, 2026 • 40 mins
Sometimes things go your way, sometimes they don’t. That was the approach that many people in the Middle Ages took to life, because they had an understanding of time that was more cyclical than we tend to have today. You can channel this in your day-to-day by being patient, taking a breath, and waiting for the wheel of fortune to turn back your way again. In this special live episode of Life Lessons from History from HistoryE...
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Be more confident, like a WW2 secret agent

September 20, 2026 • 23 mins
Become a secret agent and throw yourself into life-or-death situations because if it doesn’t kill you, it’ll make you stronger. That’s not very helpful or practical advice for most of us, but if you do want to build your confidence, Roderick Bailey tells David Musgrove that we can take something from the experiences of WW2 SOE agents and how they grew as people from the challenging situations they found themselves...
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Never give up, even in the face of terrible odds

September 13, 2026 • 29 mins
If you don’t think you can carry on with something, take a moment to consider the resilience of 17th-century patients. Sick people in the 1600s were remarkably resilient, even when the chances of them recovering from illnesses were slim. They still plugged on and kept trying cures to bring them round. In this episode of Life Lessons from History, from HistoryExtra, Alun Withey reveals to David Musgrove how he takes inspiratio...
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Argue like a medieval Irish monk

September 6, 2026 • 35 mins
Medieval Irish monks knew how to disagree respectfully. That’s a skill that we sorely need these days, as social media nudges us into binary anger. According to medievalist Elizabeth Boyle, in conversation with David Musgrove, we can learn a lot from the monastic habit of arguing. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Always look on the gloomy side of life

August 30, 2026 • 26 mins
According to Prof James Romm’s reading of the wisdom of the ancient Greek philosopher Sophocles, if you prepare well for gloom, you can enjoy the sunshine more readily. This episode of Life Lessons from History is all about mental fortitude, and how an awareness that things might not go well allows you to cope with the slings and arrows of bad fortune, and to revel robustly when things do go your way. Learn more about you...
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Go for a walk to free your mind

August 23, 2026 • 40 mins
What if the best way to solve a problem isn't to think harder, but simply to go for a walk? In this episode of Life Lessons from History, explorer and geographer Nicholas Crane joins Dave Musgrove to uncover the remarkable history of Britain's footpaths and explain why walking has always been far more than a means of getting from A to B. From prehistoric routeways and medieval travellers to Charles Dickens and modern neuroscien...
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Master the Medieval Art of Knowing Yourself

August 16, 2026 • 34 mins
The Seven Deadly Sins are often dismissed as a list of religious prohibitions, but medieval historian Peter Jones reveals they were originally something much more profound: a practical guide to self-knowledge. Drawing on centuries of medieval thought, he explains how concepts like pride, envy and sloth were understood as recurring patterns of human behaviour rather than moral failings, offering people a structured way to examine th...
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Let’s talk about death more honestly

March 8, 2026 • 43 mins
We should be better at talking about death, and maybe we could also do with being comfortable with the personal rituals that would allow that to happen. That’s what Helen Gittos suggests in this new Life Lessons from History podcast, as she explains how medieval people let rituals run throughout their lives, and how we might benefit from doing the same. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Seek out silence, like a Tudor

March 1, 2026 • 21 mins
Do you ever actively seek out silence? Maybe you should, suggests historian of the early modern era Professor Mark Stoyle, in this latest Life Lessons from History episode, which explores the ways in which people reacted to noise, or the lack of it, in early modern England. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Build your own stone circle

February 22, 2026 • 25 mins
The people who constructed Stonehenge seem to have had a very communal society, in which they came together to work as one on these great megalithic building projects. Susan Greaney’s Life Lesson from History is that we should try to adopt more communal, less individualistic lives, and harness the spirit of Stonehenge. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Love learning like Æthelstan

February 15, 2026 • 16 mins
The Anglo-Saxon king Æthelstan, who did much to establish the idea of England, was also a keen learner. He impressed on his people the importance of deep study, and that’s something we could do with embracing today in our world of distractions, says David Woodman in this Life Lesson from History. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Be wary of labour-saving devices

February 8, 2026 • 36 mins
Don’t let your life be ruled by your vacuum cleaner, says celebrated historian of the Industrial Revolution Emma Griffin in this episode of our Life Lessons from History series. She also shares some helpful observations about how we might deal with the challenges of the AI revolution. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Hug a tree like a medieval pagan

February 1, 2026 • 23 mins
Paganism hung on in eastern and northern Europe for a lot longer than you might expect. According to historian and folklorist Francis Young, that’s partly because people there took a very flexible and personal approach to spirituality, which often included a deep respect for trees and nature. This episode of Life Lessons from History explores how we might benefit from that today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcas...
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Love your neighbour, like an ancient Roman

January 25, 2026 • 34 mins
Good neighbours become good friends. If you ever watched the long-running Australian drama series Neighbours, you’ll recognise that ditty. According to Roman historian Dr Jess Venner, we could take a lesson on neighbourliness from ancient Rome – more specifically, ancient Pompeii. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Find wonder in the world around you

January 18, 2026 • 34 mins
The Anglo-Saxons had a deep sense of wonder – they saw magic in the mundane, and expressed it through riddles. Eleanor Parker’s Life Lesson from History is that we, too, should seek out wonder in the world around us, and that a little bit of riddle-writing might help us find it. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Paint a pot like an ancient Etruscan

January 11, 2026 • 44 mins
Be yourself and don’t be afraid to make mistakes. That’s one of the lessons that archaeologist Dr Lucy Shipley says we can take from the approach to life of the ancient Etruscans. These historical inhabitants of the Italian peninsula seem to have had a very self-confident attitude – one which we could learn from today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Live locally, live sustainably

January 4, 2026 • 38 mins
We know we should all be living sustainably if we can. Bestselling historian Ian Mortimer suggests that we should look back to the medieval period – an era in which people took a very local attitude to life – to seek inspiration for sustainable living. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Don’t worry, be Babylonian

December 28, 2025 • 21 mins
Do you wake up in the middle of the night worrying? If so, you’re definitely not alone. But if you want to manage the anxieties of modern life, Selena Wisnom argues that you could take a leaf out of the book of the ancient Assyrians and Babylonians. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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Get personal with your poo, like a samurai

December 21, 2025 • 29 mins
Are we too quick to flush? In Edo Japan, people were much more mindful of how they dealt with sewage and rubbish than we are today. Chris Harding’s Life Lesson from History is that we should think more carefully about how we deal with our waste products, in the spirit of the samurai. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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