Single Malt History with Gareth Russell

A slightly unexpected ending to season 3 and what's ahead in season 4. So, a farewell and a thanks. 

I am joined by Dr. Valerie Schutte to discuss her fascinating research into the world of sixteenth-century books and her forthcoming cultural biography of Anne of Cleves, Queen of England (b. 1515, d. 1557).

When homosexuality was made a death penalty offence for the first time in English history by Henry VIII in 1533, it looked like the new laws might claim hundreds or even thousands of lives. But, sixty years later, a young poet was openly writing poems about his love for another man in a London ruled over by Henry's daughter. What was the reality for Tudor people who fell in love or lust with their own gender? Did it change under the Stuarts? Exploring the impact of the laws, the complexities of Elizabethan culture, and the scandals that rocked Stuart high society, this episode of Single Malt History discusses the ways in which sexuality was punished, hidden, proclaimed, and analysed in the early modern period. CONTENT WARNING: This episode contains frequent use of sexual language and a discussion of assault which some listeners may find distressing. 

Some exclusive anecdotes from the Queen Mother's life on the day my biography of her hits the shelves in Britain, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, and South Africa.

From 1897 to 1939, floating palaces and luxury liners were surrogates for the feuds between the rival countries. In the latest episode of Single Malt History, I discuss the grandeur, absurdity, and tragedy of History's most luxurious cold war.  I’m joined by actors, bringing to life the eyewitness testimonies of some of those who were involved - from crew members to victims, socialites and sceptics. CAST Cáilum Carragher as John Dempsey Jake Douglas as John Malcolm Brinnin and Sir Tommy Lascelles Peter Evangelista as Morgan Robertson Debra Hill as Kate Gilnagh Rebecca Lenaghan as Noëlle, Countess of Rothes Maryann Maguire as Alice, Dowager Duchess of Buckingham Ashley Montgomery as Mary-Josephine Barratt

Some reflections on the passing of Queen Elizabeth II (1926 - 2022) and the many royal figures who attended her funeral.

In a sleepy Irish seaside village in 1957, a priest called on a housewife for a cup of tea one rainy afternoon to chat about what school was best for her daughter. A few hours later, the woman backed out of her driveway in such a panic she smashed her car into the gatepost. She kept driving. Within days, a scandal had swept over everybody involved.

Wallis Simpson divided a nation and continues to divide opinion. I'm joined by Anne Sebba, author of the acclaimed Simpson biography "That Woman," who the real Wallis Simpson was - and Anne's new hit read, examining what really happened to the alleged American Communist spy, Ethel Rosenberg. Content warning: This episode contains brief discussions of domestic and sexual abuse, which some listeners may find disturbing. 

The extraordinary stories of Katherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves, Catherine Howard, and Katherine Parr, their marriages to the notorious King Henry VIII, and how they ended up memorialised in the rhyme Divorced, Beheaded, Died, Divorced, Beheaded, Survived. Content warning: This episode contains frequent discussions of miscarriages and fertility struggles, which some listeners may find distressing.

Our interview with Professor James Walvin, author of the new book A World Transformed: Slavery in the Americas and the Origins of Global Power. Professor Walvin discusses working on the history of enslavement over the past four decades and his most recent work, in which he explores how the brutal enforced transportation and labour of millions of Africans continues to have significant consequences today. Slavery shaped many of the dominant features of Western taste: items and habits or rare and costly luxuries, some of which might seem, at first glance, utterly removed from the horrific reality of slavery. Dr. Walvin traces the global impacts of slavery over centuries, far beyond its legal or historical endpoints, arguing that the world created by slave labour lives on today. Content warning: This episode contains discussions of child abduction, physical coercion, racism, human trafficking, and child abuse which some listeners may find distressing.