BBC History UK Magazine - November 2023

In this issue

Anne Boleyn’s fatal French connection
John Guy and Julia Fox chart the role that international diplomacy played in the rise and fall of Henry VIII’s second wife.

Empire on the brink
Matthew Parker chronicles the challenges facing the British empire as it reached its largest territorial extent..

Are black histories still being overlooked?

The global protests of 2020 thrust the importance of understanding black history into the spotlight - but, three years on, has that focus been maintained? As the UK marks Black History Month, MATT ELTON gauges the views of three historians

10 mins

"In sun-beaten Greece, I learned that the past is receding faster than ever"

ITS OBVIOUS, I KNOW, BUT CHANGE IN HISTORY moves at a different pace at different times and in different places.

3 mins

"The India Club briefly transported new arrivals back to their homeland"

BY THE TIME THIS ARTICLE IS PUBLISHED, London’s India Club will have closed. It’s been a well-kept secret for years. On the Strand, squeezed between a cafe and a newsagent, is a small door bearing the sign of the Hotel Strand Continental.

2 mins

Anne Boleyn's fatal French connection

John Guy and Julia Fox reveal how international diplomacy supercharged the rise of Henry's VIII's second wife and hastened her fall

10 mins

HELL IN ITALY

The Allied invasion of Italy in 1943 was envisaged as a swift push on Rome. Yet, as James Holland explains, by the end of the year, the campaign was stymied by German defences far from the capital

10+ mins

An Anglo-Saxon detective story

Why do the bones of luminaries such as King Cnut, Emma of Normandy and William II lie mixed up in six chests in Winchester Cathedral? And what do these remains tell us about the evolution of early England? Cat Jarman investigates

8 mins

EMPIRE ON THE BRINK

In September 1923, the British empire reached its maximum territorial extent. A staggering 460 million people lived within its borders. Yet just as the imperial project reached its apex, writes Matthew Parker, cracks were widening...

9 mins

The medieval Stalingrad

Edward III's siege of Calais was a pivotal moment in the Hundred Years' War. Here Dan Jones argues that it bears comparison with one of the most brutal clashes of the modern era

9 mins

Broadcast views: Radio Times at 100

Since its launch in 1923 as the BBC's official listings guide, the magazine has charted enormous shifts in media and society alike. David Hendy explores how its pages reflected changes across Britain

6 mins

"The Roman empire cannot have been governed by a series of psychopaths. It would not have survived"

MARY BEARD tells Matt Elton what life would have been like for Rome's - from the path to the top to the almost inevitable sticky end emperors

10+ mins

Spooks, spirits and psychiatry

ANNA MARIA BARRY recommends a new exploration of the interplay between science, faith and superstition in 19th-century attitudes to mental health

2 mins

Forgotten heroes

PATRICIA FARA reviews a history of black TB nurses in the United States during the first half of the 20th century

1 min

Britain gets swinging

ALWYN TURNER investigates the latest volume in David Kynaston's epic history of modern Britain, as the author turns his attention to the heady days of the early 1960s

2 mins

A fool's errand

The play Henry VIII, written by William Shakespeare and John Fletcher, opens with a warning. Those who have made their way to the Globe Theatre expecting to \"hear a merry bawdy play\" can expect disappointment, for they, the prologue puns, \"Will be deceived\". This play is serious, even tragic, portraying how \"mightiness meets misery\" where there is no room for merriness - and thus no room for the king's fool himself, Will Somer.

2 mins

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BBC History UK Magazine Description:

BBC History Magazine is Britain’s bestselling history magazine devoted to history enthusiasts of all levels of knowledge and interest. Published 13 times a year, BBC History Magazine brings history to life with informative, lively and entertaining features written by the world’s leading historians and journalists. Whether it is the history of our politics and institutions, or the fascinating stories of our private lives through the ages, BBC History Magazine sheds new light on the past and helps make more sense of today’s world.Covering the latest new developments in history and archaeology from Britain and around the world, the latest, most thought provoking historical research and strong links with TV and radio programming maximizing use of BBC’s existing expertise in the genre.