From the Gunpowder Plot to the killing of a king, from Cromwell and the Civil Wars to the Restoration and the Glorious Revolution. Hosts Miranda Malins and Paul Lay combine historical rigour, entertaining storytelling and revealing guest interviews to draw this vibrant period out of the shadows.
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Plots and conspiracies abounded in the the late 16th and early-mid 17th centuries. And with them came the evolution of a newly-professionalised culture of subterfuge and spying. Paul and Miranda explore the murky world of early modern espionage with historians Nadine Akkerman and Pete Langman, authors of an intriguing new study of the spying tricks and techniques that developed rapidly at the time. We learn about the role of ciphers, micrographia and invisible ink, the creation of new state security networks, and the often overlooked role of women in transmitting forbidden messages, notably during the Civil Wars. 'Spycraft: Tricks and Tools of the Dangerous Trade from Elizabeth I to the Restoration', by Nadine Akkerman and Pete Langman, is published by Yale University Press. To create your own cipher wheel, as discussed in the podcast, visit the 'Spycraft' website at https://yalebooks.co.uk/book/9780300267549/spycraft/ '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music is by George Taylor. The episode was mixed by Sam Gunn.
Episode 14: The Man Who Inspired 'Shōgun' (00:42:00)
Historian Giles Milton joins Miranda and Paul to talk about the life and times of William Adams, an English navigator who was part of a Dutch expedition to the Spice Islands. Adrift in the Pacific, they ran aground in Japan, then a closed and secretive land in the grip of brutal civil war. Unusually for a European, Adams integrated into Japanese society and developed a strong working relationship with the all-powerful shōgun. Giles told Adams' story in his book 'Samurai William'. Also inspired by the real tale was James Clavell, whose 1975 novel 'Shōgun' was recently adapted as a major drama series by Disney+. '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music is by George Taylor. The episode was mixed by Sam Gunn.
Episode 13: The Enigmatic Monarch (00:44:54)
Who was King Charles II? As a controversial new drama-doc portrays him as a brutal avenger of his father's killers, Paul and Miranda go in search of the real Charles. With guest historians Linda Porter and Charlotte White as expert witnesses, we revisit Charles's childhood, his tumultuous experience of Civil War upheavals and years in exile, and his surprisingly conciliatory return to take the throne. Charles II is a larger-than-life figure renowned for his loose living and numerous mistresses. But he was also a champion of the sciences and patron of the arts. Perhaps more than anything else, this most enigmatic of kings was a true political survivor. Linda Porter has published many books on the period including 'Royal Renegades', about the children of Charles I, and 'Mistresses' about the women Charles II had relationships with. Charlotte White is an author and podcast presenter who wrote the chapter on Charles II for Iain Dale's recent 'Kings and Queens' book and is currently writing about Barbara Villiers, Charles II's long-standing mistress. '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music is by George Taylor. The episode was mixed by Sam Gunn.
Episode 12: What Did the Stuarts Do For Us? (00:33:53)
For better or for worse, the Stuart dynasty dominated the 17th-century English political landscape - with inevitable consequences for Scotland, Ireland and wider parts of a nascent empire. History's verdict on the Stuart monarchs is uncertain. Their absolutist inclinations led to Civil War, yet under Stuart leadership the century's turmoils resolved themselves in a way that left Britain stable and well-placed to grow in the following decades. In this episode Paul and Miranda reassess the Stuart monarchs' respective achievements, reflect on their legacy, and ask the key question - did positive long-term developments come about because of the Stuarts, or despite them? '1666 and All That' is presented by Miranda Malins and Paul Lay. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music is by George Taylor. The episode was mixed by Sam Gunn.
Episode 11: The Luck of the Habsburgs (00:44:30)
From humble roots in Switzerland and Swabia, the Habsburg dynasty endured for 900 years, its survival due in part to genetic good fortune. As historian Martyn Rady tells Paul and Miranda, the Habsburgs gambled big on marital matches that would expand and consolidate their power across Europe - and more often than not, they hit the jackpot. Their territories came to include colonies in Africa, the Americas and Asia, further reinforcing their wealth and status. But in the 17th century, even this most adept of dynasties failed to control the forces that unleashed brutal war in central Europe. Martyn Rady's book 'The Habsburgs: the Rise and Fall of a World Power' is published by Penguin. '1666 and All That' is presented by Miranda Malins and Paul Lay. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music is by George Taylor. The episode was mixed by Sam Gunn.
Episode 10: Shooting the Century (00:40:16)
The 17th century has rarely been as popular with film and TV dramatists as 'sexier' periods such as the Tudors, the Romans and the Second World War. But recently, 17th-century stories and characters have emerged from the shadows. Dramas such as Mary & George and Shogun - and the docudrama series Royal Kill List - have attracted large audiences and plenty of media coverage, good and bad. Miranda and Paul use this 17th-century moment to take an irreverent trawl through past screen attempts to capture the period. Highs have included the movies Cromwell (1970) and Witchfinder General (1968), while 2019's Fanny Lye Deliver'd and Winstanley (1975), about the leader of the Diggers, get a thumbs-down. The jury is split on controversial Oscar-winner The Favourite (2018), as well as many of the TV dramas inspired by 17th-century events. Ultimately, Paul and Miranda agree that the finest dramatic depiction of the period came not on screen but on stage, in a play about the final days of King Charles I. '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music is by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Sam Gunn.
Episode 9: Dynastic Change in China (00:47:28)
Great storytelling meets historical rigour in the podcast that brings the 17th century vividly to life. China at the start of the 17th century was wealthy, strong and well-governed – the Ming dynasty had been ruling for nearly 250 years and is generally thought of as one of the high points of Chinese civilisation. But within a few decades it suffered a cataclysmic collapse that some estimate cost the lives of 25 million people. Paul and Miranda's guest in this episode is historian Timothy Brook, who believes that the Ming collapse was due not to administrative and political failure, as many earlier historians have argued, but to wider factors including economic hardship, globalisation and climate change. And Tim believes that the story of 17th century China is interlinked with events in Europe and the New World. Timothy Brook's book 'The Price of Collapse: the Little Ice Age and the Fall of Ming China' is published by Princeton University Press. '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music is by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Sam Gunn.
Episode 8: Painting a Nation (00:45:24)
Miranda and Paul are joined by art critic and author Laura Cumming, whose acclaimed book 'Thunderclap: A Memoir of Art and Life and Sudden Death' explores painting in the 17th-century Dutch Republic. It was a true Golden Age, an era of great artists whose prodigious output of paintings is unrivalled anywhere in European history. Laura's book focuses on the work of Carel Fabritius, whose extraordinary career was cut short when he died in the Delft Thunderclap, a huge explosion of stored gunpowder that devastated the small Dutch town. But her book is also a meditation on artists' relationship with time, and a memoir of Laura's father, himself a noted painter. '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music is by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Sam Gunn.
Episode 7: From Hangings to Housework (00:25:58)
After a short mid-season break, Paul and Miranda return with a timely exploration of 17th-century diaries. This was the century in which the habit of keeping daily personal reflections became widespread - perhaps because, for some devout Protestants, diaries replaced the confessional as a medium in which to confide their innermost thoughts. Greater literacy also contributed to the diary boom. Miranda and Paul revisit the wonderfully revealing diaries of genre superstars Samuel Pepys and John Evelyn, whose entries often juxtaposed the dramatic with the mundane. They also explore some lesser-known exponents of the art, such as Celia Fiennes, who visited every county in England on horseback and kept a daily record of her journeys for posterity. All human life is here - while some diarists laid bare the progress of the century's many conflicts, others used their diaries as a place to log recipes. '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music is by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Sam Gunn.
Episode 6: An Irish Epic (00:29:30)
After James II was deposed and replaced by the Protestant William and Mary in 1688, he began a military campaign in Ireland, from where he hoped to launch a bid to regain his crown. But the Jacobite armies were defeated, ending James's hopes and starting a period of Protestant domination in Ireland. Historian Pádraig Lenihan of the University of Galway has uncovered a fascinating account of the Williamite Wars in Ireland - the Poema de Hibernia, an epic poem written in Latin by an anonymous Jacobite who was imprisoned after the defeat. Pádraig joins Paul and Miranda to discuss the 17th-century conflict in Ireland, and to describe how he rescued this crucial primary source from archival obscurity. The Poema de Hibernia: a Jacobite Latin Epic on the Williamite Wars, edited by Pádraig Lenihan and Keith Sidwell, is published by the Irish Manuscripts Commission. '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Sam Gunn.
Episode 5: Cromwell and the Jews (00:24:47)
Paul and Miranda reflect on one the most remarkable episodes of 17th-century history - Oliver Cromwell's decision to overturn the 360-year-old exclusion of Jews from England. Despite opposition from some in the merchant class, and a persistent level of antisemitism among the public, Cromwell put his personal authority on the line to ensure that Jews would once again be free to live, work and worship in England. But what lay behind Cromwell's decision? And how did he overcome the many barriers to achieving his goal? '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Sam Gunn.
Episode 4: Never Mind the Tudors - It's Hampton Court Palace, 17th-century Style (00:42:07)
Gareth Russell's latest book charts the 500-year history of Hampton Court Palace near London, best known for its place in the high melodrama of Henry VIII and his wives. Yet as Gareth reveals to Miranda and Paul, the part of the book he most enjoyed writing was not Tudor turmoil, but the extraordinary role Hampton Court played in 17th-century political, religious and cultural life. Music to the ears of our presenters, who are determined to draw this crucial period out of the historical shadows. Over the Stuart century, as Gareth tells us, Hampton Court was by turns renovated, neglected, mothballed and saved from sale. It hosted religious scholars and royal mistresses. Within its walls, Shakespeare performed his plays and a prisoner king plotted his escape. And perhaps surprisingly, the leader who showed the most affection for Hampton Court was not a royal, but Oliver Cromwell. Gareth Russell's 'The Palace: From the Tudors to the Windsors, 500 Years of Royal History at Hampton Court' is published by William Collins. '1666 and All That' is presented by Miranda Malins and Paul Lay. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Sam Gunn.
Episode 3: To Beard or Not to Beard (00:25:09)
From Shakespeare's plays to courtly fashions after the Glorious Revolution, facial hair - or the lack of it - was a key cultural signifier in 17th-century Europe, and is now a topic attracting an impressive body of scholarship. As Miranda and Paul reveal in this episode, sporting a beard or moustache in mid-century England could suggest royalist sympathies, while clean-shaven chins often indicated Puritan leanings. Yet fashions came and went, influenced by bewhiskered tastes in Paris or Madrid. And as the century progressed, men's attitudes to facial hair were complicated by the increasingly widespread use of wigs. '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Sam Gunn.
Episode 2: Power to the People (00:52:42)
Great storytelling meets historical rigour in Season Two of the podcast that brings the 17th century vividly to life. The Levellers were among the most influential and misunderstood political movements of the 17th century, key figures in the events that led to Charles I's trial and execution. John Lilburne, Richard Overton, Thomas Rainsborough and others shaped a democratic republican vision, only to be marginalised - some might say betrayed - by Oliver Cromwell during the Interregnum. Paul and Miranda are joined by writer and activist John Rees, author of an acclaimed study of the Levellers. He charts the brief but significant life of this fascinating grassroots movement, and argues that their legacy is as relevant today as it was in the years after the Civil Wars. '1666 and All That' is presented by Miranda Malins and Paul Lay. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Sam Gunn. To suggest episode topics for Season 2, leave a message on our website: www.podpage.com/1666-and-all-that. Or use Twitter to contact @_paullay or @MirandaMalins
Episode 1: James and the Giant Feasts (00:45:02)
Miranda and Paul launch Season 2 with a myth-busting profile of King James VI and I, a fascinating and much-misunderstood monarch whose reign was packed with drama, intrigue and excess. Their guest is Steven Veerapen, author of a new biography of James. Steven's book. 'The Wisest Fool: the Lavish Life of James VI and I' (Birlinn), reassesses James's early life in Scotland, explores his bisexuality, and paints a vivid picture of his extravagant court in London - "simultaneously the most colourful and the most wasteful in English history," as Steven tells us. Yet there was more to James than drunken banquets and complicated romantic liaisons. He judiciously avoided becoming entangled in Europe's wars, showed impressive tact in his handling of religious tensions, and left behind a stable realm - though as Paul and Miranda remind us, that stability was quickly undermined by his son, Charles I. '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Sam Gunn. To suggest episode topics for Season 2, leave a message on our website: www.podpage.com/1666-and-all-that. Or use Twitter to contact @_paullay or @MirandaMalins
Coming Soon: Season 2 of 1666 and All That (00:02:21)
They're back! Paul Lay and Miranda Malins return with a second season of the podcast that captures the drama and complexity of a pivotal age in British, European and global history. The 17th century is often overshadowed in popular culture by the Tudor period that came before it. Yet this was an age whose constitutional crises, identity politics and propaganda resonate with us today unlike any other. And it was a century of great upheavals and memorable characters - providing Miranda and Paul with a rich supply of stories that entertain and enlighten. Among their stories in Season 2, they will explore the Levellers' legacy, try to make sense of the 30 Years War and give us fresh perspectives from Ireland, Europe and the wider world. Episode 1, recalling the extravagant reign of King James VI and I, is available from 3 October. '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Sam Gunn. All episodes from Season 1 and Season 2 are available on our website: www.podpage.com/1666-and-all-that. Listeners can use X (formerly known as Twitter) to contact @_paullay or @MirandaMalins
Episode 17: The Human Cost of the British Civil Wars (00:45:03)
Season 1 of '1666 and All That' comes to an end with a vividly revealing account of how the English state set out to support surviving victims of the Civil Wars of the 1640s. The day after the battle of Edgehill in 1642, the Long Parliament established a national programme of financial relief to wounded Parliamentary soldiers, war widows and bereaved families. The programme was later co-opted by the Royalist side after the Restoration. To obtain a pension, applicants had to petition in writing, providing evidence of injury, bereavement or financial hardship. Like so many innovations of the mid-17th century, the scheme was ahead of its time. No comparable relief programme for ordinary fighting men was made available again for more than 200 years. Paul and Miranda's guest is Dr Ismini Pell of Oxford University, director of the Civil War Petitions Project, which has been working to collate all surviving petitions, and to make these fascinating documents freely available to the public on their dedicated website: www.civilwarpetitions.ac.uk Ismini describes how progress in medical science, and in attitudes to the wounded and psychologically traumatised, helped to lessen the lasting impact of many devastating years of conflict and upheaval. Some graphic descriptions of injuries are included in the episode. '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Alfie Thompson. To suggest episode topics for Season 2, leave a message on our website: www.podpage.com/1666-and-all-that/. Or use Twitter to contact @_paullay or @MirandaMalins
Episode 16: Raising a Glass to the 17th Century (00:40:14)
Author Henry Jeffreys has charted British history through its relationships - commercial, industrial and social - with alcohol. And as we discover when Henry talks to Paul and Miranda in this episode, the 17th century played a key role in shaping those relationships. Indeed, Henry argues that Britain had a greater influence on the booze business than any other nation. From the invention of strong glass for bottles to experiments with adding fizz to wine, British scientists and entrepreneurs made a telling contribution. Imperial adventures opened up a global trade in wine and spirits. And the public - from aristocrats to the peasantry - played their part by displaying a healthy appetite for the strong stuff. Oliver Cromwell himself was fond of a tipple - demonstrating that when it came to booze, even priggish Puritans were happy to make an exception. Henry Jeffreys' book 'Empire of Booze: British History Through the Bottom of a Glass' is published by Unbound. '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Alfie Thompson. You can visit our website at www.podpage.com/1666-and-all-that/
Episode 15: A King and a Poet Recreated in Fiction (00:48:14)
From Philippa Gregory to Robert Harris, historical novelists are increasingly turning to the 17th century for inspiration. In this episode, writer Julie Maxwell joins Miranda and Paul to talk about her new book 'The Image of the King', which tells the story of Charles I's trial and execution from the dual perspective of the doomed monarch and of the great poet John Milton, a supporter of Cromwell and the Parliamentary cause. Julie reveals how she went about recreating the lives and motivations of these two vivid and contrasting characters. '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. Miranda is the author of two novels about Oliver Cromwell's family: 'The Puritan Princess' (2020) and 'The Rebel Daughter' (2022), both published by Orion Press. Paul's book 'Providence Lost: the Rise and Fall of Cromwell's Protectorate' was published in 2020 by Head of Zeus. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Alfie Thompson. You can visit our website at www.podpage.com/1666-and-all-that/
Episode 14: Meeting the Mughal Empire (00:48:03)
When Thomas Roe was sent by King James I to be ambassador to the Mughal Empire in 1615, he discovered a vast and sophisticated polity that far surpassed England in population, wealth and military might. Paul and Miranda explore this early encounter between England and India with historian Nandini Das, author of 'Courting India: England, Mughal India and the Origins of Empire' (Bloomsbury). Nandini paints a wonderfully vivid picture of courtly extravagance, cultural misunderstandings and colonial competition. '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Alfie Thompson. You can visit our website at www.podpage.com/1666-and-all-that/
Episode 13: Crowning Glories (00:33:08)
In the week that sees a new King Charles crowned in London, Miranda and Paul unearth vivid coronation stories from 17th-century England - including details of the ceremonies for the two previous bearers of that regnal name. As well as examples of spectacular pageantry - and sometimes excess - they find moments of lasting historical significance. And among the various Stuart monarchs' big days out, they revisit the two investitures of Oliver Cromwell as Lord Protector, the second of which adhered surprisingly closely to royal tradition. Finally, Paul and Miranda give their 17th-century coronation awards in a variety of categories, from best music to most drunken banquet. '1666 and All That' is presented by Miranda Malins and Paul Lay. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Alfie Thompson. You can visit our website at www.podpage.com/1666-and-all-that/
Episode 12: Colonial Designs, part 2 (00:40:48)
In the second of two episodes examining the origins of the English - later British - empire, Paul and Miranda are joined by Gabriel Glickman of the University of Cambridge. Gabriel's new book, 'Making the Imperial Nation: Colonisation, Politics and English Identity, 1660-1700' (Yale University Press), explores how 17th-century England lacked an effective colonial apparatus, falling behind Spain and the Netherlands in the race for overseas possessions. Failures such as Cromwell's Western Design in the Caribbean, and the later loss of Tangier, defined the period, and while aspirations remained high, the Crown's capacity to realise its ambitions was fragile. Gabriel reveals how these setbacks, along with an increasing reliance on slavery, left many in England disillusioned. '1666 and All That' is presented by Miranda Malins and Paul Lay. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Alfie Thompson. You can visit our website at https://www.podpage.com/1666-and-all-that/
Episode 11: Colonial Designs, part 1 (00:43:17)
The 17th century saw early English attempts to carve out territories in the New World, Africa and beyond, with lasting - and all too often tragic - legacies. In the first of two episodes examining the origins of empire and the politics of colonisation, Paul and Miranda talk to historian Matthew Parker, author of 'Willoughbyland: England's Lost Colony.' Matthew tells the remarkable story of Francis, Lord Willoughby, who fled England for Barbados after the Civil Wars. Willoughby went on to acquire a stretch of land in what is now Suriname. The territory that bore his name became, in his absence, a functional and surprisingly egalitarian colony. But that would change when the Restoration ushered in greater competition with rival colonial powers - and the introduction of slavery. Our next episode will stay on the theme of early colonial ventures, when Dr Gabriel Glickman of the University of Cambridge tells us about imperial projects of the later 17th century and their political and cultural impact back in England. '1666 and All That' is presented by Miranda Malins and Paul Lay. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Alfie Thompson. You can visit our website at https://www.podpage.com/1666-and-all-that/
Episode 10: Class Wars in the Capital (00:41:46)
Fifty years after the publication of Christopher Hill's celebrated Marxist analysis of the English Civil War, 'The World Turned Upside Down', historian Michael Sturza has written a new book that reprises some of Hill's arguments and sets out to refute revisionist attempts to take revolutionary politics out of the history of this tumultuous period. Michael joins Paul and Miranda on the podcast to discuss his fascinating book, 'The London Revolution 1640-643: Class Struggles in 17th Century England', which emphasises London's place at the heart of events and argues that popular revolt was a powerful motivating force behind the many dramatic upheavals of the time. '1666 and All That' is presented by Miranda Malins and Paul Lay. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Alfie Thompson. Don't want to miss the next episode? Remember to subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.
Episode 9: When Venice Defied the Pope (00:20:21)
Paolo Sarpi is far from a household name, even among aficionados of 17th-century history. But Paul Lay believes Sarpi deserves greater recognition, and in this episode he explains why to co-host Miranda Malins. Sarpi was a Venetian statesman, cleric and thinker. When Pope Paul V decided to excommunicate the city state and its entire population in 1606-07, a punishment for their insistence on appointing their own priests, Sarpi fought back. Earning himself a reputation as 'the penman of Venetian defiance', Sarpi called out Rome for its absolutist behaviour and in the process became a hero for rebellious thinkers all over Europe - not least in England, where Sarpi's writings and ideas played a significant part in the build-up to the Civil War. '1666 and All That' is presented by Paul Lay and Miranda Malins. The producer is Hugh Costello. Original music by George Taylor. The episode is mixed by Alfie Thompson. Don't want to miss the next episode? Remember to subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.
