Half-Arsed History

byRiley Knight

ComedyHistorySocietyCulture

Half-Arsed History's first book, History's Strangest Deaths, is now available: https://www.booktopia.com.au/history-s-strangest-deaths-riley-knight/book/9781761472589.htmlWelcome along to Half-Arsed History! It's a weekly podcast highlighting absurd and entertaining stories from history. Twice a week, it helps host Riley Knight feel as though his useless history degree has some kind of real-world relevance.Get in touch: halfarsedhistory@gmail.comSupport the show on Patreon: https://patreon.com/halfarsedhistorySubscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/halfarsedhistoryBuy Half-Arsed History merch: https://halfarsedhistory.theprintbar.comIf you've just discovered the show and aren't sure which of the 350+ episodes to start with, here are some...

Episodes(40 episodes)

Week 13: The Spaghetti Tree Hoax

This week in history we’ve got the origin of gerrymandering, the renaming of Constantinople, we’ve got the birthdays of composers and scientists and painters, and we’ve got the time the BBC convinced half of Britain that spaghetti grew on trees. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Mar 25, 2026Duration: 36m 44s

Episode 404: The East India Company - Part 4 Expansion and Empire

In this week's episode, hear about the phase of conquest and expansion that transformed the British East India Company into one of the largest and most powerful imperial institutions on Earth. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Mar 22, 2026Duration: 1h 2m 20s

Week 12: England Loses the 1966 World Cup

This week in history we’ve got monuments both finished and unfinished, we’ve got great escapes, we’ve got the birthdays of clockmakers, filmmakers, and musicmakers, and we’ve got the time that England lost the World Cup in 1966. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Mar 18, 2026Duration: 39m 51s

Episode 403: The East India Company - Part 3: Conquest and Corruption

In this week's episode, get across how the British East India Company transformed from a purely commercial enterprise to a sovereign entity exercising colonial authority over a growing part of the Indian subcontinent. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Mar 15, 2026Duration: 57m 58s

Week 11: The Assassination of Julius Caesar

This week in history we’ve got the death of a saint, the discovery of a planet, and the theft of half a billion dollars of art, we’ve got the birthdays of scientists and explorers, and beware the Ides of March, we’ve got the assassination of Julius Caesar.Selene's Fun Animal Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/6LMIgPToyL63jhxRKddc0a?si=3a181b5c586449b3 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Mar 11, 2026Duration: 36m 44s

Episode 402: The East India Company - Part 2: Footholds and Factories

In this week's episode, hear about the early history of the English East India Company, and how it moved away from the Indonesian spice trade and instead gained a foothold on the Indian subcontinent under the Mughal Empire. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Mar 8, 2026Duration: 1h 3m 3s

Week 10: The 13 Original Rules of Golf

This week in history we’ve got the foundation of the French Foreign Legion and frozen food, we’ve got the birthdays of explorers and artists and activists, and we’ve got the establishment of the original and sometimes very amusing rules of the game of golf. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Mar 4, 2026Duration: 47m 39s

Episode 401: The East India Company - Part 1: Spices and Stocks

In this week's episode, learn about the global 16th century trading conditions that ultimately led to the formation of the East India Company, an institution that would eventually grow to effectively rule as a nation in its own right. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Mar 1, 2026Duration: 56m 26s

Week 9: The Great Fire of Meireki

This week in history we’ve got the first Europeans in Australia, we’ve got the first Sherlock Holmes stories, we’ve got famous composers and an even famouser crook, and we’ve got the time the city that would go on to become Tokyo burnt to the ground. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Feb 25, 2026Duration: 38m 13s

Episode 400: What Half-Arsed History Could Have Been

In this week's episode, get a taste of what this show might have sounded like if it had begun as a podcast of a different genre. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Feb 22, 2026Duration: 1h 20m 10s

Week 8: Three Presidents in One Hour

This week in history we’ve got monuments, calendars, and the disastrous premiere of a popular opera, we’ve got the birthdays of astronomers and diarists and presidents, and we’ve got that time that Mexico got through three presidents in a single hour. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Feb 18, 2026Duration: 35m 26s

Episode 399: Nicolaus Copernicus and Copernican Heliocentrism

In this week's episode, get to know Nicolaus Copernicus, the 15th-century astronomer who brought about a historical paradigm shift with his radical proposal that the Sun, not the Earth, is at the centre of the solar system. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Feb 15, 2026Duration: 55m 34s

Week 7: The Saint Valentine’s Day Massacre

This week in history we’ve got famous martyrdoms, global car races, and the discovery of former planets, we’ve got the birthdays of scientists and leaders and activists, and we’ve also got the story of an infamous Chicago bloodbath. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Feb 11, 2026Duration: 40m 40s

Episode 398: The Foundation of Modern Singapore

In this week's episode, discover how, why, and perhaps most importantly where modern Singapore was founded, back in 1819 by Sir Stamford Raffles. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Feb 8, 2026Duration: 58m 20s

Week 6: The Sack of Baghdad

This week in history we’ve got riots and treaties, we’ve got the discovery of the world’s biggest gold nugget, we’ve got the birthday of a famous Victorian author, and of course, the end of the Islamic Golden Age with the Sack of Baghdad. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Feb 4, 2026Duration: 33m 32s

Episode 397: Catherine the Great, the Enlightened Empress

In this week's episode, meet Catherine the Great, the empress who successfully ruled Russia for almost 35 years despite usurping a throne she had no claim to. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Feb 1, 2026Duration: 1h 15m 47s

Week 5: The Day the Music Died

This week in history we’ve got the execution of a famous traitor, a tale of revenge served cold, we’ve got the birthdays of conquerors and explorers and activists, and we’ve got the story behind the Day the Music Died. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Jan 29, 2026Duration: 38m 58s

Episode 396: The Horrors of Sarah Island

In this week's episode, become acquainted with Macquarie Harbour Penal Station, known as Sarah Island, which was one of the cruellest and most brutal convict settlements in Australia's history. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Jan 25, 2026Duration: 1h 2m 40s

Week 4: When Some Ships Sailed from Botany Bay to Port Jackson

This week in history: the publishing of Pride and Prejudice, the first-ever cans of beer, the birthdays of pirates, kings, and composers, and... that time some ships sailed from Botany Bay to Port Jackson. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Jan 21, 2026Duration: 39m 2s

Episode 395: The Raft of the Medusa

In this week's episode, head the gruesome and tragic tale of the Raft of the Medusa, when almost 150 people were set adrift and abandoned on a rickety raft, resorting to murder and cannibalism to survive. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Published: Jan 18, 2026Duration: 52m 15s