The Triptych

The Triptych

Author: Simone Whitlow March 15, 2024 Duration: 24:21
Trigger Warning: Death by misadventure, and an execution by guillotine. I make no concessions for calling Aotearoa… Aotearoa. I mention this as in Aotearoa (New Zealand) news sites are having to shut down comment sections on Maori language, Maori achievement and Maori culture over racist morons getting upset by this news. If the use of Te Reo names over those of colonizers upsets you, this show really isn’t for you… This week is a bit of a departure from my regular plan. I’m still working on the episode planned for this spot, so put a triptych of shorter tales together.  First, we meet Harold Davidson - the Vicar of Stiffkey. A man well known in Britain’s newspapers in the 1930s, who, if he was remembered today would probably be known for something else entirely.  Then we briefly meet Polynesia’s great navigators.  And finally we discuss Father of modern Chemistry Antoine Lavoisier’s final experiment.             Sources Include:  Sorry all, I’m running late this week and will backfill this later. Harold Davidson’s tale came to me years ago via Mike Dash’s original blog site - and this is one of a number of pieces no longer up - but it is preserved on the Wayback Machine -so I’ll link to it. Michael King’s The Penguin History of New Zealand, and several articles on NZ History’s site and Te Ara, the Encyclopaedia of New Zealand were used in The Navigators.  The Lavoisier piece is an old blog piece jumbled together from a bunch of sources, I don’t recall all of them, but will take a shot at finding them on the weekend.     Support the show on Patreon for $2 US a month and get access to exclusive content, or Try our 7 Day Free Trial.  Please leave Tales a like and a review wherever you listen. The best way you can support us is to share an episode with a friend - Creative works grow best by word of mouth. I post episodes fortnightly, Wednesdays.   Tales of History and Imagination is on  | Facebook | Twitter | TikTok | Threads | Instagram | YouTube |  Music, writing, narration, mixing yours truly.  Visit Simone’s  | About Me | Twitter |   

Simone Whitlow hosts Tales of History and Imagination, a podcast dedicated to unearthing those peculiar, overlooked stories that conventional history books often skip. Each episode feels like a conversation about a fascinating secret, whether it's delving into the life of an obscure figure who tried to alter our very concept of time or examining the panic caused by a legendary beast in eighteenth-century France. You'll encounter the clever pranksters and the enigmatic side characters-the individuals who played brief but unforgettable cameo roles on the world's stage. Rather than re-treading well-worn narratives, this show seeks out perspectives rarely considered, finding the extraordinary within the ordinary march of events. Listening to this podcast is an exercise in curiosity, where major historical moments are often reframed through a surprising, human lens. It’s for anyone who suspects the past is far weirder and more wonderful than they were taught, blending rigorous research with a storyteller's sense of wonder. The result is a consistently engaging mix that sits at the crossroads of history, culture, and sheer human imagination.
Author: Language: English Episodes: 100

Tales of History and Imagination
Podcast Episodes
The Monstrous Life of Zana of Abkhazia [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 20:28
This week we travel to the Kingdom of Abkhazia, a Black Sea land nestled amongst the Caucasus. At a date lost to history, but believed to be around 1860 - hunters trap what they believe is a monster in their bear pit. Th…
The Bagradas Dragon [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 13:51
This week we travel to the Bagradas River, Tunisia in 256 BC. Rome are in the midst of the Punic wars against Carthage, and are in the process of launching an all out invasion on the Carthaginians. As 14,000 Legionnaires…
Hereward the Wake: The Conqueror [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 33:32
This week we return to medieval England for part two of our two parter. We finally get to Hereward, but first let’s talk a little about William the Conqueror and the final years of Edward the Confessor’s reign. Welcome t…
Hereward the Wake: The Confessor [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 24:22
This week we go back to medieval, Anglo Saxon England for a two parter. I’ve got a Tale to tell of an outlaw, a resourceful Wolf’s-head who leads a guerrilla war against a cruel, unjust King - a man some might say robbed…
What Happened to Richard Cox? [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 23:51
This week Tales goes true crime - as we travel West Point Military Academy, January 1950. Cadet Richard Colvin Cox receives a mysterious visitor identified only as ‘George.’ A week later, Richard would disappear without…
The Poe Toaster [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 17:17
This week, we travel to Baltimore’s Gunner’s Hall - the date October 3rd 1849. A disheveled man is found outside the bar “…in great distress and… in need of immediate assistance.” It turns out the man is none other than…
The Mysterious Mister ZedZed [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 32:00
This week on Tales we return to Infernal Machines and a shadowy merchant of death who sold them - a man who built a great fortune on the death and suffering of millions. What can we actually say on the life of the myster…
Animals [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 25:14
This week on Tales of History and Imagination, we travel from The White House to Coney Island’s Luna Park, from the jungles of Cameroon, to the Bosphorus Strait in the age of Justinian… to the battlefields of World War O…
The Namamugi Incident [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 11:59
In June Tales of History and Imagination is on holiday… Well, technically I’m writing new scripts for the second half of the year. In the meantime I’ve recorded a couple of minisodes, the second on Charles Lennox Richard…
Frau Troffea’s Dance With The Devil [not-audio_url] [/not-audio_url]

Duration: 7:51
In June Tales of History and Imagination is on holiday… Well, technically I’m writing new scripts for the second half of the year. In the meantime I’ve recorded a couple of minisodes, starting with the Tale of Frau Troff…