Shows / The Partial Historians
The Partial Historians
Dr Fiona Radford is an expert on Rome on film and wrote her thesis on Kubrick’s Spartacus. Dr Radford is exponent of not only Ancient History, but also Reception Studies. Dr Peta Greenfield is an expert on the Vestal Virgins. Dr Greenfield’s research interests include: religion and politics in Rome, the late republic and Augustan period, and the role of women.
Episodes
The Partial HistoriansSpecial Episode – Disruption with David Potter
Disruption is at the heart of great changes in human society. How might we understand disruption? How can we recognise it? And just what historical precedents…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 117 – The Death of the Decemvirate
We have been trapped under the tyrannical rule of the Second Decemvirate for too long! But never fear, listeners. Their day has finally come. In this episode…
The Partial HistoriansSpecial Episode – Pompeii with Professor Ray Laurence
We sit down to talk to the fabulous Professor Ray Laurence from Macquarie University in this special episode about urban space in Pompeii and the place of…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 116 – The Second Secession
CW: The accounts of Verginia include paedophilic desire and violence against women. The Second Secession is a contested moment in Roman’s early…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 115 – The Anatomy of a Murder
CW: The accounts of Virginia include paedophilic desire and violence against women. Virginia has been murdered by her own father in the Forum in an attempt to…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 114 – The Tale of Verginia
CW: The accounts of Verginia include paedophilic desire, violence against women The story of Verginia is an achingly tragic tale central to understanding the…
The Partial HistoriansSpecial Episode – The Archaeology of Early Rome with Darius Arya
In this very special episode we’re joined by archaeologist Darius Arya. Darius has lived and worked as an archaeologist in Rome for over twenty years!…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 113 – Farewell to the Roman Achilles
We are deep in the Second Decemvirate (c. 449-447 BCE) and Rome faces war on two fronts. The complications of this new political arrangement and the increasing…
The Partial HistoriansSpecial Episode – Murder in Ancient Rome
One of the funniest pieces of theatre set in Ancient Rome has to be A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1962). Now there is a book about murder in…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 112 – The Disastrous Decemvirs
We pick up the action straight from the dramatic senate meeting from the previous episode in which was marked by conflict: Lucius Valerius Potitus and Marcus…
The Partial HistoriansSpecial Episode – Disability in Ancient Greece
There are many groups that are often overlooked in both ancient and modern societies. One of those are people with disabilities, and we were fortunate to talk…
The Partial HistoriansThe Partial Recap – the 450s BCE
It’s our second episode in The Partial Recap series. This is a short, sharp, scripted overview of all the big events that defined the 450s BCE. If…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 111 – Decemvirs in the Senate
The Second Decemvirate is hotting up and it’s not surprising to learn that Appius Claudius is somehow at the centre of things. We trace Rome through a…
The Partial HistoriansSpecial Episode – The Reception of Cleopatra
Cleopatra looms large in the imagination, but her legacy is often overshadowed by the western cultural tradition. It turns out that there are many ways to…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 110 – The Mask Comes Off
The First Decemvirate was a big success, so much so that Rome opts for a Second Decemvirate! The decemvirs were popular figures in Rome and during 451 BCE they…
The Partial HistoriansSpecial Episode – The Twelve Tables
The Twelve Tables are a landmark moment of early Republican Roman history. The lex duodecim tabularum see the codification of Rome’s laws! The name…
- The Partial Historians
The Partial Recap – the 460s BCE
The history of Rome is complex, even in the early Republic. Sometimes it’s hard to keep all the details straight so we thought it might be a good time to…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 109 – The First Decemvirate
The Roman republic is in full swing and it’s time for the first decemvirate! The growing discontent amongst the population is reaching breaking point…
The Partial HistoriansSpecial Episode – The Year of the Four Emperors with Dr Rob Cromarty
We are thrilled to be joined by Dr Rob Cromarty, better known as Doc Crom, for this special episode on the Year of the Four Emperors. Doc Crom, is a teacher…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 108 – Plague and Politics
It’s 453 BCE and just as Rome seems to be heading towards a legal milestone disaster strikes: it’s a plague! Now plagues are terrible, of that…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 107 – Let the Codification Begin!
We jump into 454 BCE where we start to see the consequences of the events of the previous year play out. It’s hard to get away from our “Roman…
The Partial HistoriansSpecial Episode – Medusa with Let’s Talk About Myths Baby
Medusa fills the imagination with a very particular kind of fascination. Pity for her situation and dread of what she is capable of make her one of the most…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 106 – Spoiler Alert
We continue to follow the cause of our Roman Achilles–more formally known as Lucius Siccius Dentatus–in 455 BCE. Dentatus is truly the star of the…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 105 – The Roman Achilles
There’s nothing quite like learning that there’s a Roman Achilles! In this episode we get to meet the man behind the legend. Episode 105 –…
The Partial HistoriansSpecial Episode – Agrippina the Younger with Dr Emma Southon
As far as incredible women in history go, it’s hard to top Agrippina the Younger. Political, ambitious, and a savvy operator are all ways we might…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 104 – Aventine, Aventine
We return to the City of Rome in 456 BCE and follow the ongoing domestic struggles that Rome faces in defining herself in terms of transparency at law. Episode…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 103 – Ten Terrific Tribunes
It’s c. 457 BCE in Rome and in this episode we explore the state of affairs in the wake of Cincinnatus’ dictatorship. Rome’s affairs with her…
The Partial HistoriansSpecial Episode – An Interview with Emeritus Professor Edwin Judge
We had the very great pleasure to sit down with Emeritus Professor Edwin Judge to discuss his latest publication The Failure of Augustus: Essays on the…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 102 – Cincinnatus, Dictator
It’s c. 458 BCE and Rome’s troubles culminate in the appointment of a dictator. In this episode we explore the context which leads to the…
The Partial HistoriansA Tribute to Kirk Douglas
Join Dr Rad as she reminiscences about one of her film favourites and pays tribute to the man that has unwittingly dominated her life for over a decade…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 101 – Talk to the Tree
It can be quite insulting to be told to ‘talk to the hand’ and, for the Romans, it would seem that being told to ‘talk to the tree’ is…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 100 – The Consulship
We’ve reached a huge milestone! One hundred episodes is quite something and we’re super chuffed to have made it this far. To celebrate we’ve…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 99 – Tusculum and Antium
It is c. 459 BCE and Rome faces the consequences of the Capitol having been seized and a consul killed in the previous year. The challenges come on two fronts…
The Partial Historians*Special Episode* What Does Your Toga Say About You?
Dr Amy Place from the University of Leicester sits down with Dr Rad to discuss the humble Roman toga, fashion and social identity, and everyday life in late…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 98 – Cincinnatus, Suffect Consul
It’s c. 460 BCE and this hectic year in Roman history continues! In this episode we consider Rome in the wake of the sneak attack on the Capitol by…
The Partial Historians*Special Episode* – The Thread of Women’s Representation
In this special episode, we’re joined by Liz Smith, who has recently completed her doctoral research of the representation of women’s dress in…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 97 – Surprising Sabines
We return to our narrative of Rome’s history of its foundation with some surprising Sabines. It’s still 460 BCE , which is an indication of just…
The Partial HistoriansAt the Movies – Once Upon a Time in Hollywood
Warning! This post and episode contain huge spoilers. Dr G and Dr Rad always enjoy a trip to the movies, as you tell from our past forays in classics like…
The Partial Historians*Special Episode* – Barbarians with Dr Rhiannon Evans
Dr Radness travelled to Melbourne recently and met with the fantastic and erudite Dr Rhiannon Evans from La Trobe. Dr Evans is one of the famous voices on the…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 96 – Letters and Rumours
The conflict between patricians and plebeians continues apace as we explore the political complexities of 460 BCE. Much like a Jane Austen novel, letters and…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 95 – Introducing Caeso Quinctius
Episode 95 – Introducing Caeso Quinctius The complex relationship between the patricians and plebeians is central to our appreciation of the 460s BCE. In…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 94 – Flesh Rains Down Upon Thee
Episode 94 – Flesh Rains Down Upon Thee We return to Rome’s narrative from the founding of City. The year c. 462 BCE ends on a high note with the…
The Partial Historians*Special Episode* – Totalus Rankium and the Partial Historians on Tiberius
We return to the fray with the most excellent Rob and Jaime to tackle Dr Radness’ favourite emperor. How will Tiberius fare against the criteria of…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 93 - Divide and Conquer
Rome emerges from the year of pestilence and moves straight on to divide and conquer. While this seems implausible, we’re still navigating the tricky…
The Partial Historians*Special Episode* Quo Vadis with the History of the Papacy Podcast
We are super excited to announce that we sat down recently with Stephen Guerra, the host of the History of the Papacy Podcast to talk all about the classic…
The Partial Historians*Special Episode* Tiberius with the Life of Caesar Podcast
We’re very excited to bring you a special episode where we sit down with Cam from The Life of Caesar podcast! We’re talking about Tiberius Caesar…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 92 - The Pestilence of 463 BCE
We’re jumping back into the narrative. The title might be a bit of a giveaway, yes yes, we’ll be talking about … pestilence! But before we…
The Partial Historians*Special Episode* Totalus Rankium and The Partial Historians on Augustus
In exciting news, we got together recently with the amazing and very hilarious gentleman of Totalus Rankium, Rob and Jaime, to discuss all things Augustus! We…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 91 – The Furious Romans
We’re back and as the title for this episode notes, you’re about to tune into the tale of some furious Romans! It is none other than Dr Rad and Dr…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 90 – Spartacus, the Ballet
We’re turning 90 and it’s time for a special episode on the reception of Spartacus! What better way to do this than to examine the history of…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 89 – A Fabian Abroad
It’s a brand new edition of the Partial Historians covering the Early Roman Republic™! And as the title ‘A Fabian Abroad’ hints, the Fabians…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 88 – Battle After Battle!
What kind of drama could follow the career of uber patrician Appius Claudius? As it turns out, those Romans are really all about battle after battle!…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 87 – The Rise and Rise of Appius Claudius
Appius Who? We are deep in the conflict between between patricians and plebeians. One of the important consequences of the current struggles seems to be an…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 86 – Volero and Laetorius
Our jaunt through the history of ancient Rome continues apace! In this episode we cover c. 472-1 BCE. Dr Radness is reading Livy and Dr G is reading Dionysius…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 85 – Murder and Volero!
When we left you at the end of the last episode, there was some major events afoot. There’s nothing like a murder in the city. This is especially the…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 84 – The Romans Are Manly Men
The early Republic of Rome is full of strife and tension. As we inch deeper into the history, there are neighbourly struggles and internal political discord on…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 83 – If Only I Had Some Grain
After the tragic demise of the Fabii gens, what happens next? The rivalry between Rome and her northern neighbour Veii continues! ‘If Only I Had Some…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 82 – Fabian Demise
We return to the history of Rome from the founding of the City and that can only mean one thing – the Fabian family are back front and centre. And, yes…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 81 – Livia Drusilla
Would any Ancient Roman podcast hosted by two women be complete without a very special episode on one of the most famous women in the City’s history…
The Partial HistoriansEpisode 80 – The Year 478 BCE
Rome and Veii Rome and Veii are central to the politics and military activity of c. 478 BCE. Rome and the Fabians have developed a whole new military tactic by…