History's Greatest Conspiracy Theories
Was the moon landing faked? Did Shakespeare actually pen his works? And were the pyramids really built by aliens? In History's Greatest Conspiracies, Rob Attar takes a deep dive into the theories in the company of expert historians to uncover if there's any truth behind the murky myths. The podcast is produced by the team behind History Extra, offering more fascinating stories from the past. Listeners can also find other feeds including History’s Greatest Cities and HistoryExtra LongReads.
Episodes
Did 300 years of history never happen at all?
The period after the fall of the western Roman empire is often known as the ‘Dark Ages’, due to an apparent shortage of historical evidence. Why might this be? Well, according to proponents of the Phantom Time Hypothesis, the explanation is simple: these centuries never happened at all.
In this episode of History’s Greatest Conspiracy Theories, Dr Philipp Nothaft from the University of Oxford
Was Paul McCartney replaced by an imposter?
With 24 number one albums in the UK charts, Paul McCartney is the most successful British artist of all time. But what if the man that we know as Paul McCartney is in fact somebody else altogether? Could it be that the former Beatle was replaced by an imposter in the 1960s who's been living a lie ever since?
In this episode of History’s Greatest Conspiracy Theories, Steven Cockcroft – co-host o
Do Jesus’s descendants live among us?
In the early 2000s, The Da Vinci Code was everywhere. Dan Brown’s novel – and its subsequent film adaptation – popularised the idea that Jesus Christ fathered children whose descendants have lived among us for millennia. The Da Vinci Code is a work of fiction, but could the theory underpinning it be true?
In this episode of History’s Greatest Conspiracy Theories, Professor Helen Bond, an expert
Was Jack the Ripper Queen Victoria’s grandson?
As recent years attest, royal scandals have a habit of coming to light. But what if the mother of all royal scandals is still waiting to be revealed? Could it be that an heir to the British throne, Prince Albert Victor, lived a double life as a serial killer?
In this first episode of a new season of History’s Greatest Conspiracy Theories, crime historian Dr Drew Gray joins Rob Attar to explore
Season 3 | Trailer
Was Jack the Ripper a member of the royal family? Did Jesus have secret children? And did a lost civilisation build the Great Sphinx of Giza?
In Season 3 of History's Greatest Conspiracy Theories, Rob Attar is joined by expert historians to explore how these theories came about - and whether any of them might actually be true.
History’s Greatest Conspiracy Theories is produced by the team b
Did NASA fake the moon landing?
On 20 July 1969, American astronaut Neil Armstrong famously took one giant leap for mankind. The moon landing may well be the most iconic moment of the 20th century, but did it even happen at all? Might NASA and the US government have been so desperate to overtake the Soviets in the space race that they faked the entire thing?
In the final episode of season 2 of History’s Greatest Conspiracy T
Legends of the Knights Templar
In the early 14th century, the Knights Templar were suppressed, and the 200-year history of this military religious order came to an abrupt end. Or did it? What if some of the Templars escaped persecution, and continued to operate secretly until the present, holding on to precious religious relics and maybe even discovering America?
In this episode of History’s Greatest Conspiracy Theories, Rob
The Protocols of the Elders of Zion
First published in Russia in 1903, The Protocols of the Elders of Zion purported to demonstrate evidence of a global Jewish conspiracy. Though it has repeatedly been proven to be a forgery, the text has helped fuel antisemitism across the world, from Henry Ford in America, to Nazi Germany and anti-Jewish hatred today.
In this episode of History’s Greatest Conspiracy Theories, Rob Attar speaks t
Was Elizabeth I a man?
In her most famous speech, delivered on 9 August 1588, Queen Elizabeth I declared that she had the "heart and stomach of a king". Was that just rhetoric? Or could England’s iconic Tudor queen actually have been a man masquerading as a woman?
In this episode of History’s Greatest Conspiracy Theories, Tudor historian Tracy Borman speaks to Rob Attar about the bizarre 'Bisley Boy' conspiracy theo
Was Pearl Harbor an inside job?
On 7 December 1941, Japan attacked the US naval base at Pearl Harbor. It’s one of the most notorious surprise attacks in history, but how much of a surprise actually was it? Did President Franklin Roosevelt know that the attack was coming and even encourage it as a means of propelling the US into World War Two?
In the first episode of season 2 of History’s Greatest Conspiracy Theories, the Pul
Season 2 | Trailer
Did NASA fake the moon landing? Did the Knights Templar discover America? And was Elizabeth I really a man in disguise? In Season 2 of History's Greatest Conspiracy Theories, Rob Attar is joined by expert historians to explore how these theories came about and whether any of them might actually be true.
History’s Greatest Conspiracy Theories is produced by the team behind BBC History Magazine.
The JFK assassination: Oswald’s second murder
In light of the recent announcement that President Trump has ordered the release of classified files surrounding JFK’s assassination, we’re bringing you three episodes delving into the case. In this third episode, recorded in April 2024, Rob Attar puts more listeners’ questions about the assassination to author and journalist Gerald Posner. Who did Lyndon Johnson think was behind the murder? Why d
The JFK assassination: 95% certain?
In light of the recent announcement that President Trump has ordered the release of classified files surrounding JFK’s assassination, we’re bringing you three episodes delving into the case. In this second episode, recorded in April 2024, Rob Attar rejoins the investigative journalist Gerald Posner to tackle your questions about the assassination and the web of intrigue that surrounds it.
History
Who killed JFK?
On 22 November 1963, President John F Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. Lee Harvey Oswald was arrested and charged with the murder, but, over the past 60 years, millions of people have come to believe that Oswald was just a small cog in a wider plot to murder the president.
In light of the recent announcement that President Trump has ordered the release of classified files surrounding JFK’s ass
Introducing History's Greatest Scandals | New Podcast
Poisoned sweets. Criminal misdeeds. And a sex scandal involving… the prime-minister.
Listen to HistoryExtra's new podcast History’s Greatest Scandals, delving into the murky underworld of The Victorians. Ellie Cawthorne and historian Professor Rosalind Crone take a journey through the backstreets of 19th-century Britain to explore the darker side of Victorian life. Sneaking into private parlours,
Did aliens land at Roswell?
In July 1947, some unusual debris was discovered at Roswell Army Air Field in New Mexico. Was this the remains of a crashed military balloon, or something from much, much further away? Has the US government spent the past 75 years hiding proof of alien life from us all? In our series on history’s most well-known conspiracy theories, Dr David Clarke gives Rob Attar the lowdown about the Roswell Inc
The lost civilisation of Atlantis
In the fifth episode of our series on history’s most well-known conspiracy theories, we investigate the idea that a highly advanced civilisation existed many thousands of years ago, before being wiped out by a calamitous event. Rob Attar speaks to archaeologist Flint Dibble about the ancient Greek origins of the Atlantis legend and how it has been reimagined in more recent times, including in the
Who wrote Shakespeare’s plays?
Many people don’t believe that William Shakespeare was the real author of the plays attributed to him. But why? And could there be any truth behind the idea? In episode four of our new series on history’s most well-known conspiracy theories, Shakespeare expert Dr Paul Edmondson speaks to Rob Attar about the alternative candidates that have been put forward and considers whether this is a legitimat
Did Anastasia escape her family’s murder?
In the third episode of our series on some of history’s most well-known conspiracy theories, we examine the suggestion that one of Tsar Nicholas II’s daughters – Anastasia – survived the family’s murder by the Bolsheviks in 1918. Speaking with Rob Attar, historian Helen Rappaport explains why people believe that Anastasia escaped and what recent scientific and archaeological research has revealed
Did aliens build the pyramids?
Could Ancient Egypt’s most iconic monuments have been built with extraterrestrial assistance? In the second episode of our series on some of history’s most well-known conspiracy theories, we delve into the idea that aliens helped built the pyramids. In conversation with Rob Attar, Egyptologist Joyce Tyldesley explores the origins of the theory and explains what we know about how the pyramids reall
Hitler’s escape to South America
Did Adolf Hitler really make it out of the bunker alive at the end of the Second World War? In the first episode of our series on some of history’s most well-known conspiracy theories, we explore the idea that Hitler outlasted the downfall of the Third Reich in 1945 and began a new life overseas in South America. In conversation with Rob Attar, historian Professor Richard J Evans explains the orig
Introducing History's Greatest Conspiracy Theories
Was the moon landing faked? Did Shakespeare actually pen his works? And were the pyramids really built by aliens? In History's Greatest Conspiracies, Rob Attar takes a deep dive into the theories in the company of expert historians to uncover if there's any truth behind the murky myths.
Series 1 begins Tuesday 29th October 2024 with new episodes weekly. Subscribe to History Extra Plus on Apple Po
