Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society
Why did kings and queens have spectators on their wedding night? Who had the very first boob job? And did our ancestors have their unmentionables pierced?
Join historian, Kate Lister, Betwixt the Sheets as she unashamedly roots around the topics which seem to have been skipped in history class.
Everything from landmark LGBTQ+ court cases, to political scandal, to downright bizarre medieval cures for impotence. The etymology of swear words, gender bias in medicine, and satanic panic and cults – there’s nothing off limits.
She’ll be bed-hopping around different time periods; from ancient civilisations, to the middle ages, to renaissance and early modern…right up to now.
You’ll laugh, you’ll wince, and you’ll ask yourself how much has actually changed.
So join Kate Betwixt the Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society – a podcast from History Hit.
Get 50% off your first 3 months with code BETWIXT. Download the app on your smart TV or in the app store or sign up at historyhit.com/subscribe.
You can take part in our listener survey here.
Sexuality is a funny thing. It’s a social construct just as much as, say, virginity is.
We use words like heterosexuality and homosexuality because they are convenient, more than because they’re wholly accurate.
What roots do these words have in 19th century Germany? How did the word ‘straight’ come from the gay community? And what is the future of sexuality and its terms?
Joining Kate today is the fantastic Hanne Blank, author of Straight: The Surprisingly Short History of Heterosexuality.
This episode was edited by Teän Stewart-Murray. The producer was Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.
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While the age of consent has fluctuated over time, it reveals some fascinating and enlightening things about how we view sexuality in society.
Today’s guest, Laura Lammasniemi, professor at Warwick School of Law, takes us back in time to explore the many ways these laws have changed, and why they have just as much relevance now as they ever have done.
How did Medieval England interpret ideas of consent? Which Victorian scandal led to consent laws we keep in place today? And why have girls consent laws historically differed from boys?
Let’s go Betwixt the Sheets to find out.
This episode was edited by Siobhan Dale and produced by Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte Long.
Discover the past on History Hit with ad-free original podcasts and documentaries released weekly presented by world renowned historians like Kate Lister, Dan Snow, Suzannah Lipscomb, Lucy Worsley, Mary Beard and more.
Get 50% off your first 3 months with code BETWIXT. Download the app on your smart TV or in the app store or sign up at historyhit.com/subscribe.
You can take part in our listener survey here.
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