Classics & Ancient History

In this course, Professor Barbara Graziosi (Durham University) explores Homer’s Iliad. In the first module, we focus on the so-called ‘Homeric Question’, focusing on how and when the poem was composed, who composed it, as well as what it was...
5 lectures
0:42:39
Prof. Barbara Graziosi
Durham University
History

In this course, Dr Sascha Auerbach (University of Nottingham) explores the ‘high noon’ of the British Empire, beginning with the defeat of Napoleon in 1815, and closing with the end of the Second Boer War in 1902. As we move...
6 lectures
0:50:38
Dr Sascha Auerbach
Nottingham University
History
Philosophy

In this course, Dr Anna Plassart (Open University) explores the Scottish Enlightenment. In the first module, we think about the Enlightenment as a whole—why it happened when it did, its principle goals and central doctrines—before moving on in the...
6 lectures
0:51:58
Dr Anna Plassart
Open University
English Literature

In this course, Professor John Lennard explores John Ford’s 17th-century tragedy, ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore. The course begins by thinking about john Ford himself, about whom we know very little, and his literary output, before moving on to explore...
5 lectures
0:51:54
Prof. John Lennard
Independent Scholar
English Literature

In this course, Professor John Lennard explores John Webster’s masterpiece, the Duchess of Malfi. The course begins by thinking about John Webster himself, about whom we know very little, and the historical context for the play itself. After that,...
5 lectures
0:51:25
Prof. John Lennard
Independent Scholar
English Literature

In this course, Dr Ross Wilson (University of Cambridge) explores the poetry of John Keats. In the first two modules, we think of Keats in terms of first reader, then writer, thinking about his engagement with both the texts of...
6 lectures
1:01:40
Dr Ross Wilson
Cambridge University
Classics & Ancient History

In this course, Professor Edith Hall (King’s College, London) explores Sophocles’ great tragedy, Antigone. Having situated the play in its historical and geographical context, we spend some time introducing the key characters in the play—the two...
7 lectures
0:28:52
Prof. Edith Hall
King's College, London
History

In this course, Dr Tracey Sowerby (University of Oxford) explores the reign of Henry VIII, thinking in particular about the English Reformation. We begin by focusing on decision-making in the Henrician court, before looking at the reasons behind...
5 lectures
0:59:15
Dr Tracey Sowerby
Oxford University
Classics & Ancient History

In this course, Dr Ed Bispham (University of Oxford) explores Book 4 of Tacitus’ Annals. As we move through the course, we think about the position of Book 4 in the Annals as a whole, the structure of the book...
7 lectures
0:57:31
Dr Ed Bispham
Oxford University
History

In this course, Professor Beat Kümin (University of Warwick) explores the German Reformation. He begins by looking at the causes of the Reformation, before thinking about the role of Martin Luther himself, wider socio-cultural consequences, the...
5 lectures
0:50:22
Prof. Beat Kümin
Warwick University
History

In this course, Dr Mark Levene (University of Southampton) considers the Holocaust through a pan-European perspective. In particular, he argues that while Hitler and the Nazis were the primary driving force determining the fate of European Jewry,...
6 lectures
1:14:15
Dr Mark Levene
Southampton University
History
Government & Politics

In this course, Professor Adrian Smith (University of Southampton) thinks about British history in the first half of the twentieth century through six key elections—1906, 1923, 1931, 1945, 1950 and 1951. As we look at each election, we explore the...
6 lectures
0:49:00
Prof. Adrian Smith
Southampton University