BBC History Magazine

BBC History Magazine aims to shed new light on the past to help you make more sense of the world today. Fascinating stories from contributors are the leading experts in their fields, so whether they're exploring Ancient Egypt, Tudor England or the Second World War, you'll be reading the latest, most thought-provoking historical research. BBC History Magazine brings history to life with informative, lively and entertaining features written by the world's leading historians and journalists and is a captivating read for anyone who's interested in the past.

WELCOME JANUARY 2024

THREE THINGS I'VE LEARNED THIS MONTH

THIS ISSUE'S CONTRIBUTORS

ANNIVERSARIES • DANNY BIRD highlights events that took place in January in history

The ex factor • David Cameron’s recent appointment as foreign secretary raised eyebrows among politicians and public alike. But, as RICHARD TOYE explains, he’s far from the first former prime minister to enjoy a post-number-10 cabinet career

Behind palace doors • As the final season of the hit Netflix series The Crown reaches our screens, the show’s head of research, ANNIE SULZBERGER, speaks to Elinor Evans about the importance and process of interrogating power

MICHAEL WOOD ON… • NEW DISCOVERIES FROM ANGLO-SAXON SUFFOLK

HIDDEN HISTORIES • KAVITA PURI on how historical conflicts haunt the wars of today

LETTERS

BBC History Magazine

Shakespeare: playing with the past • To mark the 400th anniversary of the publication of the First Folio compiling Shakespeare’s dramas, we spoke to eight experts about what his plays reveal about themes including love, death, power and money

Labour's leap to power • A century ago, Ramsay MacDonald entered 10 Downing Street as Britain’s first Labour prime minister. His rapid rise stunned his rivals. Yet it wasn’t long, writes Richard Toye, before they were preparing their revenge

TIMELINE Labour's turbulent early decades

How Asterix conquered the world • Eran Almagor reveals how the indomitable Gaul became a comic strip sensation – and transformed perceptions of ancient history in the process

Gaul Britannia! • Eran Almagor salutes the English version of Asterix which, after a troubled start, grew into a witty, pun-filled triumph

THE NEW RADICALS • The Bloomsbury Group transformed British culture in the early 20th century – and its impact is still felt across the world today. The secret to its success, writes Frances Spalding, lay in the strong bonds between its members

INTELLECTUAL ARISTOCRATS • Five leading lights of the Bloomsbury Group

Q&A • A selection of historical conundrums answered by experts

DID YOU KNOW…?

Nicholas Winton The British Schindler • In 1939, as the Nazis closed in on Czechoslovakia, hundreds of Jewish children were transported to safety in Britain. EDWARD ABEL SMITH tells the story of a young British man at the heart of these rescue efforts

"I loved her so much that I wanted her to die loving me" • Rosalind Crone, historical consultant on the BBC series Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley, reveals what six murder cases tell us about women’s lives in the 19th century

"It was clear we had to consider the possibility that the princes survived" • PHILIPPA LANGLEY speaks to Rebecca Franks about new discoveries made during her investigation into one of history’s most enduring mysteries – the fate of the princes in the Tower

Enabling atrocities • CHRISTINE SCHMIDT is impressed by a study examining the extent to which the actions (and inactions) of German people enabled the Nazis’ murderous campaign

David Musgrove on a spectacular detailed reproduction of the Bayeux Tapestry

Imperial plight • PETER HEATHER is...