Actress, singer, model and sex symbol Marilyn Monroe has long been associated with old school Hollywood glamour and American pop culture. But why is she worth studying historically? Join Tom and Dominic as they discuss Marilyn's relationship to the Mafia, JFK, the Korean War and her persisting relevance today. *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Tom and Dominic welcome back special guest Rana Mitter to discuss China's position during World War Two. This episode covers the Rape of Nanjing by Japanese forces, the military tactic of flooding the Yellow River, the deal between Chinese Nationalist Wang Jin Wei and Japan, and the unlikely pairing of 'Vinegar Joe' Stilwell and Chiang Kai-shek. Join The Rest Is History Club (www.restishistorypod.com) for ad-free listening to the full archive, weekly bonus episodes, live streamed shows and access to an exclusive chatroom community. *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Friend of the show Rana Mitter joins Tom and Dominic this week to discuss the role of China in the Second World War. In the first of two episodes, Rana, Tom and Dominic cover the fall of the last Emperor and the establishment of a Chinese Republic in 1912, the Opium Wars, warlords, and the Kuomintang uniting China. Plus, tune in to find out why Rana argues that the Second World War actually began in 1937... *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Why is modern society so self-obsessed? The answer may be found in a group of late 18th century German rebels, including the writer Goethe and playwright Friedrich Schiller. Andrea Wulf joins Dominic and Tom in today's episode to discuss the rebels' progressive (and often scandalous) lives and her new book, 'Magnificent Rebels: The First Romantics and the Invention of the Self'.  Join The Rest Is History Club for ad-free listening to the full archive, weekly bonus episodes, live streamed shows and access to an exclusive chatroom community. *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Does the Loch Ness Monster exist? When was the first mention of it recorded in history? And who are the people who have claimed to have seen it? Join Tom and Dominic as they discuss how a few 'sightings' of a mysterious creature took the world by storm... Join The Rest Is History Club for ad-free listening to the full archive, weekly bonus episodes, live streamed shows and access to an exclusive chatroom community. *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In February 1952, on the death of her father King George VI, the 25-year-old Elizabeth became Queen. During her long reign she was served by 15 Prime Ministers and met an extraordinary array of people. Dominic Sandbrook and Tom Holland here examine her 70 years as Queen of the United Kingdom & 14 other countries, and head of the Commonwealth. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The death of the Queen at the age of 96 brings to an end seven decades of her reign over Britain and the Commonwealth. In the first of a two-part series, Dominic Sandbrook and Tom Holland look back at the early years of Elizabeth’s life, leading up to her coronation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the final chapter of this series on the history of Portugal, Tom and Dominic explore Portugal in the 20th century, the two World Wars, the Miracle of Fatima and dictator Antonio Salazar. Join The Rest Is History Club for ad-free listening to the full archive, weekly bonus episodes, live streamed shows and access to an exclusive chatroom community. *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Earthquakes, gold rush, and Brazil. Join Tom and Dominic for the third episode in this history of Portugal series. *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the second episode of this Portugal mini-series, Tom and Dominic discuss the Portuguese setting sail for far flung reaches of the world, their relationship with Philip II of Spain, and the impact of Vasco da Gama. *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome to The Rest Is History's Portugal mini-series! In the first of four episodes on Portugal, Tom and Dominic chart the nation's early history: Romans, Visigoths, the Reconquista, alliances with England, and much, much more... This episode is kindly sponsored by Wine52 - to claim your free case of Portuguese wine, follow this link: wine52.com/history Join The Rest Is History Club for ad-free listening to the full archive, weekly bonus episodes, live streamed shows and access to an exclusive chatroom community. *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Written in stages between 1937 and 1949, The Lord of the Rings is one of the best-selling books ever written, with over 150 million copies sold. Join Tom and Dominic in the second of two episodes on the life and work of J.R.R. Tolkien, where they discuss the themes of encroaching industrialisation, the air defences of Mordor, and whether the Scouring of the Shire was an allegory for post-war Attlee Britain... Join The Rest Is History Club for ad-free listening to the full archive, weekly bonus episodes, live streamed shows and access to an exclusive chatroom community. *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

John Ronald Reuel Tolkien is one of the most prestigious authors in modern history, best known for writingThe Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. In the first of two episodes, Tom and Dominic explore Tolkien's childhood, his relationship with religion, and the impact that the rapidly changing English countryside had on the creation of Middle Earth. Join The Rest Is History Club for ad-free listening to the full archive, weekly bonus episodes, live streamed shows and access to an exclusive chatroom community. *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Grand villas on the Bay of Naples, engraving names on Egyptian singing statues, and sightseeing tours of Biblical sights in the Levant. The fourth and final episode of this series explores Roman holidays - join Tom and Dominic as they discuss the destinations and activities of the ancient holidaying world. Join The Rest Is History Club for ad-free listening to the full archive, weekly bonus episodes, live streamed shows and access to an exclusive chatroom community. *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The rise and fall of Butlin's, Benidorm and Franco, class, package holidays, bikinis, mass tourism and sunbathing. The third episode in our holiday series has it all - join Tom and Dominic as they discuss the history of modern holidays in the post First World War era. Join The Rest Is History Club for ad-free listening to the full archive, weekly bonus episodes, live streamed shows and access to an exclusive chatroom community. *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The birth of guide books, resorts, and the package holiday. In the second episode in our holidays series Tom and Dominic drill down into the story of Thomas Cook, package tours, and nightmarish German spa treatments. The third holidays episode, 'Sun, Sea and Sex', will be out on Monday, followed on Thursday by the final episode in the series, 'Roman Holidays'. Show notes: Tourists: How the British Went Abroad to Find Themselves - Lucy Lethbridge Join The Rest Is History Club for ad-free listening to the full archive, weekly bonus episodes, live streamed shows and access to an exclusive chatroom community. *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome to the first of four episodes on the history of holidays: Byron's Grand Tour; The Invention of Mass Tourism; Sun, Sea and Sex; and Roman Holidays. In the first episode, Tom and Dominic explore the adventures of Byron, Boswell and their peers contemporaries to foreign lands, where they pursued romance, sought to improve their health, and 'acquire' authentic souvenirs. Join The Rest Is History Club for ad-free listening to the full archive, weekly bonus episodes, live streamed shows and access to an exclusive chatroom community. *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Wars, disease, and legacy. In the final episode of the trilogy, Tom and Dominic discuss the Byzantine reconquest of Italy, the arrival of the Justinianic plague, and the legacy of Justinian and Theodora. Join The Rest Is History Club for ad-free listening to the full archive, weekly bonus episodes, live streamed shows and access to an exclusive chatroom community. *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Riot that destroyed a city and almost brought down an Emperor... In the second part of our trilogy, Tom and Dominic discuss the Nika riots in the early part of Justinian's reign, and how he set himself out as the defender of Christendom against the Persian Empire in the East. The third and final episode, 'Justinian & Theodora: The Secret History', will be released on Thursday. Can't wait until then? Head to restishistorypod.com to get it right now! *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In the first episode of a three part series, Tom and Dominic dive into the incredible story of Justinian and Theodora. Tune in for an incredible (and racy) introduction to the powerful Byzantine empress, the collapse of the Western half of the Roman Empire, and a deep-dive into the great city of Constantinople. Justinian and Theodora episode release schedule: Monday 8th August - THEODORA: EMPRESS OF BYZANTIUM Tuesday 9th August - JUSTINIAN: MAKING ROME GREAT AGAIN Thursday 11th August - JUSTINIAN & THEODORA: THE SECRET HISTORY Alternatively, get all episodes right now by signing up to The Rest Is History Club at restishistorypod.com *The Rest Is History Live Tour 2023*: Tom and Dominic are back on tour this autumn! See them live in London, New Zealand, and Australia! Buy your tickets here: restishistorypod.com Twitter:  @TheRestHistory @holland_tom @dcsandbrook Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices