The rich and varied life of John Donne, the greatest of the metaphysical poets in Elizabethan England.  Born into a persecuted Catholic family he ended up as the Dean of St Pauls.

Today in 1533 Thomas Cranmer was ordained Archbishop of Canterbury, historians mark this as the beginning of the Reformation in England.  We look at his opportunistic rise and his downfall

Thomas Coram was shocked walking into 18th Century London at the amount of abandoned children he would come across in the streets.  This is the story of how he set up his famous foundling hospital - the first incorporated charity in Britain.

They are a key part of the Christmas season in America.... but where did they come from?  How was their reputation established?  Did they popularise doughnuts? What are the challenges today

The German Dominican and Theologian Johannes Eckhart became very popular in the late 20th Century because of his Creation Spirituality. Today we look at his life and legacy.  Was he a mystic or just a medieval theologian?  Did his powerful preaching in fluence Luther?

One of the most popular Christian Apologists died recently and left multiple victims of abuse.  This caused great distress in the Evangelical Community.  Amidst all the book burning we look at his legacy and try to understand the tradition he came out of.

The story of Byzantium and the Emperor Theodosius III who was forced to retire to a monastery with his son.  Then the catastrophic 4th crusade, intended for Jerusalem which ended up in sacking Constantinople

How a Papal Interdict stopped public daily mass in England - a feat that wasn't repeated till the Coronavirus Lockdown.  How this ultimately lead to the Magna Carta, the reigning in of a tyrant, and the foundations of individual liberty in the UK and the USA

How Christian businessman William McGregor started the Football League.  A teetotaller, first he cleaned up Aston Villa and then as the game was becoming more professional, he organised regular fixtures

He has been described as the greatest American Theologian. We look at Johnathan Edwards and his role in the Christian revivals which swept across the UK and its colonies in the 18th Century. Called the Great Awakening in America or the Evangelical Revival in Britain.

Pope Pius VII lived under the shadow of Napoleon Bonaparte, which led to him being crowned with a papier-mache papal tiara. Today we look at the story.

This is the story of one of the most popular saints  in England, who was key in nation-building as the Anglo-Saxons emerged from centuries of Viking conquest

Described as the bloodiest civil war of all time, with casualties in their tens of millions.  Led by a self-proclaimed prophet who believed he was the Brother of Jesus Christ - we look at the Taiping Rebellion

Called a prince amongst preachers, Surgeon attracted huge crowds to his services in London. After a tragic stampede in a temporary church we remember today how he moved to the purpose-built Metropolitan Tabernacle

Claiming to be the largest and oldest womans charitable group we look at the founding and the work of the Mormon Relief Society

We look at the story of Henry Dunant, the founder of the Red Cross.  What inspired him?  Who signed the first Geneva Convention? What are the controversies around the Emblem used for the Red Cross?

Cardinal Manning was unusually a widow, and became very influential in Catholic Social Teaching - today we find out why.

Today we remember the journalist Morgan Stanleys success in finding the lost explorer Dr Livingstone.   And why did he become so famous after his death?

Today a college in Massachusetts was established by vote and named after its largest benefactor the Rev John Harvard, we explore his life and how the college has grown into one of the most famous universities in the world.

George Berkeley, a father of Empiricism, and Irish Bishop and endower of Yale University lived a fascinating life,  We look at his ideas and his legacy in this podcast.