About this podcast
A fact based comedy podcast. Each week Melbourne comedians Matt Stewart, Jess Perkins and Dave Warneke take it in turns to research a topic and report back to the class. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Episodes
The newest 50 of 605 episodes
- 577 - World War II (Part Two) · 2 h 55 minOur second and final episode on World War II, covering December 1941 through to the end of the war in September 1945. This is a comedy/history podcast, the report begins at…
- 576 - World War II (Part One) · 2 h 30 minAs a part of Blocktober 2026, we look at what is arguably the biggest event in human history... World War Two. Part One covers to the lead up to the war through to the attack on…
- 575 - The Golden Age of Porn · 2 h 52 minFor a fifteen year period from the late 1960s and into the 80s adult films went mainstream! From Deep Throat to Debbie Does Dallas, this is the story of the Golden Age of Porn!…
- 574 - The OceanGate Titan Disaster · 2 h 24 minThis week we hear the story behind OceanGate, and their submersible vessel, Titan. In 2023, Titan embarked on a journey to the wreckage of the Titanic, and never returned. This…
- 573 - The Black Death · 2 h 2 minThe Black Death or The Plague, was a devastating global plague pandemic that swept across Europe, Asia and North Africa from 1346 to 1353 killing a large percentage of Earth's…
- 572 - Terry Pratchett and his Discworld · 3 h 14 minTerry Pratchett is one of the world's most beloved authors - writing humorous fantasy and science fiction including his Discworld series - but his life is just as fascinating…
- 571 - The Radium Girls · 2 h 6 minThe Radium Girls were female factory workers who suffered severe radiation poisoning in the 1910s and 1920s after painting watch dials with self-luminous paint. Their plight led…
- 570 - The 'Pappygate' Bourbon Heist · 1 h 56 minPappy Van Winkle is some of the most expensive Bourbon in the world, and in 2013 hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of the liquor went missing from the distillery. This week…
- 569 - The Wild Life of Klondike Joe · 1 h 45 minOn this week's episode we hear the story of Joseph Boyle aka Klondike Joe, a Canadian man whose life has so many different chapters your head will spin! We're halfway through…
- 568 - Operation Chariot, The Greatest Raid of All (with Nick Mason) · 2 h 44 minOperation Chariot is frankly the most unhinged and daring military operation I have ever read about. In World War II, the Brits were so worried about the Nazi's super battleship…
- 567 - Homer, the Iliad and the Odyssey (with Greg Jenner) · 2 h 52 minThis week we are joined by public historian Greg Jenner to hear the epic tale of Homer, the Iliad and the Odyssey! This is a comedy/history podcast, the report begins at…
- 566 - Canadians Burn Down The White House (The War of 1812) · 2 h 37 minThis week our Canadian-Australian friend Alasdair Tremblay-Birchall tells us all about the War of 1812, fought between the United States and the United Kingdom. This story…
- 565 - Prince Alfred's Cursed Australian Visit · 2 h 12 minQueen Victoria's son, Prince Alfred, was the first member of the British Royal Family to visit Australia. Let's just say, the Aussie's didn't exactly make a great first…
- 564 - Tycho Brahe: Danish Astronomy Kook · 2 h 29 minToday we are talking about Tycho Brahe, a brilliant 16th century Danish astronomer - but also a bit of a kook. We are joined by Claire Hooper who is heading to Edinburgh this…
- 563 - The Afronauts, Zambia's Space Program · 1 h 40 minIn October 1964, as the Southern African country of Zambia was celebrating independence, an exciting and somewhat surprising announcement was made... Edward Mukuka Nkoloso was…
- 562 - The Most Expensive Gay Porno Ever Made · 2 h 30 minIn 1980 a chance meeting between a talented young film maker and a millionaire philanthropist led to the making of 'Centurians of Rome', the most expensive gay porn film of all…
- 561 - John Titor: Time Traveller · 1 h 38 minIn 1998, a radio DJ received an anonymous fax from a person claiming to be... from the future!! This is a comedy/history podcast, the report begins at approximately 06:38…
- 560 - The Munich Air Disaster (and the Manchester United Busby Babes) · 2 h 46 minIn 1958, Manchester United were one of the best football teams on the planet. Managed by Matt Busby and nicknamed 'The Busby Babes' because of the team's youth, in February 1958…
- 559 - The Transit of Venus part 2: Back in the Orbit · 2 h 22 minFollowing on from last week's episode, we hear of more adventures undertaken by scientists in the 1760's in the effort to track the transit of Venus! Intrepid astronomers this…
- 558 - The Transit of Venus part 1 · 2 h 27 minHow far away is the sun? English astronomer Edmond Halley suggested that tracking the transit of Venus across the sun would be the key to finding the answer. This set in motion a…
- 557 - The Disney Renaissance · 2 h 10 minIn the 1980s, Disney Animation was at a critical and cultural low point. This week our editor (and friend) AJ is here to tell us how they turned it all around with The Disney…
- 556 - Joe Carstairs; The Fastest Woman on Water · 2 h 2 minThis week, we hear the story of a wealthy, eccentric woman who raced speedboats, had affairs with Hollywood's hottest actresses, bought a private island, and had a doll best…
- 555 - The Terracotta Army of Qin Shi Huang · 3 h 8 minYou have probably heard of China's famous Terracotta Army, but do you know the story of the man behind them? This week's episode delves into the epic story of the man who unified…
- 554 - Five Hundred Days In A Cave · 1 h 25 minThis week we look at the weird history of competitive cave sitting (people seeing how long they can stay in a cave without contact with the outside world), culminating with…
- 553 - The Ireland Shakespeare Forgery · 2 h 1 minBack in the 1790's, Samuel Ireland's son, William Henry, came to him with an exciting discovery - he had found a document belonging to the one and only William Shakespeare! But…
- 552 - Chang and Eng, the original "Siamese twins" · 2 h 6 minConjoined twins Chang and Eng Bunker were world famous in the 19th Century, so much so that for a long period other conjoined siblings were commonly referred to as "Siamese…
- 551 - Nasubi; Japan's real life 'Truman Show' · 1 h 40 minIn the late 90's, an aspiring Japanese comedian auditioned for a new reality TV show. What he didn't know, was that the TV show would change his life forever. And not in a good…
- 550 - NYE '79: Anarchy at the Sydney Opera House · 1 h 20 minThe 1979 New Year's Eve concert at the Sydney Opera House featured the legendary Aussie rock band The Angels, with an estimated 100,000 attendees, unfortunately due to poor…
- 549 - The Great 'Oil Sniffer' Scandal · 1 h 57 minThe 1970s was rocked by two oil crises, and countries were desperate to find alternative sources of fuel. So when two eccentric inventors stepped forward with a machine that…
- 548 - Pirate Anne Bonny of the Caribbean · 1 h 25 minAnne Bonny was one of the few women recorded as active participants of the golden age of piracy, her story is one wild ride, strap in! This is a comedy/history podcast, the…
- 547 - The Life of Shirley Temple · 2 h 3 minShe was the most famous child star ever, but what do you know about Shirley Temple's life AFTER acting? This is a comedy/history podcast, the report begins at approximately…
- 546 - The Dunnes Store Strike, "The Most Dangerous Supermarket Workers In The World" · 1 h 51 minThose suffering under Apartheid in South Africa found a group of unlikely allies in 1984, when a group of young retail workers in Ireland went on strike after refusing to handle…
- 545 - The Farcical Voyage of Russia's Baltic Fleet · 1 h 50 minThe Japanese-Russo War began on the 8th of February 1904, needing something big to tip things in their favour, Russia sent their Baltic Fleet on an epic journey around the world…
- We're touring Canada - On sale now! · 24 minIf you haven't heard, we're touring Canada in September! Four shows in Vancouver, Calgary, Montreal and Toronto (details below). To celebrate the launch of the tour and get…
- 544 - Aimo Koivunen; The Finnish Meth Soldier · 1 h 28 minAimo Koivunen was a Finnish soldier in the Continuation War, and the first documented case of a soldier accidentally overdosing on methamphetamine and taking off on a wild…
- 543 - Stephen King · 2 h 28 minStephen King is one of the best selling authors in history and over 100 of his stories have been adapted for the screen. It, Carrie, Cujo, The Green Mile, Pet Sematary, The…
- 542 - The Attempted Murder of Susan Kuhnhausen · 1 h 22 minOn the 6th of September, 2006, 51-year-old Susan Kuhnhausen returned to her Portland home to find an intruder wielding a hammer, this is her remarkable story. This is a…
- 541 - The Freedom House Ambulance Service · 1 h 43 minThis week we hear the incredible story of some of the earliest paramedics, and the battle they faced in order to just do their jobs. This is a comedy/history podcast, the report…
- 540 - The Ni'ihau Incident · 2 h 12 minAfter Japan's 1941 attack on Pearl Harbour, Japanese Pilot Shigenori Nishikaichi needed a place to conduct an emergency landing. He had been told that the nearby Hawaiian island…
- 539 - The Piddler on the Roof (and Other Tales of Criminal Mischief) · 1 h 32 minIn this episode we hear about some of the silliest criminals of recent times, including the man known as the 'piddler on the roof'! Recorded live at the Fringe Bar in Wellington…
- 538 - The Batavia Shipwreck · 2 h 2 minThis week we hear the wild story of the Batavia - it's a story of a shipwreck, murder, mutiny and madness. This is a comedy/history podcast, the report begins at approximately…
- 537 - Magic Alex, The Beatles' Electric Guru · 1 h 13 minIn the mid 1960s, Alexis Mardas met John Lennon from The Beatles, and the self-professed inventor made an immediate impression. With outlandish ideas like an artificial Sun…
- 536 - FedEx Flight 705 · 1 h 34 minOn the 7th of April 1994, at just after 3pm, FedEx Flight 705 departed Memphis, Tennessee for a flight to San Jose, California. What followed was one of the most harrowing and…
- 535 - The Hopkinsville Goblins · 1 h 59 minThis week, we hear the story of a Kentucky family, who were just trying to have a nice family dinner one night in 1955, when they suddenly found themselves under attack by…
- 534 - Spain's 2000 Paralympics Scandal · 2 h 4 minAt the Sydney 2000 Paralympics, Intellectually Disabled Basketball was included for the first time. Spain easily won the gold medal, but not all was what it seemed... This is the…
- 533 - El Chupacabra · 1 h 31 minIn 1995 eight sheep were found dead in Puerto Rico... each completely drained of blood and with strange puncture wounds in their chests. This is the tale of the mysterious beast…
- 532 - Dashcon Failure · 1 h 38 minIn 2014, a group of Tumblr users decided to put on a Tumblr convention. Except they had no idea how to organise a convention ... This is a comedy/history podcast, the report…
- 531 - The eBay Stalking Scandal · 2 h 51 minThis is the frankly unbelievable story of how far eBay employees went in 2019 to deal with both a small company and a Twitter user being critical of their CEO and company…
- 530 - The War on Christmas · 1 h 32 minEvery year you will hear stories about how "they" want to cancel Christmas - so how much truth is there to it? Are ‘they’ really trying to cancel Christmas?? We go through a few…
- 529 - Operation Flagship · 1 h 53 minIn December 1985, around 160 people won tickets to a Washington Commanders game, including a free pre-game brunch and a bunch of extra prizes! The catch? None of those "winners"…
