/Queens, Kings, and Dastardly Things

Queens, Kings, and Dastardly Things

Expert history with a wicked twist: Queens, Kings and Dastardly Things is the podcast that goes behind palace doors and beyond the balcony smiles, to uncover the stories that the history books have politely skipped.

Queens, Kings & Dastardly Things reveals the schemers, lovers, plotters and even the pets who’ve made the British monarchy the world’s longest-running reality show.

Hosts, Royal biographers Robert Hardman and Professor Kate Williams trace how power, passion and paranoia have shaped every crown. There are queens who ruled better than their husbands, and princes who partied harder than their people. We meet saints, sinners and those hovering somewhere in between – from the man formerly known as Prince Andrew to the less-vilified Richard III.

Sometimes we get reflective: how monarchy survives scandal, how image-making began long before Instagram, and why royal women have always been the best crisis managers in the room. Other times we’re just here for the gossip: who wore what, who slept where, and who accidentally started a war over breakfast.

Think of it as history with its crown slightly askew. If you like your royal stories with equal parts grandeur and chaos, step into the world of Queens, Kings & Dastardly Things because behind every coronation lies a cover-up, behind every portrait a scandal, and behind every great monarch… a very patient servant wondering how to get the blood out of the carpet.

New episodes out every MONDAY, wherever you get your podcasts.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

O podcaście

Queens, Kings & Dastardly Things reveals the schemers, lovers, plotters and even the pets who’ve made the British monarchy the world’s longest-running reality show.

New episodes out every MONDAY, wherever you get your podcasts.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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English

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Wars of the Roses: Rise of the Tudors (Part 2)

Dec 14, 2025·—

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The real-life Game of Thrones continues - listen now. In the second part of our deep dive into the Wars of the Roses, Robert Hardman and Professor Kate Williams pick up the story at England’s bloodiest moment: the...

Wars of the Roses: The Fighting Begins (Part 1)

Dec 7, 2025·—

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The Wars of the Roses is the real-life Game of Thrones - the conflict that inspired George R. R. Martin’s world of rival houses, contested thrones, formidable queens, and sudden, shocking reversals of fortune. But long...

The Execution of Anne Boleyn

Nov 30, 2025·—

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A queen knelt, a sword flashed, a dynasty shifted. This episode looks at how and why the execution of Henry VIII’s second wife became one of the most iconic, mesmerising moments in British history. Professor Kate dives...

Royals in Crisis: The Diana Years - Part Three

Nov 23, 2025·—

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What is Princess Diana’s legacy? In our final episode on the Princess of Wales’s life, Robert Hardman and Professor Kate Williams pick up the story at the turning point: the Royal separation that launched the most...

Royals in Crisis: The Diana Years - Part Two

Nov 17, 2025·—

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The fairytale is starting to fall apart... In the second part of our Diana deep dive, Kate Williams and Robert Hardman pick up the story just after that balcony kiss, and follow the new Princess of Wales through the...

Royals in Crisis: The Diana Years - Part One

Nov 9, 2025·—

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The first episode in our deep-dive exploration of the most influential figures in modern royal history - Diana, Princess of Wales. It begins as the greatest love story of the age: a shy nursery assistant, a lonely...

The Royal Woof!

Nov 2, 2025·—

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OMRG*, we’ve got a genuinely Royal corgi in the studio, a four-legged, waggy-tailed world exclusive on Queens, Kings & Dastardly Things. Listen Now Joining Kate and Robert is Lee, a champion pedigree Welsh corgi...

Rotten Spares: The Prince Andrews & Harrys of History - Part 2

Oct 26, 2025·—

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Are Princes Andrew and Harry the most troublesome ‘spares’ in royal history? You might think so — but buckle up, because history is littered with spares who partied harder, plotted darker and pushed the Crown to...

Rotten Spares: The Prince Andrews & Harrys of History - Part 1

Oct 19, 2025·—

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Prince Harry may have put the word spare on the map, but he and his uncle Prince Andrew are not the first royal to grumble about being second in line. In this week’s episode, Robert Hardman and Professor Kate Williams...

Churchill & The Queen

Oct 12, 2025·—

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Was Churchill her favourite PM — and who did the Queen secretly loathe? Find out in this week’s royally revealing episode of Queens, Kings & Dastardly Things! Robert Hardman is joined by royal biographer Andrew Morton...

Spies & The Crown - Part 2

Oct 5, 2025·—

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Royals in taxis, Groucho Marx glasses on ski slopes, and a Soviet mole hiding in the Queen’s drawing room — this episode has it all. Listen Now. In their second episode of Spies & The Crown, Kate Williams and Robert...

Spies & The Crown - Part 1

Sep 28, 2025·—

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From the Tudors to King Charles III, the royals have always been close to spies. Listen to find out! Today’s monarchs get discreet MI5 briefings — but back in Elizabeth I’s day, her spymaster Francis Walsingham was...

Can Royals Be Jailed?

Sep 21, 2025·—

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“Off with his head!” may be the most famous royal sentence ever passed — but what happens before the axe falls? Can kings and queens actually be locked up like the rest of us? Listen to find out! On today’s episode of...

Trump Royale

Sep 14, 2025·—

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Trump’s coming to town — welcome to the towers of Windsor Castle. Hope you like ghosts! Royal biographer Robert Hardman and Prof. Kate Williams whisk us through the protocols of a state visit, Windsor-style: Air Force...

Monstrous Royals: Bloody Mary v The Serpent Queen

Sep 10, 2025·—

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Who was the most monstrous queen — England’s Bloody Mary or France’s Serpent Queen? Listen to find out! This week on Queens, Kings, and Dastardly Things, royal historian Robert Hardman and Professor Kate Williams pit...

Monstrous Royals: King John v Richard III

Sep 3, 2025·—

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Who was the most rotten king of all — treacherous John of England or Shakespeare’s wicked Richard III? Listen to find out! This week on Queens, Kings, and Dastardly Things, royal historian Robert Hardman and Professor...

Monstrous Royals: Henry VIII v Louis XIV

Aug 27, 2025·—

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Who was history’s most monstrous monarch — Henry VIII of England or Louis XIV of France? Listen to find out! This week on Queens, Kings, and Dastardly Things, royal historian Robert Hardman and Professor Kate Williams...

Help! The Royals are Coming for Tea - Part 2

Aug 20, 2025·—

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From meat mountains to one lonely kiwi fruit — the royal appetites that shocked history. Listen Now! What’s worse than one demanding royal houseguest? A whole history of them — and in Part Two of Queens, Kings &...

Help! The Royals are Coming for Tea - Part 1

Aug 13, 2025·—

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Royal visits gone wrong: the tantrums, the takings, and the tartest tongues in history. This week, Queens, Kings & Dastardly Things throws open the palace doors to a line-up of monarchs and princes who’ve turned...

Dragons & The Royals - Part 2

Aug 6, 2025·—

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Pull up a velvet throne and grab your alchemy kit – in this episode of Queens, Kings and Dastardly Things, Robert Hardman and Professor Kate Williams swirl together Arthurian legends, royal superstition, and some...

Dragons & The Royals - Part 1

Jul 30, 2025·—

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Welcome to the only podcast where royal scandal meets fire-breathing lizards. Listen Now! In this hilarious and history-soaked episode of Queens, Kings and Dastardly Things, Daily Mail columnist Robert Hardman and...

Royal Family Blunders

Jul 23, 2025·—

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What’s the worst Royal blunder of the modern age? Listen to find out! The Royal's public image is a delicate balance; attempts to entertain or appear modern can be seriously cringe. Thumbs up for the late Queen...

Royal Blind Dates - Part 2

Jul 16, 2025·—

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Which Royal blind date ended with the burning of six witches? Listen to find out! In the second of two episodes, Royal historians Robert Hardman and Professor Kate Williams explore the often awkward and disastrous Royal...

Royal Blind Dates - Part 1

Jul 9, 2025·—

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Which aristocratic lady ‘swiped left’ when Henry VIII went looking for a new wife? Listen to find out! In the first of two episodes, Royal historians Robert Hardman and Professor Kate Williams look at the highs and lows...

The Sex Life of Queen Victoria

Jul 2, 2025·—

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Revealing the surprising sex life of Queen Victoria. Listen Now! A special edition of our podcast in collaboration with History Hit’s Betwixt the Sheets. Robert Hardman and Professor Kate Williams team up with author...