Jun 11, 2022
When you’ve been up to no good, and you get caught out, you have two options. Nero, like Ray, is a Number 2 kind of guy. In this episode, he goes after two significant Stoics, Thrasea Paetus and Barea Soranus, with trumped up charges. And we farewell one of our fans...
May 24, 2022
A family commits suicide together to escape Nero’s prosecution, while others just get stabbed to death. But Tacitus’ explanations for Nero’s behaviour still leave us scratching our heads. If you're seeing this message, it means you aren't logged in as a subscriber....
May 14, 2022
Nero launches a series of attacks that result in the demise of certain members of the Roman elite. But why these particular people? And why now? We tease apart Tacitus to try to work out what’s really going on. If you're seeing this message, it means you aren't logged...
Apr 28, 2022
This is the second and final part of our interview with philosopher Michael Tremblay, talking about Seneca and stoicism. Check out the Stoa Meditation app that Michael has been working on. If you're seeing this message, it means you aren't logged in as a subscriber....
Apr 16, 2022
With the recent demise on our show of Nero’s favourite Stoic, Seneca, we wanted to go balls deep on Stoicism. To help us out, our guest Michael Tremblay, who has a PhD in philosophy, where he studied Stoic ethics and education, came on and talk to us about the...
Mar 31, 2022
In the year 66, Nero gets taken on a wild goose chase, performs some lovely poetry and harp concerts… oh yeah, and he kicks his wife to death. If you're seeing this message, it means you aren't logged in as a subscriber. If want to listen to the premium episodes of...
Mar 19, 2022
This episode is brought to you by – legal weed!The Pisonian Conspiracy is over. Rewards are handed out to those who remained loyal. The Senate wants to make Nero a living god. If you're seeing this message, it means you aren't logged in as a subscriber. If want...
Mar 2, 2022
Next on the chopping block is Seneca, Nero’s old tutor and adviser and leading Stoic. Historians seem to think he wasn’t directly involved in the conspiracy – but he probably knew about it. If you're seeing this message, it means you aren't logged in as a...
Feb 19, 2022
Nero hunts down the main conspirators. Some of them are captured, while others help execute their own colleagues without betraying their allegiance to the cause. Piso is urged to mount the rostra in the Forum and make a case to the people, but decides to take the easy...
Feb 8, 2022
The plot against Nero continues to gather momentum but is finally betrayed by a freedman, a day before shit was about to go down. If you're seeing this message, it means you aren't logged in as a subscriber. If want to listen to the premium episodes of the series -...
Jan 23, 2022
When one of the praetorian prefects joins the conspirators, they decide it’s time to act. But they can’t agree on a plan. It takes a woman to move things along. If you're seeing this message, it means you aren't logged in as a subscriber. If want to listen...
Jan 6, 2022
We’re talking about the Pisonian Conspiracy of 65. Who started it and why? Theories involve an angry poet and an angry gay man seeking revenge. If you're seeing this message, it means you aren't logged in as a subscriber. If want to listen to the premium episodes of...
Dec 25, 2021
Picking up after the Great Fire of Rome in the year 64 CE, we find Nero taxing everyone heavily to pay for the rebuilding of Rome and his palace. This, as well as the rumours that he started the fire, leads to the Pisonian Conspiracy. If you're seeing this message, it...
Nov 29, 2021
If there’s one thing most people know about the Emperor Nero, it’s that he fiddled while Rome burned and that he falsely blamed the Christians. But how much of those stories are true? To find out, I’m joined today by Stephen Dando-Collins, author of “The Great Fire Of...
Nov 18, 2021
Friend of the show, Lindsay Powell, has a new work of investigative history, “Bar Kokhba, The Jew Who Defied Hadrian and Challenged the Might of Rome”. Like Lindsay’s other books on Agrippa, Augustus, Drusus the Elder and Germanicus, this new book peels away the...
Nov 17, 2021
We’re jumping out of our Nero timeline this week to talk to Stephen Dando-Collins about his new book, “Constantine At The Bridge – How the battle of the Milvian Bridge Created Christian Rome”, which examines the background of the events that lead to the famous...
Nov 11, 2021
When Nero talks about going to Greece, to take his one-man theatre show on the road, the Romans complain. They don’t want him to leave! So he decided to show them how much he loves them – by throwing the craziest party ever seen in Rome. And that’s really saying...
Oct 28, 2021
Paetus’ war with the Parthians gets off to a great start, but quickly becomes a disaster for the Romans. Corbulo eventually needs to ride in and save his sorry ass and negotiate a new peace deal with Parthia. Meanwhile back in Rome, there’s no grain and Thrasea is out...
Oct 15, 2021
We often get asked “Who the hell are Barry & Stan?” And, of course, that is the question that people have been asking for thousands of years… the names Barry and Stan turn up in hieroglyphs in Egyptian temples, in the mystery cults of Ancient...
Sep 25, 2021
Nero has some freedmen executed but the stories are murky. The Parthians decide to try their luck taking back Armenia while Corbulo tries to keep the peace. And Nero gets jerked off by his freedman, Doryphorus. If you're seeing this message, it means you aren't logged...
