History's Greatest Idiots
by History's Greatest Idiots
A weekly comedy history podcast covering the socio-political disasters, bad decisions, and failures that shaped the modern world. Every week, Lev asks the question nobody in the history books thought to ask: how did things get this bad, and who let it happen? From the housing crisis and the decline in living standards over the last decade, to the history of outrage and why politicians never know when to leave, this is history told with the bluntness it deserves.New episodes every week.
Episodes
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The Louvre Heist and the French Riots: A Brief History of Ignored Warnings (Season 8 Episode 1)
A year ago, thieves used a furniture lift to climb into the Louvre and left with €88 million of French crown jewels. The camera covering the gallery was reportedly pointing the wrong way, and the surveillance password was, at one point, reportedly “Louvre”. The heist is where this episode starts,...
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A Brief History Of Utopias (Season 7 Finale, Episode 25)
Utopia was written as a joke. Bishops, billionaires and Henry Ford tried to build it anyway. Here’s how that went. In the Season 7 finale of History’s Greatest Idiots, we trace 500 years of people trying to build paradise. Thomas More’s Utopia was a joke about an island on a river with no water…
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Why Are Billionaires So Out Of Touch? (Season 7 Episode 24)
Peter Thiel thinks evil is underrated, Elon Musk thinks empathy is a weakness, and Zuckerberg wants to sell you friends. Why are billionaires so out of touch? In this episode of History’s Greatest Idiots, we dig into the strangest things the world’s richest people have said lately, from Thiel’s...
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Real Mad Scientists From History (Season 7 Episode 23)
Two mad scientists: one transplanted goat glands into prisoners, the other may have eaten a king's heart. These men discarded the rules of society in pursuit of their own insane goals. In this Greatest Hits episode of History's Greatest Idiots, we revisit two of the strangest careers in the…
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A Brief History of the End of the World (Season 7 Episode 22)
Every generation since the turn of the 20th Century has believed the world was ending due to all-out war. This one's no different. Danish intelligence says Russia could attack NATO within months. Drones keep turning up over airbases in Poland. Putin talks peace while calling Ukraine's own defense...
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The Real AI Problem Nobody's Talking About: The Three Clock Differential (Season 7 Episode 21)
While headlines about economic collapse, environmental destruction, and the end of humanity are grabbing attention around the world, a much more immediate issue is set to stop AI in its tracks. Aspects of the development of the AI industry are so misaligned that they can't possible be put right…
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A Brief History Of Strongman Politics (Season 7 Episode 20)
Every generation gets its own strongman politician. Every generation gets to watch them fail. Here's why Strongman Politics never works. From Julius Caesar and Mussolini meeting their demise in the Roman Senate and the gates of a lakeside house respectively, to Berlusconi losing power three times...
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Wales' Greatest Idiots (Season 7 Episode 19)
A dancing marquess who blew through approximately £70 million in today's money in six years, and a miner's grandson who took cash from a Harrods billionaire to ask questions in Parliament. Wales has produced some characters. This Greatest Hits special revisits Henry Paget, the 5th Marquess of...
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Andy Warhol: Art, Fame, And Tragedy (Season 7 Episode 18)
Andy Warhol said there was nothing behind the surface. The CIA, Valerie Solanas, and John Lennon all disagreed. Born in a two-room shack in Pittsburgh to Slovakian immigrants, Andy Warhol became the most famous and influential artist of the twentieth century. He invented Pop Art, redefined...
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Every Economic Bubble Ever (Almost) - Season 7 Episode 17
Every generation finds something new to bet everything on. Then they act surprised when it stops working. From Dutch tulip mania and England's South Sea Bubble to Spain's silver empire, the Amazon rubber barons, Nauru mining its entire island into a moonscape for fossilised bird poo, Iceland's...
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The Worst Presidents Ever? (Season 7 Episode 16)
A man who sleep-walked America into the Civil War, a president whose administration was so corrupt his own Attorney General went to prison, and the commander-in-chief who escalated Vietnam while privately admitting it was unwinnable. History's Greatest Idiots is taking a well-earned break, and...
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Can Social Media Be Saved? (Season 7 Episode 15)
The platforms that were supposed to connect us have spent twenty years getting progressively worse at it. Something has to give. From X (Twitter) losing half its advertising revenue since Elon Musk's takeover, to Facebook becoming irrelevant to anyone under 35, TikTok being sold to a Trump donor,...
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The People Who Built Our Dystopia (Vacation Special) - Season 7 Episode 14
A futurist who designed the car-dependent world we're all trapped in, an economist who deregulated Wall Street and helped cause the 2008 crash, and the CEO of Spotify who pays artists $0.003 per stream. Meet the people who built our dystopia. This five-hour vacation special revisits Norman Bel...
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A Brief History Of Masculinity (Season 7 Episode 13)
Alexander the Great conquered the known world. Rock Hudson was Hollywood's perfect leading man. The manosphere would have disowned both of them. From Alexander's relationship with Hephaestion and Rock Hudson's closeted double life, to the Tate brothers' arrest in Miami and the alt-right pipeline...
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A Brief History Of War As A Distraction (Season 7 Episode 12)
Leaders have been starting wars to distract from scandals since ancient Rome. The only thing that's changed is the technology. From Juvenal's bread and circuses and Napoleon III's catastrophic Franco-Prussian gamble, to the USS Maine, Thatcher and the Falklands, Clinton's "Wag the Dog" moment in...
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A Brief History of Clinging to Power (Season 7 Episode 11)
Mitch McConnell has been in hospital for three weeks. His office hasn't said why. This has happened before. Many times. From ancient Rome and Churchill's secret stroke in 1953, to Biden's very public deterioration on live television in 2024, this is the complete history of politicians who refused...
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Why Can't Anyone Find A Job? (Season 7 Episode 10)
The job market is broken. Here are all the things that broke it. From the post-Covid wage squeeze and AI replacing entry-level workers to the white collar recession nobody officially declared, LinkedIn's 11,000 applications per minute, and the applicant tracking systems quietly binning your CV...
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Heatwave Compilation Special (Season 7 Episode 9)
Due to the extreme heat the UK is currently experiencing (topping out at around 102 degrees Fahrenheit during the day, 90 degrees at night, and 95% humidity), the lack of air-conditioning, my house being built to retain heat, and my pre-existing health condition (Crohn's Disease), I have decided…
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A Brief History Of FIFA Scandals (Season 7 Episode 8)
FIFA has been corrupt since before colour television. And the World Cup is proof. From the ISL bribery scandal and Sepp Blatter's seven arrested executives to Qatar's migrant worker nightmare and Gianni Infantino's increasingly bizarre relationship with Donald Trump, this is the complete history…
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The Slow Death Of Quality (Season 7 Episode 7)
Your chocolate bar got smaller. Your streaming service started showing adverts. Your phone slowly turned itself into something worse. There's a word for this now. This episode traces the history of Enshittification, from medieval bakers shaving weight off loaves to Toblerone quietly widening the...
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A Brief History Of Lying (Season 7 Episode 6)
Trust in institutions is at a historic low. Turns out there are about sixty years of very good reasons for that. From Watergate and Thatcher decimating mining communities, through the cash for questions scandals of the 1990s, Iran-Contra, the fabricated case for the Iraq War, and a British Post...
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Every Housing Crisis Ever (Almost) (Season 7 Episode 5)
Rents in Rome were unaffordable in 164 BCE. We've had 2,000 years to fix the housing crisis. Here's why we haven't. From ancient Roman insulae and the Great Fire of London to Hoovervilles, Margaret Thatcher's Right to Buy scheme, the 2008 financial crash, and BlackRock, this is the complete…
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A Brief History Of Outrage (Season 7 Episode 4)
Your outrage is worth a fortune. Just not to you. From a 3,800-year-old complaint tablet in ancient Mesopotamia to cancel culture, Tommy Robinson and Donald Trump, this is the full history of outrage: who manufactures it, who profits from it, and who is laughing all the way to the bank. We cover...
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The Internet Is Hell (Season 7 Episode 3)
The internet was built by scientists who wanted to share research. Then surveillance capitalism, social media and Big Tech got involved, and ruined it. From Tim Berners-Lee and the World Wide Web to Cambridge Analytica, Elon Musk buying Twitter, and AI rewriting the rules all over again, this is...
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History vs The Gig Economy (Season 7 Episode 2)
Uber, Amazon, Deliveroo. Strip away the apps and the branding and you're left with a system of exploitation as old as civilisation itself. From ancient civilisations exploiting their populations and medieval serfdom to zero-hours contracts and unpaid internships, this episode traces the full...
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Why The Last 10 Years Have Sucked (Season 7 Episode 1)
Brexit. Trump. A pandemic. A housing crisis. A culture war nobody asked for. The last ten years didn't break by accident. From the celebrity deaths of 2016 to Trump's Iran brinkmanship in 2026, this episode charts exactly how a decade of austerity, algorithmic outrage, gig economy exploitation,...
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This Is Why You're Exhausted (Season 6 Episode 25)
Burned out, broke, and scrolling at midnight wondering why everything feels impossible? You're not imagining it. This episode breaks down the real reasons modern life is exhausting: the housing crisis, AI killing the job market, social media algorithms built on outrage, subscriptions bleeding…
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The Cult Of Personality (Season 6 Episode 24)
Alexander The Great called himself a god, Henry VIII airbrushed his portrait, and Nixon lost a TV debate because he was sweaty. The Cult of Personality is older and more complex than you think. This episode traces the ancient, ridiculous, and terrifyingly effective history of leader worship. We...
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Robert Byrd: The Ultimate Redemption Story (Season 6 Episode 23)
From West Virginia coalfields to the longest Senate career in American history, Robert C. Byrd went from political villain to unlikely conscience of a nation. This week we trace a 51-year journey of power, shame, redemption and one absolutely legendary anti-war speech. Complicated people make the...
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Rumi: The Poet Who Changed The World (Season 6 Episode 22)
In 1244, a theologian met a wandering dervish in Konya and vanished from public life. What emerged was poetry so universal it outlasted empires. Jalal ad-Din Rumi fled Mongols as a child, became a scholar, then transformed after meeting Shams al-Din of Tabriz. His Masnavi and Divan-e Shams became...
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Hulk Hogan's Lifetime of Lies: Metallica, Andre the Giant, and Wrestling 400 Days a Year (Season 6 Episode 21)
Hulk Hogan could slam a giant but couldn't tell the truth. From denying steroids on Arsenio Hall to claiming he auditioned for Metallica, this is wrestling's most prolific liar. Hogan lied about Andre the Giant's weight (697 lbs), wrestling 400 days yearly, Elvis being his fan (Elvis died before...
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Trad Wives: What History Actually Tells Us
The trad wife trend claims women have always stayed home and deferred to men. History disagrees, loudly. From Assyrian businesswomen on clay tablets to the woman who invented Monopoly before women could vote, this is four thousand years of evidence they'd rather you didn't find.
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The Burglar, The Fraudster, and The Prime Minister (Season 6 Episode 20)
A Watergate burglar, a congressman who faked his entire life, and the Iron Lady who divided a nation. This Greatest Hits episode of History's Greatest Idiots revisits G Gordon Liddy (Nixon's unrepentant operative who went to prison for conspiracy and burglary), George Santos (expelled from…
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Chernobyl: How a Safety Test Destroyed the Soviet Union (Season 6 Episode 19)
This week on History's Greatest Idiots (featuring Patreon member Ben Markwart), we explore the Chernobyl nuclear disaster: the catastrophic 1986 explosion that killed dozens, displaced 350,000 people, cost 700 billion dollars, and helped collapse the Soviet Union. The Safety Test That Wasn't Very...
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The Millars Episode: Redemption and Controversy in Cycling and Comics (Season 6 Episode 18)
This week on History's Greatest Idiots (Featuring Peter of In The Wheels), we explore two Scottish success stories: cyclist David Millar's fall from grace and redemption, and comic writer Mark Millar's controversial rise to Hollywood riches. Born 4th January 1977 in Malta, David Millar burst onto...
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Gallagher - Comedy's Melon Smashing Outcast (Season 6 episode 17)
This week on History's Greatest Idiots, we're trying a slightly different mini-documentary format to explore one of the most bizarre success stories in American comedy: Leo Anthony Gallagher Jr., the man who proved you could become a millionaire by hitting produce with a mallet. From Science to...
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J. Paul Getty - The Miserable Billionaire (Season 6 Episode 16)
Billions, miserliness, and a severed ear! This episode of History's Greatest Idiots (featuring The Hungry Historian) explores the extraordinary life of Jean Paul Getty, the oil tycoon who became the richest man in the world, installed a payphone in his mansion for guests, and refused to pay…
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Tech's Biggest Mistakes (Season 6 Episode 15)
Scams, spectacular failures, and billions burned! This special greatest hits episode of History's Greatest Idiots explores three tech disasters that prove innovation and incompetence make the perfect recipe for catastrophe. First up: Ruja Ignatova, the "Crypto Queen" who convinced investors…
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Special Announcement
We're sad to announce that Derek will no longer be continuing with the podcast. We've had 5 wonderful years producing this show together, and I couldn't have wished for a better friend and co-host than the person that made me laugh more than anyone I've ever known. This isn't the end of the show...
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Bunny Roger: The War Hero Who Fought in Blush and a Silk Scarf (Season 6 Episode 14)
War heroes, haute couture, and outrageous parties! This episode of History's Greatest Idiots, featuring The Fit Historian (https://www.youtube.com/@fithistorian), explores the extraordinary life of Neil Munro "Bunny" Roger, the openly gay fashion designer who became a decorated World War II hero,...
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ChatGPT and the $500 Billion House of Cards (Season 6 Episode 13)
How does a Stanford dropout convince the world he's building God, burn through billions whilst destroying the planet, get fired for lying, come back more powerful than ever, and still somehow convince investors to hand over even more money? And how is it all about to come crashing down? In this...
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History's Worst Cults (Season 6 Episode 12)
Messiahs, madness, and mass delusion! This special greatest hits episode of History's Greatest Idiots explores three cult leaders who proved that charisma and megalomania make the perfect recipe for disaster. First up: David Koresh, the guitar-playing prophet who transformed a quiet religious...
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Larry Summers: The One Scandal That Ended Everything - Part Two (Season 6 Episode 11)
After causing the 2008 financial crisis through reckless deregulation, Larry Summers got hired by Barack Obama to fix the disaster he helped create. Then in November 2025, emails revealed he'd been using Jeffrey Epstein as his wingman. Welcome to part two. Last episode covered his arrogant rise....
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Larry Summers: The Man Who Crashed the World Economy...Then Got Hired to Fix It - Part One (Season 6 Episode 10)
How did one economist cause the 2008 financial crisis, get hired to fix it, protect his corrupt mate whilst Harvard paid millions in settlements, suggest women might be genetically inferior at science, and still remain one of the most powerful figures in American economics for decades? In this...
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Y2K: The Apocalypse That Wasn't (Season 6 Episode 8)
Panic, paranoia, and spectacularly stupid predictions! This episode of History's Greatest Idiots (featuring Mandy Gardner from the History Obscura Podcast) explores Y2K, the millennium bug that convinced the entire world that civilization would collapse at midnight on January 1st, 2000, leading…
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History's Worst Monarchs (Season 6 Episode 7)
Abdications, gluttony, world wars, and child tantrums! This special greatest hits episode of History's Greatest Idiots celebrates the season with four legendary monarchs who proved that unlimited power and terrible judgment make the perfect recipe for spectacular failure. First up: King Adolf...
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Crime's Greatest Idiots (Season 6 Episode 6)
Schemes, scams, and spectacularly stupid greed! This special greatest hits episode of History's Greatest Idiots celebrates the season with four legendary criminals who proved that audacity and terrible judgment make the perfect con artist cocktail. First up: Charles Ponzi, the Italian immigrant...
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Lord Palmerston: Britain's Most Scandalous Statesman - Part Two (Season 6 Episode 5)
Welcome to Part Two! If you thought decades-long affairs were wild, wait until you hear what Palmerston did with actual power. In this episode of History's Greatest Idiots, we explore his most spectacular diplomatic overreactions: sending 14 warships to collect £150, fighting two wars over opium...
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Lord Palmerston: Britain's Most Scandalous Statesman - Part One (Season 6 Episode 4)
How did an 18-year-old aristocrat become one of Britain's longest-serving politicians, spending 20 years in the same boring job before discovering his true calling at age 46? In the latest episode of History's Greatest Idiots, featuring Emily Jackson, one third of the Trauma Agora Podcast, we...
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William Buckland: The Man Who Ate A King's Heart and Discovered Dinosaurs - Part Two (Season 6 Episode 3)
Welcome to Part Two of the William Buckland saga, featuring Laurel Rockall of the High Tales of History podcast. If you thought licking cathedral floors and revolutionizing palaeontology through fossilized poop was weird, wait until you hear about his lifelong mission to eat every animal on…
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About this show
A weekly comedy history podcast covering the socio-political disasters, bad decisions, and failures that shaped the modern world. Every week, Lev asks the question nobody in the history books thought to ask: how did things get this bad, and who let it happen? From the housing crisis and the decline in living standards over the last decade, to the history of outrage and why politicians never know when to leave, this is history told with the bluntness it deserves.New episodes every week.
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History's Greatest Idiots
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