Betwixt The Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal & Society

Kink in the Renaissance

Come with us back to Renaissance England, when writers were playing with ideas of sexuality in interesting ways. How much of a filth bag was Shakespeare? How did he play with the ideas of power dynamics for pleasure in his plays? And what were other writers doing to explore non-traditional ideas of sex, fantasy and desire? Joining Kate today are Joseph Gamble and Gillian Knoll, co-editors of the forthcoming book <a href="https://press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/distributed/K/bo238317686.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">The Kinky Renaissance</a>, which explore questions of sexual history through modern-day kink cultures.  This episode was edited by Tom Delargy. The producer was Stuart Beckwith. The senior producer was Charlotte Long. Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Get a subscription for £1 per month for 3 months with code BETWIXT sign up at <a href="https://historyhit/subscription/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">https://historyhit/subscription/</a>  You can take part in our listener survey <a href="https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/6FFT7MK" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>.

Why did kings and queens have spectators on their wedding night? Who had the very first boob job? And did our ancestors have their unmentionables pierced? Join historian, Kate Lister, Betwixt the Sheets as she unashamedly roots around the topics which seem to have been skipped in history class. Everything from landmark LGBTQ+ court cases, to political scandal, to downright bizarre medieval cures for impotence. The etymology of swear words, gender bias in medicine, and satanic panic and cults - there’s nothing off limits. She'll be bed-hopping around different time periods; from ancient civilisations, to the middle ages, to renaissance and early modern...right up to now. You’ll laugh, you’ll wince, and you’ll ask yourself how much has actually changed. So join Kate Betwixt the Sheets: The History of Sex, Scandal &amp; Society - a podcast from History Hit. Enjoy unlimited access to award-winning original documentaries that are released weekly and AD-FREE podcasts. Get a subscription for £1 per month for 3 months with code BETWIXT sign up at <a href="https://www.historyhit.com/subscribe" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">historyhit.com/subscribe</a>. You can take part in our listener survey <a href="https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/6FFT7MK" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">here</a>.