Half-Arsed History

About Half-Arsed History

Half-Arsed History's second book, The Most Interesting People You've Never Heard Of, is out now! Buy your copy: https://booktopia.kh4ffx.net/bkq2G9 Welcome along to Half-Arsed History! It's a weekly podcast highlighting absurd and entertaining stories from history. Twice a week, it helps host Riley Knight feel as though his useless history degree has some kind of real-world relevance. Get in touch: halfarsedhistory@gmail.com Support the show on Patreon: https://patreon.com/halfarsedhistory Subscribe on Apple Podcasts: https://apple.co/halfarsedhistory Buy Half-Arsed History merch: https://halfarsedhistory.theprintbar.com If you've just discovered the show and aren't sure which of the 400+ episodes to start with, here are some suggestions: Episode 139: The History of the Toilet - https://sptfy.com/PK3J • https://apple.co/3Giftt3 Episode 75: The Great Emu War - https://sptfy.com/PK3K • https://apple.co/4jKCvr7 Episode 197: The History of Nuclear Weapons - https://sptfy.com/PK3L • https://apple.co/4jygYlc Episode 233: The 1930 FIFA World Cup - https://sptfy.com/PK3M • https://apple.co/4iltL9P Episode 106: The First Circumnavigation - https://sptfy.com/PK3N • https://apple.co/4jewsLj No AI is knowingly used in the creation of this podcast. Half-Arsed History acknowledges the Traditional Owners and Custodians of the unceded Gubbi Gubbi (Kabi Kabi) Land on which the podcast is written and recorded, and pays respect to First Nations Elders past, present, and emerging. Indigenous sovereignty was never ceded. This continent always was, and always will be, Aboriginal Land. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy (https://acast.com/privacy) for more information.

Publisher

Riley Knight

Category

comedy · history · society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

1 Jul 2018

Latest episode

4 Oct 2026

Latest episodes

384 of 735 episodes have a transcript.

1. 

   4 Oct 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Episode 429: The Viking Age - Part 4: Society

   Host Riley Knight explores Viking society, detailing their organization, daily life, and evolving religion in this interview.

2. 

   29 Sept 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Second Book Available Now & Live Show Tickets Running Out

   Riley Knight discusses "The Most Interesting People You've Never Heard Of," his new book, and the urgency of securing live show tickets.

3. 

   27 Sept 2026TRANSCRIPT

   Week 37: The Execution of “Martin Guerre”

   Host Riley Knight explores the intriguing tale of fraud and deception surrounding the execution of Martin Guerre, revealing a pivotal moment of mistaken identity.

Inside a recent episode

Episode 429: The Viking Age - Part 4: Society

Published 4 Oct 2026 · Transcript excerpt

[…] But Karls weren't just farmers. The majority of them were. But the Karl class also included craftspeople, you know, people who made things, furniture, tools, weapons, people who built buildings and ships and that sort of thing. And then also the people who bought and sold such things, merchants. They were also Karls. Now, some Karls, of course, were also warriors, as indeed were some Jarls. While the Jarls tended to command and lead troops, it was the Karls who made up the rank and file. Karls would often take up arms to join in on raids and invasions, especially when, as we talked about in previous episodes, they reckoned they'd have better opportunities overseas than at home to secure wealth, land, fortune for themselves. […]

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

4.8 / 5

282 ratings

Spotify

4.9 / 5

5,284 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 51 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

63

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

99

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Guest appearances

Does not typically book guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.

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