That's Old News

About That's Old News

That's Old News, the history podcast dedicated to making you laugh while you learn! Let's face it, the way you learned history in school sucked the soul out of your passion - but it doesn't always have to be like that! History is full of incredible tales, wacky stories, and mind-blowing events that will surely tickle everyone's fancy. So ditch the classroom learning and sit back every week as we share our passion with you, and reignite your passion for history! Check out all of our links, including our social media pages, here: linktr.ee/thatsoldnews

Publisher

That's Old News

Category

history

Language

en

Explicit

Yes

First episode

20 Nov 2023

Latest episode

29 Sept 2025

Latest episodes

90 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   29 Sept 2025

   Torture Device Tier List

   Hayley has... issues... I think that's safe to say. But what better way to expose those issues than to shove a microphone in her face and just letter her speak about all the weird things that gives her that history horn. This time around we're going back to the ways of old and how we would punish criminals for their crimes or extract information from persons of interest and putting them into a tier list! Because even though Hayley has issues, it turns out we all do too. From punishing women for passing rumours around to village to interrogating prisoners for information by forcing their back passage onto a pyramid shaped block slowly and strapping the accused to "The Rack" in an effort to stretch them out like a length of silly putty (yes I am also disappointed that "The Rack" has nothing to do with boobs), join Hayley this week as she explores the torturous world of history's strangest and most punishing torture devices and places them into a tier list from least to most effective methods of torturing an individual. This episode was hosted by Hayley O'Connor and joined by Arron Keegan and Conor Daly. The intro and outro music - Strollin' Along - was recorded by David Renda. Join our Discord server and follow us on social media by following the links below! Discord: ⁠https://discord.gg/ZScNqT8mP2 ⁠ (https://discord.gg/ZScNqT8mP2 ) TikTok: ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@thatsoldnewspodcast ⁠ (https://www.tiktok.com/@thatsoldnewspodcast ) Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/thatsoldnewspodcast/ ⁠ (https://www.instagram.com/thatsoldnewspodcast/ ) Twitter/X: ⁠x.com/oldnewscast (x.com/oldnewscast ) ⁠ (x.com/oldnewscast )======== Chapters: (00:00) Intro (00:35) Episode Start (02:22) Scold's Bridle (05:55) Heretic's Fork (18:08) Thumb Screws (20:28) Spanish Boot (25:45) The Rack (28:38) The Scavenger's Daughter (32:59) Judas Cradle (39:45) Catherine Wheel/Breaking Wheel (43:25) The Pear of Anguish (51:52) The Tier List and Post Show Banter

2. 

   22 Sept 2025

   Reinventing the Wheel: A Game Show about the Origins of Inventions

   What do bubble wrap, the slinky toy, and Viagra have in common? Apart from an entertaining night at home alone, they all share in the fact that they were not originally invented to be what they eventually came to be! If anyone remembers an old episode of Hayley's, you may have learned that the chainsaw - yes, that tool used to level and topple towering trees - was first invented to help ease the process of complicated child births for pregnant women by cutting through bone and widening the pelvis, allowing for the easier passage of the baby from their mother's womb. That's what we're doing today! Looking at all those wonderful modern day inventions that began their lives as something entirely different. Some of them you can see what they were thinking, and can see the happy accident that created something so iconic, and some will leave you scratching your head wondering how they managed to create something so different from the mission statement that an entire rebrand was necessary just so save face. So join the gang this week as Quiz Master Granda Keego hosts his new series "Reinventing the Wheel", where we take some of history's greatest inventions and turn back the pages of time to see what they were originally designed to do! Play along at home, and see if you can beat Conor and Hayley in this new game show! Good luck! This episode was hosted by Arron Keegan, Hayley O'Connor, and Conor Daly. The intro and outro music - Strollin' Along - was recorded by David Renda. Join our Discord and follow us on social media by following the links below! Discord: ⁠https://discord.gg/ZScNqT8mP2⁠ (https://discord.gg/ZScNqT8mP2) TikTok: ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@thatsoldnewspodcast ⁠ (https://www.tiktok.com/@thatsoldnewspodcast ) Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/thatsoldnewspodcast/ ⁠ (https://www.instagram.com/thatsoldnewspodcast/ ) Twitter/X: ⁠x.com/oldnewscast (x.com/oldnewscast )

3. 

   15 Sept 2025

   Napoleon Part 7: Cracks in the Armour

   In the last episode we saw Napoleon make an uncharacteristic mistake with his inability to win a decisive victory over the Russians at Eylau, allowing the Russians to retreat and fight another day. While they would be found again and defeated at Friedland, the campaign was a bloody affair. Napoleon won yet another victory over the coalitions formed against him, but not one without cost. And it is that very cost of the war that leads us into this episode. With the Continental System now including the likes of Prussia and Russia, the only real way for Britain to continue trading with the mainland was to do so through their oldest ally - Portugal. Napoleon, keenly aware of this, would launch his invasion of the nation, securing it with little effort as the royal family fled to their colony in Brazil after refusing to surrender to the French invader. With it now secure, not many were ready for what came next. French garrisons, said to free up Spanish garrisons to allow for the Spanish armies to aid in the invasion of Portugal, turned on their allies. Within months, Spain had fallen to Napoleon in a surprise coup that would see the Spanish royal family forced to abdicate their throne in favour of Napoleon's brother, Joseph, being named King of Spain. And this action, taken in haste as a justification to ensure the security of his southern flank from British invasion, would spell disaster for his empire. For as soon as Austria first heard of France's struggles in the Iberian peninsula - they formed the Fifth Coalition with Britain, and would deliver Napoleon's first decisive military defeat of his career. This episode was hosted by Arron Keegan and joined by Hayley O'Connor. The intro and outro music - Strollin' Along - was recorded by David Renda. Join our Discord and follow us on social media by following the links below! Discord: ⁠https://discord.gg/ZScNqT8mP2⁠ (https://discord.gg/ZScNqT8mP2) TikTok: ⁠https://www.tiktok.com/@thatsoldnewspodcast⁠ (https://www.tiktok.com/@thatsoldnewspodcast) Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/thatsoldnewspodcast/⁠ (https://www.instagram.com/thatsoldnewspodcast/) Twitter/X: ⁠x.com/oldnewscast⁠ (x.com/oldnewscast) ======== Sources & Further Reading: - Broers, Michael, "Napoleon: The Spirit of the Age", (2018). - Chandler, David G., "Napoleon's Marshals", (1987). - De Neef, Jonas, "Devils, Daggers, and Death: Eyewitness accounts of French officers and soldiers during the Peninsular War, 1807-1814", (2022). - Dodge, Theodore A., "Warfare in the Age of Napoleon Volume 3: The Battle of Austerlitz, the War of the Fourth Coalition, and the Early Peninsular Campaigns, 1805-1809", (2011). - Griffith, Paddy, "French Napoleonic Infantry Tactics 1792-1815", (2007). - Griffith, Robert (ed.), "Armies and Enemies of Napoleon 1789-1815", (2022). - Harvey, Robert, "The War of Wars: The Epic Struggle Between Britain and France, 1789-1815", (2007). - Johnson, Paul, "Napoleon", (2003). - McNab, Chris, "Napoleon's Military Machine: Operations Manual", (2019). - Mikaberidze, Alexander, "The Napoleonic Wars: A Global History", (2020). - Roberts, Andrew, "Napoleon the Great", (2015). - Zamoyski, Adam, "Napoleon: The Man Behind the Myth", (2019). ======== Chapters: (00:00) Intro (08:13) Recap (14:32) Invasion of Portugal (30:30) The Dos de Mayo Uprising (43:45) Iberia in Revolt (47:21) The War of the Fifth Coalition (53:33) The Battle of Aspern-Essling: Napoleon's First Major Battlefield Defeat (01:06:35) The Battle of Wagram: Napoleon's Comeback (01:15:16) End of the War of the Fifth Coalition (01:17:56) Post Show Banter

Reach and audience

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

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

2 ratings

Spotify

4.9 / 5

77 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 57 / 100

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

Quality

94

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

51

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Guest appearances

Books guests

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