Normal Women

Dec 13 2023 9 ep. 44 mins 153
Normal Women Podcast artwork

Philippa Gregory’s Normal Women is a new podcast from HarperCollins, launched to coincide with the publication of this landmark work of scholarship and storytelling, from celebrated novelist and historian Philippa Gregory. 

Normal Women is a radical retelling of our nation’s story – not of the rise and fall of kings and the occasional queen – but of social and cultural change, powered by the determination, persistence and effectiveness of women– from 1066 to modern times. This is not another book or podcast about three or four well-known heroines; it is a story about millions of women: those who left records and those who were ‘hidden from history.’

The podcast weaves together Philippa’s narrative history with lively discussions, bringing together historians who are experts in their field, and guests with their own modern perspectives. From popstars to TikTok superstars, groundbreaking campaigners to best selling authors, Philippa welcomes women from all walks of life to look back at the past lives of half the population, and put women where they belong – centre stage.

This eight-part series starts on the 26th October, publishing weekly.

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8. Normal women...are married, divorced and single

Dec 13 2023 54 mins  
The marriage of Queen Victoria to Prince Albert set the template for how we imagine a wedding should be but it wasn’t always about big white frocks. Philippa Gregory explores how married women became the property of their husbands - along with everything they owned and produced. She considers the hidden history of wife sales and female husbands and shines a light on the difficult

7. Normal women...are beyond definition

Dec 06 2023 52 mins  
Men have always claimed that there is such a thing as “female nature” and described it with great authority – but throughout history, women have refused to conform to the strict view of what is masculine and feminine - from fierce jousting medieval ladies to 18th Century French aristocrats who seamlessly slip in and out of male and female roles.Joining Philippa to discuss whe

6. Normal Women...are a weaker vessel

Nov 29 2023 51 mins  
Bitten, spat on, denounced - in the 1990s newly-ordained women were met with fury by a vocal minority. But women have always played an important role in the Church, as mystics, the heads of religious houses, saints or simply as normal women seeking salvation. Joining Philippa to tell the story of women's changing place in the Church of England - from 'weaker vessels' in t

5. Normal Women...think about rape

Nov 22 2023 49 mins  
Throughout history women have faced the threat of sexual violence and, sadly, it's no different today. Philippa explores how rape was viewed as a crime against a man’s property, how courtly love gave way to brutal desire and the difficulties women face in bringing their attackers to justice.Joining Philippa to discuss rape - how it has changed through history and how we see it no

4. Normal Women...are underpaid

Nov 15 2023 46 mins  
Whether you are on the Board or in the kitchen, a medieval peasant or modern day medic, a Victorian street-sweeper or eighteenth century hand-spinner - if you are a woman, there’s every chance you are underpaid. So why is that? Explanations vary across the centuries from women's lack of upper-body strength to the demands of motherhood and patriarchal oppression, but one thin

3. Normal Women...love women

Nov 08 2023 49 mins  
Sapphism, the Cult of the Clitoris, coded diaries and a bower of bliss - Philippa Gregory tells the story of women who love women, and those who tried to stop them.  We hear from famous lesbians including Queen Anne and Gentleman Jack and less famous lovers rescued from the footnotes of history.Joining Philippa to discuss the history of women who love women are:TikTok sta

2. Normal Women...are angels

Nov 01 2023 45 mins  
Just how should women behave? Throughout History, they have so often been expected to act as genteel ladies and confined to the home - often described as the 'angel in the house'. But far from remaining passive, many used their influence to put themselves at the heart of radical social change. In this episode we hear about the anti slavery campaigners - and Philippa introduces us t

1. Normal Women...riot!

Oct 25 2023 46 mins  
Philippa tells the story of women rebels and rioters - from the leaders of the Peasants' Revolt to those arrested at the vigil for Sarah Everard. We hear from 'Captain' Ann Carter, leader of a seventeenth century food riot, hanged by the authorities and just one of the thousands of women Philippa has rescued from the footnotes of history and placed at the heart of he

Philippa Gregory's Normal Women - Coming soon

Oct 13 2023 3 mins  
A new eight-part series starts on the 26th October.Normal Women is a radical retelling of our nation’s story – not of the rise and fall of kings and the occasional queen – but of social and cultural change, powered by the determination, persistence and effectiveness of women– from 1066 to modern times. This is not a podcast about three or four well-known heroines; it is a s