Monday 15 July 2024 

A new four-part series on the HistoryExtra podcast focuses on changing attitudes throughout history to one of the most essential parts of life: going to the toilet. Toilets Through Time features insightful interviews with historians, including Dr Hannah Platts, Professor Tracy Borman, Dr James Wright and Professor Jerry White, and is hosted by Dr David Musgrove, Content director of the HistoryExtra.com and BBC History Magazine.

Across four key periods of British history – Roman, Medieval, Tudor, and Victorian – David finds out what people thought about going to the toilet, where they went, how they kept clean and how they disposed of their waste. Each episode is full of diverting toilet facts, but also asks what we can learn about the society and culture of each period from what they did in the loo.

Find out why seashells were popular tools of the toilet in Tudor times, why flatulence so concerned the Romans and in the Victorian era what exactly happened with the ‘thunder of the bum’.

Toilets Through Time, episode breakdown:

Episode 1: Roman Britain

The first episode explores Roman attitudes to going to the toilet, tackling the crucial question of what Romans really did with the sponge on the stick. It also considers how public the Roman experience of going to the toilet was, and asks why the Romans were so concerned about flatulence. Roman historian Dr Hannah Platts is our expert guide.

Episode 2: Medieval Britain

In the company of medieval archaeologist Dr James Wright, this episode explores what happened on the toilet in the Middle Ages. Dave finds out how both lords in their castles and peasants in their fields would have attended to their business, looks at why monks were so concerned with pipework, and asks why the devil was thought to dwell in the dunny.

Episode 3: Tudor Britain

Professor Tracy Borman gives Dave a tour of the Tudor toilet in this episode. It focuses on the facilities in the royal palaces of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I, but also explore how the less exalted members of society went to the toilet. The episode considers flushing, enemas, why seashells were popular tools of the toilet, and how the power of God was employed to put a stop to street urination.

Episode 4: Victorian Britain

What did the Victorians think about their time in the toilet? Was this the period when people really began to embrace the idea of the toilet as a private sanctuary rather than a public experience? How did the Victorians manage the public health challenges brought on by the explosion in urban living, and what exactly happened with the ‘thunder of the bum’. Professor Jerry White explains all.

Listen via your usual podcast provider, Apple Plus and on HistoryExtra