In this episode, Greg Jenner is joined in Bronze Age Crete by Dr Stephen Kershaw and comedian Josie Long to learn all about the ancient Minoan civilisation. Many of us know the legend of Theseus and the Minotaur: King Minos of Crete feeds young men and women to the half-human beast in the labyrinth under his palace until the brave Theseus kills the monster. At the end of the 19th Century, a Cretan archaeologist discovered a palace that many believed had belonged to Minos himself. Not only that, but experts soon found traces of an entire Bronze Age civilisation on the island. But what was this Minoan society really like? From the palaces of the mighty, through the daily lives of ordinary people and their religious beliefs, this episode explores the Minoans and the archaeological work that has uncovered the truth behind the myths. Hosted by: Greg Jenner Research by: Anna McCully Stewart Written by: Emmie Rose Price-Goodfellow, Emma Nagouse, and Greg Jenner Produced by: Emmie Rose Price-Goodfellow and Greg Jenner Audio Producer: Steve Hankey Production Coordinator: Ben Hollands Senior Producer: Emma Nagouse Executive Editor: James Cook
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Hello and welcome to you're dead to me, the radio four comedy podcast that takes history seriously.
My name is Greg Jenner.
I'm a public historian, author and broadcaster.
And today we are sailing all the way back to Bronze Age Crete to learn about the ancient minoan civilization and to help us mine truth from Minotaur myth.
We have two very special guests in history corner.
He's a lecturer at Oxford University's department for continuing Education.
His research includes classical mythology and history.
He's the author of several books, including Mythologica, a fantastic illustrated children's encyclopedia of greek myths.
It's very lovely.
And you'll remember him from our episode all about Atlantis.
It's not real.