Unsurprisingly, I listen to many royal podcasts. Everyone has a different view on the royals, and takes a different approach. With the explosion of podcasts in the last 2-3 years, there are more and more people taking to the microphone to share their thoughts on the crown(s). I’ve been asked several times on social media for recommendations and where to look. Thus, here are my top royal podcasts that you should be listening to!
Note: Wherever possible, I have linked the podcast on Spotify. (Unfortunately, many podcasters still don’t have a site, so it can be difficult finding a “home page”.)
Current Royal Topics
A lot of royal watchers, including myself, want to listen to podcasts about the current royal family. And don’t worry, there are many podcasts to meet your listening needs in this department. I skew towards those hosted by journalists. Because it is their job to know the royals, they can often offer insight and commentary that most of us wouldn’t think of. They also have more access than most of us do, which is big plus.
There are many that are hosted by general royal enthusiasts, but I’m not a fan- they don’t tend to have any expertise or inside knowledge, so personally it doesn’t add anything to the discussion for me. (If you search “royal” on your desired podcast app, you will find several of these if that is your jam.)
Pod Save the Queen
Welcome to Pod Save The Queen – the royal podcast from the Daily Mirror… Expect behind the scenes details, fashion, travel, causes, politics and society, plus interviews with people who can provide a particular insight into your favourite royals, their work and their place in Britain today.Your regular companions are host Ann Gripper (@anngripper) and Daily Mirror royal editor Russell Myers (@rjmyers). Join the conversation about the podcast on Instagram and Twitter @podsave for a chance to hear your comments on the show, and follow @MirrorRoyal for all the latest royal news on Twitter.
This is number one on the list of my top royal podcasts- both Ann and Russell are fairly balanced in discussion, and don’t fall into rabid fan territory, but they do have opinions. Pod Save the Queen also has the best variety of guests. They do cover major and minor royal news, but they also bring on authors, historians, photographers, and other journalists for special themed episodes. It allows for a lovely variety, and for very fun listening!
Royal Rota
The podcast about the British royal family from ITV News. Every week, our Royal Editor Chris Ship and Royal Producer Lizzie Robinson look back at the big stories they’ve been out covering over the last seven days, sharing their insight and bringing you interviews with a range of guests.
Chris and Lizzie are both fairly big figures in the royal reporting community, and do have fairly strong views. However, I do still enjoy listening to Royal Rota, as it gives you a good idea on the pulse of the UK press. (And given that the UK press has been such a contentious player in royal circles as of late, it is interesting listening.) They don’t tend to bring on guests though, and don’t have “themed” episodes- it is strictly royal news.
Royal Central Podcast
Royal news and debate brought to you by Royal Central, the biggest independent source of royal news online.
I am biased because I write for Royal Central, but I do love the Royal Central podcast. It is actually a bit of a mix of current royal news and royal history, depending on what episode you are listening to. Everyone on the podcasts are knowledgeable about the royals and have interesting opinions. It’s not necessarily the same as a newspaper or TV journalist- I find that the Royal Central discussions are a balance of interest/passion for the topic with a journalistic approach.
Note: On Heir Pod is the other big player in this genre, but I’m not a fan. I don’t find Scobie to be impartial at all, and Rulli doesn’t seem to know her subject well, at all. It is still a popular podcast, though, and should be easy for you to find.
Royal History Podcasts
There is no shortage of royal history podcasts out there; you can find pretty much anything that you are looking for at this point. Here I’ve not included any period specific podcasts- there are many Tudor and War of the Roses podcasts, but I wanted to look at broader podcasts. And much like above, yes, there are popular royal history podcasts that I’ve not included but they don’t float my boat (or it is hit and miss for me).
Rex Factor
Rex Factor is a fun podcast reviewing all the kings & queens of England & Scotland.
Although the podcast description wildly undersells it, Rex Factor has been one of my favourite podcasts for several years. The first season covers the kings and queens of England/the United Kingdom, the second season looks at the kings and queens of Scotland (ending with James VI), and the third is all about the consorts of English monarchs, in an X-factor style competition. Each figure gets an episode, with monumental figures getting multiple episodes- it is the best place to find a solid introduction for a given monarch or consort. And the competition categories include longevity, heirs, and battle-y-ness- they do look at the whole picture.
Historic Royal Palaces Podcast
This podcast is a collection of recorded talks and lectures given by curators and experts at our palaces. It explores how monarchs and people have shaped society, in some of the greatest palaces ever built.
This is a bit of a different style podcast- it wasn’t recorded to be a podcast, but rather are past recorded talks from Historic Royal Palace events (for the most part). It’s wonderful to be able to hear previous talks, and given the wide range of history and focuses across the six HRP palaces, there are many different topics to listen to. There is a focus on the Tudors, particularly Henry VIII, but there are other topics, including a few royal fashion history focused talks. (Note: at one point, they did take all of these down and then re-uploaded some of them. If there is an episode you really want to keep, save it elsewhere.)
Partially Royal: BBC In Our Time: History and History Extra
Both In Our Time and History Extra are wonderful podcasts, and cover many different royal topics. In Our Time is a panel discussion with several different historians (specific to each episode) where they discuss an event or a person or topic in detail, while History Extra is a chat with one historian about a specific topic (usually two per episode). However, these are not solely royal topics, so you will have to scroll through. (However, the non-royal episodes are fantastic too, so they are definitely worth listening to.)
Want more royal history?
Discovering Royal Fashion History
What are your top royal history podcasts? What have you been listening to lately?
Cheers,
The Historian
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