Introducing... History's Heroes
Lady Killers with Lucy Worsley
BBC
4.7 • 908 Ratings
🗓️ 5 August 2025
⏱️ 10 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
History's Heroes: the BBC's breathtaking, high stakes, story-led history podcast feed that shines a light on extraordinary people from across history. Series include 'History's Heroes' with narration from Historian Alex von Tunzelmann, 'History's Youngest Heroes' with narration from Nicola Coughlan and 'History's Secret Heroes' with narration from Helena Bonham Carter. In History's Heroes, Historian Alex von Tunzelmann (Radio 4's The History Podcast: The Lucan Obsession/writer of all the History's Heroes series) shines a light on the inspiring and unusual stories of courage, pioneering and people who used their voice to spark change. Heroes covered include groundbreaking surgeon Harold Gillies, composers Rodgers and Hammerstein and swimming champion Gertrude Ederle. Join Alex for stories of bold voices, with brave ideas and the courage to stand alone. In History's Youngest Heroes, actress Nicola Coughlan (Bridgerton, Derry Girls) tells twelve true stories of rebellion, risk and the radical power of youth. Before she became a Hollywood star, how did the young Audrey Hepburn take on the Nazis during World War Two? As a young activist, how did Nelson Mandela attempt to overthrow the South African government to end apartheid? Did Queen of England, Lady Jane Grey give up her faith or face the executioner's axe? Why did Terry Fox, a young man with a prosthetic leg, set out to run the length of Canada? Join Nicola to hear inspiring tales of young heroes both famous and forgotten, whose bravery demonstrates how young people can change history. In History's Secret Heroes, Helena Bonham Carter recounts untold stories of heroes from World War Two whose acts of resistance, deception and courage helped defeat fascism. In each episode, Helena shines a light on the spies, Royal Air Force pilots, army officers, prisoners of war and double agents who risked their lives to save others. Learn all about forgotten stories of survival, bravery and espionage - from the opera singers who helped dozens of Jewish people escape Nazi Germany, to the woman that Winston Churchill would go on to call his favourite spy. Previous episodes have looked at the story of the American actor George Takei (Star Trek), who was imprisoned without trial along with 12,000 other Japanese Americans, and Bela Hazan, a young Jewish woman who went undercover at the Gestapo headquarters to fight against the Nazis. From secret missions behind enemy lines in occupied Europe, to underground resistance movements across Germany, France, Poland, Great Britain and beyond, History's Secret Heroes reveals how ordinary people can make an extraordinary impact. Join Alex, Nicola and Helena for tales of deception, rebellion, risk and courage.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hello, my name's Alex von Tunselman, and I'm dropping into this feed to let you know of BBC Radio 4's History's Heroes, the podcast that shines a light on extraordinary people from across history. |
| 0:12.6 | For the next 10 minutes, I'll be taking over this feed to give you a taste of the podcast. |
| 0:18.2 | Enjoy this clip of Saving Face with Harold Gillies. |
| 0:23.0 | Gillies was 5-9, but it was said that he seemed shorter because he had a bit of a stoop. |
| 0:28.8 | Dr. Lindsay Fitzharris is a medical historian and author of The Face Maker, a biography of Harold Gillies. |
| 0:36.0 | He was a bit of a funny-looking guy, and he made fun of his looks later in life. |
| 0:40.0 | He said, you know, how different would his fate be if, you know, he had a slightly stronger |
| 0:44.8 | jaw or a slightly different nose? |
| 0:48.0 | Harold Gillies was born in New Zealand in 1882. |
| 0:52.0 | After his schooling, he moved to England to study medicine at Cambridge University. |
| 0:57.0 | He made friends easily. He had a nickname Giles, and one of the things that he was popular for was |
| 1:04.3 | just sort of his rebellion. He took his scholarship and he bought a motorcycle with it. And he liked |
| 1:10.7 | and enjoyed debating with his professors as well. |
| 1:13.4 | He was always sort of challenging the status quo. |
| 1:16.1 | And he was kind of one of these people who was just very good at anything he set his mind to. |
| 1:22.0 | Gillies was a talented golfer, artist and musician. |
| 1:25.7 | As his medical training progressed, his obsessive attention to detail |
| 1:29.8 | made him a perfect candidate for a career in surgery. By 1914, Gillies was practicing as an |
| 1:37.6 | ear, nose and throat surgeon on Wimpole Street in London. His wife Kathleen, a former nurse, |
| 1:43.6 | was expecting their second child. It looked like |
| 1:46.6 | everything was set for a successful, contented middle-class life. And then suddenly the first |
| 1:54.0 | World War breaks out and he is faced with this enormous challenge. Though he had a young |
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