Our Fake History
A podcast about myths we think are history and history that might be hidden in myths! Awesome stories that really (maybe) happened!
Episodes (51)
OFH Throwback - Episode #50 - Was There a Real Robin Hood? (Part II)
In this throwback episode Sebastian takes you to the conclusion of this fan-favorite season 3 series. Almost as long as people have been telling stories about Robin Hood, historians have been trying...
OFH Throwback - Episode #49 - Was There a Real Robin Hood? (Part I)
In this throwback episode Sebastian takes you back to this fan favorite episode from Season 3. Robin Hood is easily one of the most beloved characters in English storytelling. For centuries the forest...
Introducing: CONSPIRACY THEORIES, CULTS, AND CRIMES
From Jonestown to Heaven’s Gate, to the Octopus Murders and the Waco Siege, the world is full of deception, manipulation, and destruction. Listen to Conspiracy Theories, Cults, and Crimes every...
OFH Throwback - Episode #56 - Who Was Japan's Greatest Swordsman? (Part II)
In this throwback episode Sebastian takes you back to the conclusion of one of OFH's most popular series. In classic samurai films the swordsman Miyamoto Musashi was always presented as rough but...
OFH Throwback - Episode #55 - Who Was Japan's Greatest Swordsman? (Part I)
In this throwback episode Sebastian revisits an incredibly fun series from Season 3. The samurai swordsman Miyamoto Musashi is the archetypal lone-wolf warrior. Legend has it that in course of his...
Episode #233 - Is The Wizard of Oz Secretly About American History?
The beloved children's novel The Wonderful Wizard of OZ has been celebrated as the quintessential American fairytale. But, many believe that the book is more than just a pleasing adventure story for...
Bonus Episode - Cuban Conspiracies and Schoolyard Chants
In this Bonus Episode Sebastian answers questions from listeners about the recent series on President McKinley. He discusses the challenges associated with using a book written by Karl Rove,...
Episode #232 - Why President McKinley? (Part III)
It's impossible to assess the historical reputation of President William McKinley without tangling with the Spanish-American War. In this final part of the William McKinley trilogy Sebastian gets into...
Episode #231 - Why President McKinley? (Part II)
The 1896 election of William McKinley has been noted as an inflection point in American politics. But, historians are often conflicted about what story they want to tell. It could be seen as moment...
Episode #230 - Why President McKinley? (Part I)
The 25th President of the United States, William McKinley, has recently been in the news. In the 2025 inaugural address it was announced that Alaska's highest peak would once again be known as Mt....
Bonus Episode - Selkies, Spectacles, and Satire
In this Bonus Episode Sebastian takes questions about his recent exploration of mermaid mythology. He gets into the difference between Selkies and Mermaids, and wades into the murky waters of Scottish...
Episode #229 - Real Mermaids?
Mermaids are part of countless mythological traditions found the world over. Almost ever culture has a belief in some form of human-fish hybrid. In the west the modern mermaid evolved as combination...
Episode #228 - You Talkin' About Myths, Baby? (ft. Liv Albert)
In this interview episode Sebastian speaks with podcaster, author, and host of Let's Talk About Myths, Baby Liv Albert. Liv has spent the last 8 years and 700 episodes of her podcast exploring the...
Bonus Episode - Helots, Spartan Women, and Historical Fiction
In this bonus episode Sebastian responds to listener questions and comments about the Spartan series. He gets a chance to give some more details about the Helots and Spartan women. He also muses at...
Episode #227 - What is the Spartan Mirage? (Part III)
The famous Battle of Thermopylae forms the centerpiece of the Spartan Mirage. Legend has it that a tiny force of 300 Spartans took on over two million Persians and managed to hold them off for a...
Episode #226 - What is the Spartan Mirage? (Part II)
Did you know that the most famous Spartan poet may not have been from Sparta? He also may not have written many of the poems that bear his name. This is yet another example of the weird collection of...
Episode #225 - What is the Spartan Mirage? (Part I)
The ancient Spartans are one of the most idealized cultures from classical Greece. They have been remembered as unbeatable super-soldiers whose entire society was geared towards war. Groups from...
OFH Throwback- Episode #72 - Did Emperor Hadrian Murder His Teenage Lover?
In this throwback episode Sebastian takes you back to the start of Season 4 to explore the historical reputation of the Roman Emperor Hadrian. Hadrian has been celebrated as one of Rome’s “five good...
Episode #224 - What's True About Al Capone? (Part III)
Who brought down Al Capone? Was it Eliot Ness and his storied “Untouchables” or is their story the result of distorted memoire written by washed-up glory-hound? If Eliot Ness didn’t secure a...
Episode #223 - What's True About Al Capone? (Part II)
If you get your history from watching gangster movies, then you might be under the impression that Al Capone singlehandedly started Chicago's Beer Wars. That is certainly what is suggested by the 1932...
Episode #222 - What's True About Al Capone? (Part I)
The life of the gangster Al Capone could be understood as a violent expression of the American Dream. A poor kid from Brooklyn, born to immigrant parents, used his wits, fists, and a certain ruthless...
OFH Throwback- Episode #24- Did Ty Cobb Kill a Guy?
In this throwback episode Sebastian take you back to Season One and Episode #24. Ty Cobb has been remembered as one of baseball’s greatest villains. Despite being universally recognized as one of the...
Episode #221 - Did India's Thugs Really Exist? (Part II)
In the early 19th century central India was one of the most dangerous places a person could travel. Murders and robberies were incredibly common. Every year dozens, sometimes hundreds, of bodies were...
Episode #220 - Did India's Thugs Really Exist? (Part I)
In 1830 an anonymous letter was published in the Calcutta Literary Gazette warning that India was being threatened by a horrifying cult of murderers. These stranglers were known as Thugs and according...
Episode #219 - Who Was the Real Mulan?
The story of Mulan might be the best known piece of Chinese folklore. In China the story has been around for over 1500 years and has inspired dozens of poems, songs, plays, and films. Thanks to...
OFH Throwback- Episode #47- Who Was the Queen of the Pirates?
In this throwback episode Sebastian takes you back to Season 2 and Episode #47. Piracy on the high seas has existed for as long as human beings have had boats. For most of history these maritime...
Episode #218 - Did the Siege of Constantinople Even Happen? (Part III)
The second Arab siege of Constantinople should probably just be called the "real" Arab siege of Constantinople. In 717 the Umayyad Caliphate seriously threatened the continued existence of the Roman...
Episode #217- Did the Siege of Constantinople Even Happen? (Part II)
In the 670's something was brewing in the eastern Mediterranean. The Umayyad caliphate had built an impressive navy and was scoring victories at sea over the Roman empire. It looked like the Caliphate...
Introducing: History's Youngest Heroes from the BBC
Check out this trailer for a new history podcast from the BBC. Actress Nicola Coughlan, from Bridgerton and Derry Girls, hosts History’s Youngest Heroes – a podcast telling twelve true stories of...
Episode #216 - Did the Siege of Constantinople Even Happen? (Part I)
When the capital of the Roman empire was moved from Rome to the city of Constantinople, the city on the Bosporus strait became one of the most important places on planet earth. One top being the heart...
OFH Throwback- Episode #34- Did Archimedes Build a Death Ray?
In this throwback episode Sebastian takes you back to Season 2 Episode #34 - Did Archimedes Build a Death Ray? Archimedes was one of the ancient world’s most important mathematicians. His discoveries...
Episode #215 - Edgar Allan Poe: Hoax Master?
Edgar Allan Poe has been remembered as one of America's greatest authors and poets. However, many are less familiar with is career as a hoaxer. In the 1830's and 1840's Poe made a name for himself...
Episode #214 - Have We Misremembered the Gunpowder Plot? (Part II)
Trying to come an "objective" understanding of the 1605 Gunpowder Plot has proved difficult for historians. From the the outset the facts of the case were distorted to help serve the political...
Episode #213 - Have We Misremembered the Gunpowder Plot? (Part I)
There is an old English rhyme that implores every patriotic Briton to "Remember, Remember, the 5th of November." This was the date of a foiled attack on the English parliament known as the Gunpowder...
OFH Throwback- Episode #3- Was There a Real Labyrinth?
In this throwback episode Sebastian revisits one of the earliest episodes of Our Fake History from 2015. Is the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur just a bedtime story for morbid children or does it...
Episode #212 - Was "The Man Called Intrepid" a Fraud?
In 1976 the bestselling biography A Man Called Intrepid made the Canadian spy Sir. William Stephenson something close to a household name. The book claimed that the previously obscure Stephenson had...
Episode #211 - Who Killed King Tut? (Part II)
When King Tutankhamun became King of Egypt at the tender age of eight he inherited a kingdom in chaos. His father's religious revolution had upended the traditional social structure and enraged the...
Episode #210 - Who Killed King Tut? (Part I)
King Tutankhamun may be the best known Egyptian Pharaoh. The discovery of his tomb in 1922 created a wave of "Tut-mania" that has made him a fixture of pop-culture ever since. But even though his...
OFH Throwback- Episode #172- Who Was the African Samurai? (Part II)
In this throwback episode Sebastian takes you back to the conclusion of the African Samurai series. In the 1580’s Japan was a on the precipice of a massive transformation. For over a century the...
OFH Throwback- Episode #171- Who Was the African Samurai? (Part I)
In this throwback episode Sebastian was inspired by a recent controversy around the Assassin's Creed videogame series to revisit his series on Yasuke, the African Samurai. Near the end of Japan’s...
OFH Throwback- Episode #90- How Bad Was Blackbeard? (Part II)
In this throwback episode Sebastian takes you back to Season 4 to finish up the series on Blackbeard. Thanks to the mysterious pirate historian Captain Charles Johnson, Blackbeard became a truly...
OFH Throwback - Episode #89 - How Bad Was Blackbeard? (Part I)
In this throwback episode Sebastian takes you back to season four and a fan favorite about one of history's most notorious pirates. Blackbeard may be the most iconic pirate to ever roam the seas. His...
Episode #209- What Are the Olympic Myths? (Part III)
The man credited with reviving the Olympics in the late 1800's was a French aristocrat named Baron Pierre De Coubertin. In his memoir he claimed that idea to revive the Olympic games had been his and...
Episode #208- What Are the Olympic Myths? (Part II)
Ahead of the Olympic Games there is always some discussion of the so-called "Olympic Spirit." This is a spirit of fair play and virtuous competition allegedly inherited from the ancient Greeks. But, a...
Episode #207- What Are the Olympic Myths? (Part I)
When the Olympic games were revived in the late 19th century there was a widespread belief in the "purity" of ancient Greek athletics. The original members of the International Olympic committee...
OFH Throwback- Episode #71- Who Invented Your Favourite Sport?
In this throwback Sebastian does his best to get you geared up for an upcoming trilogy on the Olympics by returning to this much-loved episode on the mythical origins of popular sports. The question...
Episode #206- Were Magical Dwarves the First Hawaiians?
There are few pieces of Hawaiian folklore as beloved as the tales of the Menehune. This group of pint-sized magical wonderworkers have been given credit for building a number of Hawaii's oldest...
OFH Throwback- Episode #14- Did Gods Colonize the Pacific?
On this throwback episode we revisit Episode #14 from Season One of the podcast. The Pacific Ocean is the most expansive body of water on planet earth. Despite this fact ancient people managed to...
Episode #205- Why the Mona Lisa?
Leonardo Da Vinci's Mona Lisa is undoubtedly the world's most famous painting. But, despite this, many visitors to the Louvre come away disappointed after they see the masterpiece. The real-life...
Episode #204- Who Were the Magicians of the Golden Dawn?
In the late 19th century many Victorian's were experiencing a crisis of faith. Changing technology and scientific breakthroughs had many questioning the traditional explanations of humanities place...
OFH Throwback- Episode #31- What Was the Charge of the Light Brigade?
In this throwback episode we revisit Episode #31 from Season 2. The Crimean War cavalry action known as “the charge of light brigade” was immortalized by the poet Alfred Lord Tennyson. The poet...
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History, Education, Society & Culture