Unholy Histories
The Humanist Heritage podcast from Humanists UK
The people and ideas behind the freedoms we take for granted, from the first atheists of ancient Greece to the humanists who rewrote Britain’s moral laws.
With Andrew Copson and Madeleine Goodall
Now playing · Episode 12 · 15 Jul 2026
The ‘open conspiracy’: how 94 humanists rewrote Britain’s moral laws
With Callum Brown
Every episode
Jump into history.
12
The ‘open conspiracy’: how 94 humanists rewrote Britain’s moral laws
With Callum Brown
15 Jul 2026
50:03
15 Jul 2026 · 50:03
11
Building the common good: humanism and the British welfare state with Neil Kinnock
With Neil Kinnock and Colin Tyler
8 Jul 2026
57:38
8 Jul 2026 · 57:38
10
Imagining better futures – humanist thought and the radical power of science fiction
With S.I. Martin and Katie MacGregor Stone
1 Jul 2026
53:48
1 Jul 2026 · 53:48
9
Can they suffer? Humanism beyond humans and the British animal rights tradition
With Helen Cowie and Andrew Fenton
24 Jun 2026
1:00:03
24 Jun 2026 · 1:00:03
See more episodes
8
Radical Empathy: Civil Rights and The Humanist Ideas That Changed Two Nations
With Nicholas Buccola and Angelina Osborne
17 Jun 2026
58:45
17 Jun 2026 · 58:45
7
The First Atheists: How Ancient Greece Questioned the Gods and Influenced Modern Thought
With Edith Hall and Tim Whitmarsh
10 Jun 2026
49:18
10 Jun 2026 · 49:18
6
Britain's Most Secular Parliament and the Battle That Built It
With David Nash and Lizzi Collinge MP
3 Jun 2026
42:19
3 Jun 2026 · 42:19
5
Who Really Wrote Human Rights? The Humanist Roots of the UDHR
With Bill Cooke and Francesca Klug
27 May 2026
51:06
27 May 2026 · 51:06
4
Born of Mary: LGBT+ Rights & Humanism Shared Fight for Freedoms
With Lesley Hall and Peter Parker
20 May 2026
57:57
20 May 2026 · 57:57
3
Good Without God: The Fight for Secular Education
With Susanna Wright and Lois Lee
13 May 2026
50:58
13 May 2026 · 50:58
2
Atheists Before the Enlightenment: Doubters Before the Age of Reason
With Michael Hunter and Patrick McGhee
6 May 2026
49:02
6 May 2026 · 49:02
1
Heroines of Freethought: The Women Who Defied God and the Patriarchy
With Annie Laurie Gaylor and Nan Sloane
29 Apr 2026
58:56
29 Apr 2026 · 58:56
Your hosts
Andrew Copson
Chief Executive of Humanists UK since 2010 and President of Humanists International. He is the author of Secularism: Politics, Religion, and Freedom and How to Be a Happy Human, a frequent voice for humanism on radio and television, and has represented humanists at the UN, the OSCE, and the Council of Europe.
Madeleine Goodall
Madeleine Goodall manages the Humanist Heritage project for Humanists UK. She has led it since its launch for our 125th anniversary in 2020, telling the stories of hundreds of lesser‑known humanists through talks, workshops, and heritage walks from Belfast to Norwich.
Photos: Matthew Horwood
Our guests
Historians, philosophers, writers, and politicians join Andrew and Madeleine on the people and ideas behind the freedoms we take for granted.
Special guests include Lord Neil Kinnock, Leader of the Labour Party from 1983 to 1992; Professor Edith Hall, classicist at Durham University; Professor Tim Whitmarsh, Regius Professor of Greek at Cambridge; human rights scholar Francesca Klug; historian, author, and Humanists UK patron S.I. Martin; and Lizzi Collinge MP, Chair of the All‑Party Parliamentary Humanist Group.
Including
S.I. Martin Historian, author, and Humanists UK patron
Lizzi Collinge MP Chair of the All‑Party Parliamentary Humanist Group
Show 17 more guests
- Callum Brown Historian and author of The Death of Christian Britain Episode 12
- Annie Laurie Gaylor Co‑President, Freedom From Religion Foundation Episode 1
- Dr Nicholas Buccola Professor of Humanism and Ethics, Claremont McKenna College Episode 8
- Dr Angelina Osborne Historian and co‑author of 100 Great Black Britons Episode 8
- Professor Michael Hunter Emeritus Professor of History, Birkbeck, University of London Episode 2
- Professor David Nash Historian of secularism; Senior Research Fellow, Jesus College, Oxford Episode 6
- Professor Colin Tyler Professor of Applied Ethics and Political Theory, University of Hull Episode 11
- Dr Helen Cowie Historian of animals, University of York Episode 9
- Dr Andrew Fenton Professor of Philosophy, Dalhousie University Episode 9
- Peter Parker Cultural historian and biographer; author of Some Men in London Episode 4
- Lesley Hall Historian of sexuality and retired archivist Episode 4
- Bill Cooke Historian; Senior Editor, Free Inquiry Episode 5
- Dr Lois Lee Senior Lecturer in Secular Studies, University of Kent Episode 3
- Dr Susanna Wright Associate Professor in the History of Education, Oxford Brookes University Episode 3
- Dr Patrick McGhee Honorary Research Fellow, Durham University Episode 2
- Katie MacGregor Stone Literary critic and researcher of science fiction and utopian literature Episode 10
- Nan Sloane Historian and writer on women in politics Episode 1
The stories behind every episode
Unholy Histories comes from Humanist Heritage, our project uncovering the humanist past across the UK: the people, groups, places, and objects that made it.
Also from Humanists UK
The humanist podcast with Andrew Copson
Well‑known humanists on the values, opinions, and convictions they live by.
Like our podcasts? We also have books, short films, free online courses, and a magazine. Read, watch, and listen