August 2025 - The MrT Podcast Studio

TH2024 Ep08 India before the British

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:14:17 — 68.0MB)

Season 2024 – Talk 08 – A History of India before the British

In ‘A History of India before the British‘ Alan Freeland tells us that in the next few of years India’s likely to become the world’s third largest economy. To benefit from this we’ll need to understand India a lot more than we do today as we are very ignorant of our history in India.

Size:

The talk focuses on India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh. Alan uses the word India when referring to the three countries that are referred to as South Asia. Roughly speaking, if you take Russia out of Europe, then Europe and South Asia are about the same physical size, but the population is three times that of Europe.

It’s the size of India’s population that has always been its greatest strength and asset.

Buddhism:

Although Buddhism starts in India, it is no longer dominant, apart from in Sri Lanka. It is one of India’s cultural exports to those countries who today have a significant Buddhist population.

Culture and Philosophy:

The section on the origins of the Indian culture looks at the Indus Valley civilisation and the Vedic period. This is a time critical in forming the Indian culture and philosophy. The philosophy lives on today.

For a millennium and a half, from about 250 BCE to 1280, India confidently exports its diverse civilisation. It creates a vast body of ideas where its influence is predominant. The rest of Asia willingly receives this mass transfer of Indian soft power, art, religions, technology, astronomy, music, dance, literature, mathematics and mythology.

Written history:

The first manuscripts, recording personal history, date from the arrival of the Muslims. Prior to this historians mostly have to rely on inscriptions, on temples, for example.

Indian history can be characterised by a multitude of independent kingdoms and empires with occasionally interruptions by short-lived large empires. The exact opposite of China.

Listen to Alan tell us the full story of religions, castes, empires, the coming of the Europeans and intrigue.

About this podcast:

Unfortunately many of the images used in the original presentation are subject to copyright and therefore cannot be published alongside this podcast.

This is an edited recording of a talk given to the Farnham u3a World History: Ancient, Medieval and Modern Group.

This podcast is also available through Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, Deezer, Podchaser, Spotify, Stitcher , Vurbl , You Tube and others.

AKM Music licenses Media Magazine for use with this talk.

UKRJ S2 Ep07 Sheffield Railway Station

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 19:05 — 17.5MB)

Sheffield Railway Station and on to Swinton – UK Rail Journeys Series 2 – Episode 07

In ‘Sheffield Railway Station and on to Swinton‘ I visit Sheffield Station and then start my journey with Northern Rail to Leeds. Today only part of my journey is on the true route of the Thames Clyde Express.

Please click on a thumbnail to see the photographs that go with the podcast:

Sheffield Station:

The ‘railway mania’ sees the Manchester Sheffield and Lincoln Railway, the London and Northwestern Railway and the Midland Railway building lines across the steep hills and valleys into the city..

Sheffield (Midland) station opens in 1870 as Pond Street. There are extensions in 1905 and a major redevelopment completes in 2006.

I want to see the Sheffield Tap which runs a brewery on the station. It is in the former First Class Edwardian refreshment and dining rooms. Restoration means that the rooms are now in their original condition.

In the 1970s British Rail converts the refreshment room into a waiting room and pushes the damaged front bar to the rear of the room. They remove the ornate fireplace and other features. Vandals soon get to work!

In 1976 it is and left to decay. In 2008, the restoration began. Private investment and grants lead to repairs and replication where required. The barrel plaster ceiling is a replica of the old one. Handmade, the work of a local contractor.

The operators of the Sheffield Tap say that they’re only the caretakers of the publicly owned Grade II listed building.

Meadowhall:

I take the train for the short journey to Meadowhall station which serves the Meadowhall Shopping Centre. The Centre is built on land that used to be part of the Sheffield steel industry.

Onwards:

I then take the train for Leeds passing through the rather depressing Rotherham Central station. By the end of the episode I have reached Swinton station.

Off piste:

It is not possible to follow the route of the Thames Clyde because of mining subsidence in the area which has resulted in the removal of parts of the track.

Listen to the podcast to hear about Sheffield Station and the journey to Swinton.

This podcast is also available through Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, Podchaser, Spotify, YouTube and others.

Music:

AKM Music licenses Steam Railway and Lovin’ It for use in this podcast and The Tavern is licensed from Joseph McDade.

TH2024 Ep07 1832 Reform Bill

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 42:35 — 39.0MB)

Season 2024 – Talk 07 – 1832 Reform Bill – – did it avoid a revolution?

In the ‘1832 Reform Bill – did it avoid a revolution‘ Robert Sykes tells us that whilst the parliamentary system in Britain is genuinely old, real democracy is arguably under a hundred years old.

The 1832 Reform Bill:

The first significant reform of the parliamentary system results in the Bill of 1832. Robert spends some time on the system before the Bill. He explains why it needs change. We hear of the growth of the reform movement and the people who want to change the way Parliament is set up.

Before 1832:

This talk is mostly about England. Before 1832 each county has two Members of Parliament irrespective of the size of the population. That’s rather like the US Senate. This means that Yorkshire with 20,000 voters has the same number of members as Rutland with less than a thousand voters. Although this isn’t an ideal situation it gives representation to different parts of the country.

There are also 203 boroughs. These are are determined by different approaches, many historical, across the country.

Whilst, in the Middle Ages a number of boroughs have quite a large number of voters, by the 1830s many have changed.

Potwalloper Boroughs:

In these every male head of household with a hearth large enough to boil a pot has the vote. An example is Preston in Lancashire.

There is corruption to get the votes. The Times tells of two candidates. One extols the virtue of the system saying ‘How wonderful it is that all people can have the vote in this way, that you can act independently’.

The other says ‘Never mind him, I’ll give you something to put in your pot.’ An open bribe for his vote.

There is no secret ballot and voting is visible to everyone.

Rotten Boroughs:

There are many so-called rotten boroughs. These date from the middle ages and have changed significantly.

Dunwich in Suffolk becomes parliamentary constituency in 1296 when it has a thriving port rivalling London. It then falls into the sea as erosion takes place. In 1831 there are only 44 houses there. It still elects two Members of Parliament.

One is the Downing family who chose an MP from their relations and the other is in the gift of the Duke of Newcastle. He sells the right to be an MP for a thousand pounds.

A system in need of change:

There is much political wrangling. Those who appear to favour change may be holding it back whilst others who are against change risk revolution and a run on the banks.

Listen to Robert tell us the full story which is full of intrigue and possible double dealing.

About this podcast:

Unfortunately the images used in the original presentation are subject to copyright and therefore cannot be published alongside this podcast.

This is an edited recording of a talk given to the Farnham u3a World History: Ancient, Medieval and Modern Group.

This podcast is also available through Amazon Music, Apple Podcasts, Castbox, Deezer, Podchaser, Spotify, Stitcher , Vurbl , You Tube and others.

AKM Music licenses Media Magazine for use with this talk.