Good narrator and content

Pretty good detail without dragging it out too much, and a good narrator. Slightly monotonous after a while but I suppose that’s to be expected when we’ve had so many kings & queens over the years! Recommended.

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Mildly entertaining but

I gave up when all the Romano and Dark Age history seemed to be just closed over pop history without any actual evidence based conclusions.

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Brilliantly Irreverent

Exactly what it says on the tin, but very informative and insightful into the fallacy that is Great Britain, the conceit that was the British empire and quite possibly, the ‘own goal’ that is Brexit.

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Interesting

Interesting listen… I didn’t much of anything about the British monarchy cept for what we know now and a few of the popular names so it was good it listen to a few stories which has encouraged me to search for mire

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Sometimes funny, always informative.

This is an easy listen, made easier by the occasional humour.
It does what it says on the cover, highly recommend.

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HALF OF IT DEBATABLE.

A big chunk of this book is just the repeat of the agreed upon version of the past.
Napoleon said: What is history but a fable agreed upon.
Here are some of the debatable parts of this book.

Henry VII had as much reason to kill the Princesses as had Richard III. As winners write the history books, Henry VII made sure it was Richard III who was branded as the murderer.
Mary was no more bloody than Elisabeth I . Mary killed protestants, Elisabeth catholics in equal numbers. Again, winners write history, Elisabeth's evil deeds were toned down, Mary's amplified. The Armada was defeated by atrocious weather and weakness from disease and NOT by Elisabeth I , but it was good for propaganda.
The only reason the Royal Families stayed in the country during both wars was to continue the monarchy. They would had NOT been accepted back if they leave when there is crisis. I very much doubt that they were rationed as the rest . Probably tucked away safely and well cared for.
The English language became important not because of Great Britain but because of the USA.
Monarchy is just a perpetuating snobbery and an unjustified expense on tax payers.
My belief is: if they wish to play Kings and Queens then they should pay for it themselves. They have stolen enough money from the coffer done the centuries to afford that.

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2 people found this helpful

I’ve listened to it twice

Enjoyable and informative. Easy listening and entertaining which is how I’ve ended up listening twice. The irreverence makes it feel much more honest and interesting than many equivalent histories.

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It is appropriately titled.

I found this interesting & quite entertaining, so it was engaging. However, probably not surprisingly considering how little written records of ordinary folks lives, and where the drama was , it is heavy on the history of the monarchy & the most of the rest of the history is religion or politics. It has helped fill in some of my knowledge & understanding which somehow bypassed me in school & since. But I will probably need to listen again, as while the narration is clear it's relatively fast, & between that, the Author skipping forwards or going back a couple of generations, and there being lots of Edwards, Charles (in two countries) & George's it can be tricky to remember who's the subject matter @ any given moment & when/where in timeline you are.

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1 person found this helpful

Not Quite What It Says On The Tin

Now, this started very well, living up to the title until, oh, part-way through Elizabeth I. Thereafter the remit was discarded - a pity; I was eager for a different approach to the wars in Europe and the interminable bickering of Gladstone and Disraeli. Alas, no. I was tempted to archive it unfinished, but stuck with it because Peter Noble was making a reasonable fist of his job. 20th century was brief, though. The book ends in around 2007, so I suppose it's brief in that way...

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What an incredible piece of work!

I learned so much listening to this book, and enjoyed doing so all the way.

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