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Was Queen Zenobia more successful than Cleopatra?In the third century AD, as Rome struggled against invasion, political chaos and a devastating military defeat, an extraordinary woman emerged from the Syrian desert to build an empire.Mike Bird is joined by historian Dr Nathanael Andrade, author of Zenobia: Shooting Star of Palmyra, to explore the dramatic rise of Zenobia, Queen of Palmyra.From the assassination of her husband to her remarkable military expansion across the Roman East, discover how Zenobia seized power, protected her young son and challenged the might of Rome itself.Part 1 of a two-part conversation. Subscribe to History's Last Stand to discover what happened when Rome finally fought back. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Was a sensational discovery of the earliest Gospel of Mark too good to be true?When rumours emerged of a first-century fragment of Mark's Gospel, biblical scholars and Christian apologists were electrified. Such a discovery could bring us astonishingly close to the original New Testament writings. But the manuscript's story took an extraordinary turn.Dr. Mike Bird is joined by Dr Stephen Carlson of Australian Catholic University to investigate the First Century Mark controversy, involving a renowned Oxford papyrologist, American manuscript collectors, allegations of stolen antiquities and a multimillion-dollar legal dispute.From the dating of ancient papyrus to the ethics of the antiquities trade, they explore how a genuine and important manuscript became the centre of a scandal, and what it reveals about the search for the earliest Christian texts.History's Last Stand with Michael Bird explores the extraordinary, controversial and sometimes unbelievable stories that shaped our world. Subscribe for a new episode every Wednesday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Did Jesus have a wife? For a brief moment, a tiny piece of ancient-looking papyrus appeared to offer extraordinary new evidence. The so-called Gospel of Jesus’ Wife was unveiled by a Harvard scholar and made headlines around the world. But there was a problem: the fragment was almost certainly a modern forgery. New Testament scholar Stephen Carlson joins Mike Bird to uncover the extraordinary story behind the papyrus. How did suspicious Coptic, material copied from the internet and a mysterious collector eventually expose the hoax? And what does the scandal reveal about money, academic ambition and confirmation bias? Carlson and Bird explore why even experts can be vulnerable when a discovery appears to confirm exactly what they hoped to find. History’s Last Stand with Mike Bird. Subscribe & Support 👉 Support thought-provoking conversations and help keep the show going at www.premierunbelievable.com/geolink/donate💡 🎧 Never miss an episode! Subscribe to the History's Last Stand podcast at History's Last Stand with Michael Bird - Premier Plus🎙️ 🔗 Get bonus content, updates, fascinating articles, and early access to new episodes - absolutely free! Join now at www.premierunbelievable.com/ 📢 Instagram: https://instagram.com/premierunbelievable Facebook: https://facebook.com/premierunbelievable Tik Tok: https://tiktok.com/@premier.unbelievable X: Premier Unbelievable? (@UnbelievableFE) Follow us Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

A lost gospel. A missing manuscript. And an extraordinary accusation of forgery.Mike Bird talks to New Testament scholar Stephen Carlson about the Secret Gospel of Mark, the sensational text discovered by Morton Smith in 1958.Was it an authentic window into early Christianity, an ancient fake, or an elaborate modern hoax?Carlson reveals the linguistic clues, anachronisms and apparent “Easter eggs” that led him to make the case against one of biblical scholarship’s most controversial discoveries.Subscribe & Support👉 Support thought-provoking conversations and help keep the show going at www.premierunbelievable.com/geolink/donate💡🎧 Never miss an episode! Subscribe to the History's Last Stand podcast at https://www.premier.plus/historys-last-stand-with-michael-bird🎙️🔗 Get bonus content, updates, fascinating articles, and early access to new episodes - absolutely free! Join now at www.premierunbelievable.com/ 📢 Follow usInstagram: https://instagram.com/premierunbelievableFacebook: https://facebook.com/premierunbelievableTik Tok: https://tiktok.com/@premier.unbelievableX: Premier Unbelievable? (@UnbelievableFE) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Why does Paul say women will be “saved through childbearing”? Mike Bird is joined by Dr Sandra Glahn, author of Nobody’s Mother, to explore Artemis of Ephesus, one of the ancient world’s most powerful goddesses. They uncover a cult intertwined with childbirth, magic, wealth and civic life, and ask how understanding Artemis changes the way we read Acts 19 and 1 Timothy. Was Paul’s controversial teaching about women understood very differently by its first-century audience? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was executed by the Nazi regime in April 1945. But his death was only the beginning of his extraordinary influence.In the final episode of this three-part series, Mike Bird talks to Bonhoeffer expert John McCabe about what happened after his execution, why many Germans initially regarded him as a traitor, and how his writings eventually made him one of the most influential Christian thinkers of the 20th century.They explore Bonhoeffer’s continuing influence on Christians confronting authoritarianism, apartheid and political oppression, including his surprising legacy among pro-democracy campaigners in Hong Kong.As Mike observes, tyrants eventually disappear, but the testimony of martyrs can endure.John McCabe is the author of Dietrich Bonhoeffer: The Last Eight Days.The episode centres especially strongly on Bethge’s striking observation that as Bonhoeffer’s freedom was progressively removed, his thinking gained power. After his death, “he began to speak more loudly than ever before”.Subscribe & Support👉 Support thought-provoking conversations and help keep the show going at www.premierunbelievable.com/geolink/donate💡🎧 Never miss an episode! Subscribe to the History's Last Stand podcast at https://www.premier.plus/historys-last-stand-with-michael-bird🎙️🔗 Get bonus content, updates, fascinating articles, and early access to new episodes - absolutely free! Join now at www.premierunbelievable.com/ 📢 Follow usInstagram: https://instagram.com/premierunbelievableFacebook: https://facebook.com/premierunbelievableTik Tok: https://tiktok.com/@premier.unbelievableX: Premier Unbelievable? (@UnbelievableFE) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Mike Bird continues his conversation with historian John McCabe, tracing Bonhoeffer’s involvement in the German resistance and reconstructing the extraordinary final days before his execution.Bonhoeffer had once seriously considered studying nonviolence with Gandhi. Yet faced with Hitler’s regime, he came to support the terrible choice that the Führer had to be removed. McCabe explains what Bonhoeffer actually knew, how deeply he was connected to the resistance and why the Gestapo eventually arrested him. Then the story becomes a dramatic countdown through a collapsing Germany: overcrowded prison vans, Allied bombing, acts of unexpected kindness, a British agent secretly sabotaging their transport and, finally, Bonhoeffer’s last Sunday service before the Gestapo came for him.Subscribe & Support👉 Support thought-provoking conversations and help keep the show going at www.premierunbelievable.com/geolink/donate💡🎧 Never miss an episode! Subscribe to the History's Last Stand podcast at https://www.premier.plus/historys-last-stand-with-michael-bird🎙️🔗 Get bonus content, updates, fascinating articles, and early access to new episodes - absolutely free! Join now at www.premierunbelievable.com/ 📢 Follow us Instagram: https://instagram.com/premierunbelievableFacebook: https://facebook.com/premierunbelievableTik Tok: https://tiktok.com/@premier.unbelievableX: Premier Unbelievable? (@UnbelievableFE) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a pastor, theologian and opponent of Hitler who was executed by the Nazis aged just 39. But has the Bonhoeffer of history become obscured by the Bonhoeffer of legend?Mike Bird is joined by historian John McCabe for the first of three episodes exploring Bonhoeffer’s life and death.They discuss the Confessing Church, his radical seminary at Finkenwalde, his decision to return to Germany as war approached and the difficult line between Christian discipleship, resistance and survival.McCabe also explains why he believes some modern portrayals have created an “imaginary figure” quite different from the man revealed by the historical evidence.Subscribe & Support👉 Support thought-provoking conversations and help keep the show going at www.premierunbelievable.com/geolink/donate💡🎧 Never miss an episode! Subscribe to the History's Last Stand podcast at https://www.premier.plus/historys-last-stand-with-michael-bird🎙️🔗 Get bonus content, updates, fascinating articles, and early access to new episodes - absolutely free! Join now at www.premierunbelievable.com/ 📢 Follow usInstagram: https://instagram.com/premierunbelievableFacebook: https://facebook.com/premierunbelievableTik Tok: https://tiktok.com/@premier.unbelievableX: Premier Unbelievable? (@UnbelievableFE) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What happens to Christianity when Christians forget their own past?Historian Sarah Irving-Stonebraker joins Mike Bird to argue that losing touch with 2,000 years of Christian history can leave faith vulnerable to consumerism, celebrity culture and even theological drift.From ancient Christian practices and the idea of becoming “priests of history” to the extraordinary story of Indigenous Australian Christian activist William Cooper, this conversation asks whether recovering the past could help Christians navigate the present.Subscribe & Support👉 Support thought-provoking conversations and help keep the show going at www.premierunbelievable.com/geolink/donate💡🎧 Never miss an episode! Subscribe to the History's Last Stand podcast at https://www.premier.plus/historys-last-stand-with-michael-bird🎙️🔗 Get bonus content, updates, fascinating articles, and early access to new episodes - absolutely free! Join now at www.premierunbelievable.com/ 📢Follow usInstagram: https://instagram.com/premierunbelievableFacebook: https://facebook.com/premierunbelievableTik Tok: https://tiktok.com/@premier.unbelievableX: Premier Unbelievable? (@UnbelievableFE) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What happens to a society when it forgets its history, or rewrites the past to serve the politics of the present?Historian and Priests of History author Sarah Irving-Stonebraker joins Mike Bird to explore why history departments are disappearing, why the past has become a battleground in today’s culture wars, and whether any historian can truly escape ideological bias.From the British Empire and Indigenous Australia to Marxism, Christianity and the origins of human rights, this is a fascinating conversation about who gets to tell our history, what happens when we lose it, and why the past may matter more than ever.Watch the full conversation below, or listen to the podcast.Subscribe & Support👉 Support thought-provoking conversations and help keep the show going at www.premierunbelievable.com/geolink/donate💡🎧 Never miss an episode! Subscribe to the History's Last Stand podcast at https://www.premier.plus/historys-last-stand-with-michael-bird🎙️🔗 Get bonus content, updates, fascinating articles, and early access to new episodes - absolutely free! Join now at www.premierunbelievable.com/ 📢 Follow usInstagram: https://instagram.com/premierunbelievableFacebook: https://facebook.com/premierunbelievableTik Tok: https://tiktok.com/@premier.unbelievableX: Premier Unbelievable? (@UnbelievableFE) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Alexander the Great is dead, but the struggle for his empire is only getting bloodier. Mike Bird and Tristan Hughes trace the rise of Antigonus, Seleucus, Ptolemy and Cassander as alliances collapse, royal heirs are murdered and rival generals declare themselves kings. Discover how Seleucus retook Babylon, why Demetrius earned the name “the Besieger”, and how the failed siege of Rhodes helped create one of the wonders of the ancient world. The story culminates at the Battle of Ipsus, where hundreds of war elephants decide the fate of Alexander’s empire. Mike and Tristan also explore the origins of the Ptolemaic and Seleucid kingdoms, their impact on Judea and the Book of Daniel, and the first dramatic clashes between the Hellenistic world and rising Rome. Who would become Alexander’s true successor?Subscribe & Support👉 Support thought-provoking conversations and help keep the show going at www.premierunbelievable.com/geolink/donate💡🎧 Never miss an episode! Subscribe to the History's Last Stand podcast at https://www.premier.plus/historys-last-stand-with-michael-bird🎙️🔗 Get bonus content, updates, fascinating articles, and early access to new episodes - absolutely free! Join now at www.premierunbelievable.com/ 📢Follow us Instagram: https://instagram.com/premierunbelievableFacebook: https://facebook.com/premierunbelievableTik Tok: https://tiktok.com/@premier.unbelievableX: Premier Unbelievable? (@UnbelievableFE) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Alexander the Great is dead, and his generals are tearing his empire apart. In episode two of History’s Last Stand, Mike Bird and historian and The Ancients podcaster Tristan Hughes explore the brutal struggle for power that followed Alexander’s death. Ptolemy seizes Alexander’s body and takes it to Egypt, while Perdiccas launches a disastrous invasion to recover it and secure his claim to rule. What follows is a gripping story of military deception, war elephants, a catastrophic Nile crossing, soldiers devoured by crocodiles, and betrayal inside Perdiccas’ camp. As rival commanders battle for legitimacy, Alexander’s empire begins to fracture into competing kingdoms. Mike and Tristan unpack the ambition, violence and political chaos that shaped the Hellenistic world and paved the way for new powers, including Rome. A dramatic tale of empire, rivalry and collapse. More from Tristan Hughes https://www.instagram.com/ancientstristan/More from Mike Bird Subscribe & Support 👉 Support thought-provoking conversations and help keep the show going at ⁠www.premierunbelievable.com/geolink/donate⁠💡 🎧 Never miss an episode! Subscribe to the History's Last Stand podcast at ⁠https://www.premier.plus/historys-last-stand-with-michael-bird⁠🎙️ 🔗 Get bonus content, updates, fascinating articles, and early access to new episodes - absolutely free! Join now at ⁠www.premierunbelievable.com⁠/ 📢 Follow us Instagram: ⁠https://instagram.com/premierunbelievable⁠ Facebook: ⁠https://facebook.com/premierunbelievable⁠ Tik Tok: ⁠https://tiktok.com/@premier.unbelievable⁠ X: ⁠Premier Unbelievable? (@UnbelievableFE) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

History is under siege, and Mike Bird is taking a stand. In the launch episode of Premier Unbelievable’s podcast, the host of Ask NT Wright Anything joins Tristan Hughes, presenter of The Ancients, to explore the violent aftermath of Alexander the Great’s death. With no undisputed heir, Alexander’s generals, soldiers and family plunge the empire into crisis. Perdiccas rises as regent, Meleager meets a brutal end, Ptolemy claims Egypt, and rival commanders divide the conquered world at the Partition of Babylon. Then comes one of antiquity’s most audacious heists: the seizure of Alexander’s body and magnificent funeral carriage. Packed with mutiny, ambition, assassinations, elephants and intrigue, this opening chapter reveals how quickly Alexander’s empire began to fracture and why the Wars of the Successors remain among antiquity’s most extraordinary struggles. Subscribe & Support👉 Support thought-provoking conversations and help keep the show going at www.premierunbelievable.com/geolink/donate💡 🎧 Never miss an episode! Subscribe to the History's Last Stand podcast at https://www.premier.plus/historys-last-stand-with-michael-bird🎙️ 🔗 Get bonus content, updates, fascinating articles, and early access to new episodes - absolutely free! Join now at www.premierunbelievable.com/ 📢 Follow us Instagram: https://instagram.com/premierunbelievable Facebook: https://facebook.com/premierunbelievable Tik Tok: https://tiktok.com/@premier.unbelievable X: Premier Unbelievable? (@UnbelievableFE) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

History is under siege, and Mike Bird is taking a stand. In the launch episode of Premier Unbelievable’s podcast, the host of Ask NT Wright Anything joins Tristan Hughes, presenter of The Ancients, to explore the violent aftermath of Alexander the Great’s death. With no undisputed heir, Alexander’s generals, soldiers and family plunge the empire into crisis. Perdiccas rises as regent, Meleager meets a brutal end, Ptolemy claims Egypt, and rival commanders divide the conquered world at the Partition of Babylon. Then comes one of antiquity’s most audacious heists: the seizure of Alexander’s body and magnificent funeral carriage. Packed with mutiny, ambition, assassinations, elephants and intrigue, this opening chapter reveals how quickly Alexander’s empire began to fracture and why the Wars of the Successors remain among antiquity’s most extraordinary struggles. Subscribe & Support 👉 Support thought-provoking conversations and help keep the show going at www.premierunbelievable.com/geolink/donate💡 🎧 Never miss an episode! Subscribe to the Unbelievable? podcast at www.premier.plus/unbelievable 🎙️ 🔗 Get bonus content, updates, fascinating articles, and early access to new episodes - absolutely free! Join now at www.premierunbelievable.com 📢 Follow us Instagram: https://instagram.com/premierunbelievable Facebook: https://facebook.com/premierunbelievable Tik Tok: https://tiktok.com/@premier.unbelievable X: Premier Unbelievable? (@UnbelievableFE)

History's Last Stand is coming soon! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices