History Behind the Headlines: Briefing

"This is not Winston Churchill we're dealing with," US president Donald Trump remarked of prime minister Sir Keir Starmer earlier this week. The comment came among the international tension sparked by US-Israeli military action against Iran, and specifically the UK government's initial refusal to let United States forces use the British base at Diego Garcia.

 

But what's the longer history at play here – both in the analogy to Britain's wartime PM, and of the use of American military bases in British territory? In this episode of HistoryExtra’s series History Behind the Headlines: Briefing, Sam Edwards from Loughborough University looks at some of the historical context behind the escalating situation in the Middle East.

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HISTORY BEHIND THE HEADLINES

For further historical analysis of the latest breaking news, don't miss HistoryExtra's History Behind the Headlines podcast: https://play.megaphone.fm/vv4s-xn6tfmntfojkacmna 

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Headlines in recent days have highlighted calls from the members of governments of various Commonwealth countries to remove Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor from the royal line of succession. Mountbatten-Windsor was released under investigation after being arrested on 19 February on suspicion of misconduct in public office. He has always denied any wrongdoing.

In this episode of HistoryExtra’s series History Behind the Headlines: Briefing, Craig Prescott – a specialist in UK constitutional law and the role of the monarchy based at the Royal Holloway University of London – explores the longer history of the royal line of succession.

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HISTORY BEHIND THE HEADLINES

For further historical analysis of the latest breaking news, don't miss HistoryExtra's History Behind the Headlines podcast: https://play.megaphone.fm/vv4s-xn6tfmntfojkacmna 

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GO BEYOND THE PODCAST If you’ve enjoyed this episode, why not become a member of HistoryExtra for access to thousands of ad-free podcasts, hundreds of hours of video and a huge archive of articles from leading historians: https://www.historyextra.com/subscribe/
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Headlines in recent weeks have highlighted the negative impact that recent acrimony between the United States and Europe has had on transport and tourism, with the number of visitors making the transatlantic trip reportedly down – in both directions. 

 

Yet political friction in the US-Europe relationship is nothing new, and in this episode of HistoryExtra’s series History Behind the Headlines: Briefing, Sam Edwards from Loughborough University charts the longer links between tension and tourism.

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HISTORY BEHIND THE HEADLINES

For further historical analysis of the latest breaking news, don't miss HistoryExtra's History Behind the Headlines podcast: https://play.megaphone.fm/vv4s-xn6tfmntfojkacmna

 

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GO BEYOND THE PODCAST If you’ve enjoyed this episode, why not become a member of HistoryExtra for access to thousands of ad-free podcasts, hundreds of hours of video and a huge archive of articles from leading historians: https://www.historyextra.com/subscribe/
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Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, younger brother of King Charles, has now been released under investigation following his arrest yesterday (19 February 2026) on suspicion of misconduct in public office. The news followed an announcement by Thames Valley Police that they were assessing a complaint over the alleged sharing of confidential material by the former prince with late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Mountbatten-Windsor has previously denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein, but the arrest is the latest development in a scandal that could prove enormously damaging for the royal family.

 

In this episode of HistoryExtra’s series History Behind the Headlines: Briefing, Hannah Skoda from the University of Oxford looks back at other historical instances of royals being arrested – and the reasons behind their brushes with the law.

 

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HISTORY BEHIND THE HEADLINES

For more in-depth thoughts from Hannah Skoda on the historical parallels of the news of Andrew's arrest, don't miss next Thursday's episode of our History Behind the Headlines podcast. For more details and to follow now for the latest updates, click here: https://play.megaphone.fm/vv4s-xn6tfmntfojkacmna

 

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GO BEYOND THE PODCAST 
If you’ve enjoyed this episode, why not become a member of HistoryExtra for access to thousands of ad-free podcasts, hundreds of hours of video and a huge archive of articles from leading historians: https://www.historyextra.com/subscribe/
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Japan's first female prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, achieved a landslide election victory last week – as rumours swirled online that the CIA had been predicting that outcome before the polls even closed. Whatever the truth of those claims, it's not the first time that potential connections have been drawn between the American intelligence agency and Japanese politics.In this episode of HistoryExtra’s series History Behind the Headlines: Briefing, Chris Harding from the University of Edinburgh investigates the interplay between America and Japanese politics since the depths of the Cold War.

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GO BEYOND THE PODCAST 

For further historical analysis of the latest breaking news, don't miss HistoryExtra's History Behind the Headlines podcast: https://play.megaphone.fm/vv4s-xn6tfmntfojkacmna

And if you’ve enjoyed this episode, why not become a member of HistoryExtra for access to thousands of ad-free podcasts, hundreds of hours of video and a huge archive of articles from leading historians: https://www.historyextra.com/subscribe/
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