The Secret History of Everyday Stuff: Astounding, fascinating or remarkable facts about your daily life

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Greg Jenner (born 1982) is a British author and public historian with a particular interest in communicating history through pop culture and humour. [1] Early life [ edit ]

Thought history was only in museums? Think again! Join Greg Jenner as he takes you on a trip through the amazing history hidden in the things you use every day. Did you know that the first TV was made out of biscuit tins and knitting needles? Or that the humble paperclip helped lead an anti-war movement? Or that a few hundred years ago it was fashionable to style your hair with cat poo?! This is history – but not as you know it! With superstores, mega malls and big-box retailers filled with thousands of items for conspicuous consumption, modern-day consumers rarely stop to think about how certain products originated. Here’s a few that might surprise you: Paper Or Plastic? Since 2019, Jenner has presented a BBC Sounds podcast, You’re Dead To Me. Each episode sees him to talk to both a historian and comedian about a historical figure or time period. [16] As well as the streamed edition, a radio-edit version is broadcast on BBC Radio 4. In February 2023 the show won in the Best Radio Entertainment Show category at the Comedy.co.uk Awards. [17] Take a load off with a new podcast about sitting". Financial Times. 10 May 2021 . Retrieved 23 April 2023. A Million Years In A Day: A Curious History of Daily Life, From The Stone Age To The Phone Age (2015) in which he described how routines and habits today had their genesis in the past as well as highlighting contrasts in every day routines through the ages. [22] [23] [24]Richard Preston (21 February 2013). " Horrible Histories: 20 years of entertaining children". The Daily Telegraph. He has appeared more than once as a guest on QI spin-off podcast No Such Thing as a Fish. [9] [10] and has made appearances on the Simon Mayo [11] and the Steve Wright shows on BBC Radio 2. [12] Fara Dabhoiwala (18 March 2020). " Dead Famous by Greg Jenner review – a joyous history of celebrity". The Guardian . Retrieved 18 March 2020. You Are History: a funny children's history book by Greg Jenner". Greg Jenner . Retrieved 30 March 2023.

Jenner, Greg; Fletcher, Catherine; Wang, Phil (12 February 2021). "The Borgias". You're Dead To Me. BBC Radio 4 . Retrieved 21 August 2021.Early in the war effort, the government began employing scientists to develop a substitute for synthetic rubber. When James Wright mixed boric acid and silicone oil together at General Electric’s New Haven, Conn., labs, he thought he had discovered the answer. The result was a pliable compound that bounced farther than rubber even in extreme temperatures. While Wright’s discovery bombed as a synthetic rubber substitute, when unemployed advertising man Peter Hodgson got hold of some he was endlessly entertained by it and saw its marketing potential as a toy for children. Thought history was only in museums? Think again! Join Greg Jenner as he takes you on a trip through the amazing history hidden in the things you use every day. Did you know that the first TV was made out of biscuit tins and knitting needles? Or that the humble paperclip helped lead an anti-war movement? Or that a few hundred years ago it was fashionable to style your hair with cat poo?! Find out the delightful, daft and downright deadly history of your everyday life that your teachers won’t tell you about. Bursting with humorous illustrations and entertaining true stories, this is history – but not as you know it! Jenner has worked as an historical consultant on the Horrible Histories books and television shows. [3] Jenner has credited the success of Horrible Histories to a non-patronising approach to children’s television. [4]