James Osborne

I’m James, a senior content producer at HistoryExtra. Working with leading historians, I research, write and edit features that answer the questions readers are genuinely curious about, and I’m always looking for engaging ways to help readers keep pace with the latest expert insights and discoveries from the history they’re interested in. As well as writing, I’m a host on the HistoryExtra podcast, where you’ll find me speaking with historians about some of my favourite historical topics; namely ancient history and the Viking Age! I also work behind the scenes on our videos, curate our medieval-focused newsletter for 15,000 subscribers, and write a monthly historical game review for our print magazine. I’m a qualified archaeologist with a BSc in Bioarchaeology from the University of York, specialising in archaeological science. I’ve worked in digital journalism for more than five years, covering culture and entertainment for a wide range of publications — and at one point I even ran my own website dedicated to prehistoric animals and extinction. Before joining HistoryExtra, I was a staff writer at Network N Media, reporting on film, TV and gaming, writing reviews and interviewing industry figures. As a freelance culture journalist, I’ve also contributed to outlets including Vulture, The AV Club, Radio Times, Digital Spy and GamesRadar.

Medieval manuscript illustration of two crowned kings embracing to symbolise an agreement.

Medieval

Did the Bible really inspire an early medieval king’s disgusting death?

Lucius Marcius Septimus, a Roman officer active during the Second Punic War in 3rd-century BC Hispania.

Roman

Meet the rebels who destroyed an ancient Roman legion with guerrilla warfare

Black-and-white portrait of a Vladimir Lenin.

20th Century

Why does Putin blame this infamous Russian revolutionary for Ukraine’s independence?

Illustration of the last Anglo-Saxon king, Harold Godwinson, crowned and holding a sceptre and orb, with scenes from the Bayeux Tapestry in the background.

Medieval

One of medieval history’s biggest mysteries has just been solved – and it rewrites 1066

A composite image showing Iron Age stone work against a green landscape.

Membership

For decades, this prehistoric grave was a mystery. Have its dark secrets now been revealed?. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Portrait of Queen Elizabeth I in an ornate gown with elaborate headdress, ruffled collar, and symbolic decorations.

Tudor

What did Elizabeth I really think about Anne Boleyn? These secret symbols might unlock the truth

Membership

The devastating Jewish revolt against the Roman empire. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Winston Churchill wearing round glasses and a bow tie reads from a document during a speech.

Cold War

Winston Churchill created the special relationship. Could Donald Trump kill it?

Composite image showing a medieval cesspit excavation alongside historic coins found within the deposit.

Medieval

From health to wealth, here are the strange secrets medieval toilets reveal about life in the Middle Ages

Portrait of French military officer Charles de Gaulle in uniform wearing a decorated kepi hat against a teal background.

Second World War

Meet the embattled French WW2 leader who withstood the Nazis – and Winston Churchill

Classical Greco-Roman-style statue lifting a modern dumbbell against a coloruful sky background.

Roman

Is this the best routine to boost your health? Yes, according to an ancient Roman intellectual

Medieval miniature illustration showing people looking from windows of neighboring houses while a man squats in a courtyard below.

Medieval

Were medieval toilets as filthy as you think?

Victorian coin with Queen Victoria’s profile placed beside a horseshoe and clover, traditional symbols of luck.

Victorian

Were the Victorians the luckiest people in history?

Membership

The forgotten wars that redefined Europe. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Statue of Queen Victoria with a humorous added cartoon smile and speech bubble reading “We are amused.”

Victorian

Think the Victorians were prudes? Their filthiest jokes will shock you

Illustration of Hannibal leading soldiers and war elephants across snowy Alpine mountains during his campaign against Rome.

General ancient history

Have archaeologists just found proof of ancient Carthage's legendary anti-Roman war weapon?

Composite image featuring a portrait of Winston Churchill over scenes of the Nuremberg Trials and soldiers carrying out wartime executions.

Second World War

Before the Nuremberg Trials, this was Winston Churchill’s shocking plan for Nazi war criminals

Composite image showing a portrait of a Nazi leader overlaid with handwritten documents and a concentration camp entrance with railway tracks.

Membership

How Nazi investigators used secret tools to create Hitler’s Holocaust ‘hitlist’. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

Ancient Egyptian wall painting showing a seated scribe writing on a papyrus scroll,.

General ancient history

3,100 years ago, ancient Egyptian workers defeated a God-King – without using any weapons

A composite image of Henry VIII against a backdrop of mysterious illustrations.

Tudor

The Tudor law that forced an occult practice underground for centuries

An Inuit hunter pursues a walrus from a skin-covered kayak in a historical illustration. Lightweight, seal-skin watercraft like these were a foundation of Arctic life, enabling hunters to travel, hunt and survive across some of the most dangerous waters on the planet.

Membership

4,500 years ago, Arctic Greenland's Paleo-Inuit made terrifying ocean voyages. Why did they risk it?. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

A Roman statue against a red background

Roman

From secret cults to Christianity, how did ancient Roman religion change so dramatically?

A U-boat at sea during the Second World War

Second World War

Step inside Hitler's U-boats to witness the nightmarish reality of life on board

A composite image of US President Franklin D Roosevelt in front of the US and Latin American national flags.

Second World War

In the aftermath of WW2, why did FDR’s Latin American experiment end in abject failure?

Woman stood in front of a table of food

Tudor

The simple secret that kept the ordinary Tudor diet surprisingly healthy

A composite of three WW2 tanks

Second World War

Quality or quantity? With WW2 tanks, there was a surprising winner

A statue of Roman emperor Domitian with the sun rising behind him.

Roman

Meet the “grossly underappreciated” Roman emperor who became the enemy of the ancient world

A still image from A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms showing an armoured knight with a lance.

Medieval

A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms is much more historically accurate than you think – here's why

Membership

Churchill and de Gaulle: a strange relationship. This is a premium piece of content available to subscribed users.

An illustration of the English King Aethelstan, in front of Viking silver.

Medieval

How England’s first king used an unexpected weapon to defeat the Vikings

You're currently on page 3

Prev Page

Next Page