Podcasts to Accompany Your Reading

Stephen Fry joins Holland and Sandbrook for a wide-ranging conversation on Homer, myth, archaeology, and the lasting significance of the story of Troy. Episode 13 is the main entry point on Homer, and the back catalogue includes dozens of further episodes on the Bronze Age, Greek culture, and the ancient Mediterranean. Holland is also a classicist and the author of Rubicon and Dynasty. The podcast is available on all major podcast platforms.

The Iliad episode and the Odyssey episode are the two most relevant installments, and both are found by searching "Natalie Haynes Iliad" on BBC Sounds. Each episode focuses on a single classical text or figure and presents the material in an immediate, lively manner. The series serves as an introduction to classical literature across any format. It is free on BBC Sounds.

Mary Beard, a Cambridge classicist and the author of SPQR, brings ancient texts to contemporary audiences with candor and rigor. The episodes on Greek literature, women in antiquity, and the reception of classical culture are the most relevant to Homeric study. The series suits listeners who have completed the Haynes episodes.

This podcast offers broader coverage of the ancient Mediterranean world, with episodes on Bronze Age archaeology, Homeric scholarship, Troy, and Greek culture. It supplements the other series with greater depth on specific topics such as Bronze Age trade, Mycenaean warfare, and the Sea Peoples. The episodes are organized for searching by topic rather than for sequential listening.

The foundational history podcast — 179 episodes covering the full arc of Roman history from founding to fall. Not directly about Homer, but essential context for the Roman works in the After the Iliad section. Begin at episode 1. Duncan's series set the template for narrative history podcasting and remains one of the best ever made.

An Italian-language option for the adventurous reader. Barbero is one of Europe's most beloved historians — a specialist at the University of Turin whose lectures on the ancient warrior ethos are available on YouTube. His extraordinary gift for inhabiting the minds of people from the distant past makes him essential listening for anyone reading the Iliad's battle scenes. His energy and narrative clarity translate even across the language barrier.