Plot Twisted History
A podcast that delivers history stories with plot twists. David Nix, a writer of historical fiction, brings biweekly historical tales that twist and turn like a good mystery novel. Whether offering new stories or new insights, this podcast drags you down the rabbit holes of history in search of the magical surprise. Find me at davidjnix.com.
Episodes
4 days ago
026: The Hollywood Ending
4 days ago
4 days ago
The sieging of walled cities by invading armies is a dismal tale as old as history. However, one siege stands out from them all – as if it had been scripted by Hollywood screenwriters for its surreal origin, bizarre dramatics, and jaw-dropping ending. This episode tells the hard-to-believe story of the 1683 Siege of Vienna.
Tuesday Jun 17, 2025
025: Did Shakespeare Write Shakespeare?
Tuesday Jun 17, 2025
Tuesday Jun 17, 2025
Though he is considered the greatest and most influential English language writer of all time, William Shakespeare’s authorship of the plays that bear his name has been doubted for at least two centuries. How did these theories arise? Is there any credence to them? Well, the iron simplicity of the answers might surprise you.
Tuesday Jun 03, 2025
024: Into The Fire - Augustina of Aragon
Tuesday Jun 03, 2025
Tuesday Jun 03, 2025
Faced with certain death from the guns and bayonets of attacking French troops, a young woman supplying water to Spanish soldiers should have joined the defenders in fleeing the battle. However, her immense courage would not allow retreat; her deep patriotism would not abide surrender. So she stayed, and a legend was born. This episode tells the astounding story of Augustina of Aragon.
Tuesday May 20, 2025
023: Death Angels - The Nyos Disaster
Tuesday May 20, 2025
Tuesday May 20, 2025
When a mass death event strikes a remote region of Africa in 1986, the initial facts are so freakishly weird that even those most skeptical of anything supernatural pause to reconsider with the question, “What in the world just happened here?” As scientists doggedly unravel the truth, the baffling story becomes no less troubling. This episode tells the story of the nearly forgotten mystery of the Nyos disaster.
Tuesday May 06, 2025
022: The Problem Solver - Hedy Lamar
Tuesday May 06, 2025
Tuesday May 06, 2025
Graced with a stunning face that could launch a thousand ships, Hedwig Kiesler ricocheted repeatedly between fame and scandal. But while no one was looking, she created an innovation so startling that it literally changed the world – an invention that is likely affecting you at the very moment you are reading this. The astonishing story of Hedy Lamarr.
Tuesday Apr 22, 2025
021: The Man Who Wouldn't Die - Iron Mike Malloy
Tuesday Apr 22, 2025
Tuesday Apr 22, 2025
During the darkest days of The Great Depression, three men plot to kill a local drunk, make it look like an accident, and collect insurance money on the corpse. However, the plan goes comically awry when the target of the murder scheme simply refuses to die. The astonishing tale of Iron Mike Malloy and the men who wished him dead.
Wednesday Apr 09, 2025
020: Good Intentions, Bad Inventions
Wednesday Apr 09, 2025
Wednesday Apr 09, 2025
Two sticky technological problems give way to nearly miraculous inventions. However, the miracles come with an unexpected price: the possible future of humanity. This episode tells the twisted story of a pair of seemingly harmless 20th-century inventions that nearly ended us all.
Tuesday Mar 25, 2025
019: Cinderella Unchained - Caroline Herschel
Tuesday Mar 25, 2025
Tuesday Mar 25, 2025
She is a forgotten member of her family – the youngest girl, the smallest, the most disposable – relegated to a life of chores and servitude with no hope for a brighter future. However, when the smallest sliver of opportunity appears, she seizes it with a vengeance to plot a path that will take her to the stars. This episode covers the amazing and improbable life of Caroline Herschel.
Tuesday Mar 11, 2025
018: The Solid Gold Man - Mansa Musa
Tuesday Mar 11, 2025
Tuesday Mar 11, 2025
One of the wealthiest men in human history set out on a medieval journey whose logistics are nearly too astonishing to be believed. How he used his wealth stands in stark contrast to the havoc wreaked by the uber rich of today. This episode tells the story of Mansa Musa, perhaps the richest man who ever lived.
Tuesday Feb 25, 2025
017: Catching the Mother Killer - Ignaz Semmelweis
Tuesday Feb 25, 2025
Tuesday Feb 25, 2025
Vienna of 1840 faces a deadly mystery. Pregnant women are entering its Clinic Number 1 and never leaving, killed in high numbers by deathbed fever. When a prickly doctor doggedly uncovers the reason, he is punished for his theory. And young mothers keep dying. The cautionary tale of Dr. Ignaz Semmelweis.

Plot Twisted History
As a writer of historical fiction, I spend far too much time following rabbit trails of history in search of good stories. Those that intrigue me most are stories that feature a good, Agatha Christie style plot twist.
In this podcast, I tell you stories from history that suddenly veer into strange territory and hopefully leave you at least a little agape. Some of these stories you will have heard before, but many should be new to you. In either case, I will tell the story in service of the surprise.
Half of these stories feature women. For thousands of years, historians have routinely changed, forgotten, or actively erased the historical acts of women. Which means we have a lot of catching up to do
Contact me or subscribe to my newsletter at www.davidjnix.com