The Past and The Curious: A History Podcast for Kids and Families
by Mick Sullivan
From the publisher
A History Podcast for Kids! Parents love us, Teachers love us, and most importantly, kids do too! History can be amazing, inspiring and relevant to anyone.
Why we recommend it
History's funniest true stories and forgotten heroes, with a kid-friendly quiz built in — equal parts giggles and 'wait, that really happened?'
What The Past and The Curious: A History Podcast for Kids and Families is recognised for
Top rated
Rated 4.7 stars or better from at least 500 ratings. A fixed bar, not a top-ten slot — some months more shows clear it, some months fewer.
Every distinction here is either computed from the whole catalogue or picked by us and labelled as such. How each one is decided
Good for
Collections The Past and The Curious: A History Podcast for Kids and Families landed in, based on what its reviews say.
What parents actually say
High confidence · 160 detailed reviewsPlenty of detailed reviews to work from, so these patterns are pretty dependable. We summarise the 160 reviews long enough to describe the show, out of 359 in total — one-line raves don't tell you much.
Why parents put it on
The moments it actually gets used for.
- Great for car ridesTop9
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- “My family likes to listen in the car and I listen everywhere else.”
- “We listen to the past and the curious in the car and we love it!”
- Works at bedtime6
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- “Listen to this every night at bedtime…..”
- “I like to listen to this podcast at bedtime because it isn’t super stimulating but is interesting and makes learning history fun Although the quiz time music is a little sometimes”
- Works for mixed ages6
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- “My mom loves how it supports our homeschool curriculum with history stories, facts, music, and jokes in such an engaging way for all ages.”
- “Episodes are short and engaging for the whole family.”
- Great voices & acting4
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- “I share a birthday with micks son😎 God of nations at thy feet, In the bonds of love we meet, Hear our voices we entreat, God defend our free land, Guard pacific’s triple star,…”
- “The show has great narration and is quite excellent, ps: Nick in your latest pig episode you said that Kiser Wilhelm was emporeor Germany in 1859 however he only became monarch…”
What it's about
What comes up when parents describe it.
- History & mythologyTop49
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- “Please do more ancient history and hi Also rattle snake Kate RESPECT TO HER M A J O R R E S P E C T”
- “Whoever I’m talking too: umm random person I don’t need a history lesson 🙄😒👋 But are they right NO, “they are worse than right……” Book bunny 2018🌊- THE WATER”
- Storytelling & adventure19
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- “The show has great narration and is quite excellent, ps: Nick in your latest pig episode you said that Kiser Wilhelm was emporeor Germany in 1859 however he only became monarch…”
- “I love Hamilton the character you have to do an episode on them, but I also saw Andromeda Hamilton win and realized that Hamilton had a twin please do you wanna hurt you would l…”
- Humor & silliness18
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- “With a balance of funny segments, useful information, and just plain wackiness it’s the perfect bundle of fun!”
- “Great podcast for curious minds with cool facts, great quizzes, and plenty of laughs along the way!”
- Original songs & music11
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- “I’ve been singing the Hiney Brothers Coffee theme for YEARS now.”
- “HAMILTON PLEASEEEEE do one on the Schuyler sisters and Lin Manuel Miranda and the musical Hamilton please I love Hamilton I made an entire alternate universe for it I ❤️ Alexand…”
What it feels like
The mood parents describe.
- EducationalTop30
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- “Also I really annoy my friends and family with random facts like Me:Did you know that grape jelly was called grape-lade!”
- “With this podcast I’ve been able to ace my history tests, win trivia night, and annoy all my friends with random fun facts!”
- Funny17
See what they saidHide
- “With a balance of funny segments, useful information, and just plain wackiness it’s the perfect bundle of fun!”
- “Great podcast for curious minds with cool facts, great quizzes, and plenty of laughs along the way!”
- Engaging5
See what they saidHide
- “My mom loves how it supports our homeschool curriculum with history stories, facts, music, and jokes in such an engaging way for all ages.”
- “Episodes are short and engaging for the whole family.”
Who's actually listening
From the 7 reviews that name a child's age.
- Tweens (9-12)6
- Preschool (3-5)2
- Early elementary (6-8)2
How to read this: each number is how many reviews raised that topic in their own words — not a percentage or a score. Bars compare topics within a box only, so the longest bar is whatever came up most here, marked Top. The dots above show how much evidence we have, not how good the show is.
This summarises what reviewers said. It isn't our verdict, and we don't write reviews ourselves. See exactly how every number is calculated.
About The Past and The Curious: A History Podcast for Kids and Families
In the publisher's own words, as they describe the show on its feed.
A History Podcast for Kids! Parents love us, Teachers love us, and most importantly, kids do too! History can be amazing, inspiring and relevant to anyone. We love to share the stories of Spies, funny foods, George Washington's foibles, early advancements in cartooning and ballooning and much more! A professional music score and important songs accompany nearly every themed episode. Proud Kids Listen Member @pastandcurious
Parent reviews (359)
Real reviews from real parents — the ones we gather from public sources link back to where they were written, and the ones written here are marked as such.
Listened to The Past and The Curious: A History Podcast for Kids and Families?
Tell other parents what you thought. It takes a minute and genuinely helps.
LOVE ITTTTT
As I have already said LOVE ITTT But. Please do more ancient history and hi Also rattle snake Kate RESPECT TO HER M A J O R R E S P E C T
CHEEEEEEESE!!!!!! · Oct 2026
It’s awesome
I love this I have listened to almost EVREY episode and if people say this is bad they’re lying. I also want to make a 30 seconds.
C dogg 🐶🪿🐷🐹🐩❤️🩷 · Sep 2026
LOVE
He is SO GOATED it is SO good I listen to it 5 times a day. I LOVE IT !❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️ And don’t listen to those haters. Also I really annoy my friends and family with random facts like Me:Did you know that grape jelly was called grape-lade! Whoever I’m talking too: umm random person I don’t need a history lesson 🙄😒👋 But are they right NO, “they are worse than right……” Book bunny 2018🌊- THE WATER
BookBunny2018🌊 · Sep 2026
Dumbo
No one likes your show stop I DONT LIKE YOUR SHOW ON MY SCREEN no no no no stop stop
gjfdfjlygjh&c · Sep 2026
Soooooooooooooo good
THE BEST POD EVER I HAVE LISTENED TO EVERY EPISODE LIKE 2-5 TIMES OR MORE, I am so so so so happy every time I see that you have posted and listen the second I see it. I also listen when painting my nails, eating, car trips, and many other activities.I hope I could meet you sometime although I live so far away in NC I bought the underwear book and it was soooo good. Can’t wait for the next episode!!!!
I’m the only queen!!!!! · Sep 2026
It is so good
I listen all the time and I think an aus episode would be great but anyway I just love this show
Great show all the time · Sep 2026
Awesome meeting you!
It was so fun meeting you in April (or May? I don’t remember) Mick, you signed a t-shirt and guitar picks for me.
Fenrir553 · Sep 2026
Good so far
I’m only on episode 7 but I live it so far.
jnvfsekjfvn · Sep 2026
Showing the 120 most recent of 359 reviews we analysed. The summaries above use all of them.
Questions parents ask
What age is The Past and The Curious: A History Podcast for Kids and Families for?
The Past and The Curious: A History Podcast for Kids and Families is aimed at ages 7–12. In their reviews, parents most often mention tweens (9-12) and preschool (3-5).
How long are The Past and The Curious: A History Podcast for Kids and Families episodes?
Most episodes run about 33 minutes, so an episode fits comfortably into a school run or a bedtime routine.
Is The Past and The Curious: A History Podcast for Kids and Families any good?
It holds 4.7 out of 5 from 2,673 ratings, with 359 written parent reviews, which works out to an A on our scale.
Is The Past and The Curious: A History Podcast for Kids and Families appropriate for kids?
The Past and The Curious: A History Podcast for Kids and Families is marked clean, with no explicit content flag. Parents describe it as educational, funny, engaging.
Where can I listen to The Past and The Curious: A History Podcast for Kids and Families?
The Past and The Curious: A History Podcast for Kids and Families is available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, YouTube, Amazon Music and other podcast apps. It's free to listen to.
Why do parents recommend The Past and The Curious: A History Podcast for Kids and Families?
The point that comes up most is "great for car rides" — mentioned in 9 of the 160 reviews we analysed.
Episodes
60 to play, newest first
Hazards of The Wild: George Shannon, Rattlesnake Kate and more!
Oct 1, 2026 · 33 min
George Shannon was the youngest member of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, and his inexperience showed itself a time or two. He did get lost once for 16 days, the longest span of time anyone was separated from the expedition party. In the 1920s, a woman named Rattlesnake Kate captured imaginations after an encounter with 140 rattlesnakes. The result (in addition to fame) was a one-of-a-kind snakeskin dress.
Important Animals: Blisters, Shin Splints, Museum Spiders and more
Sep 17, 2026 · 16 min
The Bunion Derby (featured in the last episode) also featured a few four-legged friends, including dogs named Blisters and Shin Splints. We'll also re-visit the Pony Express and meet the Chilean Recluse Spiders who have lived peacefully at the Finnish Museum of Natural History for Decades.
Bunion Derby and Route 66
Aug 31, 2026 · 30 min
November of 2026 will mark the 100th Anniversary of Route 66, a highway that inspired road trips, neon signs, writers, singers, and even a movie about talking cars. But first, the Bunion Derby was a publicity stunt for attention on Route 66 and it was America's first cross-country ultra-marathon.
War and Pigs : Danish Protest Pigs and the Pig War of 1859
Jul 31, 2026 · 31 min
It was the best of swine, it was the worst of swine. This is a much requested episode: the great Pig War that almost launched a 3rd violent conflict between American and Great Britain. Enjoy the history and absurdity of it all. Also is the story behind an official breed of pigs known as Danish Protest Pigs.
Mary Katharine Goddard, Independence Hall, and The Declaration of Independence
Jul 1, 2026 · 34 min
Episode 119 looks at some key moment inside Indepedence Hall (and the time they almost tore it down). Likewise, we'll meet Mary Katharine Goddard, who published the first version of the Declaration to contain the names of all the signers. If you look closely, you can find her name on the important document too! And to start it off we learn about when Ben Franklin told Thomas Jefferson a story to help him understand the value of editing.
Emily the Cow, Geronimo The Beaver, and the Rostocker Pfeilstorch
Jun 17, 2026 · 18 min
An escaping cow, Operation Beaver Drop, and a migration mystery solved by a bird with a spear - all on this episode of Important Animals From History - Volume 4!
Lost Woods and Found Amendments
May 31, 2026 · 33 min
The story of the Lost 40 - an old growth forest in Minnesota that got lost for nearly a century thanks to a surveying error. We're talking lumberjacks, old growth trees, and silly mistakes. Also, the 27th Amendment which was brought back from the dustbin of history thanks to a college student who didn't get the grade he had hoped for on an essay!
Animals Vol 3: Signalman Jack, Cacareco, and Pickles!
May 18, 2026 · 17 min
Signalman Jack was a baboon who worked in the railway in South Africa. Cacareco was a Black Rhino elected to political office in Brazil. Pickles was the dog who found the missing World Cup trophy. All of them were awesome. All of them will be in Mick's upcoming book.
Past Scent (and Other Senses)
Apr 30, 2026 · 34 min
How did an extinct flower not seen since 1881 wind up being the subject of a modern day project to recreate a scent from the past? It was a long path from Dr. Charles Short in the 1860s to Dr. Christina Agapakis in the 2010s. And it's a cool story!
Animals: Mrs. O'Leary's Cow, Vic the Cat, and Mungo the Squirrel
Apr 16, 2026 · 17 min
The Second volume of Important Animals From History, from an upcoming book by Mick Sullivan.
Hidden and Lost
Mar 31, 2026 · 34 min
The Amber Room was a feat of artistic ability (and a lot of money) but after WWII it has disappeared entirely. Have you seen it? After that we learn about secret codes, the Enigma Machine, Alan Turing, Navajo Code Talkers and more!
Important Animals in History Vol. 1
Mar 16, 2026 · 16 min
The first release teasing Mick's upcoming book! This episode features three animals of note: Clara the Rhino, Mozart's Starling, and a whale named Mocha Dick. Let's ride through the tales of animals of history!