I used to listen to podcasts basically all day at work (employee of the year?) which led me to start to look for some long-form content. I forget exactly how, but I eventually stumbled upon Dan Carlin's Hardcore History. Carlin's background is in journalism-making him a mere history "enthusiast" as opposed to a "real historian" or academic. Nonetheless, he's very thorough and captivating to the point that he holds your attention through 4-5 hour single subject monologues, punctuated by no music, ads, or guest speakers-just his own takes punctuated by quotes from primary and secondary sources. My personal favorite series was "Wrath of the Khans", a detail of the rise of the Mongol Empire and its blood soaked, world-changing conquests of medieval China, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe. Sadly, his older content is behind a paywall because he isn't ad-supported, but here's the link. https://www.dancarlin.com/product/hardcore-history-wrath-of-the-khans-series/.

-- SpencerBecerra - 23 Feb 2022