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The Dubious Book of Famous Deeds

The Sonar Network

One day, Paul Bates found a book in an alley. It wasn’t a magical book, but it was very old - 132 years old, to be exact. It’s called The Pictorial Treasury of Famous Men and Famous Deeds: i...

Episodes

20 of 23 episodes

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39:23Jul 30, 2025

Chapter 19. Horatio Nelson, or: The Naval Gaze

Clare Blackwood joins me for the tale of Lord Admiral Nelson: commander of the Royal Navy, hero of the Napoleonic Wars, deadbeat husband. Li...

35:07Aug 1, 2022

Chapter 18. Samuel Colt, or: From My Old, Dead Hands

Guests Rhys Waters and Jesse Harley ('Canadian Politics is Boring') come for the weaponry and stay for the pyromania as we explore the life...

50:24Jul 25, 2022

Chapter 17. Walter Raleigh, or: Misadventure Time

Comedian Brandon Hackett is here for the story of Walter Raleigh, namesake of Raleigh, North Carolina: a great explorer, so we're told, but...

39:12Jul 11, 2022

Chapter 16. Sir Henry Holland, or: Lady Chatterley’s Doctor

In a surprisingly horny episode, comedian Ashley Botting is here for the story of Sir Henry Holland: physician to the wealthy, confidante to...

42:37Jul 4, 2022

Chapter 15. Great Lighthouse Disasters, or: Lead Belly

Alastair Forbes is here for stories about lighthouses! Specifically, stories about lighthouse disasters. We'll also hear a bit about John Sm...

56:43Jun 13, 2022

Chapter 14. John Milton, or: Walking Tour de Force

Allana Reoch is here to learn all the uncomfortably public details about legendary poet John Milton. Will Allana come around on him? Does sh...

48:26Jun 6, 2022

Chapter 13. Sir Edwin Landseer, or: Must Love Dog Art

The Dubious Book returns with an extremely funny episode about Queen Victoria's favourite painter, Edwin Landseer. Tim Baltz and Marty Adams...

50:12May 3, 2022

Season 2 Announcement!

Hi friends! Been a long time. But I'm happy to tell you that more episodes are just around the corner. Season 2 arrives May 3rd with with mo...

2:00Apr 19, 2022

Chapter 12. Edward Baines of Leeds, or: Trowel Drop

It's the season finale! Comedian Lisa Brooke is here for the rags to riches tale of Edward Baines, the newspaperman who had the distinction...

45:40Sep 27, 2021

Chapter 11. The Emancipation of the Serfs, or: Happy Butter Week

Just before slavery was abolished in the USA, tens of millions of Russian serfs also received their liberty. But was there a catch? Yes, of...

43:28Sep 20, 2021

Chapter 10. Columbus, Magellan, Da Gama & Vespucci, or: The Tale of Enrique

Paloma Nuñez joins me for the story of not one but four explorers: all famous, all psychos, as we dive into a very pro-colonial chapter. Bro...

46:33Sep 13, 2021

Chapter 9. Sir Titus Salt, or: The Silicon Valley of Wool

Kris Siddiqi and Nigel Downer are here to learn about Sir Titus Salt who, for reasons unexplained, built a city in his own name! Was it a Ch...

45:13Sep 6, 2021

Chapter 8. 19th Century Surgeons, or: Time Me Gentlemen, Time Me

Comedian Stacey McGunnigle is here to learn about Sir William Ferguson, Scottish surgeon, and stares aghast as we cut open and examine the w...

43:01Aug 30, 2021

BONUS – Nikola Tesla & the AC/DC War, or: Pour One Out for Topsy the Elephant

How many animals died to satisfy Thomas Edison's thirst for power? How did Nikola Tesla cause Mark Twain to soil himself? And how is former...

30:23Aug 26, 2021

Chapter 7. Thomas Edison, or: Innovation’s Greatest Monster

This contemporary account of Thomas Edison portrays the famed inventor as a brilliant wunderkind - but comedian Carson Pinch is here to tell...

52:17Aug 23, 2021

Chapter 6. Giovanni Dupré, or: How’s He Hiding the Genitals?

Jan Caruana (CBC's Because News) is here for the life and times of 19th Century Italy's second-greatest sculptor! From his sad childhood to...

48:19Aug 16, 2021

Chapter 5. Adolf Erik Nordenskiöld, or: Wall to Wall Freaks

Paul is reunited with Nug Nahrgang and Lee Smart of the comedy podcast Illusionoid. Together they learn the tale of Adolph Nordenskiöld, a m...

46:27Aug 9, 2021

Chapter 4. The Muscovy Company, or: A Huge Plot Hole in the History of the World

England's first attempt at maritime exploration was a disaster! But the survivors didn't come home empty-handed. Actor Christy Bruce is here...

45:41Aug 2, 2021

Chapter 3. The Longest Tunnel in the World, or: Don’t Worry, the Hospice is Just Around the Corner

Comedian Alastair Forbes could not be more disappointed to be on an episode about tunnels, but sticks around anyway for a whirlwind tour of...

45:32Jul 26, 2021