Episode 169: Drag: A British History by Jacob Bloomfield

In this episode of the podcast, we interview historian and author Jacob Bloomfield. His new book Drag: A British History is a groundbreaking study of the sustained popularity and changing forms of male drag performance in modern Britain. With this book, Jacob Bloomfield provides fresh perspectives on drag and recovers previously neglected episodes in the history of the art form. Despite its transgressive associations, drag has persisted as an intrinsic, and common, part of British popular culture—drag artists have consistently asserted themselves as some of the most renowned and significant entertainers of their day. As Bloomfield demonstrates, drag was also at the center of public discussions around gender and sexuality in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, from Victorian sex scandals to the "permissive society" of the 1960s. This compelling new history demythologizes drag, stressing its ordinariness while affirming its important place in British cultural heritage. For terms of use, please visit

You can listen to Episode 169: Drag: A British History by Jacob Bloomfield online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

Episode 169: Drag: A British History by Jacob Bloomfield is an episode from Versus History Podcast by www.versushistory.com.

This episode is 21:35 long.

This episode was published on Sep 7, 2023.

Yes. Use the heart button on the episode page to add it to your favorite episodes list.

Yes. This page shows related episodes from Versus History Podcast when more episodes are available from the podcast feed.