Two comedians coming together to discuss history like a gossip session
Comedians Blair MacMillan and Carley Thorne came together in late 2023 to launch their podcast “Truthtanic” based on their mutual hyper fixation, the sinking of the unsinkable ship, the Titanic. Spending whole episodes on topics from the makeup of the ship itself and the key passengers and crew, to the night of the sinking, conspiracy theories about the ship and the making of the iconic 90s film, Carley and Blair manage to explore the historical event while making jokes and communicating in a way that is distinctly girl. The first season established the podcast as a favorite of mine, and the hosts have only managed to improve going into the second and third.Â
Following the success of their first season, the two comedians decided to rebrand from “Truthtanic” to “Girl Historians.” This allowed them to discuss and explore more moments in history, beginning season two with a focus on The Salem Witch Trials. They said they wanted to highlight the Salem Witch Trials since so many moments in history cast women in side roles while the trials had women and young girls as main players in both the catalyst and throughout the court cases. While in the first season, Carley and Blair sport sailor hats somehow being both hilariously ironic and incredibly earnest, the second season sees them showing off their historical knowledge while wearing witch hats and fan-casting the people involved like they are writing fanfiction.
History podcasts, or podcasts that follow non-fiction stories like true crime, can have misconceptions of being plainly informative but not very entertaining. Many are designed to be merely learning tools, but Blair and Carley manage to balance the seriousness and tragedy of the stories while always maintaining a twinge of irony and showing off their comedic skills. While they seemingly don’t take things too seriously, their extensive research shines through despite their ironic tones and silly self-inserts. In the same vein as “My Favorite Murder,” these female comedians delve into research on their topics intermixed with comedy and discussions of popular culture that feel like gossiping with your best friends. During the Salem Witch Trials season, they spend an entire episode talking about “Wicked” and the Titanic season has an episode that only talks about famous people who were on the ship.Â
At the end of each episode, Carly and Blair shamelessly dive into their segment called “Let’s Make this Tragedy about Us” sarcastically role-playing how people were convinced that dogs were witches or asking questions to one another that lighten the mood like how they themselves would raise the Titanic. This segment perfectly illustrates the tone of the podcast without discrediting the historical events they are discussing or the extensive time and research they dedicate to the show.
As a feminine woman who is pursuing a history certificate, The “Girl Historians” podcast perfectly encapsulates all that I enjoy about learning history. While historical events should be treated with respect, people often take themselves too seriously, not highlighting some of the absurdity that occurs throughout time. Human beings have always been weird and history is full of bizarre occurrences which Carley and Blaire refuse to shy away from. I highly recommend this podcast to anyone who feels like learning history does not always need to be serious, and the hosts of “Girl Historians” go out of their way to showcase the events that interest and center women.Â