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Rattus gets Newton chatting to Nell Gwyn about his amazing scientific theories!

The writers and cast behind Horrible Histories wonder what it might be like if Isaac Newton had his own podcast. It is set at the time of his newly published theory of gravity.

Newton’s co-host is the actress, Nell Gwyn, who we soon learn is also mistress to King Charles II. Newton tries to explain his Laws of Motion but that only prompts Nell into talking about the time she managed to spike a rival mistress’s food to make her poop in the King’s bed.

There is a mock advert for a collection of Newton’s books on alchemy. There is also a quiz question about how Newton (genuinely) thought that wearing wax balls of toad vomit would protect someone from the plague.

Their final guest is the famous diarist Samuel Pepys, who it turns out is actually a huge fan of Nell Gwyn. He reveals what a forgetful person Newton is and they discuss gravity before Isaac wraps up.

Rattus offers some context at the top and tail of the episode, which also features two songs from the TV series – Right Round and Starting Over Again.

The minipod that goes with this episode features a deleted scene in which Newton tells Nell about The Royal Society – a prestigious club for scientists and other thinkers. Pepys reveals some very daft experiments that went on there at that time.

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16 minutes