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The Sword Guy Podcast
Episode 200 with Michael Chidester: sharing hidden treasures
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to: https://swordschool.shop/blogs/podcast/episode-200-with-michael-chidester-sharing-hidden-treasures To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy For our two hundredth episode it’s the welcome return of Michael Chidester. Michael is the architect of Wiktenauer, the online archive of historical martial arts sources. He's also the founder of HEMA Bookshelf, which produces stunningly good facsimiles of historical sources, such as the Getty manuscript of Fiore dei Liberi’s Il Fior di Battaglia. He also produces a whole bunch of acade...
2024-12-06
1h 30
The Sword Guy Podcast
What Makes a Warrior? With Cain Maxwell
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/what-makes-a-warrior-with-cain-maxwell/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Cain Maxwell is an instructor of physical culture, who's been teaching physical skills his entire life, from swimming to military firearms to ballroom dancing, even. And now he is teaching mounted martial arts and runs a school called Martial Equestrian, a mounted combat school in Hinckley, Ohio. Cain learned to fight by fighting for real in a rough neighbourhood. In his own words, he...
2022-12-09
1h 23
The Sword Guy Podcast
Rocket Science and Cosmic Washing Machines, with Naziyah Mahmood
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/rocket-science-and-cosmic-washing-machines-with-naziyah-mahmood/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Naziyah Mahmood is a Scottish astrophysicist, aerospace engineer, aspiring citizen astronaut, STEM ambassador, model, writer, and artist. And of course, she’s mad about swords. In our conversation we talk about Naziyah’s love for the Eastern sword arts, primarily Haidong Gumdo. But there’s a diversion into Ancient Roman twin-sword-wielding gladiators… We also talk about training with a visual impairment, being underestimated, and the im...
2022-04-22
1h 21
The Sword Guy Podcast
Living the Nobler Dream, with Christian Tobler
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/living-the-nobler-dream-with-christian-tobler/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Christian Tobler is a chivalric combat instructor and author of many books, including Secrets of German Medieval Swordsmanship, which launched the study of Liechtenauer in the Anglosphere. He also wrote Fighting with German Longsword, In St. George's Name: an Anthology of Medieval German Fighting Arts, In Service of the Duke, and many more. Not to mention his latest, which is Lance, Spear, Sword and Messer, a...
2022-04-15
1h 19
The Sword Guy Podcast
Episode 100: Duelling and a Day in the Life of Guy Windsor
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/duelling-and-a-day-in-the-life-of-guy/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Welcome to episode 100 of The Sword Guy Podcast! In this special episode, Ariel Anderssen (episode 93) interviews Guy about a whole load of stuff, including how Guy got into swords in the first place, the vision up a Scottish mountain that told him to open his school in Helsinki, injuries from duelling, Guy’s best ever sword fight, feminism, getting through the pandemic, and learning to fly...
2022-04-08
2h 05
The Sword Guy Podcast
A Two-Handed Sword to Fight a Griffin, with Marie Powell
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/a-two-handed-sword-to-fight-a-griffin-with-marie-powell/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy It’s episode 99 of The Sword Guy Podcast! Next week we have a special 100th edition, so look out for that. While you’re waiting, you can enjoy this week’s episode with writer, journalist, editor and author, Marie Powell. Marie lives in Canada, but a search for her Welsh heritage inspired her to write her latest sword and sorcery epic, The Last of the G...
2022-04-01
1h 10
The Sword Guy Podcast
Mastering Movement with Dan Edwardes
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/mastering-movement-with-dan-edwardes/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Dan Edwardes is a parkour coach and teacher of teachers. He's a founding member and executive director of Parkour Generations, an international organisation of Parkour Instructors with schools all over the world. He's also the author of The Parkour and Free Running Handbook. Dan also has a background as a swordsman. He lived in Japan for five years, and was one of very fe...
2022-03-25
1h 52
The Sword Guy Podcast
The Last Duel, or was it? With Ariella Elema
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/the-last-duel-or-was-it-with-ariella-elema/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Dr Ariella Elema is a finder of the forgotten, the hidden and the obscure. She's an academic and archivist and an armizare practitioner in Toronto. Her Ph.D. thesis, Trial by Battle in France and England, should give you some clue as to why I invited her on the show. But it also won the Canadian Society of Medievalists’ Leonard Boyle dissertation prize, which is very...
2022-03-18
1h 34
The Sword Guy Podcast
Frog DNA and Indonesia with Pradana
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/frog-dna-and-indonesia-with-pradana/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Pradana Pandu Mahardhika lives in Bandung, Indonesia. He describes himself as a freelance translator/interpreter, amateur tailor, and professional procrastinator. In this episode we talk about how Pradana set up a historical martial arts club, Gwaith-i-Megyr, which was founded in 2016. He had been fencing as part of an informal group for a while, but when he decided to get some wooden swords made up, he fou...
2022-03-11
1h 31
The Sword Guy Podcast
Laser Focus, Thought Control, and Jousting with Sarah Hay
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 95 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/laser-focus-thought-control-and-jousting-episode95/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Sarah Hay has been jousting since 2008. Just ten years later she won the Queen's Jubilee Horn at the Royal Armouries’ Easter jousting tournament in Leeds. In this episode we find out how Sarah’s passion for jousting came about, her background with horses, getting your own armour, and the vital role that mindset plays in her success. Sara...
2022-03-04
1h 09
The Sword Guy Podcast
Harps and Sharps with Andrew Lawrence-King
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 94 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/harps-and-sharps-episode94/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Dr. Andrew Lawrence-King is a historical musician, harpist, continuo player, baroque opera director, winner of a Grammy in the category of best small ensemble performance. He is also a rapier fencer and Tai Chi practitioner. And I should mention his crowning professional achievement is, of course, providing the harp music for my George Silver Paradoxes of Defence audiobook....
2022-02-25
1h 52
The Sword Guy Podcast
Startling Burglars with Ariel Anderssen
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 93 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/startling-burglars-with-ariel-anderssen/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Ariel Anderssen is a model, actor, author, property investor and is perhaps best known for her career as a BDSM model and performer. She is also mad about swords, both for using in stage fight and for collecting. We cover a lot in this conversation, including talking about whether stage combat or martial arts training would be...
2022-02-18
1h 22
The Sword Guy Podcast
Monte with Mike
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 92 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/monte-with-mike-episode92/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Mike Prendergast is the founder and head instructor of the Historical Combat Academy in Dublin and translator of Pietro Monte’s Exercitiorum Atque Artis Militaris Collectanea, which is otherwise known as the Collection of Renaissance, Military Arts and Exercises. He also teaches in an SCA group called Dun in Mara. In our conversation we talk about how...
2022-02-11
1h 45
The Sword Guy Podcast
Forged in fire, quenched in oil. With Stephanie Aiuto
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 91 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/forged-in-fire-quenched-in-oil-episode91/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Stephanie Aiuto lives in New York and began her career with blades as a sport fencer, competing at a national level in sabre, until she had to stop because she wore away all the cartilage in her toes. To fill the void the lack of sabre left in her life she took up knife making, and now works at...
2022-02-04
1h 24
The Sword Guy Podcast
Swords in the Movies with Peter Lyon
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 90 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/swords_in_the_movies_episode90/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Peter Lyon is a swordsmith and weapons maker from New Zealand. He originally started out making swords to use in medieval re-enactment in the 1980s, and was asked to make the swords for the Lord of the Rings movies. Since then Peter has worked on many other film productions with Wētā Workshop including Indi...
2022-01-28
1h 24
The Sword Guy Podcast
Wooden Weapons and Wing Chun with Carina Cirrincione
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 89 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/wooden-weapons-and-wing-chun-episode89/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy This week’s episode is with Carina Cirrincione of Raven Studios, based in Oracle, Arizona. Carina makes wooden training weapons such as longsword wasters, rondel daggers, and implements for Eastern martial arts. She's also a Tai Chi and Wing Chun practitioner and instructor. We talk about woodwork, Eastern martial arts, turning a hobby into a business and...
2022-01-21
1h 05
The Sword Guy Podcast
A Whole Lot of Tasty Bolognese with Joshua Wiest
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 88 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/bolognese-episode88/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Joshua Wiest is an instructor at the Triangle Sword Guild, North Carolina, USA. He focuses on the fighting systems of masters Achilles Marozzo, Giovanni dall’Agocchie, Antonio Manciolino, and Camillo Palladini. He's also a successful tournament fencer and host of the historical martial arts podcast l’Arte dell Armi. In this bumper episode we take a deep d...
2022-01-14
1h 58
The Sword Guy Podcast
Ballet for Swordfighters with Anna Beard
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 87 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/ballet-for-swordfighters-episode87/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Anna Beard is a historical dancing and ballet and historical fencing instructor at Austin Historical Weapons Guild. She has been dancing since she was four and went on to get her Bachelor of Fine Arts and Dance from the University of Michigan, followed by teaching in studios, and running her own projects, performances and small dance companies. A mo...
2022-01-07
1h 31
The Sword Guy Podcast
The Two-Handed Sword with Neil Melville, and a Review of the Year
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 86 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/two-handed-swords-episode86/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Hello Sword People! Welcome to the Sword Guy podcast. This is your host, Dr Guy Windsor, consulting swordsman, teacher, and writer. Join me for interviews with historical fencing instructors and experts from a wide range of related disciplines, as we discuss swords, history, training, and bringing the joy of historical martial arts into our modern lives. As...
2021-12-31
1h 04
The Sword Guy Podcast
The Mathematics of Fencing with Pamela Muir
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 85 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/the-mathematics-of-fencing-episode85/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Pamela Muir is the founder of the Academy of Chivalric Martial Arts in Arlington, Virginia. She's been doing historical martial arts since about 2003, and I've met her at several events. In this episode we talk about theoretical maths, Liechtenauer, chivalry, and representation for women in HEMA. Pamela also talks about the adult education class she teaches on historical fe...
2021-12-24
1h 15
The Sword Guy Podcast
Katanas and Koryu with Jaredd Wilson
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 84 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/katanas-and-koryu-episode84/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy This week’s episode is with Jaredd Wilson. Jaredd is the host of the Martial Thoughts podcast, which I appeared on back in January. You can find a link to our “The Pen is Mightier than the Podcast” episode here, or on Stitcher or iTunes. In today’s conversation we talk about what prompted Jaredd to start up the podcas...
2021-12-17
1h 11
The Sword Guy Podcast
Swordsmanship is Woodwork, with Shanee Nishry
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 83 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/swordsmanship-is-woodwork-episode83/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Shanee Nishry is a historical martial arts instructor and founder of Stratford Swords, which is in Stratford-upon-Avon in the West Midlands of England. She's also a software engineer in the games industry. We first interacted when she posted some photos of a very ambitious woodworking projects she's working on, because I'm a complete woodworking nerd and it turns ou...
2021-12-10
1h 29
The Sword Guy Podcast
Your Challenge for December
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 82 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/your-challenge-for-december-episode82/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Hello Sword People, and welcome to the final monthly challenge of the year. This one is a little different. Before I introduce it, let me just refresh your memory about what the challenges are. Basically, they are alternatives to New Year's resolutions because I don't like New Year's resolutions very much, and the challenges so far this year ha...
2021-12-03
14 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Orcs in Space and Swords in a Suitcase with Edoardo Albert
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 81 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/orcs_in_space_episode81/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Content warning: Within this podcast are descriptions of the horrific neglect of very elderly swords. Edoardo Albert is a London-based writer who writes about Britain in the early medieval period (between the Romans leaving and the Normans arriving), the 40th millennium in the Warhammer universe, and lots of other things besides. Find out mo...
2021-11-26
1h 18
The Sword Guy Podcast
Asian and African Arms and Armour with Natasha Bennett
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 80 Photo credit: The Royal Armouries For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/asian-and-african-arms-and-armour-episode80/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Natasha Bennett is the Curator of Oriental Collections at the Royal Armouries in Leeds, working with the Asian and African collections. These include an enormous spread of arms and armour mostly dating from between the 14th and 20th centuries, so her research interests are necessarily wide-ranging. She has presented specialist study sessions and se...
2021-11-19
1h 23
The Sword Guy Podcast
Medieval Myths, the Mindsword, and Mounted Combat with Jason Kingsley
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 79 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/medieval-myths-mindsword-mounted-combat-episode79/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy This episode is with Jason Kingsley OBE, co-founder and CEO of the games company Rebellion Developments, which also owns 2000 AD. And he's the man behind the YouTube channel Modern History TV starring his horse Warlord, which goes into depth and detail regarding many aspects of medieval life, most notably combat and horsemanship, but also aspects of daily life....
2021-11-12
1h 21
The Sword Guy Podcast
Improve your striking in November
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 78 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/improve-your-striking-in-november/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Your challenge for November is to improve your striking. Really, what we are looking at more than anything else is your precision and accuracy, which you can apply to any domain. Someone who drives a car might look at the smoothness of their gear changes, or the precision with which they take a corner. There is no domain in...
2021-11-05
23 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Strategy and War with Lynette Nusbacher
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 77 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/strategy-and-war-episode77/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Dr. Lynette Nusbacher is a Strategist and Devil’s Advocate. Her work has included being a logistics officer in the Canadian Armed Forces, a writer of books such as Bannockburn 1314, a lecturer at Reading University, the senior intelligence advisor to the UK Government Cabinet Office, as well as a TV presenter of various military history shows, and she now...
2021-10-29
1h 30
The Sword Guy Podcast
Armour of the English Knight, with Tobias Capwell
The Sword Guy Podcast, episode 76 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/armour-of-the-english-knight-episode76/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Dr Tobias Capwell has a lifelong love of arms and armour, since being taken to the Met Museum in New York as a small child. He has made this passion into a career and is now the curator of Arms and Armour at the Wallace Collection in London. We talk about how he got the job as a mu...
2021-10-22
1h 37
The Sword Guy Podcast
YouTube by Lauren Danger Adventure Ranger
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 75 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/youtube-lauren-danger-episode75/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Lauren Shaw is from Calgary, Canada and is a founder of the Calgary Fellowship of the Sword, where they practice 14th – 19th century martial arts, including longsword, sword and buckler, and - since Covid social distancing rules came in - quarterstaff. Lauren is also known for her YouTube videos as Lauren Danger Adventure Ranger, where Lauren post...
2021-10-15
1h 12
The Sword Guy Podcast
Hope and Black Powder with Dr. Milo Thurston
The Sword Guy Podcast Episode 74 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/hope-and-black-powder-episode74/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Milo Thurston is the founder of the Linacre School of Defence in Oxford, UK. He’s an absolute bastard with a single stick and a leading expert in the work of Sir William Hope. In our conversation we talk about the essence of Hope’s New Method of Fencing and what is so good about it. We als...
2021-10-08
1h 07
The Sword Guy Podcast
Your October Challenge: Improve Your Footwork!
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/october-challenge-episode73/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Today’s episode is your October Challenge. This year I have been setting a different challenge every month, as I really don't like New Year's resolutions, and it struck me that there was an opportunity for self-development and self-improvement that we were missing by making these nebulous resolutions at pretty much the worst point in the year to make any kind of changes. It's right afte...
2021-10-01
24 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Viruses and Bats with Emilia Skirmuntt
The Sword Guy Podcast, episode 72 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/viruses-and-bats-episode72/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Emilia Skirmuntt runs the Oxford branch of The School of the Sword, and in this episode we talk about running a school with different branches and specialisations, and improving diversity and inclusivity within historical martial arts schools. Emilia is also a virologist at the University of Oxford, which brings up some topical questions about a certain vi...
2021-09-24
1h 20
The Sword Guy Podcast
Talking Tempo with Guy and Cornelius
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 71 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/talking-tempo-episode71/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Today’s episode is a bit different to the usual format. Dr Cornelius Berthold, who is a well-known historical fencing instructor in Hamburg, Germany, contacted me because he is doing a series of YouTube videos on the topic of tempo and had some questions for me. We had never met or spoken before, but Cornelius very kind...
2021-09-17
1h 13
The Sword Guy Podcast
Guns, blood and swords with RC-Annie
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 70 Rachel Bown-Williams Ruth Cooper-Brown For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/guns-blood-and-swords-episode70/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Ruth Cooper-Brown and Rachel Bown-Williams are the founders of RC-Annie, the UK’s leading dramatic violence company, specialising in training, fight direction and intimacy direction for stage and screen. They hire out guns and swords (not to just anyone!) They are also purveyors of fake blood; thick or thin, “splat or spurt”, depending on your needs. When creating a fight, Rut...
2021-09-10
1h 19
The Sword Guy Podcast
September Challenge: Range of Motion
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/monthly-challenge-get-more-flexible-in-september/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Your challenge this month is to engage with your ranges of motion. Much of this episode is adapted from my new book The Windsor Method: The Principles of Solo Training. You can follow along with a pre-recorded flexibility-based training session at: Guywindsor.net/hamstrings Guywindsor.net/trainalong
2021-09-06
06 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Love poems to Welsh bucklers, with Paul Wagner
The Sword Guy Podcast, episode 69 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/love-poems-to-welsh-bucklers-episode69/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Paul Wagner has been involved in historical swordsmanship since the 1990s, and was present at the first night of the Stoccata School of Defence in 1998, a HEMA school which now has several branches in Australia. Paul is a Provost at Stoccata, teaching courses in Single Sword according to George Silver, Highland Broadsword according to Thomas Page, Sword and Bu...
2021-09-03
1h 30
The Sword Guy Podcast
Classical Fencing and Digital Pedagogy with Dori Coblentz
The Sword Guy Podcast, episode 67 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/classical-fencing-digital-pedagogy-episode67/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy This week’s episode is with Dr Dori Coblenz, lecturer in Communications at Georgia Tech, specialising in early modern English drama, digital pedagogy and the history of fencing. She's the author of many papers and the book Fundamentals of Italian Rapier: a modern manual for teachers and students of historical fencing, with David Coblentz. In ou...
2021-08-27
1h 15
The Sword Guy Podcast
Swashbuckling with Sebastien de Castell
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 66 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/swashbuckling-episode66/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Sebastien de Castell lives a life of music, adventure and swordplay. He is the author of the Greatcoats series, which is full of sword action, and the Spellslinger series, which features magic finger guns! For all Sebastien’s books, see here: https://decastell.com/all-books/ In this episode we talk about how to write a gr...
2021-08-20
1h 40
The Sword Guy Podcast
The Armoured Knight, with Dr Amanda Taylor
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 65 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/the-armoured-knight-episode65/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Dr. Amanda Taylor is a Research Fellow at the Oakeshott Institute and a Research Affiliate at the Center for Early Modern History, University of Minnesota. She is the author of several academic papers such as The Body of Law: Bodies, Combat and Rhetoric in Sir Thomas Mallory's Quest for Justice and the forthcoming Domesticating War: Women, Medicine and Mi...
2021-08-13
1h 10
The Sword Guy Podcast
Tales from the National Fencing Museum, with Malcolm Fare
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 64 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy My interview today is with Malcolm Fare, who is a collector of historical fencing books, a fencer himself and proprietor of the National Fencing Museum in the UK. The museum houses a library of over 300 books, 250 paintings and prints, 200 weapons, numerous masks, kit, trophies, posters, programmes, medals, stamps, postcards and other ephemera. You can click through on the museum’s website to see phot...
2021-08-06
49 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Drawing swords with Yael Nathan
The Sword Guy Podcast, episode 62 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/drawing-swords-episode62/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Yael Nathan is a comic artist who draws swords as part of her Warriors series. She has also worked with IDW on several Star Wars comics. Find her work at https://elcomics.gumroad.com/# and https://yaeln.com. Yael is also the author of the Serpent webcomic. https://tapas.io/series/Serpent/info and https://www.fa...
2021-07-30
1h 00
The Sword Guy Podcast
Your Challenge for August: Get Stronger!
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/your-challenge-for-august-get-stronger/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Your challenge for August is to get stronger, following the principles of conditioning as described in Guy Windsor's new book, The Windsor Method. In this episode Guy reads the chapter aloud for you (with minor changes).
2021-07-28
22 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Steven Pressfield on Spartans, Romans and Hollywood
The Sword Guy Podcast Episode 61 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/steven-pressfield-episode-61/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Steven Pressfield is the author of The Legend of Bagger Vance, The Gates of Fire, The War of Art, and many other novels and non-fiction titles about writing. His latest book is A Man at Arms, and he has a YouTube channel in which he investigates the warrior archetype. In our conversation we discuss what it ta...
2021-07-23
55 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Pirates and Batons with Julie Olson
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/pirates-and-batons-episode60/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy This week’s guest is Julie Olson, senior instructor at the Athena School of Arms in Cambridge, Massachusetts and a director of the Iron Gate Exhibition, the largest New England historical martial arts event. She's also well-known on the longsword tournament circuit. Julie was placed 7th in the Longsword Triathlon at Longpoint 2019, the highest ranking woman in that event. In our chat we get into the n...
2021-07-16
1h 03
The Sword Guy Podcast
Who whacked Talhoffer? With Dierk Hagedorn
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 59 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/who-whacked-talhoffer-epsiode59/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy This episode is with Dierk Hagedorn, who is something of a legend in our community. He is a translator and author of very many books. Last summer he had seven new books on the go at once. Dierk has translated and produced scholarly editions of Gladiatoria and Lecküchner’s Messer fencing treatise, Peter von Danzig’s manuscript, Albrech...
2021-07-09
1h 26
The Sword Guy Podcast
Lightsaber Twirling with Jill Bearup
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 58 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/lightsaber-twirling-episode58/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Jill Bearup is a stage combatant, YouTuber and a lightsaber twirler. I first came across her work through her YouTube channel critiquing swordfights in TV and movies, which is here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRrvZqCL1YsqRA8IpXrhYQQ. Jill loves pretending to fight people on stage and screen and her videos cover how a good fight can add to...
2021-07-02
53 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Monthly Challenge: breathe better in July
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/monthly-challenge-breathe-better-in-july-the-sword-guy-episode-57/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Your monthly challenge for July 2021: breathe better. For more on this subject, please see The Theory and Practice of Historical Martial Arts, also available as an audiobook read by Kelley Costigan. Or the try my online course, Fundamentals: Breathing, which covers much of my breathing practice. It’s included with the monthly subscription package, and with the Solo Training course. The first class is a...
2021-06-30
08 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Persian Martial Arts with Manouchehr Khorasani
Episode 56 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/persian-martial-arts-episode56/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Manouchehr Moshtagh Khorasani is a Frankfurt-based museum analyst, university professor, author of many books and over one hundred and eighty articles on the historical martial arts of Iran. He is a highly skilled martial artist and is currently waiting for the pandemic to be over so he can get his third Dan black belt in Kyokushin Karate. Manouchehr is a hi...
2021-06-25
1h 19
The Sword Guy Podcast
Shakespeare and Silver with Ben Crystal
The Sword Guy Podcast episode 55 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/shakespeare-and-silver-epsiode55/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Ben Crystal is an actor, author, producer, and explorer of original practices in Shakespeare rehearsal and production. In this episode we talk about Ben’s work in exploring how actors would have rehearsed, staged, and performed Shakespeare’s plays in the 16th century, and how the original rhymes and pronunciation would have sounded. It makes for a completely differ...
2021-06-18
56 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Movement Matters with Katy Bowman
The Sword Guy Podcast, episode 54 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/movement-matters-with-katy-bowman/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Bestselling author, speaker, and a leader in the Movement movement, biomechanist Katy Bowman has been changing the way we move and think about our need for movement. Her eight books, including the groundbreaking “Move Your DNA” and “Movement Matters” have been translated into more than a dozen languages worldwide. Bowman teaches movement globally and speaks about sedentarism and movement e...
2021-06-11
1h 44
The Sword Guy Podcast
Turning the tables, with Guy and Jess
The Sword Guy Podcast, episode 53 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/turning-the-tables-episode53/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy To celebrate a whole year of The Sword Guy Podcast, we are going right back to where it all began, with Jess Finley. Except this time the tables are turned and it’s Jess interviewing me! In our wide-ranging conversation we talk about my history of antiques restoration and starting a sword school. We also talk in depth abou...
2021-06-04
1h 49
The Sword Guy Podcast
Challenge of the Month: meditate in June
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/challenge-of-the-month-meditate-in-june/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy For a free meditation class, see: https://swordschool.teachable.com/p/free-courses-human-maintenance-longsword-rapier And check out the Paradoxes of Defence audiobook here: guywindsor.net/silver
2021-06-01
10 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
The Sparkle School, with Claire Wemyss
Episode 52 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/the-sparkle-school-episode52/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Claire Wemyss lives in Vancouver and is a coach, educator, and co-founder of Kunst des Funkelns, which focusses on the martial arts of medieval Germany and runs from Valkyrie Western Martial Arts Assembly. In this episode, Claire describes how she and her training partner Jon Mills came up with the name of Kunst des Funkelns, her love for the Messer, and why pl...
2021-05-28
1h 07
The Sword Guy Podcast
Mines and Mimeographs, with Steven Muhlberger
Episode 51 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/mines-and-mimeographs-episode51/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Professor Steven Muhlberger is an absolute legend in the historical martial arts community and is a 50 year veteran of the SCA. In this episode we talk about the very early days of the SCA, and how newsletters were vital in spreading the word. His books are foundationally important for anyone who is studying medieval martial arts, and they include Deeds of...
2021-05-21
1h 20
The Sword Guy Podcast
Silver’s Paradoxes- in glorious audio!
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/paradoxes-of-defence-in-audio/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy guywindsor.net/silver In 1599 George Silver, gentleman, published his Paradoxes of Defence, which lambastes the outlandish (i.e. foreign) Italian rapier fencing that was becoming popular in England, and offers an extraordinary window into the medieval martial arts that the rapier was superceding. Whatever you think about Silver, or rapier fencing, his book is simply essential reading for all historical martial ar...
2021-05-19
09 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Revolution, Cooking and Knitting with Monica Gaudio
The Sword Guy Podcast, episode 50 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/revolution-cooking-knitting-episode50/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy It’s the 50th episode! This week I’m in conversation with Monica Gaudio, known in the SCA as Illadore de Bedegrayne, and she is a cook, fencer, Marshal, Seneschal, knitter, Laurel and Master of Defence. We get into what all those titles mean in the episode. Monica has been studying medieval cookery for 30 years, with a mos...
2021-05-14
1h 18
The Sword Guy Podcast
The Progression of Teacher Training in Swordschool
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/the-progression-of-teacher-training-in-swordschool/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Teaching well is a skill that can be learned. In this in-between-isode, I give you the key to teaching teachers. If you have a student who has expressed an interest in teaching, how can you empower them to become a good teacher? This episode covers essentials such as: Avoiding burnout Giving feedback How to teach and structure a class, take responsibility, and br...
2021-05-10
22 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
History is my playground, with Mike Loades
The Sword Guy Podcast, episode 48 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/mike-loades-episode48/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Best known as a television presenter and for his appearances as a historical weapons specialist and military historian in over one hundred tv documentaries, Mike also works as a tv director, a writer and as a consultant and film-maker for the video games industry. If you've been swinging swords, certainly in Britain at least, at any point in th...
2021-05-07
1h 38
The Sword Guy Podcast
Challenge of the Month: Learn a new skill in May
For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/may-challenge-skill/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Last month’s challenge (Eat Well in April) was difficult for many people, mostly because food is such an emotional subject. Personally, I spent the month avoiding starch and sugar, which has helped with energy levels, weight management, and especially my reflux problem. I’ve also been adhering more closely to a 16:8 intermittent fasting routine, which is also better for my reflux. The odd thing...
2021-05-03
04 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
People like us: the Middle Ages with Danièle Cybulskie
Episode 46 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/people-like-us-daniele-cybulskie-episode46/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy As a writer, professor, TEDx speaker, and podcaster, Danièle has been making the Middle Ages fun, entertaining, and accessible for over a decade. She is the author of Life in Medieval Europe: Fact and Fiction, and The Five-Minute Medievalist, which debuted at the top of Amazon’s Canadian charts, as well as the forthcoming How to Live Like a Monk: Medieval Wisdo...
2021-04-30
56 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Swords and Historical Handcrafts, with Bill Grandy
Episode 45 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/swords-and-historical-handcrafts-episode45/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Bill Grandy is a long time professional historical martial arts instructor at the Virginia Academy of Fencing (VAF) in the United States, and also a historical handcrafter making beautiful scabbards and shields and things. Check out his website at www.historicalhandcrafts.com. In this episode we talk about lots of different aspects of being a sword person, including teaching professionally an...
2021-04-23
1h 22
The Sword Guy Podcast
Fire and Cauldrons, with Ruth Goodman
The Sword Guy Podcast, episode 44 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/fire-and-cauldrons-episode44/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Ruth Goodman is a social and domestic historian working with museums, theatre, television and educational establishments. She has presented and consulted on several highly successful television series for the BBC. She has also written several excellent books we'll be talking about today, including The Domestic Revolution, How to be a Tudor and How to Behave Badly in Elizabethan En...
2021-04-16
59 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
What is a Sword?
Episode 43 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/what-is-a-sword-episode43/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy What is a sword? When does a dagger become a sword? When does a sword become a spear? Can a boomerang even be a sword? In a follow-up to my conversation with Australian martial artist and philosopher, Damon Young, this special episode picks up where episode 31 finishes, with a discussion where we try to come to an agreement on what a definition of...
2021-04-12
51 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Teaching Us to Sit Still with Tim Parks
The Sword Guy Podcast, episode 42 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/sitting-still-episode42/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Tim Parks is a prolific novelist, non-fiction writer and translator and perhaps most importantly from my perspective, he wrote a fantastic memoir on getting into meditation, called Teach us to Sit Still. Those of you that train with me know that meditation is one of the core parts of my practise and in this episode Tim explains the ci...
2021-04-08
59 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Writing and Walking, with Joanna Penn
Episode 41 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/writing-and-walking-episode41/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Joanna Penn is a writer (both fiction and non-fiction), podcaster and ultramarathon walker. She doesn’t do swords, or even a lot of history, but she has been a huge influence on my work and this podcast. We don’t talk about martial arts in this episode, but we do discuss physical training, accomplishing goals, and Joanna’s medieval-style pilgrimage from London’s Southwar...
2021-04-02
47 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Jousting with Callum Forbes
Episode 40 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/jousting-episode40/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Callum Forbes is an extremely experienced martial artist, having got into sports fencing in the late ‘70s, and Hapkido from 1982. But then HEMA drew him in, both from a love of Dungeons and Dragons, and from a disillusionment with the ruleset of sports fencing. In this, our 40th episode, Callum tells us all about jousting – how it works, how he trains...
2021-03-26
48 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
An unconventional approach to HEMA, with Lauren Ings
The Sword Guy Podcast, episode 39 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/unconventional-approach-to-hema-episode39/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Lauren Juliette Ings is an assistant instructor with the Stoccata School of Defence in Sydney, Australia, and is also a circus performer, a burlesque dancer and an actor. In this episode we chat about making HEMA more appealing to women, the LGBTQI+ community, and people of different physical abilities. Lauren is hugely passionate about making HEMA mo...
2021-03-19
54 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Portuguese Party Weapons with Jessica Gomes
The Sword Guy Podcast, episode 38 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/portuguese-party-weapons-episode38/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Jessica Gomes runs her own club, the Velha Guarda Marcial, in beautiful Sintra, Portugal. She focuses on Fiore’s system, Capoferro rapier, and Portuguese staff fighting, Jogo do Pau. Jessica explains what this Iberian “party weapon” is all about, and how it influences and complements training with other systems. There are some pictures of the Portuguese staffs h...
2021-03-12
1h 05
The Sword Guy Podcast
Medieval swords and research, with James Hester
Episode 37 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/medieval-swords-and-research-episode37/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy James Hester has been involved with HEMA since the age of 15, when he began performing fight shows throughout New England. He then set his course as an academic and educator, working in museums before completing an MA in Medieval Studies in the UK. He then joined the Royal Armouries Museum, rising over five years to become Curator of Tower Collections at the To...
2021-03-05
1h 08
The Sword Guy Podcast
Historical Medieval Battle in New Zealand, with Dayna Berghan-Whyman
Episode 36 Photo by Keane Chan. For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/historical-medieval-battle-nz-episode36/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Dayna Berghan-Whyman is the President of the New Zealand Federation for Historical Medieval Battle and Buhurt. In case you haven’t heard of it, Historical Medieval Battles (HMB) are full contact sports fighting, where defensive and offensive weapons of the Middle Ages are used. It includes historical fencing, buhurts, melee, duels, small-group battles, mass field battles, profe...
2021-02-26
1h 26
The Sword Guy Podcast
Analysing sword science and technology with Myles Cupp
Episode 35 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/analysing-sword-science-episode35/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Myles Cupp is an instructor at South Coast Swords, in California. You might have seen him on the History Channel's Knife or Death show, and he's a contributor to swordstem.com. SwordSTEM is a website dedicated to applying science to sword martial arts, which analyses martial arts with rational, evidence-based methodologies. In our discussion we talk about some of the articles on SwordSTEM, and ho...
2021-02-19
1h 18
The Sword Guy Podcast
Battle of Nations with Beth Hammer
Episode 34 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/battle-of-nations-episode34/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy In this episode I talk to Beth Hammer. One of Beth’s favourite pastimes is “This is Sparta” kicking people through fences as part of Battle of Nations competitions. Based in Seattle, USA, Beth practises HEMA and Escrima, and is now enjoying the freedom of Battle of Nations fighting. In this episode we explore what this fun activity involves, and also talk about Beth’s other ho...
2021-02-12
1h 12
The Sword Guy Podcast
How to Make Swords, with Craig Johnson
Episode 33 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/how-to-make-swords-episode33/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Craig Johnson is Manager of Arms and Armor, a sword lover's dream job, as they make a wide variety of items from the Medieval and Renaissance periods to faithfully recreate the look, feel, and function of historic weapons. In this episode, we talk about recreating medieval swords as faithfully as possible, modern fashions in sword design, and the intricacies of sword manufacture. If...
2021-02-05
1h 19
The Sword Guy Podcast
Pole Dancing with Swords, with Kelley Costigan
Episode 32 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/pole-dancing-with-swords-episode32/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy In this week’s episode I interview Kelley Costigan. Kelley is an actor, director, pole dancer, fencer, performance combatant, adventurer and pirate, currently living in Stratford-upon-Avon, UK, home of William Shakespeare. Listen to our conversation to discover the Shakespeare connection that inspired me to ask Kelley to narrate my audiobook, The Theory and Practice of Historical Martial Arts. (It’s out no...
2021-01-29
1h 04
The Sword Guy Podcast
Why Swords are Cool, with Damon Young
Episode 31 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/why-swords-are-cool-episode31/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Damon Young is an Australian martial artist and philosopher, author of books like Philosophy in the Garden and the soon to be published in Europe, already out in Australia, On Getting Off: Sex and Philosophy. He has also edited a couple of books on philosophy and martial arts: Engagement, Philosophy and the Martial Arts, and Martial Arts and Philosophy: Beating and Nothingness....
2021-01-22
1h 34
The Sword Guy Podcast
Fencing in Russia, with Elena Muzurina
Episode 30 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/fencing-in-russia-episode30/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Elena Muzurina is a military sabre instructor, longsword champion and owner of a HEMA equipment company. Elena is a Russian champion – one of her proudest moments was winning at Swordfish – but HEMA is relatively new to Russia. In this episode we talk about what it is like learning Italian rapier and longsword in a country where there are very few sources translated into t...
2021-01-15
52 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Violence and Self Defence, with Rory Miller
Episode 29 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/violence-and-self-defence-episode29/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Rory Miller is a martial arts and self-defence expert and author of many books, ebooks and video courses, including “Meditations on Violence: A Comparison of Martial Arts Training and Real World Violence”, which is widely considered as one of the best books on martial arts ever written and I urge you to read it. Speaking of best books on martial arts, Rory and I...
2021-01-08
1h 20
The Sword Guy Podcast
Art and Fencing, with Nora Cannaday
Episode 28 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/art-and-fencing-episode28/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Nora is an artist and a fencer from sunny Southern California. She works primarily in watercolours and in illumination, though we cover a lot in this episode, including calligraphy, translations, making a living from your art and whether simply putting in the hours of practise is enough to get good. You can see an example of her work here with the logo sh...
2021-01-01
1h 26
The Sword Guy Podcast
Irish Stick Fighting, with Maxime Chouinard
Episode 27 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/irish-stick-fighting-episode27/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Maxime doesn’t do longsword. But he does practise Irish Stick Fighting, 19th century sabre, and has a background in karate and kenjutsu. In this episode Maxime describes Irish Stick Fighting, the challenges of finding someone to learn it from, and how he was able to bring it back to life as a martial art. Maxi...
2020-12-25
1h 17
The Sword Guy Podcast
Straight White Men with Swords, with Claire Mead
Episode 26 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/straight-white-men-with-swords-episode26/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Claire Mead is an English/French freelance curator with museums and heritage sites specialising in making collections and programming more inclusive, specifically in terms of women's narratives and LGBTQI narratives. Claire also fences with foil and longsword. Since recording the episode she has taken the post of Programme Manager at the National Videogame Museum. In this episode we have a fa...
2020-12-18
1h 14
The Sword Guy Podcast
Fire Eating and Fencing, with David Ito
Episode 25 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/fire-eating-and-fencing-episode25/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy David Ito is a sport épée fencer, Kendoka, longsword practitioner, and a fire eater. He also does 100 burpees first thing every morning. In this episode David tells us how he got into both fencing and fire eating, takes us through his somewhat intensive training regime, and shares good advice for anyone looking to get into teaching fencing as a care...
2020-12-11
1h 02
The Sword Guy Podcast
Designing Knives and Random Flow training, with Maija Soderholm
Episode 24 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/designing-knives-random-flow-episode24/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Maija Soderholm lives in the United States, but grew up in England with Finnish parents. She trained with the late Filipino master Sonny Umpad, and she has taken this multicultural approach in her designs with her company, SoMiCo Knives. In this week’s episode we discuss how Maija got into martial arts and designing knives, including the most impo...
2020-12-04
59 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
African Martial Arts, with Da’Mon Stith
Episode 23 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/african-martial-arts-episode23/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Da’Mon Stith is the Chief Instructor and Founder of the Guild of the Silent Sword, teaching a range of African martial arts. In this conversation we discuss how he began his martial arts journey, and go into the specifics of how he recreates African arts, many of which do not have detailed written sources. You can find his Youtube channel here: https://www.youtube.com/user/austi...
2020-11-27
1h 02
The Sword Guy Podcast
Tournament Mindset, with Brittany Reeves
Episode 22 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/tournament-mindet-episode22/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Brittany Reeves is the co-founder of Mordhau Historical Combat in Mesa, Arizona, and has taught internationally. She has medalled at tournaments in longsword, cutting, glima, and ringen. She also has a degree in Ancient and Medieval history. In this conversation we discuss tournament mindset, her advice to beginners wanting to go to tournaments for the first time, and of course, equipment. ...
2020-11-20
1h 09
The Sword Guy Podcast
Wiktenauer, with Michael Chidester
Episode 21 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/wiktenauer-episode21/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Michael Chidester is the a long-time researcher and practitioner of historical martial arts, and the Director of Wiktenauer. There were some unfortunate technical problems with the recording of this interview, so you may wish to refer to the transcription below. You can also support the show at Patreon.com/TheSwordGuy Patrons get access to the episode transcriptions as they are prod...
2020-11-13
1h 03
The Sword Guy Podcast
Translating Spanish Rapier Texts, with Lois Spangler
Episode 20 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/spanish-rapier-episode20/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Lois Spangler is a Verdadera Destreza ("Spanish Rapier") instructor and researcher with the Brisbane School of Iberian Swordsmanship. We discuss translating Spanish fencing sources, the problems of getting fencing jackets that actually fit, and even the philosophy of narrative. Check out her blog at StoryTrade.Net, and her Patreon account at Patreon.com/LoisSpangler She has been involved in producing a...
2020-11-06
1h 15
The Sword Guy Podcast
Founding Longpoint and Fencing in Armour, with Jake Norwood
Episode 19 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/founding-longpoint-fencing-in-armour-episode19/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Jake Norwood is a highly experienced and widely respected historical martial arts instructor. He co-founded the HEMA Alliance (one of the largest historical martial arts associations), and Longpoint (one of the best-known US historical martial arts events). He has taught and competed internationally. We talked about the founding of Longpoint, creating tournament structures that give you the outcomes you want, preparing for ar...
2020-10-30
48 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Women in Armour, and Translating Latin Fiore, with Kendra Brown
Episode 18 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/the-sword-guy-episode-18-kendra-brown/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Kendra Brown is a swordswoman, researcher, and translator of the Latin version of Fiore’s Il Fior di Battaglia (known as the Florius manuscript). She has an awesome blog at https://darthkendraresearch.wordpress.com/ In this wide ranging conversation we discuss the perils and pitfalls of translation, women in combat in medieval times, and even what a very pregnant Caterina Sforza wore to occupy the Castel Sant...
2020-10-23
1h 12
The Sword Guy Podcast
Maori Martial Arts, Bartitsu, and can an Uruk bench-press a motorcycle? With Tony Wolf
Episode 17 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/maori-martial-arts-bartitsu-episode17/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Tony Wolf is an author, lecturer, antiquarian, and has trained in a very wide range of martial arts. In this conversation we discuss everything from Maori martial arts to Professional Wrestling, Victorian combatives to the Lord of the Rings (he designed the fighting styles for the different peoples of Middle Earth). And yes, he answers the question: can an Uruk bench pr...
2020-10-16
1h 19
The Sword Guy Podcast
Dr Eleanor Janega on medieval history, the Dark Ages, and who gets to have a sword?
Episode 16 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/dark-ages-episode16/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Dr. Eleanor Janega (whom Dan Snow refers to as “The most awesome medieval historian in the world”) is a Guest Lecturer at the London School of Economics in their International History department, and she has published many articles, including: “Suspect Women: Prostitution, Reputation, and Gossip in Fourteenth-Century Prague” and “Lies, Damn Lies, and Bohemians” in History Today. She has a PhD in History from University College London, writes a fasci...
2020-10-09
1h 05
The Sword Guy Podcast
Anyone can do HEMA! With Robyn Alman
Episode 15 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/anyone-can-do-hema-episode15/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Today's guest on the show is Robyn Alman, from the Athena School of Arms, in Boston. She is well known on the US tournament circuit, and believes that "anybody can do this and enjoy it and engage in it in the way that is the most meaningful to them." In this episode we talk about how she got started (hint: there was a...
2020-10-02
52 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Making videogame swordfights real, with Kirk, Knight of Green
Episode 14 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/videogame-swordfights-episode14/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Kirk Williams, also known as the Knight of Green (to find out why, listen to the interview), is a practising historical martial artist… and also recreates video game sword fights in real life. Let’s be honest- most of us take up the sword because of something we read in a book or saw on a screen. I certainly spent a good chunk...
2020-09-25
50 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Indian weapons, aerial combat, and German longsword, with Alina Boyden
Episode 13 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/indian-weapons-episode13/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Alina Boyden is a pilot, swordswoman, and the author of Stealing Thunder, a fantasy novel that you really should read (no spoilers! but I really enjoyed it, especially the dragons-as-fighter-planes). We talk about birds of prey, fighter pilot training, Indian swords, Kunst des Fechtens, and even pedal powered flight.
2020-09-18
1h 02
The Sword Guy Podcast
Mindset, military service, and why we train, with Rigel Ng
Episode 12 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/mindset-military-service-episode12/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Rigel Ng is the president of the Pan Historical European Martial Arts Society (PHEMAS) in Singapore. In this conversation we cover a lot of ground, from military service to establishing your training goals. The Society was founded in 2005 by Greg Galistan and Chris Blakey, who spent a month training 24/7 in my salle in Helsinki, and I've taught there many times since, so it...
2020-09-11
1h 03
The Sword Guy Podcast
Setting fire to nunneries, Fiore’s wrestling, and more. With Kimberleigh Roseblade
Episode 11 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/setting-fire-to-nunneries-episode11/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Kimberleigh Roseblade is a historical martial arts instructor, specialising in Fiore's Art of Arms. She teaches at AEMMA in Toronto, and has taught at many international level events including Swordsquatch, VISS, and Longpoint.
2020-09-04
45 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Armour, building gauntlets, travelling in Europe, and the perfect sword for Marozzo, with Tomas Suazo
Episode 10 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/armour-episode10/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy My guest this week is Tomas Suazo, a historical fencer and armourer from Chile. I first met Tomas when he came to train with me in Finland in 2014. He did a Grand Tour of European historical fencing clubs, before returning home to run his own. He's a professional maker of protective equipment for HMA, as well as what I think of as "pr...
2020-08-28
1h 08
The Sword Guy Podcast
Acting, fighting, training, cloaks, shoes, and more! With Siobhan Richardson
Episode 9 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/acting-fighting-training-episode9/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Today’s podcast episode is with Siobhan Richardson. You may recognise her from the cover of my latest book, From Medieval Manuscript to Modern Practice. She's an actress, singer, martial artist, stage combat director, among her many skills. We've been friends for quite a while, as you can probably tell from the tone of the interview. She even gets me to talk a bi...
2020-08-21
1h 00
The Sword Guy Podcast
Getting started in HMA, sword design, and more. With Roland Warzecha
Episode 8 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/hma-viking-sword-episode8/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy I met Roland Warzecha (also known as Dimicator) at the first Swordfish event, in Malmö in 2006, and we have been friends and colleagues ever since. He has built a first-class reputation in the fields of I.33 sword and buckler research and Viking sword and shield combat. He is a graphic designer by profession (he consulted on the card design for Audatia), and pro...
2020-08-14
59 min
The Sword Guy Podcast
Mounted combat, and writing books, with Jennifer Landels
Episode 7 For transcriptions and more detailed shownotes, please go to https://swordschool.com/podcast/mounted-combat-episode7/ To support the show, come join the Patrons at https://www.patreon.com/theswordguy Jennifer Landels is the founder and head of Academie Duello’s Mounted Combat Program which operates out of Cornwall Ridge Farm in Langley BC. She has been swordfighting since 2008, and riding since before she could walk. She started the program as an excuse to combine those passions, and has since been invited to Germany, France, and the USA to spread the joy of c...
2020-08-07
45 min