Rob Colls and the Fight of the Century

In this episode Rob Colls examines the ‘Fight of the Century’ - between the American John Carmel Heenan and the British boxer ‘Brighton Titch’ Tom Sayers - which took place on 17th April 1860. The fight was a landmark in the history of international sport whose staging and coverage encapsulated many of the dramatic social, technological and economic changes taking place on both sides of the Atlantic in the Victorian era. Robert Colls is Professor of Cultural History at De Montfort and his latest book, This Sporting Life: Sport and Liberty in England 1760-1960 (OUP: 2020) won the prestigious Lord Aberdare Prize for the best work of sports history, awarded by the British Society of Sports History.Thia podcast is a British Society of Sports History (BSSH) production from the UK's leading society for the history of sport.. You can find the podcast on all social media & major podcast platforms here.Likewise, Click through to the BSSH website for further information on our events and to find out how to join the British Society of Sport History: https://www.sportinhistory.org/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.