I'm liking this podcast: http://thehistoryofrome.typepad.com/the_history_of_rome/
It's not perfect (the host occasionally falls into the same idealizing of the 'Roman character' that he criticizes primary sources for, and.. I have 0 time for that stuff, doubly so from modern historians =_=) but not to the point of buying into blatant-legends or skimming over downturns, cultural schisms/failings & defeats.
Overall its a good "each episode's a quick-overview of a topic/period" kinda podcast imo, if you ignore those parts.
I'd rate Patrick Wyman's Fall of Rome podcast higher, but also note that it focuses on the last 3 centuries, rather than going from Kingdom -> Republic -> Empire, which is a lot longer a period to cover in any sort of depth (like. 1000 years or so, much of it with little recorded evidence to go on)
So.. A better podcast but also with a very different focus.
I agree w/ the general sentiment that Roman history is overdone but also it's rlly hard to talk about anything happened later in Europe (or the USA govt system) w/o a solid grounding in the culture they mythologised & used as a template.
Also it's most often done patchily + rlly badly in school, so stuff that fills in the blanks/talks about historicity of source material.. Is useful.
(That said, hmu with any decent podcasts you know of that cover other eras/cultures & I will be a happy bat)
