“So many historians of the ancient world come across as cowed by Roman pomp and glamor,” writes James Marriott in The Times. “Not Beard.” He’s referring to Mary Beard, the host of the BBC’s new history podcast, Being Roman with Mary Beard. The English scholar’s ability to maintain objectivity when assessing antiquity has a significant benefit: namely, that her perspective is not marred by “overawe.” Instead, Beard approaches figures like Marcus Aurelius evenhandedly, offering a fresh treatment in comparison to popular media such as The Obstacle Is the Way. And though Aurelius and Caesar come up in the episodes released thus far, the series moves beyond Rome’s most notable figures. One such example is found in the ancient story of Regina and Barates, a couple Beard follows from modern Syria to South Shields. —Jack Sullivan