They Did That tells the stories of innovators who’ve been forgotten from history books because of who they were.
From Somethin’ Else and Sony Music Entertainment, the podcast features women, people of colour, LBGTQ+, and more with the stories about how their life’s work has changed our lives for the better.
The first episode features Alice Ball, who developed the first known long-term treatment for leprosy, also known as Hansen’s disease, in the early 1900s. Shortly after, she died at just 24 years old, which allowed her work to be stolen and credited to a male colleague.
Hosted by journalist, and broadcaster Takara Small, who each week, tells stories of extraordinary people whose remarkable inventions and contributions were largely ignored due to systemic bias and prejudice.
Others featured in the series include Alice Guy-Blaché. She was behind many film techniques and cinematography that we know today to be a regular part of movie watching, like close-up shots and special effects. Guillermo González Camarena, who created the original colour television wheel, and Big Momma Thornton who recorded the now classic song ‘Hound Dog’, three years before Elvis Presley topped the charts – her version was considered an anthem for female Black empowerment.
The podcast is based on an original idea by Takara Small, she says: “I have spent much of my career researching and studying incredible innovators whose accomplishments have been erased from history because of who they were.
“This podcast will share the stories of extraordinary people who built our modern world only to be simply forgotten or have their discoveries deliberately stolen.”
They Did That launched today, with the first episode available on all major podcast platforms including Apple Podcasts, Spotify and Stitcher.
