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In this episode of Friday Conversations, host Peter Zablocki sits down with Oxford historian and bestselling novelist Harry Sidebottom to explore his gripping new book, Those Who Are About to Die: Gladiators and the Roman Mind.

What was it really like to spend a day at the Colosseum at the height of the Roman Empire? Harry takes us on an immersive 24-hour journey — from the gladiators' last supper the night before, through the beast hunts, public executions, and brutal combats, to the eerie quiet that followed. Far more than blood and sand, this book reveals how the games reflected and shaped the Roman psyche: their views on violence, courage, celebrity, power, masculinity, and mortality.

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