Stop blaming rats for the plague

Stop blaming rats for the plague

From No One Saw It Coming by ABC Australia

May 31, 2026 · 26 min

About this episode

Dr Eleanor Janega discusses the origins of the plague and debunks myths surrounding the black death.

If you were asked where the plague came from you’d probably say rats. Or fleas. And you’d say it swept across Europe killing up to half of the population. But where exactly did it start and how did it get to Europe in the first place? Medieval historian Dr Eleanor Janega sits down with Marc Fennell (Stuff The British Stole) and debunks the biggest myths about the black death and tells the real story behind one of the worst pandemics the world has ever seen. Binge all the episodes of No One Saw It Coming now on ABC listen (Australia) or wherever you get your podcasts. Get in touch: Got a story for us? We'd love to hear from you! Email us at noonesawitcoming@abc.net.au

People in this episode

Host: Marc Fennell

Guest: Dr Eleanor Janega

Topics covered

  • plague
  • history
  • black death
  • medieval history
  • pandemics
  • myths

Keywords

  • plague
  • black death
  • history
  • medieval
  • pandemic
  • Europe
  • myths

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: ABC Australia

Places: Europe

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