Physicians' Gallery

This fortnightly podcast from the Physicians' Gallery at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE) explores the history of medicine.

New to Physicians' Gallery?

Here are some great episodes to start with.

Ep.07 - What Is A Good Death

Ep.70 - Ambrose Parry - The Art Of Dying And The History Of Chloroform

Ep. 17 - Eating Blood

Recent Episodes

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July 31, 2026

Ep.20 - Midwives Book

This week, we’re examining The Midwives Book and how a female midwife in 1600s England talked, wrote and understood periods, wombs and menopause.

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July 17, 2026

Ep.19 - Leech Jar

In this episode, we’re unearthing the history of medicinal leeches. From rural swamps to 24 hour leech shops, the leech industry grew and grew across Europe.

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July 3, 2026

In this episode, we’re digging into the gnarly history of blood transfusion. From dog blood to black urine, we’re looking at 1600s attempts to carry out the first transfusions. A man is allegedly kidnapped off the streets while French and English scientists vie for primacy in this story of innovation, experimentation and bad ideas.

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June 19, 2026

Ep. 17 - Eating Blood

This week, we’re talking about eating blood. We’re digging into a tiny Scottish chapbook and the slightly gnarly recipe it contains! From the blood of Roman Gladiators to executed prisoners. Eating blood, cooking blood, smearing blood jam on your toast - we’ve got it all!

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June 5, 2026

EP.16 - Straitjacket

This week, we’re talking about straitjackets. Despite many seeing the straitjacket as an extreme method of patient restraint, in the 1700s it was introduced as a modern and humane solution.

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May 22, 2026

Ep.15 - Asylum Art

This week, we’re talking about asylum art. And we’re focusing on a little volume of illustrations of patients at an asylum - the Royal Edinburgh Hospital. The illustrations show one patient playing a fiddle, another drinking a cup of tea. This volume is particularly interesting because they are all drawn by Robert Miles - an artist who was also a patient at the asylum

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About the Host

Dr Daisy Cunynghame

Host

Daisy Cunynghame completed an MA in Modern History at the University of St Andrews and a Higher Diploma in Archival Studies at University College Dublin. She is the Heritage Manager & Librarian for the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE). She was awarded her PhD by the University of Edinburgh in 2020. The focus of this work was ‘The Roles of the Edinburgh, Kelso, and Newcastle Dispensaries in Charitable Relief, 1776-1810’. Her research investigates public health initiatives in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries in Scotland and the north of England, with a particular focus on the patient experience within the dispensary system.