Travel with us to meet the gender-defying ruler who demanded to be recognised on their own terms.
In Episode 3 of Time Travelling Queers, Don One is joined by model, entrepreneur and activist Dani St James and historian Paula Akpan to journey to seventeenth-century Central Africa and meet the extraordinary Njinga a Mbande, the 17th century ruler of the kingdoms of Ndongo and Matamba.
For more than forty years, Njinga resisted Portuguese colonisation through fearless diplomacy, military strategy and political brilliance. Defying European expectations of how a ruler should look or behave, Njinga embraced masculine dress, adopted a male-coded title and kept a harem of male concubines.
Together, Don, Dani and Paula unpack one of history's most fascinating and complex leaders, exploring colonial resistance, gender, power, diplomacy and the legacy of a ruler whose story has too often been overlooked.
Expect political intrigue, battlefield strategy, royal drama and a history lesson that proves there was never just one way to rule.
History has never been this queer.
#ttqpod
Website: www.timetravellingqueers.com
Instagram: @timetravellingqueers
Follow Don One on Insta: @don1drag
A Molly House Media Production.
www.mollyhousemedia.com
Host : Don One
Guest : Dani St James
Historian : Paula Akpan
Creator, Writer & Director : David Mark Graham
Writer & Producer : Marie Horner
Executive Producer : Rishi Khosla
Set Designer : Ellie Koslowsky
Sound Designer : Jon Gray
Dubbing Mixer : Sam Morris
Theme music Composer : Adiescar Chase
Special thanks to the incredible historians who gave their time and knowledge as we developed this show; Claire Mead, Jas Bevan Nas, Tim May, Ema Sala, Tallulah Smart, Kit Heyam, Ess Grange, Jonty Stern, Kit Green and Siobhan McGuirk.
Recorded at www.storyhousestudios.co
CHAPTERS
0:00 - 03:41 Intro
03:42 - 04:36 Time Travel
04:37- 12:22 No Kings. No Pronouns. Only Rulers!
12:22 - 16:59 Nepo Baby
17:00 - 19:15 The UN Could Never. Njinga the Diplomat
19:16 - 20:48 What's on Trend?
20:49 - 24:54 The consequences of Colonialism
24:54 - 33:28 Njinga takes the Kingdom and another
33:29 37:09 Njinga’s legacy
37:10 - 38:53 Sorting out the fare and outro
REFERENCES
When We Ruled: The Rise and Fall of Twelve African Queens and Warriors — Paula Akpan, Trapeze, 2025.
Go buy this book and see all the amazing and extensive research Paula did to write it - go to www.paulaakpan.com
IMAGE CREDIT
Queen Nzinga Mbande (Anna de Sousa Nzinga) by Achille Devéria, printed by François Le Villain, published by Edward Bull, published by Edward Churton, after Unknown artist hand-coloured lithograph, 1830s NPG D34632 © National Portrait Gallery, London
