Fascinating True Stories: A Guest Post by Sam Kelly

By Sam Kelly / July 11, 2025 at 12:01 am

You’ve heard their songs, admired their impact on history, even swooned over their written words, but… do you know what they were smoking? This is an immensely entertaining exploration of icons puffing the pipe, sipping the sauce and more. Read on for an exclusive essay from author Sam Kelly on writing Human History on Drugs.

Paperback $16.50 ~~$22.00~~

Human History on Drugs: An Utterly Scandalous but Entirely Truthful Look at History Under the Influence

By Sam Kelly

In Stock Online

Paperback $16.50 ~~$22.00~~

A lively, hilarious, and entirely truthful look at the druggie side of history’s most famous figures, including Shakespeare, Queen Victoria, and the Beatles, from debut author (and viral historical TikToker with nearly 100K followers) Sam Kelly

I grew up reading everything I could get my hands on. Even if it was the back of a cereal box or a shampoo bottle, I just really loved the experience of reading. I collected information like a magpie gathering shiny objects.

I especially loved stumbling upon fascinating true stories. Some people think history is boring. But history is everything that has ever happened (literally) – so, sure, it includes some boring parts, but it also includes all the coolest stuff that’s ever happened. If you think history is dull, you’re focusing on the wrong parts. So I started gathering together all the best stories. Who wouldn’t want to read a book filled with really cool stories from throughout history?

Then I started noticing themes. Lots of stray mentions about historical figures using drugs – but books would bat away these drug-related facts away in a sentence or two. I’d think to myself: “Why are you ignoring this part of the story? It’s really entertaining!” It was like seeing gold nuggets in the dirt and walking right past them.

As I dug deeper, the revelations kept piling on: Scientists found cannabis inside the mummy of one of Egypt’s greatest pharaohs. Cannabis was encrusted on pipe fragments unearthed in William Shakespeare’s backyard. A well-regarded pope in the late 1800s loved cocaine wine so much that he appeared in a full-page ad for it. Queen Victoria inhaled chloroform and called it “delightful beyond measure.” And Sigmund Freud snorted cocaine for 12 years and wrote a scholarly thesis describing it as a wonder drug. How is it possible people weren’t telling these stories?

Many people with autism tend to hyper-fixate on their interests, and history is clearly one of mine. Being on the spectrum encourages me to have an intense, deep, and driven focus on my research. I’m incapable of browsing casually. I develop an almost physical compulsion to know everything there is to know on a subject.

During the research phase, I don’t limit myself. I look everywhere. I love scrolling through small niche websites and obscure blogs. The trick is to find a stray thread, pull on it, and see where it leads. But I am a historian, not a gossip. I didn’t put anything in my book unless there was concrete corroborating evidence from reputable biographies and publications you know and trust, such as The New York Times, The Atlantic, and NPR.

My goal in writing this book is to promote history, not drug use. I am telling little-known stories about famous people who used drugs to prove to skeptics that history isn’t boring. It is just as fascinating and engaging as any work of fiction. At the end of the day, I want to get people hooked on history and education.

I hope you will think of my book as a gateway drug to history.